S'mores Cookies

With fall rolling along and a new set of people to try to impress with my baking skills (my new front end engineering classmates), it was time to head back in the kitchen and bake like crazy. Thanks to a brief break from our hectic coding schedules on Thursday, I was able to generate insane amounts of sugar to compliment all the caffeine we were ingesting to help us all work on our tachycardias.

Would my decision to forgo the traditional autumnal pumpkin spice pay off, or would my new computer savvy classmates call me a n00b and write me off?

S'mores Cookies
Adapted from The Brown Eyed Baker
Servings: 28-36 cookies
Time: 5 hours (inactive for 4)

So much goodness 

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour,
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 5-6 full sized)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 heaping cup miniature marshmallows
1 heaping cup milk chocolate chips
Additional milk chocolate and marshmallows for topping (optional)

Have you ever thought to yourself "There's now possible way cookie dough could be any better."? Well you were wrong.

1. Whisk the flour, graham cracker, baking soda, and salt together in a medium sized bowl.
2. Cream the butter and both sugars together in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes at medium speed). Be sure to scrape down the sides halfway through.
3. Add in the egg, honey, and vanilla until well combined. 
4. Mix the dry ingredients in with the butter until the cookie dough forms. 
5. Stir in the chocolate chips and marshmallows until evenly distributed. 
6. Roll the dough into a large ball, wrap tightly in saran wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours. 
7. Feel like a kid on Christmas eve as you wait for those four hours to pass.
8. Preheat the oven to 325 F. 
9. Roll up the dough into ~ 1-2 tbsp sized balls and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper about one inch apart. Be careful not to have too much marshmallow per ball as this can lead to some weird looking cookies once the marshmallows melt.
10. Bake for 14-18 minutes until the edges start to set and the cookies brown.
11. Keep on the baking sheet and let cool on wire racks for 10 minutes. Then use a spatula to transfer them to the wire racks directly to finish cooling.
12. If you wish, top with melted milk chocolate chips (microwave for 15-30 seconds at a time until smooth) and a marshmallow. Let set in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

I highly recommend the super s'mores variety for minimal extra effort.

There was so much to love about these cookies, which I will place firmly toward the top of all cookies that I have made. The cookie base itself is a hybrid of s'mores and the classic Nestle Tollhouse cookie recipe with graham cracker crumbs taking the place of some of the flour and marshmallows fighting the chocolate chips for interior real estate. Speaking of the marshmallows, aside from adding some amazing gooeyness, they also caramelized nicely in the oven leading to additional unexpected deliciousness (but do be careful not to have too many marshmallows per cookie or they will look like a mess). While I made two versions, one with additional s'mores topping and one without, I would definitely recommend really hammering home all the campfire appeal with the additional toppings. Without much extra effort from making standard chocolate chip cookies (I know melting chocolate in the microwave seems pretty taxing), you can produce a treat that holds its own against just about anything else and brings you back to your childhood.

Hiding the non chocolate covered ones on the bottom.

Oreos and the Grand Rheological Study of Frosting

Recently, after talking to a friend, I was left wondering what I would sell if I could market any of my crafty confectionary crafts. As difficult as this may be to believe, my favorite treats to bake are Whoopie Pies and not Cupcakes, so I started pondering just how viable of a product they could be. While I think the flavor is top notch (especially the coffee version), they do have a tragic flaw in that the filling is far too soft for longevity and transport outside of being nearly constantly refrigerated. Clearly, the best way to approach this would be a comprehensive scientific experiment comparing how various filling respond to stress, shear, and warmth. Or I could just make two different ones, eat a bunch of cookies, and let my stomach brain decide.

Oreos

Chocolate, sugar, and butter. Yes please.

Adapted from Flour owner Joanne Chang
Servings: ~ 20-25 oreos
Time: 4 hours (inactive for 3)

Cookies
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

Fluffy buttercream

1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Buttercream Filling
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 2/3 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk
Pinch of salt

Your log of dough presented without further comment...

1. Whisk the butter and sugar together in a medium bowl until combined. Then whisk in the vanilla and melted chocolate. Stir in the egg until fully incorporated.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt together.
3. Stir the dry ingredients into the butter mix with a wooden spoon until a thick dough forms. 
4. Realize you forgot to add half of the butter, hastily add the rest, and pray to God it doesn't affect the final results, but vow to not let your readers make the same mistake by actually writing how many sticks it is...
5. Cover and set aside for 1 hour at room temp until firm.
6. Put the dough on a long sheet of parchment paper and roll it out into a rough log approximately 10" long by 2.5" in diameter. 
7. Laugh at what your rough log looks like because you are an adult.
8. Put the log at one of the edges of the parchment paper. Then roll it up and into a nicer log fully covered by the parchment paper.
9. Refrigerate for 2 hours. You may need to re-roll it every 15-20 minutes or so to maintain its shape. I highly recommend you just be lazy and roll the dice. 
10. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
11. Cut the dough into 1/4" thick pieces. Then place the slices on baking sheets lined with parchment paper and space them ~ 1" apart.
12. Bake for 17-20 minutes. Take them out when they are firm when touched in the center. Let them cool on the cookie sheets so they firm up slightly more. Be careful not to overbake them. 
13. Make the filling by beating the butter on low speed in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 30 seconds. Add in the vanilla and powdered sugar until smooth. Beat in the milk and salt until you have a somewhat thick yet spreadable mixture.
14. Put ~ 1 tbsp of filling in between two fairly consistently shaped cookies and make your cookie sandwich.
15. Prepare the other filling 

They look so lonely without the cream filling.

Let's start with discussion of the cookies. These were super tasty Oreo substitutes that were definitely worth the effort. I did find them to be a little salty, but that could be a major plus for those who are super into the whole salty-sweet combo (or you could drop the salt to 1/2 tsp if that's not your thing). The chocolate really came through, and the resulting taste was a beautiful mix of brownie and traditional Oreo. Structurally, the cookies highly resembled their Oreo counterparts, so be careful as they may be somewhat brittle if you try to break them or cut them up. The accompanying crunch was just begging to be counterbalanced by delicious creamy filling, and fortunately, we had two options.

Oreo Filling

Also the world's most delicious caulk.

From King Arthur Flour

Servings: just barely enough

Time: 5 minutes

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

Pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp cold water, or enough to bring the filling together

1. Beat together the sugar, shortening, salt, and vanilla until you have large dry crumbs. 
2. Add the water and beat until stiff but spreadable. 
3. This is best used by first rolling into a ball and then smushing between two cookies. 

Traditional Oreo filling that is resistive to the elements

The much fluffier and sweeter buttercream counterpart

Each filling presented its own unique strengths and weaknesses. The buttercream filling from Flour was by far the sweeter and tastier of the two, which worked wonders with the aforementioned salty cookie. However, it was still like any other buttercream and would likely not respond to warmth as well, although it did handle being out in room temp for an entire work day pretty well (and much better than my usual cream cheese based ones would have). On the other hand, the more traditional, shortening based Oreo filling was an almost exact rendering of the product we all know and love. It was essentially a brick wall when it came to heat and force to deliver the best prospects for future sales. Unfortunately, it was the clear loser in the taste department (although still quite good) as the buttercreams disappeared far more rapidly. With some tinkering, though, I think this could be exactly what I was looking for. Perhaps some hybridization of the two would provide exactly the balance I seek, or maybe some additional flavors being incorporated could sweeten things up just the right amount. Despite some remaining questions, this was a rare experiment where everyone came out a winner.

Funfetti Explosion Cookies

June has been a pretty quiet month for the blog, but not for lack of working on it. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for a big, fun announcement months in the making! Meanwhile, I decided to get back to work in the kitchen and enjoy a stormy Sunday baking. First up, I needed to feed my crippling sprinkle addiction (see Pop Tart Cake and Funfetti Waffles) while attempting to recreate the magical childhood sugar rush that was DunkAroos.

Funfetti Explosion Cookies
Adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction and Fresh April Flours
Servings: 24 cookies
Time: 4 hours (inactive for 3)

The most important ingredient in the world

Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk, room temp
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sprinkles

Frosting
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups Funfetti Cake Mix
6 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted

1. Cream the butter and and sugar together in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 1-2 minutes until light and fluffy.
2. Mix in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch and salt together. 
4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mix in 3 batches. The batter will take some mixing before it forms a cohesive dough.
5. Stir in sprinkles and look at all the pretty colors.
6. Wrap tightly in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. 
7. Watch tons of Netflix while you wait until you feel thoroughly judged by all the "Are you still watching?" questions.
8. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
9. Roll dough into ~ 1 1/2 tbsp balls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. 
10. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges start to firm up and brown slightly. Let cool on the baking sheet for 3-5 minutes then transfer to wire racks to finish cooling.
11. Turn your attention to the ever important task of making frosting. Smooth the cream cheese in your stand mixer still fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the cake mix and milk in two batches until smooth. Stir in the vanilla. Then add the powdered sugar in two batches until fully incorporated. 
12. Frost the cookies and enjoy.

They're beautiful!

The star of this show was definitely the wonderfully colorful cookies. Sugar cookies can get a bad rap for being kind of boring, but there was nothing mundane about these soft, chewy delights. Chilling was key to produce beautiful cookies that did not spread into horrible mutantations, and they were definitely worth the wait. While the cookies were everything I hoped for, the frosting did not quite reach DunkAroo levels of amazing. The frosting has a great velvety smoothness thanks to the cream cheese, but the taste wasn't quite what I expected. There is an odd hint of pudding thanks to funfetti cake mix having pudding in it that distracted from the deliciousness. Next time, I think adding sprinkles to yellow cake mix would be a better way to go. Despite this shortcoming, I still found myself eating the frosting straight from the bowl (I mean it's sugar and cake, so even when it's not at its best, it can't be all that bad) and had to restrain myself from eating more cookies to make room for my second baked dish of the day- super secretive cupcakes (I imagine all readers now have unhealthy levels of anticipation and intrigue following all these cryptic remarks).

One day I will succeed and also be this extreme!

May the Fourth be with You: Wookie Pies

A long time ago in a kitchen far far away,

Kid Terry was absolutely obsessed with Star Wars. He desperately wanted to be Luke Skywalker and frequently reenacted the most climactic lightsaber battles when no one else was around. He beat the video games hundreds of times and studied every moment of the original trilogy even more. One day, he got the most exciting (and soon to be disappointing) news of his life. As a hopeful Jedi padawan of only 13, he convinced his mother to brave the barren wasteland and forty year olds making R2D2 noises of Tatooine the line for tickets to Episode 1. While this surely led to him not having a serious girlfriend until college, he was not deterred in achieving his goal of being among the first to see the film and continuing to work on his sweet lightsaber moves.

Now, with a new trilogy set to premiere later this year and surely erase all the bad vibes from the prequels our now much older and far more dashing hero must find a way to make this Star Wars Day epic. Knowing this would require becoming one with the force and channeling the spirits of warriors past Yoda, Chewbacca, and Darth Vader, Terry sought out the help of rebel kitchen alliance leader Kathryn to properly pay tribute to one of the greatest influences of his childhood...

Darth Vader
Adapted from Alton Brown and Sprinkles Cupcakes
Time: 120 minutes (inactive for 60)
Servings: 8-12 wookie pies

Even when finished it still looks like melted chocolate

Cookies
6 oz. 54% bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 3/4 oz. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temp
6 oz. light brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temp
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3 oz. 70% bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

No one ever said the dark side would be this delicious

Filling
1/2 cup strawberries, pureed
2 sticks unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold
Pinch of coarse salt
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
2 tsp vanilla extract
Thinly chopped strawberries, optional

All too easy...

1. Embrace the dark side.
2. Melt the 54% and unsweetened chocolates together in a medium glass bowl over two 30 second intervals, stirring in between. If additional melting is necessary, heat 10 second at a time until smooth. Set aside and let cool for ~15 minutes.
3. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl.
4. Cream the butter and brown sugar in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes).
5. Beat the eggs and vanilla together in a small bowl. Add to the creamed mixture on low speed until fully incorporated. 
6. Pour in the melted chocolate and mix to combine. 
7. Add in the flour mixture and stir until just incorporated. 
8. Fold in the 70% chocolate. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
9. Make the filling by beating the butter and salt together in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Add the confectioner's sugar one cup at a time until smooth. Mix in 3 tbsp of pureed strawberries and the vanilla at low speed. Fold in extra strawberries if desired. Be careful not to overdue it on the strawberry puree or you'll get some ugly curdling.
10. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
11. If you're trying to make awesome shapes, roll the chilled dough about 1/4"-1/2" thick. Lightly flour your cookie cutter and carefully press and remove each shape. If not, roll into balls and flatten then lay the dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Bake for 10-14 minutes until the edges are done.
12. Let set on the baking sheets for 3-5 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool.
13. Assemble whoopie pies with frosting in the middle.

Now presenting- the just as intimidating and slightly melted looking Vader

First up, we had our ultimate bad boy Darth Vader inspired wookie pies that fell into the dark side (of chocolate) and wielded a fierce red strawberry buttercream. The cookies themselves had a fudge-like quality and really brought out the best of dark chocolate, while the sweet filling was bursting with strawberry flavor and countered the darkness magnificently. Of all our efforts, these were the most like a traditional whoopie pie.

I would easily (Darth) Maul someone to get my hands on these.

Yoda
Adapted from Real House Moms and Alton Brown
Time: 120 minutes (inactive for 60)
Servings: 12-16 Yoda-sized wookie pies

Is it guac or frosting? It's a trap!

Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp lime juice
2 tsp lime zest
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups all-purpose flour

Filling
4 avocados, pitted and peeled
2-3 tbsp lime juice
1/2 lb powdered sugar, sifted
2-4 heaping tbsp cool whip

Eat you, I will.

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Whisk the baking soda, baking powder, salt, and flour together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugar together in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy.
4. Mix in the egg, vanilla, lime juice, and lime zest.
5. Slowly add in the flour, one cup at a time, until just incorporated. 
6. Refrigerate for 60 minutes. 
7. Make the filling by beating the avocado and lime juice together using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer until it lightens in color (about 2 minutes). Add the powdered sugar gradually and beat until smooth. Adjust the lime juice to your desired level. Mix in cool-whip and set aside in the fridge. 
8. Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4"-1/2" thick and cut out using a floured cookie cutter, or roll into a long tube and cut ~1/4 to 1/2 inch thick slices on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or silicone mats. 
9. Bake for 13-15 minutes, rotating once halfway through, until the edges just start to brown.
10. Assemble the wookie pies with avocado frosting in the middle.
11. Ready for adventure, you must be.

The force is strong with these ones.

Much like Luke deciding to trust a 2 foot tall bald troll doll with grammar issues with his training, our decision to make Yoda themed cookies was a big risk that paid off huge. With a little additional inspiration from the other big day of the week (Cinco de Mayo), Kathryn and I settled on an appropriately colored lime and avocado combo. The lime flavor was strong and paired nicely with the creamy avocado filling for the most unique wookie pie in the galaxy that gives a new hope to the future of desserts.

It's like you're staring straight into the heart of Dagobah.

Chewbacca
Adapted from the previously seen Super Bowl Whoopie Pies
Time: 60 minutes
Servings: 8-12 wookie pies

1 batch Chocolate Coffee Cookies (with 1 tsp extra ground espresso)
1 batch Coffee Cream Cheese Frosting (with 7 total tbsp espresso and 1 tsp vanilla)

Look at how happy Chewie is! He clearly knows he has a delicious future ahead of him.

1. Be tired of writing up recipes, and be thankful that you already had this one under your belt.
2. Don't even bother trying to make awesome shapes with this batter. Also, I highly recommend using silicone mats for these so they maintain some height and don't spread as much.

These aren't the shapes you're looking for...

Seeing as I have been perfecting this recipe since right after the inception of the blog, it should come as no surprise that these were the best of the day. This batter is the most unruly of the bunch, so I was fully expecting bad results with the cookie cutters, but none of that mattered once the powerful coffee aroma filled the air. Just like their imposing wookie namesake, these made their presence known in a big way. In the end, these remained the Empire Strikes Back of whoopie pies.

Frosting fixes everything- ugly cookies, wampa rampages, carbonite imprisonment...

It's important to find excuses to ingest your weight in sugar celebrate all of the important things in life. As part of my new life in a new city, I'm making a point to bake more for all the big occasions like New Year's, Easter, six month puppyversaries, and Pi Day (my apologies to Arbor Day-maybe next year). My day of baking Wookie Pies with Kathryn was by far the most ambitious and quite possibly the best. Now, just 7 more months of building up insane amounts of hype in my brain until The Force Awakens. Hopefully, with the help of new baking buddy Kathryn, I just might make it.

Do or do not. There is no try.

Super Bowl Coffee Whoopie Pies

For last year's Super Bowl, I may have gone slightly overboard by making a dish for each team (see Denver's Double Cheddar Beer Bread and Seattle's White Mocha Caramel Frappuccino Cupcakes), so this year I decided to consolidate my baking into one mega-cookie encompassing both teams with the New England staple whoopie pie featuring a coffee cream cheese filling in honor of the land of Starbucks.

Coffee Whoopie Pies
Adapted from this post, Mrs. Fields, and Food Network
Time: 60 minutes (plus cooling)
Servings: 6 giant whoopie pies

Properly mixed batter

Cookies
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp ground espresso
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup white sugar
1 cup salted butter, softened
3 large eggs, room temp
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Sugar and butter made better with caffeine!

Filling
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
2 cups powdered sugar
3-5 tbsp freshly brewed espresso (I used Cafe Bustelo)

1. Preheat the oven to 300 F.
2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, ground espresso, and cocoa powder together in a large bowl. Set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugars together in a stand mixer until they form a grainy paste.
4. Mix in the vanilla and one egg at a time until fully incorporated. 
5. Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture in several batches. Be careful not to overmix.
6. Stir in the chocolate chips.
7. Scoop ~ an ice cream scoop's worth of batter onto a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking sheet. This is key to get the right cookie height and texture.
8. Bake for 18-22 minutes, rotating once halfway through. When the edges start to firm up, they are done.
9. Let cool on the baking sheets for an additional 3 minutes. Then transfer to wire racks to finish.
10. Make the filling by creaming the butter, salt and cream cheese together until smooth using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment. Make sure the cream cheese and butter are near room temp or you'll get nasty lumps.
11. Mix in the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. 2 cups gives a good level of sweetness that isn't overwhelming, but feel free to adjust.
12. Add in the brewed espresso 1 tbsp at a time until you reach the desired level of amazing coffee flavor. 
13. Once the cookies have cooled, assemble the whoopie pies by scooping frosting in between two giant cookies.
14. Let cool in the fridge until ready to serve (at least 1 hour).

They already look so perfect and they're not even sandwiched around frosting yet!

Whoopie pies may just be my favorite dessert, and this was the closest I have come to recreating the SusieCakes awesomeness that introduced me to them. Using a silicone baking sheet produced the best cookie quality yet, as the cookies spread less and maintained their jaw-unhinging height better than ever before (it's also important not to overmix or you'll get a batter that's far too thin). The coffee flavor did not really come through in the cookie (thanks to all the awesome chocolate), but the frosting more than made up for it, as the coffee alterations led to the best whoopie pie filling I have made yet.

This juggernaut of a cookie sandwich casts a large shadow over all other baked goods

Now enjoy a special addendum on an alternate version of the cookie that I made during one of my Robin Night Shift care packages.

The Radioactive Cherry Almond Cookie Option

I was worried they were going to jump up and attack me.

Additional Ingredients (cookie only)

Maraschino cherries, drained and cut in half

Almond slivers

Switch in dark chocolate cocoa powder 

This cookie previously appeared in the toxic waste scene at the end of Robocop.

1. Go to the store hoping to get fresh cherries for some amazing cookies. Realize it's winter, and there are no fresh cherries available, so settle for super sweet, bright red maraschino cherries.
2. Follow the above recipe for making the cookies but substitute in the dark chocolate cocoa powder, and stir in the cherries and almonds at the end.
3. Be amazed that something that looks like a melting alien can taste so good!

Success! One of them looked normal and edible!

Despite their odd, radioactive appearance, these cookies were actually pretty tasty. I was hoping to recreate the amazingness of these Dark Chocolate Cherry Almond Muffins in unhealthier seeming cookie form, and for the most part I succeeded. This definitely will require some revisiting with fresh cherries at a later day to achieve maximum cookie excellence.

Sriracha Cookies aka The Hot Robin

Sometimes you get an idea that's just crazy enough to work. Fortunately, I had plenty of crazy to turn into culinary thoughts thanks to spending far too much time surrounded by only animals during the current job hunt. I had previously made the already insane Robin cookies (they're curry, cardamom, and cinnamon based, how does that even work as a dessert?) once back in Houston, but their inspiration was not able to enjoy them. As a result, it only seemed right to finally make some for her in her night shift care package (see Chicken Fideo Soup). But I would not be satisfied with simply repeating myself. No, I would make them even more ridiculous than ever by adding the next most ludicrous cookie component I could think of, the spice of the gods known as Sriracha, to complete my Frankensteinian quest and breathe life into THE HOT ROBIN!

The Hot Robin
Modified from The Spice House and My Original Robin Cookie the Triple C
Servings: 36-48 cookies
Time: 30 minutes (+ 4 hours resting)

The batter should provide a nice tingle when tried

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2-1 tsp ground cardamom
1/2-1 tsp cinnamon
Sriracha to taste
1 cup salted, roasted pecans, chopped

1. Get really bored during your search for a job while waiting for your significant other to return home and allow your Netflix binging to continue.
2. Cream the butter and brown sugar together.
3. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until thoroughly incorporated.
4. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl then add in multiple increments until smooth. 
5. Stir in the pecans.
6. Get brave and decide to put sriracha in a batch because surely this can't be the craziest thing you've ever done. This makes 4 batches of cookies, so I'd suggest reserving at least half to give you the full experience of sriracha vs. sriracha-free. You want to add enough to give a light red tint to the dough. Fortunately, cookie dough is fun to eat and delicious, so do a taste test before proceeding.
7. Wrap each batch in saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
8. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
9. Slice the dough into the desired size cookies (around 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick) and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
10. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden.
11. Let cool on the baking sheets for 2 minutes then transfer to wire racks to finish.
12. Enjoy comparing both equally delicious versions of The Robin.

You can practically see the spice waiting to be devoured

Sure there may have been 3 batches of standard Robin cookies to ensure our sweet-tooths would not be disappointed, but I was, nevertheless, still worried about the outcome. I needed this win, and I got it. The Hot Robin was a tremendous success! Just like it would have in an actual meal, the sriracha worked beautiful magic with the curry and cardamom to enhance the already unique experience. Reminiscent of my Fiery Red Hot Red Velvet Cupcakes, the cookies featured a fantastic tingly hit of spice on the backend without being overwhelmed by it yielding a cookie worthy of its namesake. For best results, pair with tea and a good book.

Or if you're not quite adventurous enough, you could try the standard, less colorful but equally delightful Robin cookie.

Farewell Cooking Tour: Eggless Snickerdoodle Nutella Cookie Cake

For my final day of work,  I needed to really hit my coworkers hard with the reality that I was leaving. One last time, I was going to have to delight them with my baked goods and really put the pressure on Kristina, the young, up and coming chemist/baker in the office (clearly I started a trend).

Since I had nothing to worry about the night before other than continuing my recent, improved Smash Bros. play, I decided to make two final delectable entries in my quest to cause our company's insurance premiums to go up. After much careful consideration, it was determined that Nutella was going to help me make it extra memorable.

First up was supposed to be my go-to eggless snickerdoodle cookies now filled with Nutella, but fate and my attention span had other plans.

Snickerdoodle Nutella Cookie Cake

Adapted from the Previously Seen Cookie

Servings: 1, 9" round cookie cake

Time: 35 minutes

Nutella Layer!

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar, 

1 cup dark brown sugar

4 tbsp sour cream

4 tbsp milk

2 tbsp vanilla

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2-3 tsp cinnamon

Nutella (lots)

Cinnamon Sugar combo for dusting

Failing to grease the pan may lead to structural damage 

1. Decide to make Nutella filled snickerdoodles. 
2. Give up after making one batch of cookies because it takes too long.
3. Have a eureka moment where you realize you can just make one giant cookie.
4. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
5. Cream the butter and sugars together in a stand mixer.
6. Mix in the milk, sour cream, and vanilla.
7. Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon until thoroughly incorporated.
8. Spray a 9" round cake pan.
9. Spread half the mixture in a layer in the pan.
10. Add a layer of Nutella.
11. Spread on the remaining mixture for a second layer (try to keep it between 1/2 to 2/3 full).
12. Dust the top with cinnamon and sugar.
13. Bake for 18-24 minutes. This will be tricky to tell because the snickerdoodles will rise up high while in the oven. Following removal, they will drop back down for an extremely dense cake.
14. Let cool. 
15. Frost if this isn't enough of a sugar bomb for you.

The single batch of cookies that were made. They were just as delicious.

The decision to turn this into a cookie cake may have been the greatest decision I ever made at my old company. The Nutella and snickerdoodle combined for an awesome, gooey cinnamon explosion that just might have been the best cookie cake I have ever had (take that mall cookie stands!). The dense (in both weight and flavor) cake provided the perfect change-up from typical dessert fare to really get my final baking adventure off to a killer start. Icing the cake with the leftover frosting from my other dessert may have been overkill, but no one seemed to notice, as the cake was gone before lunchtime.

Frosting- perfect for covering up cookie cake deformities and for that morning pick me up

Stay tuned for the for even more sugary, hazelnutty sweetness with Cafe du Monde Cupcakes.

Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies

It's oddly difficult to figure out where one cookie ends and the other begins.

Following two days of my attempted Harry Potter Vacation Detox, I relapsed into a sugar and chocolate haze(lnut). Given the success of my previous foray into low ingredient count desserts, I decided to break up the lack of fictional wizard monotony of the work week with some 3-ingredient cookies. Naturally, I altered the recipe to include one more ingredient because I still just can't trust these minimal recipes fully.

Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies
Adapted from Chilly Frosting

Soon, I would assert my dominance on the hazelnuts

Servings: 12-18 cookies
Time: 60 minutes

1 1/3 cup hazelnuts
2/3 cup + 1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 egg whites
A pinch of salt
Semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

I was still highly skeptical of this nut and sugar batter.

Double boiler!

1. Read ingredients and wonder why no one ever counts salt when they're making these "3"-ingredient recipes.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 F. 
3. Toast the hazelnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet for 13-15 minutes or until fragrant and lightly golden brown.
4. Remove the now loose skins and let cool.
5. Drop the oven temperature to 300 F.
6. Pulse the hazelnuts in a food processor to a coarse consistency.
7. Beat the egg whites using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment until stiff peaks form.
8. Lightly fold the hazelnut and sugar into the egg whites until a batter forms.
9. Drop the batter onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper in ~ tbsp sized amounts about 1- 1/2 inches apart.
10. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.
11. Let cool for 2 minutes on the baking sheet then carefully transfer to a wire rack. The cookies and bottoms may crack.
12. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler.
13. Dip the cookies in once they've cooled. Place them on parchment paper in the fridge for at least half an hour to let the chocolate set.

The cookies looked sadly plain...

For a recipe that involved so few ingredients, this was surprisingly labor intensive (peeling/shelling nuts individually continues to be my least favorite baking activity alongside zesting citrus). As expected, the rich toasted hazelnut taste and sugar dominated the flavor of this cookie (seriously, don't forget to toast the nuts). This combo resulted in a crispy outside and an intriguing soft, chewy inside. In an attempt to not be overwhelmed by the sugar bomb, I used some semi-sweet chocolate (but I would recommend darker varieties for full effect). This extra step was worth it because the chocolate really helped balance things out and made these plain cookies look even more amazing. If you wanted to make these simple cookies even more complex, I'd recommend incorporating some nutella or a hint of espresso into the chocolate dip.

...which chocolate always cures!

Luckily, I was able to stop myself after just two cookies and save the rest for my coworkers. Going cold turkey with candy just wasn't as successful as I had hoped.