ALMOND BUTTER COOKIES

I cannot stop eating these cookies.  Not too sweet, deluding myself that they are good for me – a deadly combination.

Just follow my PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES recipe, substitute your favorite Almond Butter for the Peanut Butter and toasted sliced almonds for the peanuts.  Make sure you use almond meal, and that will completely seal the deal.  Good and good for you, right???

Good luck…

APPLE SQUARES

These are a sweet, sorta healthy bar dessert, adapted from allrecipes.com and was originally recommended by Jenn’s Bookshelves.  I woke up yesterday thinking about this recipe, got up, and got going on it.  When asked what I was making, I answered, “Something I don’t think anyone but me will like!”  But I was wrong, 2/3 of the family loved them.  Too sweet for breakfast, though, even for me.

½ cup AP flour

½ cup almond meal

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

1 egg

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ cup butter, melted

½ cup chopped apple (about one medium apple)

½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts, toasted lightly and chopped

little bit of cinnamon sugar (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 x 9” pan.

Whisk together first six ingredients in a medium bowl.  Beat egg in a larger bowl, then beat in sugars and vanilla.  Slowly beat in melted butter.  Stir in flour mixture; batter will be stiff.  Stir in apples and walnuts until evenly distributed.  Spread batter into pan and sprinkle with a bit of cinnamon sugar if desired. Bake for about 30 minutes, until bars spring back when lightly touched.  Cool in the pan, then cut into 16 squares.

Printable version here:  APPLE SQUARES

EASY HOLIDAY COOKIES TO MAKE WITH KIDS

The girls and I love making, giving and eating holiday cookies, but frankly, my patience runs thin after too much supervision of fiddley activity.  These two slice n’ bake recipes appealed:  LEMONY THINS and PECAN SANDIES.   I made the dough (with some assistance) the day before, then supervised the slicing, baking and decorating the next day.

Recently tried a GINGERSNAP recipe from smitten kitchen – and it rounds out the group well.  Light, simple, crispy, not-too-sweet cookies that are great to serve or to give as gifts.

Put the butter on the counter for a couple of hours on Saturday, make the dough, refrigerate,  and bake on Sunday!

LEMONY THINS

Adapted from Bon Appetit, December 2011.  We also tried the Peppermint Meringues from this issue (to use the leftover egg whites) but that recipe is terrible!  James successfully added peppermint and red food coloring to his usual meringue recipe, which I may or may not get him to share.

 

2 ½ cups AP flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ cup sugar

2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 large egg yolks

 

1 ¼ cups confectioner’s sugar

2 tablespoons (or more) lemon juice

Decorative sanding sugar (we used silver – can be found in Cake decorating supply stores)

 

Whisk flour and salt together.  Beat butter, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla, until light and fluffy.  Add egg yolks and beat to blend.  Add flour and mix on low speed, just to blend.  Divide dough in half; roll each half into a 2” log.  Wrap tightly in plastic and chill overnight.

TIP:  To make your dough logs more cylindrical, re-use a paper towel cardboard tube (or 3 toilet paper tubes).  Once log is formed and wrapped in plastic, slide inside tube(s) and roll on a hard surface.

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Keeping second log in fridge, cut log of dough into scant ¼” slices.  Place on baking sheet, about ½” apart.

 

Bake 14 – 16 minutes, until lightly golden around the edges and on the bottom.  Cool on sheets for a few minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

 

Make icing:  whisk confectioner’s sugar and 2 tablespoons lemon juice in a small bowl, adding more juice to thin if necessary.  Drizzle or spread over cooled cookies, and then sprinkle with decorative sugar.  Let stand until icing sets completely, at least 15 minutes. Store in airtight container between sheets of waxed paper.  Keeps for about 3 days.

PRINTABLE VERSION HERE: LEMONY THINS

 

PECAN SANDIES

These are adapted from a Food & Wine recipe.  And worth the high price of pecans these days.  Rich, buttery, shortbread-ey, but not too sweet.

 

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1/3 cup sugar

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups AP flour

1 cups pecans, coarsely chopped

Turbinado or sanding sugar for sprinkling

 

Beat butter, sugar and salt together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Beat in vanilla.  Add flour and mix at low speed, until dough just comes together.  Add pecans and mix until incorporated and broken up a bit.  Divide dough in two pieces and form into logs 2” thick.  Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate overnight.

TIP:  To make your dough logs more cylindrical, re-use a paper towel cardboard tube (or 3 toilet paper tubes).  Once log is formed and wrapped in plastic, slide inside tube(s) and roll on a hard surface.

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.  Keeping second log in fridge, cut log of dough into scant ¼” slices.  Place on baking sheet, about ½” apart.  Place about a pinch of Turbinado sugar on the top of each cookie, then spread and press gently with fingers.

 

Bake 14 – 16 minutes, until lightly golden around the edges and on the bottom.  Cool on sheets for a few minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.  Store in airtight container between sheets of waxed paper.  Keeps for at least 3 days.

PRINTABLE VERSION HERE: PECAN SANDIES

GINGERSNAPS

Just a tiny bit adapted from Smitten Kitchen.  Using the blackstrap molasses makes ‘em very dark and rich.

 

1 ¼ cups AP flour

1 cup WW flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon allspice

¼ teaspoon finely ground white or black pepper

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 large egg

1/3 cup unsulphured molasses (blackstrap OK)

Turbinado sugar for sprinkling (optional)

 

Whisk together first 8 ingredients.  Beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Add egg and molasses and beat until combined.  Mix in dry ingredients on low until just combined.

 

Wrap dough in plastic wrap (don’t worry if it’s soft) and chill 2 hours – overnight, until firm.

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.  Roll dough into 1 inch balls (this was pretty sticky, so I recommend rolling all the balls at once – keep in fridge covered with plastic wrap until time to bake).  Dip balls lightly in turbinado sugar if using.  Arrange, sugar side up, about 2” apart on baking sheets.

 

Bake 10 – 15 minutes (shorter for chewier cookies, longer for crunchy).  Cool for a few minutes on baking sheet then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.  Stores well in an airtight container.

PRINTABLE VERSION HERE: GINGERSNAPS

DARK CHOCOLATE COOKIES

These came from Gourmet, Feb 2003 originally.  I made these with more butter than called for the first time by accident, but after making them the “right” way, I like my accidental way better.  These are chewy and chocolate cake-like and not too sweet.  And VERY easy to make.

¾ cup AP flour

¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift together first 4 ingredients (usually I would whisk, but sifting gets rid of the lumps that cocoa tends to have).

Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Mix in dry ingredients.  Batter will be a bit sticky.

Using a spoon to scoop and a spoon to scrape (don’t even try with an ice cream scooper with this dough) drop tablespoon-fulls of dough a good 2 inches apart (these spread!).  Bake about 10 minutes until just set.  Cool on racks.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

SPICED ALMOND COOKIES

These are adapted from a Martha Stuart recipe (I do not get this magazine but was intrigued and ripped it out of a friend’s).  MS used blanched almonds, but TJ’s has sliced with the skins on and they are better for you and are just as good.

2 ¼ cups AP flour

½ cup WW flour

¼ cup almond meal

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 ½ cups brown sugar (not packed)

2 large eggs, room temperature

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 ½ teaspoons ginger

½ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon cloves

about ¼ cup sliced raw almonds

Whisk together first 5 ingredients.  Cream together butter and sugar with an electric mixer.  Beat in eggs and spices.  Stir in dry ingredients in 3 batches.

Line two mini or one smallish loaf pan with plastic wrap, enough to wrap up dough.  Press cookie dough into pan(s) and wrap up tightly.  Freeze for 1 ½ hours, or up to (one month).

Preheat oven to 400.  Remove dough from freezer and pan and let soften slightly – you want to be able to slice it thin.  Cut into 1/8 inch slices and place at least 1 inch apart on baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Re-wrap uncut dough and return to freezer.  Sprinkle almond slices on top of cookies and gently press in.  Put in fridge until firm.  Bake 9 – 12 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack.  Repeat until dough is used up.

 

Printable SPICED ALMOND COOKIES

OATMEAL PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES

Based on a Gourmet March 1996 recipe, I reduced the sugar, did my usual flour sub and didn’t use as much chocolate.  These are very satisfying, nicely crun-chewy and a nice variation on regular old chocolate chip.  I think they would be good with raisins, too, but my kids hate dried fruit.

1 ½ cups old fashioned rolled oats

1 cup flour

½ cup whole wheat flour

½ cup almond meal

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 sticks butter, softened

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla

¾ cup peanut butter (ish – hard to measure so I guessed)

2 large eggs

1 cup dark chocolate chunks (or whatever)

In a food processor pulse 1 cup of the oats until ground pretty fine (this seems like a pain, but reading reviews and then doing it myself, I think it does make a difference in texture).  In a large bowl, stir together all oats, flours, baking powder and soda, and salt.

Beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy, then mix in peanut butter and vanilla.  Beat in eggs, one at a time, then add in flour mixture.  Stir in chocolate chunks.  You are supposed to chill for 2 hours at this point, but I made one batch pre- and one post-chill (because I had impatient play date children) and I could not tell a difference.

Plop onto an ungreased cookie sheet (I love my cookie dough scooper now) and bake for 12 – 15 minutes (depending on how crunchy you want them) at 350 degrees.

Click here for printable version of OATMEAL PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES

p.s.

PECAN OATMEAL COOKIES

Adapted from “Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics”. I reduced the sugar quite a bit.

 

1 ½ cups pecan pieces

2 sticks butter, room temperature

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup brown sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup white whole wheat flour

½ cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt (kosher or sea)

3 cups old-fashioned oatmeal

1 ½ cups raisins, if using

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place the pecans on a baking sheet and bake for about 5 minutes, until crisp, but not over-browned.  Set aside to cool.

 

Using an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Beat in eggs and vanilla, one at a time.

 

Whisk dry ingredients, except oats and raisins, together in a medium bowl.  Add the dry ingredients into butter mixture in a few stages, mixing on low.  Stir in the oats, pecans (and raisins if using) just until combined.

 

Using a small ice cream scoop, drop 2 inch mounds of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets.  Bake for 10 – 12 minutes, until lightly browned (they dry out if you over bake.)  Transfer to a baking rack to cool.

Click here for printable version of PECAN OATMEAL COOKIES