Chocolate Dipped Orange Heaven

I'm not sure if others have had similar experiences during childhood, but I must share this experience with you...

My brother and I were not allowed, under ANY circumstances, to eat mom's Pepperidge Farm Milano Cookies. She only bought them for two reasons: 1.) we were taking a long car trip, or 2.) they were on sale and she had a coupon. No matter the reason though, these precious little commodities were not for kids. They were kept hidden, sometimes even in mom's purse, and if we ever came across them in our searches for a snack, we knew she had the cookies counted so if one was missing, she would know.

Flashforward to the present...

Since moving out of my parents' house years ago, I'm not sure if mom is still as compulsive about her Milanos as she once was but I do know that Pepperidge Farm has struck gold after releasing new flavors of their oh so simple and delicious original Milanos and they now boast 11 different flavors!! No, I certainly haven't tried them all but I definitely have tested out the orange Milanos and was not at all let down. In fact, they are so good that I was inspired to copycat them at home.

Thanks to the help of the butter cookie recipe I was given from Nestie Katie102006 during the WC Recipe Exchange (all recipes are desserts) that she organized, I was able to recreate the orange Milanos for Christmas this year. I realize making the connection between butter cookie and chocolate dipped orange heaven might be a stretch, but part of the fun of this exchange is that we can modify the recipe to our liking. Why a recipe exchange rather than a cookie swap, you ask? Well, Katie and I are part of an online community message board (called What's Cooking, hence WC) on theNest.com where there is a whole slew of other young mostly married women who exchange recipes, stories, thoughts, jokes, and many many questions throughout the day, all day, 7 days a week. And since we're located all over the world, it's slightly impractical to mail a box of cookies to someone during the rush of the Christmas season with the expectation that they will arrive on time and not in a million pieces. So the idea of the WC Recipe Exchange was born. Now, I still don't know who's recipe this is because guessing who the owner of the recipe is is part of the exchange and we will find out after the cut-off date of December 22nd...but whoever you are, THANK YOU!!! This is a wonderful butter cookie recipe that not only stands beautifully on it's own, but also is the perfect base recipe to modify and is seriously one of the easiest cookie recipes I've come across in a while. Please see my modifications in italics below.

I'm also submitting this recipe to Susan (over at Food Blogga) for her Christmas Cookies from Around the World 2007 event as I think these little pieces of heaven will be a nice addition the huge array of cookies Susan is bringing in.

Butter Cookies

• 1 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp almond extract (I used 1 tsp pure vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp pure orange extract)
• 2 1/3 cups flour
• 3 tbsp course sugar
• 2 oz bittersweet choclate
• 2 oz semi-sweet choclate

1. Cream butter. Gradually add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract. Gradually blend in flour.
2. Separate the dough in half, leaving one half of the dough in the bowl. To this dough, add 1/2 tsp pure orange extract. Using a spatula work extract into dough so that it is evenly distributed.
3. This recipe is meant for a cookie press, but I can never get my cookie press to work. So what I do is use a small cookie scoop and flatten the dough into discs. I think this dough could be rolled out and cut with cookie cutters as well. I rolled the dough into logs about 2 inches in diameter, wrapped them in clear plastic wrap and refrigerated for 4 hours. I sliced them with a sharp knife into 1/4" x 2" discs.
4. Place cookies on ungreased baking sheet. Decorate with colored sugar, rainbow nonpareils, or press a thumbrint into the cookies and fill with jam. Also can be baked plain and iced with frosting when cooled. I used coarse sugar.
5. Bake in 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Remove immediately to wire rack to cool.
6. While cookies cool, heat chocolate in a double boiler. After cooling, dip the orange cookies in the melted chocolate and place on parchment paper to cool.

Active prep time: 20 minutes

Inactive prep time: 4 hours

Cook time: 8-10 minutes

Simply Shortbread

One of life's guilty little pleasures for me (and for many others I suppose) is cookies. I like 'em in all shapes, colors, sizes, and flavors and the only requirement is that they don't have nuts. As I've been trying to branch out in my cookie-making skills over the past few of years, shortbread had never been something I attempted. Not sure why though...maybe because it was loaded with butter...or because of how delicate these cookies are, they seem like they would be difficult to make...or because the just seem so plain. I mean, what's a cookie without chocolate or coconut or some kind of dried fruit? Well...simply, it's shortbread.

Shortbread is like the red-headed stepchild of the cookie world - often forgotten because of how plain it looks but loaded with life once you give it a chance. While working in my last job, a new Fellow starting working with the two docs I worked for. Not only did she infuse the office with a certain "spunk," but she was a fabulous baker!! Nearly every week there was some new baked good in a pretty little tin sitting on one of the desks in the office...Tracy had been baking again. Where she had the time to do the kind of baking that she did, I don't know, but all conscious thought melted away after taking that first bite of whatever she brought in that day. Both Tracy and I have since moved on from that office (she, to Milwakee to start her first "real" job after so many years of medical and surgical training...and I, to the other side of campus to a new position), but I bring with me many fond memories of both Tracy and her heavenly baked goods.

This shortbread recipe was one of those heavenly baked goods and truly is one of the best shortbreads I've ever come upon. Tracy revealed to me one day in secrecy that this was a Martha Stewart recipe and I breathed a sigh of relief knowing that I'd be able to find the recipe and recreate it myself. I was afraid that I'd have to potentially beg her to reveal a secret family recipe.

So as this was shortly before Christmas last year, I knew I'd have the perfect opportunity to attempt the recipe...and my family would be the guinea pigs...heh heh heh. My mom, being one of the world's foremost shortbread connoisseurs (kinda sorta but not really), would be the only person who would be able to honestly let me know if this recipe was on target or not. And of course it was...after all, it IS a Martha recipe!! These came out perfectly and were so incredibly easy to make it's stinkin' ridiculous! I just made them again today for a church function tomorrow and am having a wee bit (ok A LOT) of trouble keeping my hands off them. I hope they make it to church in the morning.......

Basic Shortbread

source: Martha Stewart

This buttery cookie gets better with age: It can be stored up to a month, and over that time its flavor deepens. Dip the tips of the cookies in melted chocolate for a decorative touch.

• 1 1/3 cups (2 sticks plus 6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-by-1-inch baking pan, and line bottom with parchment paper. (I didn't butter but just laid the parchment down in a dark non-stick pan.) In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add salt and vanilla, and beat to combine. Add flour, 1 cup at a time, beating on low speed until just combined.
2. Press dough into prepared pan, leveling and smoothing the top. Using a dough scraper or the back of a knife, cut dough lengthwise into nine strips, each slightly less than 1 inch wide. Cut the strips crosswise into thirty-six 3-inch bars. Using the tines of a fork or a wooden skewer, create a decorative pattern on the surface.
3. Bake shortbread until evenly pale golden, but not browned, 70 to 85 minutes. (With a dark pan, don't cook for more than 70 minutes.) Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool. Invert pan, and remove parchment. Turn shortbread over, and carefully break, or cut with a serrated knife, into bars. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 70 minutes

Yields: 36 cookies

Super Sugar Cookies

Thank you Nestie joelen&louis for this wonderful sugar cookie recipe!!! I have had so much trouble with sugar cookies in the past - too hard, too brown, too hard to work with. But this one was perfect. I didn't make the icing but definitely will next time.

Super Sugar Cookies

from Nestie joelen&louis

COOKIES:

• 3/4 cup margarine
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon real vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

1. Cream margarine and sugar well.
2. Add vanilla and eggs; combine well.
3. In separate bowl, sift the baking powder, salt and flour. Add to wet ingredients slowly until thoroughly combined.
4. Cookie dough must be chilled until firm, or overnight.
5. Remove dough from fridge and roll out to a 1/4-inch thickness. (I dropped the dough onto cookie sheets with a cookie scoop then refrigerated for 20 minutes before cooking)
6. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
7. With cookie cutters or rim of drinking glass, cut out cookies.
8. Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, depending on oven. Check often to prevent over cooking or burning. Cool on baking rack when done.
9. Meanwhile, prepare frosting

FROSTING:

• 1 teaspoon real vanilla
• 1 stick real butter
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 Tablespoon cream or whole milk

1. Cream butter, milk and vanilla together.
2. Slowly add powdered sugar to butter until desired consistency. If you'd like, add liquid food coloring for festive cookies
3. When cookies are cooled, slather this heavenly frosting. For more texture and color, press the top of the cookie in sprinkles, colored sugar or just eat plain!

Active prep time: 15 minutes

Inactive prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 8-10 minutes

Yields: 3 dozen cookies

Triple PB Blast Cookies

I ran across the original version of this cookie last week after a fellow " WC nestie" posted a comment to one of my blog posts. I knew immediately that I had to try them, and since Kyle and I would be taking a little road trip to one of our area casinos for a concert yesterday, I decided to make them for the ride.

Good call on my part!! These are seriously the best homemade peanut butter cookies I have ever tried. They came out soft (and are still soft after one full day) and full of yummy pb flavor. Since neither Kyle nor I are fans of crunchy peanut butter (as called for in the recipe), I used 1 cup of creamy peanut butter and added a bag (maybe 11oz?) of Reese's Peanut Butter Chips - which is why I renamed them Triple PB Blast Cookies. I didn't make the glaze that the original recipe called for as I didn't want the glaze dripping all over my car as we ate them but I will definitely do so next time I make them. My long-time pb cookie recipe has just taken a back seat to these! Thanks so much for posting these Sarah!!!

And yes, I was so excited about these cookies that I took LOTS of pics of them. :)

Kyle's #1 Sweets Request

New dessert recipes (especially cookies) are tough to come by in my house because of the undying love that Kyle has for the Nestle's Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe. I made the allrecipes.com famous chocolate chip cookie recipe (fondly nicknamed BFCCC) and he almost had a heart attack because I was trying a new recipe. I wasn't trying to replace his favorite - I merely wanted to try something new. It didn't fly and all I got was a turned up nose to both the raw dough (which Kyle prefers) and the cooked cookie.

So back to the original recipe I go, and I do have to admit that I love it more than any other chocolate chip cookie recipe I've come across as well (so far!). These pictures makes them look hard and crunchy, but by making them bigger (with an ice cream scoop), they turn out soft and gooey. When I make them like this, I cook them an additional 6-9 minutes while carefully watching them towards the end.

Indescrible Goodness!

Oh sweet divine combination of chocolate and peanut butter! How could anyone not love you?! It's as if the heavens above sent down these two perfect foods for the sole purpose of them being eaten together...

OK, enough drooling from The Cooking Fiend...I came across this recipe while watching the Pillsbury Bake-Off on Food Network over a year ago and HAD to try it out. I've made these pieces of heaven a few times since and every time, I get the same reaction: "OH MY GOD. THESE ARE INCREDIBLE." I know, I know, I think to myself as the treat melts all over my tastebuds. How could they NOT be incredible? They did, afterall, win the original baker $10,000!!

I made these for Father's Day yesterday for my dad and to bring to my brother's house where we were going for dinner. After brunch, my parents' eyes practically rolled back in their heads after tasting them and Kyle was annoyed because I didn't give him one - I was trying to bring as many as possible to dinner later in the day!

The concept is simple: a chocolate chip cookie filled with a layer of melted white chocolate and peanut butter followed by a layer of milk chocolate (or dark or semi-sweet) then topped with whatever you want - toffee crumbles, crumbled crunchy granola bars, or drizzed with more chocolate, like what I did this time around. Overall, the recipe is a wee-bit time consuming, but TOTALLY worth the effort. Below is the original recipe but I've made a number of modifications and notes (see *s) that better suit my tastes and availability of some products. Be sure to read these before you buy the ingredients!

Beware: One you start, it will be hard to stop!

Choco-Peanut Butter Cups

• 1 (16.5 ounce) roll Pillsbury(R) Create 'n Bake refrigerated peanut butter cookies*
• 1 cup white vanilla baking chips*
• 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips*
• 4 Nature Valley oats 'n honey crunchy granola bars, crushed*

Directions:

1. Break cookie dough into pre-divided pieces, separating them on the back of the wrapper or a piece of parchment paper and allow to come to room temperature.*
2. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 24 mini muffin cups with cooking spray or shortening. Cut cookie dough into 24 slices.* With floured fingers, press 1 slice in bottom and up side of each mini muffin cup, forming 1/4-inch rim above top of cup.*
3. Bake 10 to 15* minutes or until edges are deep golden brown. Cool in pans on cooling racks 5 minutes. With tip of handle of wooden spoon, press dough down in center of each cup to make room for 2 tablespoons filling.
4. Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan*, melt vanilla baking chips and 3/4 cup of the peanut butter over low heat, stirring constantly. Divide mixture evenly into cookie cups (about 1 tablespoon each*). Refrigerate 10 minutes.
5. In same 2-quart saucepan*, melt chocolate chips and remaining 3/4 cup peanut butter over low heat, stirring constantly. Divide chocolate mixture evenly on top of peanut butter mixture in each cup (about 1 tablespoon each*).
6. Sprinkle crushed granola bars over top of each. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour. Remove from muffin cups before serving*.

Modifications and Notes:

1. I have a tough time finding pre-packaged peanut butter cookie dough so I use break-and-bake chocolate chip cookies (Nestle - 24 per package). I've found that the chocolate chunk do not work as well so I opt for the regular chocolate chip.
2. Buy the best white chocolate chips you can find; I use Ghiradelli - I've tried Nestle and wasn't at all thrilled with the result. If you can't find white chocolate chips, find a good quality white chocolate bar and break it up (i.e., Ghiradelli, Lintz, etc).
3. Ditto for the chocolate chips. I subbed out the semi-sweet chips for milk chocolate and am very happy that I did so.
4. The recipe calls for crushed crunchy granola bars to sprinkle on top before the top layer sets. I had trouble crushing them up so small so I don't use them anymore. I've used Heath toffee bits and have drizzled chocolate and might consider some chopped fresh strawberries next time I make them.
5. Number 1 of the directions is my addition. Since I use the break-and-bake cookies, I've found that breaking the dough into its pre-determined pieces and allowing them to soften to room temperature really helps getting them into the muffin cups. When they are soft enough, flatten them down into a circle then place them into a very well-greased mini-muffin pan (one 24 cup or two 12 cup). Grease the cups and the top. You won't need to make a 1/4 inch rim with the dough because it will rise enough on its own; just make sure the dough comes to the top of the muffin cups.
6. Cooking them for 10-12 minutes will suffice - more than 12 minutes will overcook the cookies.
7. Use a double boiler or a heat-safe bowl over a couple inches of boiling water to melt the chocolate. Don't attempt to melt in the microwave - I've learned that the hard way. There will probably be leftover white chocolate mixture - either save it or ditch it. Then repeat the process with the chocolate chips and peanut butter.
8. One tablespoon of each filling is too much. A heaping teaspoon (use an actual teaspoon - what you would use to stir your coffee with - not a measuring spoon) of each filling is plenty. When you're finished filling the 2nd layer, you'll know if you need to add a little more.
9. Refrigerate for 15 minutes, then remove from mini-muffin tin to avoid sticking (been there, done that). Place them in a sealed container, and return them to the fridge. Store in fridge for up to 2 days, but I doubt they will last that long. :)

Active prep time: 35 minutes

Inactive prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 10-12 minutes

Serves: 24

YUM YUM!!

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies...Not So Gooey Great...

After having made Paula Deen's Peanut Butter Gooey Butter Cakes a few weeks ago, I came across this recipe recently that I had printed over a year ago (I'm assuming it got lost in the shuffle, which is why I hadn't made them sooner.) and i figured that since the PBGBC came out SOOO incredible, that these cookies must be a "shoo-in" as well. Well...they were a big fat disappointment, which I suppose is better than being a big fat success, which inevitably would mean "unwanted" added calories.

I've added the recipe to the blog in case anyone could figure out a way to make them better. They were not at all sweet enough and I don't want to attempt to make them better by adding a much needed 1/2 to 1 cup of sugar.

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

• 1 (8-ounce) brick cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 stick butter, at room temperature
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 (18-ounce) box moist chocolate cake mix
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg. Then beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in the cake mix. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to firm up so that you can roll the batter into balls. Roll the chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls and then roll them in confectioner's sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake 12 minutes. The cookies will remain soft and "gooey." Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioners' sugar, if desired.