Bacon chocolate sable cookies

Yup, there's totally bacon in that cookie.

And she's at it again... this time with CHOCOLATE. 

For the cookies:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
11 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon fleur de sel or 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or a generous 3/4 cup store-bought mini chocolate
chips
12 strips high-quality uncured bacon, cooked until crisp and drained of fat

Sift the flour, cocoa and baking soda together. Set aside.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add both sugars, the salt and vanilla extract and beat for 2 minutes more.

Turn off the mixer. Pour in the dry ingredients, drape a kitchen towel over the stand mixer to protect yourself and your kitchen from flying flour and pulse the mixer at low speed about 5 times, a second or two each time. Take a peek — if there is still a lot of flour on the surface of the dough, pulse a couple of times more; if not, remove the towel. Continuing at low speed, mix for about 30 seconds more, just until the flour disappears into the dough — for the best texture, work the dough as little as possible once the flour is added, and don't be concerned if the dough looks a little crumbly. Toss in the chocolate pieces and bacon, and mix only to incorporate.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface, gather it together and divide it in half. Working with one half at a time, shape the dough into logs that are 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate them for at least 3 hours. (The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months. If you've frozen the dough, you needn't defrost it before baking — just slice the logs into cookies and bake the cookies 1 minute longer.)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325ºF. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Using a sharp thin knife, slice the logs into rounds that are 1/2 inch thick. (The rounds are likely to crack as you're cutting them — don't be concerned, just squeeze the bits back onto each cookie.) Arrange the rounds on the baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch between them.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 12 minutes — they won't look done, nor will they be firm, but that's just the way they should be. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack and let the cookies rest until they are only just warm, at which point you can serve them or let them reach room temperature.a

Recipe from Dorie Greenspan

Quadruple chocolate loaf cake

Oh yeah. Words. This cake is great. So moist, thick, dense but not grossly filling. Awesomeeeeee.

For the Cake:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups caster sugar
3/4 cups soft unsalted butter
2 eggs
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup boiling water
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (unless you'd prefer milk chocolate ones)

For the Syrup:

1 teaspoon cocoa
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 1/2 ounces dark chocolate (from a thick bar if possible)

For the record, this recipe write-up is in Nigella Lawson's words. She's a bit flowery with her language. It's like reading a nineteenth century how-to-be-a-lady book. Also, undercook this cake. It makes it extra fudgey.

Take whatever you need out of the fridge so that all ingredients can come to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to gas mark 350°F, putting in a baking sheet as you do so, and line a small loaf tin with greased foil - making sure there are no tears - and leave an overhang all round. Or use a silicone tin.

Put the flour, baking soda, cocoa, sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla and sour cream into the processor and blitz until it's a smooth, satiny brown batter. Scrape down with a rubber spatula and process again while pouring the boiling water down the funnel. Switch it off then remove the lid and the well-scraped double-bladed knife and, still using your rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate chips or morsels.

Scrape and pour this beautiful batter into the prepared loaf tin and slide into the oven, cooking for about 1 hour. When it's ready, the loaf will be risen and split down the middle and a cake-tester, or a fine skewer, should come out clean. But this is a moist cake, so don't be alarmed at a bit of stickiness in evidence; rather, greet it like a friend.

Not long before the cake is due out of the oven (when it's had about 45-50 minutes) put the syrup ingredients of cocoa, water and sugar into a small saucepan and boil for 5 minutes. You may find it needs a little longer - what you want is a reduced liquid, that's to say a syrup, though I often take it a little further, so that the sugar caramelizes and the syrup has a really dark, smokey chocolate intensity.

Take the cake out of the oven and sit it on a cooling rack and, still in its tin, pierce here and there with a cake tester. Then pour the syrup as evenly as possible over the surface of the cake. It will run to the sides of the tin, but some will have been absorbed in the middle.

Let the cake become completely cold and then slip out of its tin, removing the foil as you do so. Sit on an oblong or other plate. Now take your bar of chocolate and cut with a heavy sharp knife, so that it splinters and flakes and falls in slices of varying thick- and thinness. I've specified a weight, but judge it by eye - when you think you've got enough to scatter over the top of the loafcake, stop slicing. Sprinkle these chocolate splinters over the top of the sticky surface of the cake.

Recipe adapted from Nigella Lawson

Guest Tuesdays: in the kitchen with LC's chocolate oatmeal cherry cookies

LC is my new baking buddy.

For the cookies:

1 cup butter
1 cup medium brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 & 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat butter and brown sugar together until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add vanilla.

In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually add to the butter mixture just until combined. Do not overmix. Stir in oats, cherries, and chocolate.

Roll into balls (about 1 inch in diameter). Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until bottom edges are lightly browned. Cool on pans for a few minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Makes about 2 dozen large cookies.

Nutella truffles

I'm supposed to be studying for my Psychopathology midterm that is Wednesday, but I haven't started. You know how people procrastinate by cleaning their rooms, doing errands, and, like, hanging out with friends? Yeah I bake. I super bake. I bake until the cows come home. It's both therapeutic and kills time.

I mean, it's actually pretty good for everyone involved. My housemates get to eat truffles, I get to eat truffles, and everyone's stress levels go way down. Obviously a win-win. As for the exam itself, we'll see how that goes. I should start that now. Slash tomorrow...

For the truffles:

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 cups confectioner's sugar
1 3/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup Nutella
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon instant espresso (or 1/2 teaspoon instant coffee) powder
a pinch of salt

For the coating:

1/3 cups walnuts, finely chopped
3/4 cups confectioner's sugar
3/4 cups cocoa powder

Melt the chocolate chips in a microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between each time until the chocolate is smooth and melted (heating in intervals will ensure you don't burn the chocolate). Set aside.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat together the softened cream cheese and 1 cup of the confectioner's sugar. Next, beat in the vanilla and espresso powder. Add the melted chocolate and Nutella, beat until smooth. Last, add the remaining 2 cups of confectioner's sugar and beat on medium speed until everything is combined. Place plastic wrap on top of the mixture and put in to the refrigerator to set for about 2 hours.

Once the truffles have set, use a melon baller to scoop the mixture and shape into balls. Coat a third of the recipe in the chopped walnuts, a third in the confectioner's sugar, and a third in the cocoa powder. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Recipe adapted from Friend Tiffanie by me!

Pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

So sometimes it's nice to use packaged mixes. This week was one of those times. And it was great!

For the cupcakes:

1 package Trader Joe's Pumpkin Bread & Muffin Mix, prepared according to directions
3/4 cup chocolate chips

For the frosting:

3 cups confectioner's sugar
8 ounces cream cheese
1 stick unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Prepare the mix according to package directions, folding in the 3/4 cups of chocolate chips at the end. Bake according to package directions as well.

On medium-high speed, combine cream cheese, butter, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Let cool in fridge. Frost cupcakes as you wish!
Recipe from Trader Joes

Salted chocolate peanut butter cups!

Woah. Peanut butter and chocolate is quite possibly my favorite duo. It's as if when you combine the two a new flavor is created. It's not quite chocolate, but it's not quite peanut butter...

Brilliant, I know. But seriously. Winning combo. And as Friend Lanie will tell you, I love my sprinkle of salt. It's like a little kick that brings out the flavors even more. WOOHOOOO

Makes ~18 cups

For the peanut butter cups:

1 cup salted peanut butter
2/3 cup confectioner's sugar
2 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
sea salt, for dusting
cupcake liners

In a small bowl, combine the confectioner's sugar and peanut butter until smooth. Using teaspoon-sized measurements, roll the peanut butter mixture into balls, then push down to form small coin-like circles. Set aside.

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips in 30 second intervals, mixing in between each blast (this will prevent the chocolate from overheating and burning). While the chocolate is heating, set up the cupcake liners on a cutting board or other flat surface. Once melted, spoon teaspoon-sized dollops of chocolate into the cupcake liners. Next, set in the peanut butter coins from earlier. Spoon another dollop of melted chocolate over the peanut butter, creating swirls with a spoon to smooth out the chocolate. Finally, sprinkle the tops of each cup with a pinch of sea salt. Transfer the cups to a fridge or freezer, allowing to cool thoroughly before eating. Nom nom nom.

Chocolate espresso puddles

I like sunny days like these. They make me hopeful that Boston winter is about to end. Although they also make me cry because I go out for a nice run in shorts and a T-shirt only to find that the snow that has so happily melted away is now all over my nice new running shoes. I run through puddle after puddle of melty snow shit, wishing the weather would just make up its mind already and either be freezing cold with ice puddles or warm with no puddles at all. Then I go home and make puddle cookies and everything is all better.

Makes 24 puddles

For the puddles:

6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
1/3 cup dark chocolate-covered espresso beans
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

these are good puddles. if my shoes
got dirty in these, that would be dandy.

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the chocolate and butter. Place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water and stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.

In the bowl of a food processor, finely chop the chocolate covered espresso beans. In a medium bowl, whisk together the chopped espresso beans, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, water, and vanilla extract. Gradually add the dry ingredients and stir until thick and smooth. Fold in the melted chocolate. Stir in the chocolate chips. Using a cookie or ice cream scoop, scoop level 1/4 cupfuls of the batter onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake until slightly puffed and the tops begin to crack, 18 to 20 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheets and serve.

Recipe from Giada at Home.

The 50/50 cookie

This recipe comes to you from the esteemed pastry chef and chocolate connoisseur Jacques Torres via The Tender Crumb. The New York Times calls it the best cookie recipe ever. I personally call it the 50/50 cookie because it has a chocolate to cookie ratio of 1:1. Let me say that again. For every one part cookie there is one part chocolate. Yuh-huh. It's awesome. And because you refrigerate the dough, it comes out beautifully ribboned on top. It ain't no  Katharine Canfield Cookie (sorry, Jacques), but it's pretty damn close. And I'm loving the coarsely chopped chocolate, too. It makes the chocolate very well dispersed so you get a lot in every bite! 

Makes 24 1-ounce cookies

For the cookies:

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temp

1/2 cup minus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar

1 egg
1 cup pastry flour
1/2 cup bread flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
12 ounces whole (or 1 3/4 cups chopped) bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

In a large bowl, cream butter and the two sugars on medium speed using an electric mixer. Then, beat in the egg. Next, pour in the flours, salt, powder, soda, and vanilla and beat until dough comes together. Using a spoon or spatula, fold in the chocolate until well blended. Refrigerate the dough for at least 12 hours to let the dough set.

Dough! Dough! Dough!

Preheat oven to 350°F. Using a 1 ounce scoop, scoop the dough into balls and lay out on an un-greased cookie sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the cookies are golden brown and still a little gooey. 

It's up to you if you want to eat it out of the oven (like me) or let it cool on an oven rack (like... wait let's be serious who gives up the chance for warm cookies?).

Recipe adapted from The Tender Crumb.

Chocolate chip coffee cake

I'm watching Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa right now. She's talking about bringing dinner to a woman who's just moved down the street from her posh East Hampton digs. And guess what she says? She says, "This will be a great way to welcome her to the hood." What, Ina? If there were one place on earth that was the opposite of a hood, it would be East Hampton, NY. Sorry. I know this has nothing to do with coffee cake. I just couldn't stop laughing when I heard her say this, and now it's on my mind.

So, uh, how about that coffee cake. I feel bad because it really deserves more recognition than I'm giving it. It hits your craving for a chocolate bar, a cake, and a moist gooey thing all in one. Yuh-hum. My mom has made this coffee cake since I was little, and every time it is a new experience in my mouth. And it's one of the few desserts I've had that tastes just as good room temperature as fresh out of the oven. It's great! And I cannot stress enough how overcooking this will seriously detract from its full potential of greatness. So reeeally stick close to your oven so do a knife check for cooked-ness. As soon as your knife comes out clean, take the cake out! Trust me, you'll be happy you did :)

1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup plain yogurt/sour cream
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cups brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease and flour a large bundt pan and set aside. In a large bowl, mix together butter, sugar, yogurt, and vanilla. Add in eggs, stir. Incorporate flour, baking soda, salt.

Meanwhile, using a fork, whisk together brown sugar and cinnamon. Pour half of the batter into the bundt pan and smooth using the back of a spoon. Sprinkle half of the brown sugar mixture over the batter and swirl into batter using a fork or knife. Pour in the second half of the batter and swirl the rest of the brown sugar mixture over it. 

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean when inserted into the cake. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then plate and serve for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Double chocolate brownies

I'm a huge brownie connoisseur. When I lived at home we went through a period where we made at least 2 boxed brownies a week. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that we had 9 people in the house... Regardless. My mom and I would take them out of the oven way sooner than the directions told us to, because we looooved gooey brownies. I was skeptical to make a brownie recipe with just cocoa and no chocolate bar base, but I have to say these are damn good. Definitely reminiscent of those boxed brownies you used to enjoy as a kid, only these are homemade, so they're like twelve times better. My biggest piece of advice with these babies is: don't overcook them. Take them out as soon as a knife comes out clean when you insert it into the brownies. Enjoyski! 

For the brownies:

2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cups cocoa powder
1 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup walnuts
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/8 teaspoon instant espresso (or coffee) powder

2 eggs
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup water

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, mix together both sugars, salt, espresso powder, cocoa powder, and flour. Then, add eggs, the melted butter, oil, and water. Finally mix in the walnuts and chocolate chips.

Grease a 9'X13" pan. Pour mixture in and bake for roughly 25 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean when inserted into brownies.

Recipe adapted from Babble. Original recipe can be found here.

Katharine Canfield cookies

These are them. These are the cookies of my childhood. I can't even begin to describe them. When made correctly, they are the best chocolate chip cookies you'll ever eat. When I was little my mom would pack them for me for lunch nearly every day. And nearly every day I'd end up with only one or two bites, thanks to my lunch pal's beg "pleeeease can I have a little?" In middle school I learned to savor them after lunch, carefully hiding the cookies at the bottom of my lunch pack so my friends wouldn't pester me for a bite. By high school they became known as "Katharine Canfield cookies," after my mom, Katharine Canfield. As in: "Ohmygod. Are those cookies Katharine Canfield cookies?" So, yeah. Among my friends they're kind of legendary.


For the cookies:

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup (packed) medium brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 stick unsalted butter, softened or melted
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Secret ingredient*

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, salt, baking soda, and vanilla together. Next, stir in the egg. Then, stir in flour. Last, add the chocolate chips and stir until well-incorporated.

On an un-greased baking sheet, dollop ping-pong-ball-sized bits of batter, leaving 1.5"-2" between each cookie. Bake for 8-12 minutes. What's more important, however, is that you take out the cookies a liiiiittle too soon, so they continue to bake once out of the oven and onto the cookie sheet.

With this recipe, make sure the measurements are exact. Especially on the flour. Too much flour will make the cookies puffy and they'll loose their moist gooeyness.

*Muh mom's love. I swear when she makes them they come out 3 times better. She's got some golden touch or something... However if you don't happen to have a Katharine Canfield lying around in your cupboard, then you can skip this step ;)

Fudgies with marshmallows and graham crackers

Oh, God, do you judge people like me? People who eat massive amounts of fudge for breakfast? It just looked so mouthwatering, so delectable, so sumptuous. And the chocolate! The rich, creamy chocolate! Coupled with the airy marshmallows and crunchy graham crackers, I couldn’t help myself. It started out with just one, but another fudge square called my name. So I answered. And it was delicious. Do you forgive me?

For the fudgies:

1 bag marshmallows, cut in half around the circumference
6 graham cracker squares, crushed
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon espresso powder

In a small saucepan, melt chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, espresso powder, and salt over low heat. Remove from the heat and Pour 1/2 of the fudge sauce into an 8"x8" parchment-lined baking pan. Evenly place marshmallows on top of sauce so the circular side faces up. Next, sprinkle graham crackers over marshmallows and fudge sauce so the grahams are distributed within the spaces between the marshmallows. Pour the remaining fudge sauce mixture over the entire thing, spreading evenly. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours, cut, and serve! But make sure you have friends to serve to… otherwise you’ll end up like me, eating fudge for breakfast.