Category Archives: Cookies

Chocolate Espresso Sables

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Makes 25 sandwich cookies

Ingredients

Cookies

  • 2/3 cup butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ Tonka bean, grated (optional)
  • 2 cups All-purpose flour
  • 2 Tablespoons freshly ground coffee
  • ½ teaspoon Kosher salt

Filling

  • 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
  • 1/3 cup heavy, or whipping, cream
  • 1 Tablespoon butter

Method

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat softened butter until creamy. Add confectioners’ sugar and beat until well combined and smooth
  2. Add egg yolks, vanilla extract and beat just until fully combined
  3. Add flour, ground coffee, salt, and beat at low speed just until flour is incorporated but before dough forms a ball
  4. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and use your hands to bring dough together. Divide dough in half and roll into 1½-inch-wide logs. Wrap logs in cling wrap, and refrigerate until firm, 1 to 2 hours
  5. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper, or silicone making mats
  6. Unwrap logs and cut into ¼-inch-thick rounds. Place rounds 1 inch apart on prepared pans
  7. Bake until just lightly browned around the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on pans for 5 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool completely on wire racks
  8. Place chocolate in a large heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream and butter to a simmer over medium heat. Pour hot cream mixture over chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute; stir until a smooth, silky ganache forms. Let stand until thickened, 30 minutes to 1 hour
  9. Using a piping bag fitted with a small round piping tip, pipe a round of ganache onto flat side of half of cookies. Place remaining cookies, flat side down, on top of ganache. Let stand until ganache is set, 1 to 2 hours
  10. Unfilled cookies will keep for 2 to 3 days. Once they are filled with ganache, the cookies are best served within a day

Dead Man’s Fingers

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What’s Halloween without a little treat from the Other World, huh? These delightfully dreadful cookies are a wonderful treat to have lying around at any festively freakish gathering. A spin on traditional sugar cookies, they really do look more than the sum of their parts. They’re also easy enough that you can rope in some ghoulish little helpers for the fun.

A point to note that like all sugar cookies, you want to avoid baking them to the usual cookie state of “golden brown”- this will result in them being a tad too hard for enjoyment. Bake them for the time required below, or until hte edges are just starting to turn a light golden brown. The cookies may look under-baked but trust me here- they will taste so much better!

Makes apx 24 (depending on size)

Ingredients

Graveyard Dirt

  • ¼ cup butter; melted
  • 1 Cup granulated sugar
  • 1 Cup cocoa powder
  • ½ pinch salt
  • slivered almonds; chopped walnut; shaved dark chocolate; shaved milk chocolate (Optional)

Fingers Cookies

  • 2 cups All Purpose Flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 28 large, flaked almonds
  • ½ cup smooth, raspberry jam
  • 1 Tablespoon light corn syrup

Method

Graveyard Dirt

  1. Melt butter in the microwave in a small glass or ceramic bowl (microwave safe) and allow to cool to room temperature
  2. In a large mixing bowl, blend the sugar, salt, and cocoa powder until thoroughly mixed
  3. While whisking, slowly add the melted butter and continue mixing gently until blended, but dry
  4. Using a fork, continue mixing until it looks like dark soil
  5. At this stage mix in the chopped nuts to give the soil texture
  6. Spoon the “dirt” on to your serving plate or tray, ready for your finger cookies

Fingers Cookies

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Prepare a cookie sheet with baking spray or line with a silicone mat, or baking parchment. Set aside until needed
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside until needed
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed, about 10 minutes
  4. Add in the egg, vanilla and mix until well combined and smooth.
  5. Gradually beat in the dry flour mixture, ¼ cup at a time until a dough forms
  6. Remove the bowl and using about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll the dough between your palms into 5-inch-long fingers about 1/2-inch thick. Firmly press a sliced almond into the end of each finger to make fingernails
  7. Make several horizontal cuts, about 1/4 inch deep, in the center of each finger to make mimic skin folds at the knuckles. Gently press the dough on either side of the cuts to shape the knuckles
  8. Arrange the fingers on the prepared baking sheet and bake until light golden, 16 to 18 minutes
  9. Transfer the fingers to a wire rack and cool completely
  10. While the cookies cool, in a small saucepan, combine the jam, corn syrup and heat over low heat until warm, about 2 minutes, stirring gently
  11. Dip the blunt ends of the fingers in the warm jam and arrange on a plate of the graveyard dirt for serving

Pubnico Molasses Cookies

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Makes 32

Ingredients

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup fancy molasses
  • 1 large egg
  • 5 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup milk

Method

  1. Cream sugar and butter, until pale and fluffy
  2. Add the fancy molasses, egg, and beat until well combined
  3. In a separate bowl whisk together the dry ingredients
  4. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in 3 stages, alternately with milk
  5. Bring dough together into a ball. Transfer to a bowl, cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. After this divide the dough into 2, flatten into disk shapes, 1 inch thickness, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or overnight
  6. When ready to bake, pre-heat oven to 350F
  7. Remove 1 disk of dough from the fridge and let rest for 10 minutes while you lightly flour a counter and line 2 cookie trays with baking parchment
  8.  Roll the cookie dough to 1/4 inch thick (these cookies are not thin)
  9. Using a round cookie cutter (2-2 ½ inch), cut into individual cookies and transfer to your prepared cookie trays, spacing 1 ½ inches apart
  10. Bake at 350F for 12 minutes, once baked remove from oven and allow to cool on a rack

Amaretto Coconut Macaroons

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It’s National Macaroon Day! So let’s celebrate these li’l nuggets of sweet coconutty goodness in all their chewy, toasty glory! These are fantastic treats which can have a universal appeal since they are in effect gluten-free. Any leavening required is done via the addition of whipped egg whites.

Speaking of additions in this recipe I’ve included a gentle tipple of almond liqueur in a reference to the cookies almond based begins. I also find that the combination of coconut and almond works really well. Think of these as a pimped up version of the fondly loved Almond Joy or Bounty bars for the grown-ups!

Don’t get me wrong – these also taste great without the addition of the alcohol. The added benefit being you can get the kids involved in the making of and then reward them for their efforts. It’s smiles all round!

Amaretto Coconut Macaroons #recipe

Makes average 21

Ingredients

  • 4 cups sweetened shredded coconut
  • 1 can (300ml) sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 Tablespoons almond liqueur
  • 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

To Finish

  • Whole almonds, blanched and toasted
  • 1 cup chocolate chips, melted

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F
  2. Combine the coconut, condensed milk, vanilla and almond liqueur a large bowl. Mix well
  3. Whip the egg whites and cream of tartar on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until they make medium-firm peaks
  4. Carefully fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture
  5. Drop the batter onto sheet pans lined with parchment paper using either a 1 3/4-inch cookie scoop, or 2 teaspoons
  6. Press an almond into the top of each macaroon mound
  7. Bake for 25, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on tray for 5 minutes before peeling to remove. Place on a rack and leave to cool fully
  8. When fully cooled dip the base of each macaroon into the melted chocolate. Leave to set, upside down (chocolate side up) on a cooling rack

Mint Viennese Whirls

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Episode 5 of Food Network Canada’s Great Chocolate Showdown rolls around and it’s pushing the boundaries on flavor combinations. This one’s all about the TEA! Using tea leaves we have to incorporate the selected flavor into a selection of bakes/ desserts fit for a high tea party. Out of the tea flavors to be selected from (Rooibos; Mint; Sencha Green; Milk Oolong; Chai Masala and Earl Grey) I ended up with Mint. Although this is the most well known, and probably most popular, it could be seen as more of a curse than as blessing due to it’s popularity. Is it a flavor that has been done to death?

Of the two desserts that I chose to present, these Viennese Whirls are my personal favorite. Buttery crumbly shortbread like cookies that are usually sandwiched together with a duo of buttercream and jam, I chose here to use the fillings to incorporate the mint flavor. Infusing a heavy cream base allowed it to be added both the buttercream filling and the feature chocolate ganache. What results is a mint flavor that avoids falling into the cliched “mouthwash mint” territory but remains palatable and interesting in these 2-bite sandwich cookies.

Mint Viennese Whirls #recipe #greatchocolateshowdown

Makes apx 16 sandwich cookies

Ingredients

Infused cream base

  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 2 Tbsp mint tea leaves

Cookies

  • 250g very soft butter
  • 50g icing sugar
  • 225g plain flour
  • 25g cornflour

Buttercream filling

  • 125g unsalted butter, softened
  • 200g icing sugar, plus extra for dusting
  • 4 tsp tea infused cream
  • ¼ tsp mint tea leaves (ground to a powder)

Chocolate Ganache filling

  • 2oz Dark Chocolate
  • ¼ tsp mint tea leaves (ground to a powder)
  • ¼ cup Infused cream, warmed to just below boiling
  • 1 Tbsp icing sugar

To Decorate (optional)

  • 3oz Dark chocolate, melted

Method

Infused cream base

  1. In a small pan combine the heavy cream and mint tea. Stir well
  2. Heat and continue to stir until the cream reaches just below boiling
  3. Remove from heat and leave to infuse for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally
  4. After this time, pour through a sieve to strain the tea leaves, pressing to remove traces of cream and set aside until needed

Cookies

  1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with non-stick baking parchment or pre-marked silpat sheets
  2. Measure the butter and icing sugar into a bowl, beating until pale & fluffy
  3. Sift in the flour with cornflour and beat on a medium high speed, until thoroughly mixed
  4. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a medium star nozzle (Wilton 2D). Pipe swirled rounds (size 1 1/2″ dia) on to prepared baking sheets
  5. Bake in the center of the oven for 12—13 minutes, until a pale golden-brown at the edges. Cool cookies on the baking sheets for 5 minutes then carefully transfer, with a spatula or palette knife, to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cool divide cookies into 2 equal portions (I find it best here to sort through the batch and match up cookies of the same size)

Buttercream Filling

  1. Measure the butter into a bowl, sift the icing sugar and tea powder on top
  2. Add the infused cream, beat on medium speed until well combined. Increase to high speed and whip until very light and smooth
  3. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with an open star nozzle (Wilton 32)
  4. Taking one portion of the cookies, pipe a border onto the flat side of the cookies, leaving a void in the middle

Chocolate Ganache filling

  1. Warm the infused cream to just below boiling. In a separate bowl combine the chocolate and icing sugar. Pour over the warmed cream
  2. Leave for 5 minutes
  3. Stir and whisk until smooth and fully emulsified
  4. Leave to cool until semi-firm (transfer to fridge to firm up but not solid)
  5. When firm pipe into center of the cookie with buttercream filling, and seal with it’s matching cookie from the second portion batch, twisting slightly to seal

To Decorate (optional)

  • Using a piping back with the end snipped off, drizzle some chocolate lightly over the assembled cookies. Leave for the chocolate to set- if you can wait that long!