Raspberry Balsamic Macarons

Ah French macarons, bane of home cooks and professionals alike.

I have seen many a subpar macaron for sale, even at the big boy's places.

The thing about macarons is that they require....

CONFIDENCE.

You have to believe in them!  You have to believe in those little feet, in that cakey center!  (the ruffly bit at the bottom is called the foot).

You have to believe that they will rise.

RISE!  Like the glorious sun in the morning.

Mine are a little flat.  This is because, afraid of overbeating them, I underbeat them.

Confidence.

But!  Have you ever tried balsamic on sweet?  How about right next to fresh?

Reduce it down, down with a little bit of honey until it is thick as melted chocolate.

Strew it over the tops of your beautiful babies and their little flat feet.

Crunch it up and wow!  Sweet and fresh and sour and crunch and smoosh and a delicate buttercream together.

Glorious.

Next time:  bigger feet.

Next time:  twice as many.

You may have noticed that there is a new button on my blog.  That little fella there in the corner lets you know that I (I!) am now a content contributer for The Daily Meal.  Hooray!  That's a real thing!  I conjured up these little cookies in response to a weekly recipe challenge they issued, giving you one ingredient to play with.  This week it was raspberries, sponsored by Driscoll's berries.  Driscoll's berries!  Go buy some berries!  Follow them @driscollsberry #raspberrydessert.  Eat them fresh or, better yet, stick them in a buttercream.

(Hey I forgot to include the raaaaaaspberry puree joke!  I was singing it all day, just like Prince.  Ha!  I AM JUST LIKE PRINCE)

Raspberry Balsamic Macarons
Makes 24

Age your egg whites!  Did you know you're supposed to do that when making macarons?  Two or three days before baking, put your egg whites (about 3) in a glass dish in the refrigerator.  The night before baking, take them out and leave them on the counter overnight.  They won't go bad, I swear.  This makes a huge difference in getting successful macarons.

For the cookies:
180 grams almond meal (I prefer grams for macarons, since imprecise measurements can be the difference between life and death here)
240 grams powdered sugar
140 grams egg whites, aged
A large pinch powdered egg whites (so much for precision!)
A medium pinch sea salt

In a large bowl combine almond meal, powdered sugar, and sea salt.  Combine the egg whites with the egg white powder in the bowl of a stand mixer and whip until stiff peaks form.

Add the meringue to the almond meal mixture and beat by hand until a shiny, ribbony mass forms.  Don't be afraid!  Get it right!  A good way to test it is to make a small peak in the batter.  Does it stand stiff?  Beat it more.  Does it immediately disappear?  You've gone too far!  Does it slowly sink back into and meld with the batter?  That's it.

Pipe small rounds onto sheet pans lined with a silpat and let them air dry for 45 minutes to an hour.  The tops should be dry when touched with your finger.  If you live in a wet place, turn on the ceiling fan (Oregon, I'm looking at you).  When the drying time is almost up, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

When drying time is up and oven is preheated, turn oven down to 300 degrees and bake cookies for about 15 minutes, rotating sheet pans halfway through for even cooking.  Try not to have a heart attack as you open the oven and look for feet.

Let them cool.

For the buttercream:
1 1/4 cups white sugar
1/4 cup water
4 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 sticks butter, cubed and softened
Pinch of salt
1 cup Driscoll's raspberries

First, mash up the raspberries with a fork, making a chunky puree.

Now start beating the egg whites.  You want to get them to where they are just forming soft peaks.  In the meantime, combine the white sugar and the water in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.  Let it heat until it reaches 235 degrees fahrenheit.  Immediately remove from heat and pour in a slow stream into eggwhites while still mixing.

Now add in the butter cubes, one at a time and mixing well after each addition.  Add the vanilla and the pinch of salt.  The mixture may look curdled, but just keep beating it.  It will come together and turn fluffy and lovely just like you want.

Once you find the texture of buttercream you like, turn off mixer and stir in about 1/3 cup of raspberry puree by hand (more or less to taste, but don't add too much it will make the mixture separate again).

Pipe buttercream onto cookie halves, sandwich together with other cookie halves.

For the balsamic reduction:
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 tablespoon honey

Simmer your vinegar and honey together in a small saucepan until about 1/4 cup of it is left.  The texture should be syrupy.  Can be made several hours or even days before cookies and stored in the refrigerator, but bring to room temperature before using as it will harden when cold.  

Thai Lemongrass Sugar Cookies

A little bit of Valentine's love, belated.

These babies are a jealous green, with a mild coconut crumb and a lemon-with-a-twist frost.

Are they really Thai?  Well.  There's a lot of ways to answer that question.

Maybe we should all just travel there and see.

I hope you got good Valentines this year.

Thai Lemongrass Sugar Cookies
Makes 24, cut thick

3 sticks butter (1 1/2 cup)
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons coconut extract
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

For cookies:  In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.  In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth, about 3 minutes.  Add vanilla, then beat in eggs one at a time. Beat in dry ingredients.  Cover and chill for at least one hour.

Heat oven to 400F.  Roll out dough on floured surface to 3/4" - 1" thickness.  Using heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut out 24 heart shapes.  Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheets, bake 6-10 minutes or until lightly crisp on edges and firm in centers.

Lemongrass Frosting

2 sticks butter (1 cup)
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2-3 drops lemongrass essential oil (food and therapeutic grade both acceptable)

3 tablespoons milk

Food coloring as desired

Whip butter and sugar together, until combined, about 2 minutes.  Add essential oil, milk, and color if using.  Beat 1 more minute.

Caramel Snaps

Hello, the friends!  Sorry for my long absence.  Holidays and such yadda yadda.  Will be better and such yadda yadda.

Now I will share with you my most favorite cookie.  It is the cookie-est of all cookies, the heart of what every good cookie should be.

It is the caramel snap.  I invented them, yes, me.  (I haven't bothered to Google yet to see if anyone else has also simultaneously invented them a la Picasso and Braques with Cubism...I probably never will, because I DID IT ME!)

I'd been experimenting with caramel sauces, specifically Joy's Almost Burnt Salted Caramel Sauce.  Her recipe made more than I knew what to do with (I'm sorry to admit there are times even I don't know what to do with so much caramel).

Then one night I was craving gingersnaps and I thought, molasses = sticky sweet sugary substance that is key to cookie perfection.

And here I have all of this caramel sauce.

!!

Do it.  Do it.  Do it now.  Put salt in it.

I love you.

Caramel Snaps
adapted from Ginger Snaps on Sally's Baking Addiction (these are my favorite soft ginger snaps)

Makes 2 - 2 1/2 dozen

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup caramel sauce
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup granulated sugar, for rolling

In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.  In the bowl of a stand or handheld mixer, cream the butter for about 1 minute on medium speed.  Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about another 2 minutes.

Add the caramel, egg, and vanilla.  Beat well, about another minute.

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet on low speed.  Cover dough with foil and chill for 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350F.  Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll in granulated sugar (I used coconut sugar, because I had it on hand).  Place balls 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheet.  Bake for 6 - 8 minutes, or longer if you like them crispy.  Cookies will be puffy.  PUFFY IS GOOD.

Cookie Day 2014

Friends, this is really happening!  The most wonderful day of the year is here, and that is COOKIE DAY @)!$!  Oops I mean, 2014!

Who candied that orange peel?  I did.

Oh who again?

I DID.

Caramel snaps are like ginger snaps but with caramel instead of molasses.  Salted caramel.

Cupcakes on cookie day?  Of course!

Yes I do use my kids' plastic fish bowls for baking purposes.

Chill out, dough!  Time to chill out.

Check out those no-fade cupcake wrappers!  They did not fade.

Pignolis are Italian cookies with almond paste centers, meringue exteriors, and crusted with pine nuts.

Chocolate orange cupcakes.

Piles.

And Piles.

Soup break!  Even cookie bakers need to eat lunch.

Finished plate!  By that time the light had failed.  Best subjects get the worst pictures.

Want some?

Pfeffernusse

Ugh, sorry about the posting gap!

First, my baby decided to get all her teeth at once.  Incisors, molars, wisdom, you name it.  She has all of them now.

Then I got sick.  Yeah, the puking kind.

Then my preschooler got sick.  That same, special kind.

Then it was Thanksgiving, and now we are here.

I have so many excuses!

Oh the last one is the most delicious - my internet connection has become, shall we say, unreliable.

Anyway.  It's aight.  I'm just getting back into this business anyway, right?  There's time to iron out the, uh, bunches?

I'm so addicted to these little cookies.

They are like ginger snaps, but gingery-er.

No wait, SNAPPIER.

They're little molasses bombs with just enough black pepper to catch in your throat.

 Pfeffernusse
adapted from Taste of Home
Makes 4 dozen

Important recipe information:  pfeffernusse means peppernut!

1/2 cup molasses
1/4 cup honey
1 cup butter
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon anise extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cloves
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup confectioners' sugar

In a small saucepan, combine the molasses, honey and butter.  Cook and stir over medium heat until melted.  Remove from the heat; cool to room temperature.  Stir in eggs and extract.  Smell that?  Mm.

Combine the flour, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves, pepper and salt.  Gradually add molasses mixture and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight (do not, by any means, eat it all at this point).

Roll dough into 1-inch balls.  Place one inch apart on greased baking sheets.  Bake at 325F for 9 minutes (longer if you like your peppernuts crispy).  Remove cookies to wire racks.  Roll warm cookies in confectioners' sugar.  Cool completely.  NOW devour.

Chrysanthemum Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

Flavored like pumpkin, frosted like chrysanthemums, that is.

Everything is all right tonight.  That's a nice feeling, isn't it?

Kids in bed, sleeping sound.  Roast chicken for dinner, nice neighbors dropping in and sharing it with us.

It's still cold, of course.  Always cold.

But I have a blanket.

Sugar cookies are probably my favorite kind of cookie.  I'll pick them over a whoopie pie, I'll pick them over chippers.

Sometimes I get a terrible craving for a gingersnap, but there's nothing like a smooth, buttery sugar cookie.

I thought I'd throw some pumpkin in, just to get my last pumpkin baking in before the season ends.  It was a nice variation on a settled theme.

It's a bit late in the season for chrysanthemums but you know?  You get what you get, and you don't throw a fit.

That's how it is in our house.

Now eat your cookie.

Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
adapted from The Wicked Spatula

Makes 24 cookies, cut thick

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves

Frosting:
1 cup butter, softened
3 1/2 - 4 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a stand mixer, beat together your pumpkin, butter, sugar, powdered sugar, vanilla and eggs until smooth, about 3 minutes.

In another bowl sift together flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt and spices.

Dump dry ingredients into wet and mix until well incorporated.

Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes or until firm.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Roll out dough, I like it thick so I roll it to about 1/4 - 1/2 inch thickness.  Choose your own adventure and adjust baking time accordingly.  Cut with flower-shaped cookie cutter (or whatever shape you want!).  Let your kid help.

Bake for 8 minutes, less for thinner cookies.  Just until barely golden at the edges.

Let cool, make frosting by beating together butter and powdered sugar for 3 minutes.  Add vanilla, salt, milk and cinnamon and beat for one minute more.

Frost!  And eat!  And share! 

Black Oatmeal Cookies

 
So what have I been up to, you ask?

It's two years later.  I have two kids now instead of one.  A wizard somehow turned my baby into a little boy, so I made a new one.

I built her myself.

Instead of a faceless internet I've been cooking for an audience of four.  Instead of blogging I've been recording all of my menus on an erasable chalkboard shaped like a pig.

 
Revere the pig.

For a while it was nice not to take photos of everything - it's a time suck!

But I miss talking about food.  I mean, pontificating on FOOD, you know?

What's good (harissa), what's bad (chicken), what are you eating (tacos), what do you eat in September (apple crisp) and what do you eat in March (spinach and dandelion green soup).

I missed this.

There is nothing inherently autumnal about oatmeal cookies, but I crave them every fall just the same.

You can't go wrong with a classic, but I still wanted to do something to liven them up.  These are my black beauties.  Black raisins, black chocolate chips, black walnuts and blackstrap molasses.

Do you love a touch of bitter in your sweet?  So do I.

Load 'em up, lovelies.  Heave ho here we go.

Black Oatmeal Cookies
adapted from www.allrecipes.com
makes 3 dozen

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
2 cups thick-cut oats (regular are fine too but thick cut are...thicker...)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup shortening (you can do all butter, your cookies might be slightly flatter however)
2 eggs
5 tablespoons molasses
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup dark raisins

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.

In a large bowl, stir together flours, oats, soda, powder and salt.  Set aside.

In another bowl, beat the sugar with the butter and shortening until creamed together, about 3 minutes.  Mix in beaten eggs, molasses, and vanilla.  Gradually mix in the dry ingredients.  Stir in walnuts, raisins, and chocolate chips.  Dough will be sticky.  Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a greased/silpatted cookie sheet (or into mouth).

Bake for 6 minutes for soft cookies (how I like it) or ten minutes for crispier.  Allow cookies to cool on a wire rack before consuming.  I GUESS.