Crispy Thumbprint Cookies

These cookies are incredible. I can't. stop. eating. them. oh. my. gosh!

I'm really bad at making cookies for some reason. They are so finicky and I never seem to get them out in time before they burn to a crisp. But these... so easy!

This recipe is the simplest thing ever but they are so amazing. Soft, slightly chewy, crispy from the rice krispies and sweet. Yummmm can't stop thinking about them.

I've made them before, you can find the recipe here. Except this time I used raspberry jam, but you could use whatever you'd like!

Cookies & soy milk... what else does a girl need?

Crispy Thumbprint Cookies

OH MY GOOOOODNESS!

This picture does not do these cookies any favor but my words sure will! 

OH MY GOOOOODNESS!

These are so, so, so yummy! My cousin, Ly, made them for her memorial day BBQ! They are slightly crispy and sweet from the jam; simple goodness. She used a recipe from The Cake Mix Bible, basically a cookbook which bases its recipes on cake mixes, amazing really since it's filled with hundreds of delectable recipes which are so simple and relatively cheap to make! I literally ate like 15 of these and I am so ashamed... 

OH MY GOOOODNESS!

MAKE THESE NOW! I MEAN IT! NOW, NOW, NOW!

Oh, and thanks LY (best cookie maker ever)!!!!

Crispy Thumbprint Cookies

Yields: approximately 3 dozen

Recipe from The Cake Mix Bible

Printable Recipe

1 package yellow cake mix

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup water

1 egg

3 cups rice krispies cereal, crushed

6 tbsn. strawberry preserves

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional - she didn't use them)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine cake mix, oil, water and egg until well combined. Add the cereal and fully incorporate until well blended. Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto an un-greased baking sheet. Use your thumb to make an indentation into each cookie, spoon about 1/2 a teaspoon of preserves into each cookie. Bake for 9 - 12 minutes until golden brown. Cool completely and enjoy!

Red Velvet Black & White Cookies

I've always wondered about the mystery that is the Black & White cookie. It seemed like a mystical fantasy cookie to me because I've often heard of it, seen it on blogs far far away, but have never ever tasted one or seen one in a real life bakery. All I knew was that it was delicious (as I had heard many, many times) and I wondered why it was missing from my life!!! So I decided to give them a go and they were definitely yummy. Only strife is that I think the vanilla glaze tastes a little too powdered sugary or fake, next time I'll try flavoring it a little better!

So Joy the Baker once asked her readers, "How do you eat a Black & White cookie?" And sadly, then I was not able to answer. But now, here's my secret: I like to eat right down the middle, then chomp away the vanilla and save the best for last, the chocolate glaze! Delicious if I don't say so myself.

Red Velvet Black & White Cookies

Yields: about 10 large cookies

Original recipe from Joy the Baker, which can be found here.

Printable Recipe

For the cookies:

1 1/4 cup flour

1 tbsn. cocoa powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

5 tbsn. butter, room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tbsn. red food coloring

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup buttermilk

For vanilla glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. light corn syrup

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

For chocolate glaze:

4 oz. semi sweet chocolate

3 tbsn. butter

1 tbsn. light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. In medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Using a mixer, combine the butter with the sugar until fluffy, then beat in the food coloring and the vanilla. Mix in the flour alternately with the buttermilk until well combined and smooth. Place 1/4 cup scoops of batter 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets and spread the batter with a butter knife, but do not make them completely flat, about 1 cm thick. Bake until an inserted toothpick into the center comes out dry, about 10 - 13 minutes. Let the cookies sit for about 5 minutes then transfer them to a rack to cool completely.

To make the glazes, whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla and corn syrup. Add 2 tbsn. of hot water, stir until smooth. In a seperate bowl melt the butter with the chocolate in the microwave for about 1 minute. Add the syrup and stir until smooth. Once the cookies have cooled, face them bottom side up on a clean surface. Spread half of the cookie with vanilla glaze and the other half with chocolate glaze. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to allow the glazes to set and enjoy!

Pecan & Toffee Blondies

I've been wanting to make blondies for a while now since I first encountered them in a sundae at Milk. Conceptually, these blondies should have been delicious. In reality, they were good. But this was due to my own human errs. Because of my obsession with all things cute, I decided to bake these as mini blondie bites... big mistake. I ended up overcooking them a teensy bit due to them being in such a tiny pan! Don't get me wrong, they still had nice flavor but they were just a little hard rather than deliciously moist. One day, when my obsession with cuteness dies down, we shall meet again...

Pecan and Toffee Blondies

Yields: about 10 - 12 bars

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen, original source: How to Cook Everything

Printable Recipe

8 tbsn. butter, melted

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla 

pinch of salt

1 cup flour

1/3 cup pecans, chopped

1/3 cup toffee chips or Heath bars, chopped

Butter an 8x8 pan, set aside. Mix the melted butter with the brown sugar, beat until smooth. Next, beat in the egg, then the vanilla. Add the salt, then the flour. Add the chopped walnuts and Heath bar, incorporate well. Pour into the prepared pan and bake at 350 F for 15 - 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool before cutting into squares. 

(An attempt at) French Macarons

Over this President's Day weekend, I decided that it was time for me to attempt making the ominous French Macaron. I've been scourging food blogs left and right for a recipe that was in cups/ tablespoons/ etc. rather than grams, since I don't have a scale. Finally, after much detective work, I found myself comparing three recipes: one from Martha Stewart, one from David Lebovits, and one from Gale Gand (of the Food Network). I finally decided on Martha's since hers did not involve chocolate (like David's) and also due to the fact that I love her so dearly!

So after getting a result like this from the recipe, you wouldn't think I would have been happy with my results at all:

Though I was quite disappointed with my complete utter failure at French Macarons, I continued to heave ho and popped the flat, ugly, misshapen thing in my mouth. To my surprise, it was very delicious! They were slightly sweet, crispy on the edges, and chewy in the center. When I look back, I probably shouldn't have been so surprised at what my results were since I overlooked a couple of steps and maybe even skipped some crucial ones too but I really love these! I am nixing the title of "French Macarons" and hereby naming them "Crispy Almond Wafers." More fitting indeed. 

In case you are wondering, this is what French Macarons really look like:

Via samanthahahn:

Via chotda: 

Via tell me what you saw:

Here is the recipe if you would like to attempt them yourself:

P.S. I added my notes in red if you would like to try my "Crispy Almond Thins"

French Almond Macarons

Original recipe can be found here. 

3/4 + 1/8 cup of confectioners sugar

1/8 tsp. pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup of slivered almonds, ground finely (I think I ground them for too long, turning it into a paste)

2 small eggs (I used two large and they also weren't at room temperature, which is vital)

pinch of salt

1/8 cup granulated sugar

food coloring, if desired

Preheat oven to 300 F. Sift confectioners sugar into a bowl. Whisk in ground almonds, and sift again, set aside. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat (I just used foil). Using a mixer, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add the salt and then slowly add the granulated sugar one spoonful at a time. Continue beating until medium peaks form (I might have overbeaten them, since I wasn't sure what "medium peaks" meant). Add the half of the almond mixture into the egg whites, fold gently. Add the vanilla and the rest of the almond mixture, incorporating well (I got impatient folding the mixture, and just mixed).

My "medium" peaks:

Transfer the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch plain tip. Pipe the mixture onto the baking sheets, making them 1 1/2 inches in width. Bake until they are slightly firm to the touch, about 18 - 25* minutes, making sure to rotate the pan halfway. Let them cool completely before spreading the insides with filling.

I noticed when I piped the mixture onto the sheet that it was very liquidy and that it started to spread out as soon as I put it on the sheet. 

* I only cooked mine for 10 minutes since they were so thin.

Going into the oven:

Nutella Oatmeal Thins

I decided to shower her in my baked love - so she'd never forget me! So in addition to the wonderful earl grey cupcakes from my previous post, I also made these Nutella Oatmeal Thins. Hopefully all of this sugary goodness will keep her tummy at bay until another visiting opportunity comes by.

These cookies turned out to be wonderfully crisp and almost as thin as a piece of paper! Though they were delicious on their own, I wanted a richer Nutella flavor so I tried sandwiching a layer of Nutella between two crisps and I hit the jackpot! This cookie reminded me of one of my favorite treats, Ferrero Rocher, with the gooey hazelnut chocolate center and a crispy outer layer. Though it wasn't as complex as the many layers in a Ferrero Rocher, the flavor was ALL there!

Nutella Oatmeal Thins

Yields: About 24

Original recipe can be found at Baking Bites

1 cup + 2 tbsn. flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 cup butter, room temp

6 -7 tbsn. Nutella

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 large egg + 1 egg yolk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup of quick cooking oats

Preheat to 350 F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl cream the butter, nutella, and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg and egg yolk, then the vanilla. Gradually blend in the flour mixture and the oats, slowly. Drop teaspoonfuls of batter onto the baking sheet, at least 2 inches apart to allow them to expand. Bake for 10 minutes, and let cool completely. Enjoy! 

Italian Almond Macaroons

I have come to realize that the internet is one of my major vices. The internet itself is not necessarily a bad thing, but the amount of time that I spend on it... now that can be considered vile. One of my most favorite things to do on the internet is to look for recipes on food blogs. And while meandering around the web, I found this very simple and melt-in-your-mouth delicious recipe which the author titled "The Ultimate Holiday Cookie." I mean how could I resist with that title? If you like almonds, you'll absolutely LOVE love love this recipe!

Recipe via Food Gal:

Italian Almond Macaroons:

Yields: About 32 cookies

16 oz. almond paste

1 3/4 cup sugar

4 large egg whites

16 oz. slivered almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment or lightly grease it. Measure almond paste carefully or else mixture will be very sticky! Break into pieces, place in bowl of a food processor with the sugar. Pulse until crumbled finely, and evenly combined with sugar. 

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites into the almond mixture little by little. Once mixed, roll the mixture into 1-inch balls, keeping them as round as possible. Place the slivered almonds into a shallow bowl, roll each ball into the slivered almonds. Place on prepared baking sheets, spacing them 1 inch apart. Bake until a pale gold color, about 15 - 17 minutes. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes.