Chocolate Crinkle Cookies (with a twist!)

One more recipe before Christmas. These Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are like a brownie, with just the right amount of sweetness (and a little surprise kick!)

Ingredients

1 cup flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
pinch of cayenne powder (optional)
1 cup icing sugar, for coating the cookies


In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. For a Mexican twist, add the cinnamon and cayenne powder. Set mixture aside.

In a large bowl beat the sugar and oil until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs and vanilla. Gradually add in the flour mixture and mix until just combined.

Form the dough into a large ball and wrap it in plastic wrap so that it is sealed tightly.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Fill a small bowl with the powdered sugar.

Form 1-inch round dough balls by hand or with a cookie scoop.  Dip each dough ball in the powdered sugar until it is completely covered on all sides, and then place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until nicely puffed up and crinkled. Remove from the oven, and let cool completely on the cookie sheet or a wire rack.

Caramel Heavenlies

I discovered a new recipe this week - Caramel Heavenlies. I can't take credit for inventing them, but I think they might become my go-to for parties and potlucks from now on. They have lots of good stuff  in them - marshmallows, almonds, coconut, and brown sugar.

Ingredients

1 pkg graham crackers
2 cups mini marshmallows
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350°.

Line a rectangular baking pan with foil, letting foil extend over sides by an inch. Lightly coat foil with cooking spray. Arrange graham crackers in rows, completely covering the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle graham crackers with marshmallows.

In a small saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Stir over medium heat until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat; add in vanilla.

Spoon the sugar/butter mixture over the marshmallows. Sprinkle with the almonds and coconut. Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the topping has browned.

Cool completely in the pan. Using the foil, lift cookies out of pan. Cut into triangles and discard foil.

Christmas Snowball Cookies (Egg Free)

I'm determined to make a wide variety of cookies this year, even if it means cutting back on sleep. Raise your hand if you've made shortbread dough at 5 in the morning! Sometimes you do what you have to do.

First up: Christmas Snowball Cookies. These have a texture like shortbread and melt in your mouth. And they don't need eggs or baking soda/baking powder, so if you find yourself running short, they're the perfect solution.

Ingredients

1 cup of butter, softened slightly
1/3 cup of sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups of flour
2 cups of finely chopped walnuts or pecans
1½ cups of icing sugar (i.e. powdered sugar or confectioner's sugar) for dusting cookies

Cream together butter and sugar. Add in the vanilla and salt. Gradually add flour, mixing well. Stir in the nuts until evenly distributed. Wrap the dough in plastic food wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350ºF.  Scoop out dough balls using a small cookie scoop or teaspoon. Roll the dough between your palms to make a round ball.

Place the cookies on parchment lined baking sheets. Bake until they are just beginning to brown, approximately 12 to 14 minutes.  The underside of the cookies should be only lightly browned.

Cool cookies on baking sheets for about 2 minutes - they should still be warm to the touch. Gently roll the cookies in a bowl of icing sugar.

Place the sugar-coated cookies on wire racks or back on the pans to cool completely. Once cool, roll the cookies in icing sugar one more time.

Makes about 6 dozen cookies.

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

We just experienced a warm spell this past week, but starting tonight we're in for another round of winter with up to 10 cm of snow falling in a 12 hour period. Seems like the perfect time to hunker down under a cozy blanket with cookies and milk and your favourite book. And I have just the recipe for you.

I've never been a great cookie baker.  They're usually "okay", but they always seem to be too bread-y and don't always stay soft and chewy after they've cooled. I think I've finally got the sugar/butter/flour ratios correct now though. I've made two batches of these new cookies on different days and they both turned out amazing.

Ingredients

2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tbs vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 to 1 cup chocolate chips
Optional - butterscotch chips, trail mix, sea salt


Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, and salt. I use a whisk to remove lumps as I don't have a sifter. Sifted or whisked flour combines more evenly into your mixture.

In a medium bowl, stir together the melted butter, brown sugar, white sugar until smooth and creamy. Mix in the vanilla and egg. Slowly add in the dry ingredients, taking care not to over-mix.

Stir in the chocolate chips. I don't like too much chocolate in my cookies (is there such a thing?) so I went light on the chocolate chips - maybe 1/4 cup - added 1/8 cup of butterscotch chips, and a handful or two of trail mix (fruit & nuts). This recipe has a lot of sugar in it and I think cutting back on the chips helps to balance it.

Using a teaspoon, drop balls of cookie dough onto a greased or parchment-lined cookie sheet. Right before baking I sprinkled each cookie with a few flakes of sea salt. I also looked up why salt tastes so good on cookies. Apparently salt increases the body's ability to taste sweetness. Who knew?

Bake for 8 minutes or until just slightly underdone. Cookies will puff up a bit in the oven but will flatten out once they cool.

This recipe makes 5 dozen 2-1/2 inch diameter cookies.

Valentine's Day Popcorn Cake

Have your thoughts turned to Valentine's Day yet? I have a really fun recipe for you today to get you into the spirit.

My family has been making popcorn cake at Christmastime for as long as I can remember. A mixture of popcorn, marshmallows, jujubes, and peanuts is always a crowd-pleaser. For Valentine's Day, I left out the rainbow colours and brought in reds, pinks, and whites. In a sea of chocolate, this lighter snack is a welcome change.

You'll need:
10 cups of plain popped popcorn
1 pkg (250g) of marshmallows
1/2 cup of butter or margarine
3/4 cup of shelled peanuts
1 cup of red jujubes, cut into smaller pieces
white and pink candy melts (or white melts/chocolate and pink food colouring)

Pop your popcorn and remove any unpopped kernels. Melt the butter and marshmallows in a small pan over low heat. Pour the mixture over the popcorn and stir until all of the popcorn is coated. Add in the peanuts and the jujubes and stir again.

Press the mixture firmly into a greased or parchment lined pan - this recipe fits a 9x12 pan, but you could also use a bundt pan. Let cool.

Melt your candy melts or chocolate over low heat. If you would like it a little thinner you can add a bit of vegetable oil to the mixture. If using food colouring, split your melted chocolate into two bowls and stir a drop of pink food colouring into one bowl.

Invert the cake pan onto a platter or board. Cover the area around the cake with parchment or paper towels to protect it from splatters. Using a teaspoon, flick pink and white chocolate over the cake to get a splatter pattern. Use as much or as little as you'd like. Refrigerate to let the chocolate set.

One last tip: When cutting the cake, butter your knife to keep it from sticking.

The Easiest Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

I've been trying out a lot of new recipes lately - shortbread, butter tarts, even dog cookies - and I'm really enjoying it. I've never been much of a baker, but now each week when Saturday rolls around I'm thinking, "What can I make today?"

This week I tried my hand at cinnamon rolls. I think my inspiration was a cooking competition show, and even though they take a bit of time I knew I wanted to give it a try.

I was pleasantly surprised with how great they turned out - take that, Cinnabon! - and wanted to share them with you. Well, I'm sharing the recipe because the rolls didn't stick around very long at all.

Ingredients

Dough:
3/4 cup warm milk
2 1/4 teaspoons active yeast (or 1/4-ounce packaged yeast)
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon salt

Filling:
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, softened

Frosting:
4 oz cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 cup icing sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Add the warm milk to a bowl and sprinkle the yeast on top. The yeast should begin to foam in a minute or two. If it doesn't it could mean that either the milk was too hot, too cold, or the yeast is past its use-by date.

Once the yeast begins to foam, add in the sugar, egg, egg yolk, and butter. Mix until it's well combined. Stir in flour and salt until a dough begins to form.

If working by hand, knead the dough on a lightly-floured surface for 8 to 10 minutes. If using an electric mixer, knead on medium speed for about 8 minutes, checking it every 3 minutes or so.

Transfer the dough ball to a well-oiled bowl, then cover it with plastic wrap and a warm towel. Allow the dough to rise for 1 to 1½ hours, or until it has doubled in size.

Once dough has risen, transfer it to a well-floured surface and roll it out into a large rectangle. The dough should be about 1/4 inch thick. Spread the softened butter over the dough like you're buttering bread, leaving a 1/2 inch margin along the far edge.

In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle the mixture over the buttered dough. Tightly roll the dough up, sealing the edge with a bit of water. Place the roll seam-side down on your work surface and cut it into 1 inch slices.

Take a 9x13 inch baking pan and either grease it or line it with parchment paper. Place the cinnamon rolls in the pan making sure they are touching each other. (If there is space between them they will expand outwards when they rise; if they are touching they will expand upwards. Completely your preference.) Cover the pan with plastic wrap and a warm towel and let the rolls rise again for 30 minutes.

Before second rising:

After second rising:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the plastic wrap and towel and bake the cinnamon rolls for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on the edges. Allow them to cool before frosting.

To make the frosting:

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the cream cheese, butter, icing sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Spread evenly over the cinnamon rolls. Don't worry about putting on too much!

Shoofly Cake

Many, many years ago (15 maybe?) Tom and I took a trip from Ontario to Nova Scotia, dipping down through the northern US on our way. One night we stayed at a bed and breakfast in southern Vermont that was owned by a couple who had Pennsylvania Dutch relations in their family. The lady of the house served shoofly pie at breakfast, and Tom immediately fell in love (with the pie...he was already in love with me. 😊)

Neither one of us had even heard of it before so we had no idea that this shoofly pie was different than most. When we got home Tom asked his mom to make one for him and it was definitely not the same. The standard shoofly pie is like a sugar pie or pecan pie, dense and sweet, but made with molasses instead of corn or maple syrup. The one we were served at the B&B was more like a cake - high and fluffy with a crumble on top.

Ever since then I've been trying to replicate that elusive formula without much to go on. And this past weekend, I think I did it. I combined the standard elements of the pie - molasses, baking soda, and boiling water - with that of a yellow cake batter.

I didn't tell Tom what I was making as I wanted to see if I'd even come close. He took a bite, I asked him what it was, and he immediately knew it was shoofly pie. Winner, Winner!

Since it turned out so well, I'm feeling confident enough to share it with you, too.

What I really liked about this, besides how moist it was, was that the molasses flavour wasn't overpowering - and the cake wasn't too sweet. Next time I might add just a little bit more sugar and some butter to the topping so that it gets crispy in the oven.

Last night we had some more with vanilla bean ice cream on the side. Perfect!

Christmas Baking Test Kitchen

Both my workplace and Tom's are having Christmas potluck lunches next week, so this weekend is going to be spent testing out some new recipes. I'm wavering between appetizers and squares (maybe both!) because there are always more than enough main dishes at these functions. Today I thought I'd share my favourites with you. If you have some tried and true recipes to share yourself, please do so in the comments - I'm open to anything!


These are white chocolate chip cranberry cookies from Sally's Baking Addiction. I think I might have all of the ingredients already. They seem pretty simple as well. Do you put dried cranberries in everything like I do?

The fancy truffle squares below are from Style at Home. I get emails from them every day (usually when I'm at work and hungry) and then I want to make everything. I like the extra touch of adding a ginger, sugared thyme, or orange marmalade garnish to the top.

These are Irish Cream chocolate brownies from Nicole at Wonky Wonderful. Irish Cream whiskey in the brownie and in the frosting. I think a trip to the liquor store is in my future.

These might be my first choice if they turn out in testing. They're chorizo asiago puffs from Style at Home again. I've had a package of puff pastry in the freezer for months just waiting for the perfect recipe. What are the chances they'll turn out this pretty?

This recipe looks simple and borders on being a main dish. They're crescent roll sausage bites from The Kitchen is My Playground. They appeal to my love of down-home cooking. This is feel-good food.

And I'm throwing in one salad. My friend Megan makes this all the time and it is amazing. I could deal with amazing, I think. ;-) There is a whole lot going on here, but you can just call it butternut squash and cranberry quinoa salad. The recipe is from Little Broken (I don't know if Megan uses this one but it's close.)

So what do you think? Do I stand a chance of replicating any of these? 

If you're looking for something new, check out my recipes for pumpkin cheesecake trifle, chocolate scotcheroos, or raspberry thumbprint cookies.