Salted Oatmeal Cookies

GAH! ... look at the time.

It is almost TWO in the morning.... I really should go to bed, but hey! Dev's still playing Lego Batman (Heh.) He's awake... I'm awake... what the hell, I'll turn the oven on. I've been wanting to try this recipe for some time.

Salted Oatmeal Cookies (Cook's Illustrated)

Preheat oven to 350F.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

1 C all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

14 T unsalted butter (room temp)

1 C sugar

1/4 C brown sugar

1 egg (room temp)

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 C Quaker old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant)

coarse sea salt

I recently started using King Arthur flours. It costs a bit more, but I have to say, I noticed a difference in the texture.

Cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy (about 2-3 min.)

Add the egg and vanilla until combined.

Stir together the flour, baking powder, soda and salt in a small bowl.

Slowly add to butter/sugar mixture until well incorporated.

Stir in oatmeal.

I added 1/2 bag of white chocolate chips as well.
(update: semi-sweet chocolate is even better)

Roll dough into balls and place onto parchment paper.

Press lightly to flatten dough. Sprinkle a few flecks of sea salt.

I've never used sea salt before. I ordered some from Penzey's online a couple months ago because I wanted to make Fleur de Sel Caramels. I still haven't gotten around to doing that yet, so I'm happy I can finally use some for these...

Bake for 13+ min., until golden brown.

C.I. suggest baking one sheet at a time for even crispness - I figured that would add another 13 min. I didn't want to spend...awake. So, I just baked 2 sheets at the same time.

I was skeptical, but I have to tell you, I really love these cookies. The texture is crispy & chewy, which reminds me of florentine cookies. The sea salt adds a nice accent - I think I'll add more sea salt next time.

UPDATE!: depending upon how long your oven has been preheating, cooking time will be shorter. I baked these at a max. of 11 min. this past time around. Just keep an eye on them. The middle should look a little glossy (to maintain a chewy texture) and golden brown around the edges.

White Chocolate + Macadamia Nut Cookies

"Hey! Its midnight. I think I'll bake something!"

From time to time, I have the urge to bake in the middle of the night. I should just go to bed, but, I really can't help myself. When I was a kid, my mom would always bake in the middle of night - usually baking up treats for the church bake sale, for her office or for our school. I have such a fond memory of drifting off to sleep with the aroma of sweet vanilla. So, I guess... I blame YOU mom! Heh.

I didn't have any chocolate chips on hand tonight, so I used white chocolate chips and mac nuts instead. They came out pretty good, but I must say, I prefer semi-sweet chocolate.

Chocolate Chip Cookies (Mrs. Field's Copycat Recipe)

Preheat oven to 350F.

2 sticks unsalted butter (room temp)
1/2 C sugar
1 1/2 C brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs (room temp)
2 1/2 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt

1 bag of chocolate chips, or chopped chocolate bars

Cream butter and sugars together (2-3 minutes).

Add vanilla and eggs (one at a time).
Sift dry ingredients and add slowly.

Hey! Bing the Banana joins us!

Stir in chips (and chopped nuts if you like)

Bake for 9 minutes. VERY IMPORTANT. Don't be tempted to leave them in longer. They may not look done, but they are. Trust me. ENJOY!

Dinner Tonight : Chili + Biscuits

It was raining all day today so, Dev and I decided it was a perfect night to make chili. I've made this a handful of times now, but I keep adjusting the recipe. Tonight's version came out particularly well, so I think it's a keeper!

YaMadan Chili
1 lb ground beef
2 slices thick-cut bacon, chopped
1 red onion, minced
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1-2 jalapeno chilies w/ seeds
1-2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
a spoonful adobo sauce
small spoonful of brown sugar
splash of red wine
3 T chili powder
1 T cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
2 tsp cocoa powder (unsweetened)
2 spoonfuls tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes in juice
1 can chili beans, drained (or kidney beans)
1 can beef broth (low sodium)
salt to taste


Chop jalapenos (with seeds), garlic and red onion.
Mix together spices in a small bowl.


I recently discovered I prefer a 3 bean mix rather than just kidney beans, but both work fine. The chipotle peppers are a new addition - we really liked the added heat and smokiness!


Saute bacon until crispy. Remove with slotted spoon and set aside.
Saute ground beef in bacon fat and set aside.
Saute onion until soft, add garlic and jalapeno and saute for 1-2 min.


Add tomato paste, chipotle peppers and adobo sauce.
Add beef and bacon into pan along with spices, sugar and wine.

Add beans, diced tomatoes and beef broth.


Look who dropped by! Special dinner guest, Henry lending a helping stumpy hand.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat & simmer for 1 hour, uncovered.

Cook's Illustrated biscuits!

2 C flour
1 T double acting baking powder
1 T sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
4 T cold unsalted butter
1 1/2 C cold low fat buttermilk

Preheat oven to 500F.
Set racks to the middle of the oven.


Stir together dry ingredients.
Add butter and mix/pulse until the texture is like cornmeal.
Stir in buttermilk.


Scoop out dough onto cookie sheet coated w/ flour.
Dust lightly with flour and gently form into small mounds.
Place in pan (sprayed with non-stick cooking spray)
I didn't have a round cake pan as specified, so I used an 8x8 square instead.
Brush the tops with melted butter.

Bake for 5 minutes.
Lower oven temp to 450F.
Bake for an additional 15 minutes until tops are golden.
Cool in pan, then turn out onto a towel. Cool for an additional 5 minutes.




Dinner is served!

Peanut Butter & Jelly bars!

HA. Some of you know I'm allergic to peanuts and are probably wondering why I made these. This recipe sounded pretty good, and well, Dev loves PB&J sandwhiches, so I wanted to give it a go. I didn't feel like dying today, so I have no idea if they taste good, personally.


Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars (Barefoot Contessa)

Preheat oven to 350F.

2 sticks of unsalted butter (room temp)
1 1/2 C sugar (I used 1 1/4C granulated sugar and 1/4C brown sugar)
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs (room temp)
2 C creamy peanut butter
3 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
jam


Cream butter and sugars together.
Add vanilla, peanut butter and eggs (one at a time).
Mix dry ingredients together in a small bowl.
Slowly add to the peanut butter mixture - don't over mix.


Line a 9x13 pan with foil, for easy removal.
Press about 2/3 of the dough into the bottom of the pan.
Spread jam on top.
I didn't have a lot of jam, so I used strawberry fruit spread on one side, and Raspberry preserves on the other.


Crumble chunks of the remaining dough onto the top of the jam.
NOTE: protective 'gloves'. ha. This process took so long with these sandwhich BAGS on my hands, I finally got BRAVE and took them off.

Bake for 40-45 minutes until the top is golden brown.


Taste Test with Dev!
Dev was my food critic, since again, I didn't want to be DEAD.
He said... "it tastes good! ...a little dry... subtle peanut taste... can't tell the difference between the raspberry and strawberry jams..." I don't think I'll be baking any peanuty foods for a while... the peanut aroma filled the house when it was baking, and frankly, made me feel sick - I don't like the smell of peanut butter either. HEH.

Mallow Treat Taste Test!

I saw a Rice Crispy Treat Taste Challenge on CakeSpy a few days ago, and thought it would be a fun thing to try! I only made 3 kinds to bring into work - I didn't buy the variety of cereals they sampled, though it was tempting.

Okay, this was a mistake on my part. For some reason, I was thinking of Cocoa Puffs or Cocoa Crispies, but wasn't paying attention & I got confused when I bought the cereal.

Cheddar+Bacon Burgers, Oven Fries & Rings

I found a recipe for Oven Fried Potato Wedges from Cooks Illustrated and had to try it (but with a smaller cut!) 

I also took a couple pics of the burgers, but decided not to post them - they were storebought/pre-made patties & I didn't want to look like a cheater. heh.

Oven Fries (adapted)

Preheat oven to 475F. 

Place oven rack to the lowest or 2nd lowest position.

2 Russet potatoes, peeled and cut.

4 T oil, plus 1 T to coat (don't use Olive Oil - smoking point is too low)

3/4 tsp salt

ground black pepper

Peel and cut potatoes. Soak for 10 minutes in hot water.

Drain, pat dry and coat with 1 T oil.

Pour oil into heavy, rimmed baking sheet and sprinkle on salt and pepper - turn to coat surface of pan. Place potato slices on top of salted oil. Cover with foil and bake for 5 minutes to steam!  

Remove foil and bake for 9-12 minutes, flip potatoes and bake an additional 5-8 minutes. Cool on papertowels or a cooling rack. Enjoy!

Onion Rings

Man, I really liked the batter for the Mandarin chicken so much, I wanted to try and make a few onion rings. I ended up making half the recipe and added a little cayenne pepper and Lawry's Season Salt to the batter this time.

Ah ha! They didn't turn out as good as I had hoped. I think if served immediately, they'd be crispier. The texture was about right, but, after sitting a bit (while I was making the burgers), they softened up too much for my liking. They also tasted greasy. (hmmm. I think the oil temp was too low)

...but, let's not forget dessert. Makers Rocks.