The Ultimate Ginger Cookie

This post is dedicated to Katie, the one who introduced me to this blog, let me be part of it, and gave me the cutest baking supplies known to man as a holiday present! If you're wondering how baking supplies can be cute, picture a spatula with an orange, plastic, bendable little person on the end of it. Okay, that doesn't sound cute.... but I promise they are. So thank you, Katie! Her present reminded me of these ginger cookies I had made a couple weeks ago for a fundraising holiday bake sale, and since this blog has been sadly inactive for a while, I thought I'd give a little gift back to Katie- in the form of a blog post.

Although it's a little late to make them for Christmas, that's what New Year's Eve is for! These sweets are everything you could want from a ginger cookie. They are crunchy, sugary, very gingery, and overall just delicious. I had a few issues with expansion of the cookies- some of them stretched out so much they joined edges, resulting in a square cookie- but that is easily remedied by forming smaller cookies before baking. My friend also made these cookies, and hers turned out much smaller and differently colored. But who cares? The flavor is the same and if you are the type of baker who obsesses over aesthetics, practice makes perfect or, in this case, uniform.

The two things that you notice first when you take a bite of this cookie are, first, the pronounced ginger flavor. Folks, if you don't like ginger, don't make these. Although who doesn't like ginger when it's in the form of dessert? Anyway, the second big flavor in the cookies is sugar. The extra sugar that the cookies are rolled in before baking creates that crinkly top and sweet crunch that elevates a simple cookie to a memorable experience.

I'll stop talking now. Go make these cookies; eat a few tomorrow night to keep you awake until midnight, and usher in the New Year with a much-deserved treat!

Yummy Ginger Cookies

Ingredients:

2 1/4 all-purpose flour

2 tsps ground ginger

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 egg

1 tbsp water

1/4 cup molasses

2 tbsps white sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 1 cup sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg and the mix in the molasses and water. Stir the sifted dry ingredients gradually into the wet ingredients.

3. Shape dough into walnut sized balls and roll them in 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place them 2 inches apart (make sure there is enough space inbetween!) on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten very slightly.

4. Bake for 10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool completely before removing them from the baking sheet.

Simple Cake with Raspberries

During the hot summer months, my cravings are never directed toward cakes of the bubbling molten chocolate sort. In winter, we all need something rich and satisfying to get us through. But as the temperatures and humidity levels rise, something lighter is in store.

This cake is full of the flavors of summer; juicy raspberries spread moistness throughout the cake, and an extra sprinkle of sugar crystallizes on the top. The recipe calls for buttermilk, but as this was not an everyday ingredient in at least my kitchen, I tried a substitute of Greek yogurt. Perfect! Just add a splash of milk with the yogurt to thin it a bit and make it more of the consistency of buttermilk.

You can really use any juicy summer fruit for this cake, but something about the tangy yet sweet juice of raspberries sets it off perfectly. Also, my mother being the healthy cook she is, we happened to have almond flour in the cupboard. On a surprise stroke of inspiration, she replaced 1/4 cup of regular flour with 1/4 cup of almond flour. I was skeptical at first but the very faint nuttiness of the flour contrasts with the raspberries in a satisfying way. If you want to take the almond-raspberry duo further, add a bit of almond extract to the batter. I didn't- who knows how it might turn out- but experimenting is really half the fun in baking.

Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour (substitute 1/4 cup almond flour for 1/4 cup regular if desired)

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 stick unsalted, softened butter

2/3 cup sugar plus 1 1/2 tbsp sugar for sprinkling

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg

1/2 cup buttermilk (or 1/2 cup yogurt)

1 cup (5 oz.) raspberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Beat butter and 2/3 cup sugar until pale and fluffy. You may use an electric mixer at medium-high speed, or just cut in the butter and then whisk it. Beat in the vanilla and then the egg.

At low speed, mix in 1/3 of flour mixture. Alternate with buttermilk (yogurt) and repeat, ending with flour. Mix until just combined.

Smooth batter into 9-inch cake pan. Spread raspberries evenly on top and sprinkle with remaining sugar.

Bake until cake is golden; 25-30 minutes. Cool the cake until only warm before serving with whipped cream.

Heyy bloggirls! I can't wait to bake great food and share it with you!!

Banana Muffins with Cinnamon Frosting

Katie
Life can stink sometimes. Those times when you smile at that Cute Boy in the hallway and he looks right through you, or when you think you aced a really hard math test and get it back only to find you somehow didn't see three questions, or when you actually make your bed to impress your parents and your cat pees all over your comforter. Yep. Life sure can stink.

But then there are those times that follow the stinky parts that make everything better, at least for a while. Like when the Cute Boy talks to you in class the next day or you get an A+ on the following math test or you still manage to impress your parents, only this time by doing a whole load of cat pee soaked laundry. I guess it's true - life gives you lemons and we all had better learn how to make lemonade.

And sometimes life gives you bananas. The other day, for example. There were three really, really, really old bananas sitting on my butcher block so pathetically that I had to do something. Bananas this ripe are like those teachers that stay at school until they are 80 years old and borderline senile.

They aren't good at their job anymore but obviously still want to serve a purpose to humanity, so the only thing they can really do is retire and become a substitute. These bananas didn't want to be thrown away, but no one was ever going to eat them. So I gave them one last chance at life and made them muffins.

A good muffin (which these are, of course,) is three things: moist, flavorful, and humble. It should not be dry and tasteless like so many store-bought ones are, and above all it should not try to be a cupcake. Cupcakes are allowed to have sprinkles and colored frosting and cute little shapes.

Muffins, on the other hand, are supposed to be quiet and unassuming and boring and therefore so much better when they're delicious. Retired teachers are not also pop stars, and that is perfectly fine.

So life stunk for these bananas. They were lonely and no good at their job, which was to be eaten. But then life (or I guess I did) gave them a happy ending, and the rest is history.

P.S. I've heard rumors that Cute Boys like muffins.

Banana Muffins with Cinnamon Frosting
Adapted From Parragon's Muffins and Bakes Book

For the Batter:

• generous 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• generous 3/4 cup superfine sugar
• 6 tbsp milk
• 5 1/2 oz/150 g butter, melted
• 2 small bananas, mashed

For the Frosting:

• scant 1/4 cup cream cheese
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• scant 1 cup confectioner's sugar

1. Place 12 large paper cases in a deep muffin pan. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar.
2. Whisk the milk, eggs, and butter together in a separate bowl until combined. Slowly stir into the flour misture without beating. Fold in the mashed bananas.
3. Spoon the mixture into the paper cases and bake in a preheated oven, 400°F for 20 minutes until risen and golden. Turn out onto a wire rack and let cool.
4. To make the frosting, beat the cream cheese and butter together in a bowl, then beat in the cinnamon and confectioners' sugar until smooth and creamy. Chill the frosting in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes to firm up, then top each muffin with a spoonful.

Plain and Simple: the Chocolate Chip Cookie

Talia

Who says cookies are bad for you? They’re a pick-me-up when you feel down, they make anyone happy really, and you’re never more popular than when you’ve got a dish of cookies. There’s also something comforting about the simple cookie, especially the old-fashioned chocolate chip- and most of them are super easy to make. But even if you’re legitimately worried about your health, no need to forgo this essential food group.

Use egg whites instead of eggs; margarine or butter substitute if you have it; mix whole wheat and regular flour; the taste of a chocolate chip cookie does not suffer from these nutrition-adding substitutions. Sometimes the whole wheat flour even adds a more complex flavor that, when combined with dark chocolate chips, is hard to beat. And while we’re on that subject- always use dark chocolate in your chocolate chip cookies! Unless, of course, you’re not a dark chocolate fan. In which case you probably shouldn’t be reading a blog post of mine. But that debate is for another time and place, and my point here is that dark chocolate in your cookies is much better than your standard milk chocolate chip.

Another tip for success: beware of baking times on the recipe! Start off with their suggested number of minutes- for this recipe it’s 10 to 12- but feel free to leave them in a few minutes longer for a crunch around the edges. But only if that’s your cookie style.

Finally… LET THE COOKIES COOL! No. Seriously. I as much as anyone understand the primal desire to devour a quivering, sizzling, chocolate-oozing, butter-fragrant piece of dough just as it comes out of the oven. And I’m all for indulging once in a while in that desire. But if you want a full set of delicious, fully cooked cookies, letting them cool is essential. It allows the cookies to firm up (don’t put them back in the oven right away even if they seem too soft!) unexpectedly and makes them the perfect consistency for packing in Tupperwares as gifts. Or just eating at home, that works too.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 24

1/4 cup butter, butter substitute, or margine- softened (1/2 stick)

1/3 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg white

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour- use whole wheat here if desired

2 tbsp plus 2 tsps water

1/2 cup dark chocolate morsels

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 2 nonstick baking sheets with vegetable cooking spray; set aside.

2) In a medium mixing bowl, using an electric mixer set on medium speed, beat butter, both sugars, and vanilla until fluffy. Beat in egg whites.

3) In a small bowl, combine flour and baking soda; mix well. reduce mixer speed to low. Alternately beat flour mixture and water into margarine mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Stir in chocolate morsels.

4) Drop dough by teaspoonfuls, 1 inch apart, on prepared baking sheets. Bake until lightly golden, about 10 to 12 minutes. Place baking sheets on a wire rack and cool for at least 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to rack and cool completely.

Added bonus: These cookies have 76 calories each and only 2 grams of fat!

Hello blogosphere!

Hey guys,

I'm the newest member of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Spatula. Looking forward to trying out some delicious recipes and sharing them with you all! And of course, thanks to Katie for letting me join up and for the great posts already out there.

Devil's Food Cakes with Chocolate Frosting

Katie

In my group of friends, I'm the one who always makes cupcakes for everyone's birthday. Other people make cookies and brownies and blondies and that's all well and good, but the privilege of cupcake baking goes to me. And it isn't just my friends that I bake for - if someone in my homeroom has a birthday, well, then, they obviously need some tasty little baked goods too!

There have been some nights where I've stayed up until 11:00 baking so I could get cupcakes to someone the next day, but in the end it's always worth it. Plus, I get an excuse to eat batter and frosting guiltlessly at all hours of the night, and who can complain about that?

Anyways, the other day was my friend K's birthday and (stupid stupid stupid stupid) I forgot all about it until I was standing right next to her and someone said "Happy Birthday, K!" Of course I had to pretend that I knew it was her birthday all along too, but I felt horrible. No cupcakes, no card, no present - I was failing at being the birthday committee, that was sure.

So as soon as I got home I went straight to my new Muffins and Bakes book that I got for my birthday a couple months ago and looked for the most delicious cupcake recipe I could find. Usually I just go with basic chocolate or basic vanilla, but these weren't just birthday cupcakes - they were I-forgot-your-birthday-and-I-am-so-sorry cupcakes. There was a lot riding on these puppies. Well, I opened my book and after just a few flips I landed on the perfect recipe. Devil's Food Cakes with Chocolate Frosting. If these didn't more than make up for my stupidity, nothing ever would.

Long story short, I made the cupcakes (speaking of which, this is a very easy recipe to follow) without a hitch. Well, that's a lie. I had to make two batches of frosting because for some reason I interpreted superfine sugar as granulated sugar. Don't do that. FYI. And when I brought them into school the next day triumphantly, all was made right. I don't think K even cared in the first place that I didn't have cupcakes on her birthday, but it mattered to me. So all was made right in Katie world.

Anyways, if you have some apologies to make or you just want to indulge a massive chocolate craving, look no further than here.

Devil's Food Cakes with Chocolate Frosting
Adapted From Parragon's Muffins and Bakes Book

For the Batter:

• 3 1/2 tbsp soft margarine
• generous 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• generous 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• generous 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 cup sour cream

For the Frosting:

• 4 1/2 oz (125 g) semisweet chocolate
• 2 tbsp superfine sugar
• 2/3 cup sour cream

Put 18 double layer paper cases on a cookie sheet or 18 singles divided between 2 muffin tins. Preheat the oven to 350F/180C. Beat the butter, sugar, eggs, flour, baking soda and cocoa in a large bowl until smooth. Fold in the sour cream. Spoon the batter into the paper cases, 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes or until risen and firm to the touch. To make the frosting, melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and let cool. Whisk in the sugar and sour cream until combined. Spread the frosting over the tops of the cupcakes.

Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies

Katie

When I was little, my two favorite things to eat were hamburgers and chocolate. You could take or leave your pizza, popcorn, or fruity candy - I wouldn't have cared either way. But plop a nice piece of beef between two buns in front of me with a side of a Snickers bar and I swear I couldn't have been happier. I'm not joking. You would have been my best friend.

Now, I have a couple obsessions, too. Of course one of them is chocolate because, let's be honest, chocolate is and always will be my closest pal. But (sorry, hamburgers,) I have a new second favorite food, and that is peanuts. I don't care what condition they're in - smooth peanut butter, crunchy peanut butter, shelled, unshelled, salted, roasted, and even in a can of mixed nuts. A peanut is a peanut and I am nuts for them!

I think you can see where I am going with this. Ever since the invention of peanut butter cups, people have known what a blessing to mankind the combination of peanuts and chocolate is. So when I was going through my Martha Stewart Cookies book the other day (one of my favorite cookbooks) and I came across a recipe for PEANUT BUTTER SWIRL BROWNIES, well, I felt like God put it in that book just for me. My two favorite foods: peanuts and chocolate, swirled together harmoniously.

I could feel my waistline expanding just thinking about it.

So here is the recipe for maybe the best combination of chocolate and peanut butter I have ever tasted (and I have had a lot of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups in my fifteen years, let me tell you.) My one recommendation: Share these. Because if left in the same room with no willpower, you can, and will, eat half the pan. Trust me, I know.

Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies
From Martha Stewart's Cookies Book

For the Batter:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for pan
• 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the Filling:

• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
• 3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan and line with parchment, allowing a 2-inch overhang. Butter lining (not overhang). Make batter: Put butter and chocolates in a heatproof medium bowl set over a pan of simmering water; stir until melted. Let cool slightly. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Whisk granulated sugar into chocolate mixture. Add eggs, and whisk until mixture is smooth. Stir in vanilla. Add flour mixture; stir until well incorporated. Make filling: Stir together butter, confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, salt, and vanilla in a bowl until smooth. Pour one-third of batter into prepared pan; spread evenly with a rubber spatula. Drop dollops of peanut butter filling (about 1 tablespoon each) on top of batter, spacing about 1 inch apart. Drizzle remaining batter on top, and gently spread to fill pan. Drop dollops of remaining filling on top. Gently swirl peanut butter filling into batter with a butter knife, running the knife lengthwise and crosswise through layers. Bake until a cake tester inserted into brownies (avoid center and edges) comes out with a few crumbs but is not wet, about 45 minutes. Let cool slightly in pan, about 15 minutes. Lift out; let cool completely on a wire rack before cutting into squares. Brownies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.