It’s that time of the year to bake up a batch of these gingerbread cookies for family and friends. I can’t think of another holiday cookie that brings such a big smile to everyone who receives one of these adorable treats. Once baked and cooled, the fun begins with decorating the gingerbread cookies.
In preparation of making these cookies:
*Check the freshness of your spices especially those that you only use occasionally.
*Meringue powder is the way to go when icing the cookies. Here on Maui they sell Wilton’s brand at Walmart and Safeway.
*Having a small squeeze bottle to decorate the cookies is very useful. It will allow you to draw fine lines and fill in small areas on the cookies.
*Use currants (smaller than raisins) for the eyes. Or skip this and use a drop of icing instead.
*Allow icing to dry thoroughly then package the cookies and freeze for optimal freshness if making days in advance.
These excellent cookies come from King Arthur’s Test Kitchen and were crowned the winner of their 2015 recipe of the year. They described the cookies as being “soft and chewy packed with chips.” Though I won’t turn down a soft and chewy homemade cookie, a crispy cookie is my favorite. It was the “packed with chips” that convinced me to try this recipe. I’m not sure why my cookies turned out crispy but I was thrilled with the outcome. They are crispy throughout (not just the edges) and not too thick or too thin. With that said, they are my new favorite cookie.
The original recipe calls for a small amount of oats. I tested a few batches using old fashioned rolled oats and quick cooking oats and found that the latter produced a chocolate chip cookie in which the oatmeal was barely detectable. If you prefer the oatmeal to be more pronounced, use old fashioned oats.
There is no shortage of chocolate chips in this recipe. That’s what makes these cookies so good.
A quick chill in the refrigerator or freezer helps to firm up the dough which makes it much easier to portion out.
Allow the cookies to set on the sheet pan for a few minutes once they are out of the oven before transferring to a cooling rack. Once cooled, wrap and give some to your family and neighbors. I keep a few stashed in the freezer for an after dinner snack, sometimes eating them before they have time to defrost.
Crispy throughout with lots of chocolate = the perfect cookie.
8 tablespoons (113g) Earth Balance Buttery Sticks for lactose free cookies, or unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (107g) light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup (120g) unbleached all-purpose flour (King Arthur recommended)
1/2 cup (45g) quick cooking or old fashioned oats
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon (scant if using Earth Balance Buttery Sticks) kosher salt
1 1/2 cups (255g) semisweet or dark chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, beat together the butter and sugars until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and add to the butter mixture. Mix until everything is thoroughly incorporated. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, and mix briefly. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Cover the bowl and place in the freezer for about 15 minutes to firm up or place in the refrigerator for about 1 hour.
For medium sized cookies, scoop 1 heaping tablespoon onto cookie sheet (12 balls fit nicely on a cookie sheet allowing for some spreading as cookies bakes).
Bake cookies for 13-16 minutes, until they are light golden brown, with slightly darker edges.
Remove the cookies from the oven, let cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes or until they are set enough to handle. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Continue baking with the remaining dough alternating with cooled cookie sheets.
My friend Michelle’s mom, Tomoe, always has a treat for me when I stop by to deliver produce from our garden. Like me, she is always busy making goodies to give away. Pickled mango, takuan, and mango bread are just a few of the delightful treats she makes. On a recent visit, Tomoe gave me a container of furikake animal crackers. I shared them with my co-workers and they all raved about how tasty they were. So here’s another recipe from Tomoe, who by the way is in her 90’s and still having fun in the kitchen.
The original recipe calls for 2 pounds of animal crackers (Target sells giant tubs in the cookie aisle). I cut the recipe in half and used 1 pound of crackers and made my own version (lactose free).
There are many variations of furikake available. For this recipe, it’s best to use one that has simple ingredients such as sesame seeds and nori (seaweed).
These couldn’t be simpler to make. Prepare the sauce, mix it up with the crackers, sprinkle with furikake, toss and bake.
These crackers bake low and slow for about an hour. You will need to toss them every 15 minutes to ensure they crisp up evenly. I found that after the 1 hour baking time was up, some of the animal crackers were stuck together. Just split them apart with a thin spatula before you set them aside to cool.
Nicely glazed with bits of sesame seeds and nori on each cookie, these are a tasty treat.
½ stick (2 ounces) vegan Buttery Sticks (or regular butter)
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 scant teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons canola oil
Preparation
Heat oven to 250 degrees. Line a rimmed half sheet pan (jelly roll pan) with heavy duty foil.
Pile animal crackers on the foil lined baking sheet. Set aside.
Melt Buttery Stick in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add sugar and salt and stir until dissolved. Remove from heat. Add corn syrup and oil. Whisk to combine. Pour syrup over animal crackers. Using disposable gloves, toss crackers with syrup until evenly coated. Sprinkle furikake over crackers and toss again. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes so the crackers bake evenly. Remove pan from oven to cool. If you notice any crackers stuck to one another, split them before they cool completely. The syrup will harden as the crackers cool. Store crackers in tightly sealed containers. I keep mine in the refrigerator.
These flourless cookies are decadently rich with pockets of melted chocolate tucked beneath their crinkly tops. They are light, with crisp edges and chewy, chocolatey centers. They are pure delight for anyone who enjoys a chocolate treat occasionally (or frequently).
With just 7 ingredients these cookies are easily made in 30 minutes. Two types of chocolate and toasted pecans pair up beautifully.
Egg whites and powdered sugar are what brings the batter together, giving these cookies a wonderful texture. Stash some in the freezer for an anytime chocolate fix.
Sift together powdered sugar, cocoa, and salt in a large bowl.
Whisk egg whites until frothy (hand mixer works great). Stir egg whites and vanilla into powdered sugar mixture. The batter will be very thick. Stir in chopped chocolate and pecans until well combined.
Drop cookies 3-inches apart using a 1½-inch cookie scoop (about 2 tablespoons) on a parchment-lined baking sheet lightly greased (otherwise they will stick) with cooking spray.
Bake until tops are shiny and cracked, about 8 - 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
The perfect chocolate cookie probably doesn’t exist. There are so m any different styles, so why limit yourself to just one? Thin and crispy cookies are one of my favorites, but these thick, chewy cookies packed with chocolate chips are truly delectable. I’ve made them numerous times and always have some stashed in the freezer for that moment when I crave a quick dessert. I adapted the recipe from Melissa at Modern Honey. Melissa makes 8 big cookies like the ones they sell at Levain Bakery in Manhattan. I divided the dough into 12 portions and I can barely finish one of these cookies by myself.
The cookie dough has more than a pound of chocolate chips and nuts combined which makes these cookies particularly delicious.
What’s so cool about these cookies is that there are no specialty ingredients needed and you can make these on the fly because you use cold butter and not butter that needs to sit out for an hour to soften. I do like to use the larger baking chips although regular sized chips will work just fine. I suggest using heaping (rather than level) cups of chocolate chips so that each bite delivers that chocolate experience you would expect in a really good chocolate chip cookie.
The cookie tops are golden brown when done. They smell divine when they come out of the oven. Do your best to resist eating them until they cool down a bit for the perfect cookie texture.
1 cup cold Earth Balance Buttery Sticks (or regular butter) cut into small cubes
1 cup (145g) light brown sugar, lightly packed
½ (99g) cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1½ cups (160g) cake flour
1½ cups (190g) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cornstarch
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon (scant) salt or ¾ teaspoons if using unsalted butter
2 heaping cups (368g) chocolate chips
2 cups (215g) walnuts, roughly chopped
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
With a hand held mixer or stand mixer, cream together the cold butter cubes with the brown and white sugar for about 3 minutes until creamy.
Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each addition.
Stir in cake and all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Mix until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.
Lightly form 12 balls and place 6 on each cookie sheet. Each one should weigh about 4⅛ ounces.
Bake one pan at a time for about 9 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies are light golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cookies rest on the baking sheet for 10 minutes to firm up before transferring to a cooling rack. Repeat with the second batch of cookies.
I was intrigued by this chocolate chip cookie recipe after David Lebowitz raved about it on his blog. A chocolate chip cookie made with tahini? This was a recipe I needed to try for myself. I love tahini and have often used it in savory recipes such as hummus or dressing. After doing a bit of research I found that it is not uncommon to use it in desserts as well. These cookies are the best of both worlds. They are delightfully rich with just a hint of tahini and lots of chocolate in every bite. The fleur de sel is the “icing on the cake.”
David recommends using chocolate chunks. I bought chocolate bars and chopped them into pieces larger than regular chocolate chips which are fairly small and tend to get lost in a cookie. David’s recommendation was spot on. Who wouldn’t want more chocolate in every bite?!
I used a cookie scoop but you can certainly use a tablespoon and form the cookies with your hands.
1 stick (4 ounces) Earth Balance Buttery Sticks at room temperature
⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon tahini, well stirred
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg at room temperature
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup + 2 tablespoons flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
10 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chunks or chocolate chips
Flaky sea salt such as fleur de sel or Maldon
Preparation
Beat the Buttery Stick, tahini, granulated sugar and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for 2 - 3 minutes, until fluffy. (The dough can also be made in a large mixing bowl stirred wth a spatula).
Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides. Add the whole egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Continue to mix for another minute, stopping the mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Be sure the eggs are well incorporated.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and kosher salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chunks. Cover and refrigerate the dough until well chilled, at least 6 hours or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Form the cookies into rounds using a medium sized (#40) cookie scoop. Place them evenly spaced on the baking sheets, about 3 inches apart (they spread a lot). Bake one pan at a time on the middle rack of the oven rotating the pan from front to back midway during baking. Bake cookies for about 14 minutes until the edges are golden brown. Remove the cookies from the oven and sprinkle with a bit of fleur de sel or Maldon sea salt. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack. Continue to bake the remaining cookies.
