Countdown to Christmas - Orange Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookies

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I suspect your children are much like mine. While surround by confections from around the world, their clear favorites were gingerbread men and frosted sugar cookies. Some of you may even have a spouse like mine. Now, my intent here is not to waken sleeping dogs, or open doors that should remain forever closed, but the Silver Fox and others like him, have a serious problem. Their mother's loved them more than we do. These women, to hear it told, dropped everything to bake their son's favorite cookie, no matter what else might be going on. In the midst of cooking dinner for 30, favorite cookies would miraculously appear to please,or as the case may be, appease, the Little Prince. The Little Prince was known to his sisters by a name that cannot be mentioned here, and only age has closed the breech caused by the special treatment he received. He, unfortunately, neglected to include the cookie clause in his marriage contract, so I can honestly say I have never dropped anything to make him cookies on a whim. This year, however, I had some extra time and included his favorite chocolate chips in my Christmas cookie mix. There are hundreds of recipes for CCCs floating through cyberspace, and the only thing that sets his apart from any of the others, is a bit of cinnamon and some orange zest. I must admit they add a great deal to the standard cookie. I found the recipe in Taste of Home magazine and I haven't strayed much from the original instructions, save for increasing the amount of cinnamon and changing the way the cookies are shaped. I found the rolling and cutting tedious, so using about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie, I created balls which I flattened to a half inch in thickness and made quick work of the chore. I think you will enjoy these cookies as much as the No-Longer-Little Price does. Here is how they are made.

Orange Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookies...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Taste of Home magazine

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 tablespoon orange zest, minced
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips ( 2 cups)
1 cup walnuts, chopped

Directions:
1) In a large bowl, cream butter and both sugars until light and fluffy.
2) Beat in eggs, orange zest and vanilla.
3) In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt, then gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in chips and walnuts, then cover and chill 2 hours or until dough is easy to handle.
4) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease several cookie sheets.
5) When dough has chilled, on a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/2-inch thick. Cut with lightly floured 3-inch round cookie cutter. Place 1 inch apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire rack to cool. Yield: 3 dozen cookie.

                    

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          Pecan Streusel Coffee Cake                                                        Brioche Sandwich Loaf

                 Three Years Ago Today:                                                           Four Years Ago Today: 

          Snap Pea and Edamame Salad                                                   Savory Mushroom Puff

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cupcakes

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I do hope that after reading this post, you'll do as I say and not as I do. I was in a rush this morning and trying to get these cupcakes made before we had to leave for the day. I quickly assembled the ingredients and at the last minute discovered that I didn't have paper liners for my muffin pans. We all know what I should have done, but that didn't happen. Rather than dash to the store for the liners, I decided to grease the muffin cups and let it go at that. Big mistake! Half of the cupcakes clung tenaciously to the pan and those that did release looked like the had gone 9 rounds with a young Mohammed Ali. Normally, I would have scrapped the batch, but I started to nibble at the crumbs and they were so delicious I couldn't bear to throw the cupcakes out. These are really good and I know you will enjoy them - if you can get them out of the pan. They are nearly effortless to make and the cupcakes are moist and delicious. Be forewarned that the batter for the muffins will be dense and fudge-like until the zucchini is worked into it. The moisture in the zucchini loosens the batter and makes it more malleable. Be sure to line your pans with paper liners and then spray the liners with a nonstick spray. The muffins are worth the aggravation. I will be making these again. The recipe, which came from Gourmet magazine, appears below.


Chocolate-Chip Zucchini Cupcakes...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Gourmet magazine

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 pound zucchini, coarsely grated (1 cup)
1 (6-ounces) package semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
2) Whisk together flour, cocoa, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3) Beat together sugar, oil, egg, and vanilla in a large bowl with an electric mixer until thick and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes.
4) At low speed, mix in flour mixture until just incorporated. Stir in zucchini and chocolate chips.
5) Divide batter among lined muffin cups and bake until tops spring back when lightly pressed, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool in pan 5 minutes, then turn out to cool completely. Yield: 12 servings.

If you have enjoyed your visit here, I hope you'll take a minute to...

      

One Year Ago Today: Maple-Glazed Apple Spice Bread

Two Years Ago Today: Peanut Butter and Banana Bread

Three Years Ago Today: Peanut and Pumpkin Soup

Four Years Ago Today: Apple Custard Pie with Streusel Topping

Brown-Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I found the recipe for these cookies in the July issue of Food and Wine magazine. It was developed by Lori Baker and her huge cookies will please cookie monsters of any age. The cookies are made with browned butter and they need an overnight chill before they can be formed and baked. Chilling allows the dough to soak up any liquid that has been added to it and, in this case, it also prevents the butter from melting and pooling when the dough goes in a hot oven. Experts think that drier and firmer doughs produce cookies that have a better consistency. My experts, specifically the Silver Fox and our teenage neighbors, weren't terribly concerned with consistency when they gave these saucer sized cookie a big thumbs up. These cookies are cracker crisp and perfect for dunking in a glass of cold milk. If you prefer something softer and more chewy, you'll have to play with the baking time. I suspect these are good keepers, but they disappeared before I could test and speak with informed certainty about their shelf life. This is a nice cookie and I think those of you who try this recipe will be pleased. Here's how the cookies are made.

Brown-Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Lori Baker and Food and Wine magazine

Ingredients:
2 sticks unsalted butter
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons milk
1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions:
1) In a medium saucepan, cook butter over moderate heat until it is browned and nutty-smelling, about 5 minutes. Transfer butter to a small bowl and let it cool to room temperature.
2) In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt and baking soda.
3) In bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle, beat room temperature browned butter with granulated and light brown sugars at medium speed until light and fluffy, scraping down bowl halfway through, about 7 minutes. Beat in whole egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla.
4) At low speed, beat in dry ingredients, scraping down bowl as needed. Mix in chopped chocolate. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
5) When ready to proceed, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop 1/4-cup mounds of cookie dough onto each baking sheet. There should be 6 cookies per sheet. Bake one sheet at a time for about 18 minutes, until cookies are just firm and golden brown on the bottom. Transfer sheet to a rack to cool. Repeat to bake the remaining cookies. Serve the cookies warm or at room temperature. Yield: 18 cookies.

One Year Ago Today: Asian-Style Pumpkin and Coconut Panna Cotta

Two Years Ago Today: Dolmas  -  Stuffed Grape Leaves with Cucumber and Yogurt Sauce

Three Years Ago Today: Oatmeal Cake

Lunch Box Oatmeal Chocolate Chippers

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I don't know why we do this to ourselves. Why, when we already have several great recipes for each of the three cookie jar staples, do those of us who love to cook insist on trying yet another version for our families? I'll confess upfront that I need another recipe for oatmeal cookies like I need a hole in the head. Unfortunately, baker's instinct seems to trump reason and whenever I see a recipe that might be better than the ones I have on hand, I have a compulsion to try it. When I saw the oatmeal cookies developed by Kate Ramos for CHOW, I knew how I'd be spending my afternoon. I set to work and within an hour I had warm oatmeal cookies to enjoy with a glass of milk. This is a nice chewy cookie. While they seem slightly sweeter than those I usually bake, my testers loved them and they quickly disappeared. I personally thought the cookies needed more chips than called for in the ingredient list. The next time I make them, I plan to use a cup or so of miniature chips to get a better dispersion of chocolate throughout the cookie dough. The recipe is straight forward and the cookies, which are perfect to pack for school lunches, are simple to make. If you like a really sweet cookie, you'll love these, and I know that those of you who try this recipe will not be disappointed. Here's how the cookies are made.

Lunch Box Oatmeal Chocolate Chippers...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Kate Ramos as featured on CHOW

Ingredients:
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1-1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-1/4 cups packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup whole milk
3 cups old-fashioned oats
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1) Move rack to middle of oven. Preheat to 350 degrees F.
2) Place flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl and whisk to combine.
3) Place butter and brown sugar in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium high until light in color and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat until completely incorporated, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
4) Add half of flour mixture and beat until just incorporated. Add half of milk and mix until just incorporated. Continue with remaining flour mixture and milk, mixing until ingredients are just incorporated and smooth. Remove bowl from the mixer and stir in oats and chocolate chips.
5) Drop dough by level tablespoons onto a baking sheet, spaced 1 inch apart. Bake until golden brown on the edges, about 11 to 12 minutes. Immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely. Yield: 4 to 5 dozen cookies.

One Year Ago Today: Elizabeth David's Chocolate Cake

Two Years Ago Today: Stuffed Eggplant

Three years Ago Today:  Caramelized Pear and Cranberry Upside Down Cake

Oatmeal Cookies with Cherries and Chocolate Chips

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I just sent a batch of these cookies down the hill to the teens who are taste testers for some of the recipes I feature here. I owed them a treat. They really like this particular cookie, and I know from what their mother reports, that the cookies disappear if not kept under lock and key. I like that the boys like my cooking, but the Silver Fox keeps my ego in check. He points out the boys this age will eat anything that is not green or frozen solid and I must admit there's more than a modicum of truth in that. Their tastes are not yet discriminating and they are very easy to please. I suspect they like these cookies because they are man sized and packed with flavor. Years ago, my own children labeled treats such as these kitchen sink cookies because every thing but the sink went into their making. In truth, these are nothing more than oatmeal cookies with attitude. The original recipe came from Bon Appetit magazine and the cookies are a personal favorite of editor, Barbara Fairchild. They are very easy to make and while they lack finesse, they are delicious. Teens, younger children and the occasional errant adult love them. If you haven't yet tried them, I hope you'll give them a test tun. Here's the recipe.


Oatmeal Cookies with Cherries and Chocolate Chips...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Bon Appetit magazine

Ingredients:
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1-1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1-1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup dried tart cherries
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Directions:
1) Position 1 rack in center and 1 rack in top third of oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Line 2 heavy large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and both sugars in large bowl until well blended. Mix in egg and both extracts. Beat in flour mixture. Stir in oats, then chocolate chips, cherries, and almonds.
2) Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake cookies 12 minutes. Reverse baking sheets, top to bottom and front to back, and continue to bake cookies until golden, about 6 minutes longer. Cool cookies on baking sheets (cookies will firm as they cool). Yield: 2 dozen cookies.









One Year Ago Today: Crustless Onion Quiche


















Two years Ago Today: Cranberry Chambord Sorbet

Chocolate-Hazelnut Track Bread - Blue Monday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This easy to make quick bread is a perfect accompaniment to coffee and it makes a lovely addition to a breakfast or brunch table. It's a perfect example of what James Beard called a "track" bread. In his parlance, any bread that had a traceable filling was called a track bread. While his cookbooks have numerous example of them, all delicious I might add, today's recipe comes from Taste of Home magazine. This bread is filled with hazelnuts and chocolate and it really is quite lovely. I chose it because of its hazelnut track. Hazelnuts are also called filberts but the extension services here in the Willamette Valley prefer to call them hazelnuts. While Oregon produces 98 percent of the hazelnuts grown in the United States, that amounts to only 3 percent of the world's supply. That means that Turkey, Spain and Italy are actually the world's major suppliers. Hazelnuts are not widely popular in the United State. They are more expensive then other nuts and they have a reputation for being difficult to skin. Actually, it's not all that difficult to rid them of their pesky covering. The traditional method involves roasting the hazelnuts for about 10 minutes in a moderately hot oven. The nuts are then wrapped in a clean towel and rubbed until most of the skin comes off. A newer, easier method suggests boiling the nuts for 4 minutes in a quart of water to which 1/4 cup baking soda has been added. The nuts are them rinsed in cold water which will cause the skins to pop off. Once the skins are removed, the hazelnuts are roasted until they are lightly brown. Then there is my way. I pay a premium and buy my hazelnuts already skinned. Truth be told, I've been known to buy them already chopped as well. I really like this bread and I think you will too. Here's the recipe.

Chocolate-Hazelnut Track Bread...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Taste of Home magazine

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
Topping:
1/3 cup finely chopped hazelnuts
1/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. Set aside.
2) In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream. Batter will be thick.
3) Spoon half of batter into prepared loaf pan. Combine topping ingredients; sprinkle two-thirds of topping over batter. Top with remaining batter. Sprinkle with remaining topping; press down lightly.
4) Bake for 60-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Yield: 1 loaf (12 slices).

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Chocolate and Hazelnut Pie with Vanilla Cream - One Perfect Bite
Bavarian Hazelnut Cake - One Perfect Bite
Chocolate Babka - One Perfect Bite

This post is being linked to:
Smiling Sally - Blue Monday