Christmas Cookie Week: A Big Thumbs-Up!

 

That's what these Thumbprint cookies normally elicit when they're served. These aren't your standard sugar cookies with any old jelly either. Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin, who-wrote the new cookbook, Fabulous Modern Cookies came by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about their Jam-On Toast Thumbprints. They told Tonia it's like eating buttered toast with marmalade, and ingredients are a high-quality. Things Panko and Whole Wheat Flour. It's a different taste to be sure, but it's delicious 

Jam-on-Toast Thumbprints

(Makes 16 to 21 cookies)

3/4 cup (43 grams) panko bread crumbs (unseasoned)

1/2 cup (71 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup (104 grams) whole wheat flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar

2 large eggs, separated, at room temperature

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup (200 grams) orange marmalade, preferably fine-cut

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line two 18-by-13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Toast the panko in a skillet over medium heat, stirring or tossing frequently, until light golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a small shallow bowl to cool completely.

Whisk together the all-purpose and whole wheat flours and the salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

Combine the butter and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater, and beat together on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks and vanilla until the yolks are incorporated and the mixture is uniform. Mix in the flour mixture on low speed until no dry flour is visible. Scrape the sides of the bowl and the beater with a silicone spatula to ensure all of the ingredients are properly mixed in and no stray clumps remain.

Lightly whisk the egg whites in a separate shallow bowl to loosen them.

Portion 1 tablespoon (19 grams) of dough, using a #60 cookie scoop. Roll the dough between your palms into balls. Roll the balls in the egg white, let any extra egg white drip off back into the bowl, and roll the ball in the panko. Place the coated balls on one prepared baking sheet (13 per sheet). Press an indentation into each ball, using a ball tool (a pencil-size tool with marble-size balls at both ends) or the very tip of your index finger. The cookies will puff some while baking, so the indentation can be fairly deep, but not so deep that it breaks through the bottom of the dough ball.

Bake the cookies for 12 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and use a ball tool, metal measuring spoon, or some other heatproof tool to re-indent the dimple that has filled in during baking. Stir the marmalade in a bowl until it is loose and no longer lumpy. Fill wells with 1 teaspoon of orange marmalade. Place the pan back in the oven to bake until the cookies are just browning at the edge, 13 to 15 more minutes. While the first pan bakes, prepare the next sheet. Remove the baked cookies from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough once the baking sheets have completely cooled, or prepare additional baking sheets. After cooling, the cookies can be stored in an airtight container or at room temperature for several days.

Note: For slightly smaller cookies, portion the dough with a 2-teaspoon scoop and fill with 1/2 teaspoon of marmalade. This will increase the yield to about 30 cookies. Also, although we usually opt to fill thumbprint cookies with a piping bag, the pieces of citrus rind in marmalade make the use of a spoon preferable.

Christmas Cookie Week: A Portlandia Cookie

 

Who doesn't love the quirky, coffee-obsessed TV Series Portlandia. The show, which shines a light on the eccentricrities of Oregon's largest city shows a real unique place to live or visit. And no visit would be complete without diving into a bar cookie (see what I did there :)) showcasing some of the most delicious products of the Pacific Northwest. We're talking Oregon produce like cherries and hazelnuts, combined with the rich coffee you'll find there. Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin, who co-authored the cookbook, Fabulous Modern Cookies, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about their Portland Pie Squares. It's a bar cookie that combines sour cherries, with sweet hazelnut and coffee. Give it a try this Christmas and enjoy a treat from the PNW!

Portland Pie Squares

Sour Cherries, Hazelnuts, Coffee Culture

Espresso Powder classic bar cookie, crumble

Granulated Sugar and light brown sugar for the crust

Tart Cherry Filling

• Canned red tart (a.k.a. sour) cherries, packed in water: Two 15-ounce cans (850 grams)
• Granulated sugar: 1/4 cup (50 grams)
• Cornstarch: 1 1/2 tablespoons (12 grams)
• Salt: ⅛ teaspoon
• Dried tart (a.k.a. sour) cherries, chopped: 3/4 cup (106 grams)
• Instant espresso powder: 4 teaspoons
• Almond extract: ⅛ teaspoon

Brown Sugar–Hazelnut Crust and Topping

• Unbleached all-purpose flour: 1 3/4 cups (248 grams)
• Light brown sugarPacked: 1 cup (200 grams)
• Old-fashioned rolled oats: 1 cup (100 grams)
• Salt: 1/2 teaspoon
• Ground cinnamon, preferably Ceylon: 1/4 teaspoon
• Unsalted butter, melted and cooled but still pourable: 12 tablespoons (170 grams)
• Hazelnut liqueur, such as Frangelico (or substitute 1/2 teaspoon hazelnut extract): 2 teaspoons
• Hazelnuts, toasted, cooled, and chopped: 1/2 cup (62 grams)

1. Make the Tart Cherry Filling: Drain the canned cherries, reserving 1/2 cup (121 grams) of the liquid. Whisk together the reserved liquid, granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium saucepan until the cornstarch has dissolved. Stir in the cherries.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Lower the heat to maintain a slow boil and continue to cook, stirring frequently to prevent sticking and pressing on the cherries to help break them down. Simmer until the mixture has the consistency of applesauce and mostly holds a trail when a spoon is dragged across the bottom of the pan, about 30 minutes. You will have about 1 1/4 cups (330 grams) of filling.
3. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the dried cherries, espresso powder, and almond extract. Transfer the filling to a bowl and leave to cool completely, about 2 hours.
4. Once the cherry filling has completely cooled, position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350F. Line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil and lightly spray with nonstick baking spray.
5. Make the Crust and Topping: Combine the flour, brown sugar, oats, salt, and cinnamon in a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater, and beat on low speed. While still mixing, slowly drizzle in the melted butter and hazelnut liqueur. Continue to mix until uniform and no dry flour remains on the bottom of the bowl.
6. Press about 2 1/2 cups (about 450 grams) of the flour mixture across the bottom of the prepared pan. The flat bottom of a drinking glass or dry measuring cup can be helpful in pressing the crust into a flat and even layer.
7. Bake until the crust is starting to turn golden brown all over and is firm when pressed in the center, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
8. Spread the cherry filling in an even layer over the warm crust, using a small offset spatula.
9. Mix the hazelnuts into the remaining flour mixture. Firmly squeeze small handfuls of the topping in your hand (sort of like a rubber stress ball); open your hand and break the piece into marble-size pieces of topping over the top of the filling. Repeat with the remaining topping and sprinkle the filling with remaining bits. Gently press the topping into the cherry filling.
10. Return the pan to the oven and continue to bake until the topping is beginning to brown along the top, 35 to 40 minutes. The edges of the filling might also begin to bubble.
11. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature in the pan on a wire rack. Use the foil to lift and remove from the pan before cutting into 1 3/4-inch squares. The squares can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for several days or well wrapped and frozen for several months.

Christmas Cookie Week: Coffee in A Cookie!

  

Cookies go well with coffee, we all know that. So what happens when you put the coffee in the cookie? Good question said Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin. They wrote the new cookbook, Fabulous Modern Cookies. Both stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about their Coffee Bean Crunchers. It's not a traditional Christmas flavor to be sure, but both told Tonia that it's more of a refined taste, probably for an adult palate. It's a rolled cookie that packs a bold kick, and would be perfect for an office party!

Unbleached all-purpose flour - 3 cups /425 grams

Salt 1/2 teaspoon

Unsalted butter, at room temperature - 16 tablespoons/227 grams

Granulated sugar - 1/2 cup /100 grams

Light brown sugarPacked - 1/2 cup /100 grams

Egg, at room temperature - 1 large /50 grams (weighed without shell)

Instant espresso powder - 2 teaspoons

Pure vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon

Whole roasted coffee beans - 1/2 cup/ 35 grams

Directions

1. Whisk together the flour and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

2. Combine the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater, and cream together on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the egg, espresso powder, and vanilla until the mixture is uniform.

3. Reduce the mixer to low speed, and mix in the flour mixture until combined and no dry flour is visible. Scrape the sides of the bowl and the beater with a silicone spatula to make sure all ingredients have been incorporated.

4. Place the coffee beans in a bag, such as a 1-quart resealable storage bag. Crush the beans coarsely, using a heavy object, such as a rolling pin or the bottom of a small pan. The goal is to still have small, crunchy nuggets of coffee bean that are smaller than 1/4-inch chunks but not a fine powder. Stir the crushed beans into the cookie dough, using a silicone spatula.

5. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half of the dough to a 1/4-inch thickness between two sheets of parchment or waxed paper. Stack the paper-covered sheets of dough on an 18-by-13-inch baking sheet, and refrigerate until cold and firm throughout, at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.

6. Position two racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat to 350F. Line two 18-by-13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

7. Use a coffee bean shaped cookie cutter (or any shape) to cut your desired shapes from the dough and transfer them to the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of space between cookies. If you don’t have a coffee bean–shaped cutter, find an oval or ellipse that seems reasonably close. Drag the back of a butter knife through the center of the cookie to draw that central coffee bean line. (Be sure to use the back of the knife—you just want to draw a line, not cut through it.) These cookies keep their shape well, so you can crowd the pan a little more than with cookies that spread more during baking. But keep them about 1 inch apart for proper heat circulation.

8. Bake until the edges are just starting to brown, 10 to 20 minutes. Halfway through baking, rotate the pans from front to back and top to bottom. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Large (over 4 inches) or delicate shapes should be allowed to cool completely on the sheets to prevent breaking. Repeat with the remaining dough, rerolling the scraps of dough, if necessary, once the baking sheets have completely cooled, or prepare additional baking sheets. After cooling, the cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

Christmas Cookie Week: An Apple Cookie, Without the Apples

 

Lots to unpack here with Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin. They're the authors behind the new cookbook Fabulous Modern Cookies. Both writers stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about just how they're shaking up the cookie recipe world, with some new and different takes on classic recipes. This time around, they're going back a ways to an oldie...it's called a Moxie Cookie and it's made with the Ritz Crackers and Cream of Tartar. Two things you certainly would not expect in a cookie recipe. The chefs told Tonia that Cream of Tartar offers a green apple-esque flavor profile when you follow the recipe, with the crackers it turns into a crispy and chewy cookie that might just surprise you!

40 crackers (133 grams) of Ritz biscuits

½ cup (71 grams) pecan nuts, toasted and cooled (see note)

½ cup (100 g) packed light brown sugar

teaspoon cream of tartar

Half a teaspoon of ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 large egg white (35 g)

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

4 tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled but still biodegradable

1. Place two racks to divide the oven into thirds and heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Drain bread measuring 18 x 13 inches

Sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

2. Place the biscuits in the bowl of a food processor and blend until they turn into small crumbs. Transfer the crumbs to a bowl. Add the pecans to a food processor and grind them well as well. Add the ground nuts to the bowl with the biscuit crumbs. (Alternatively, the crackers can be crushed by hand directly into the bowl and the pecans can be chopped by hand.)

3. Add the brown sugar, cream of tartar, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the bowl. Mix these dry ingredients together by hand using a silicone spatula. Add the egg whites, lemon juice and melted butter and mix until all the dry ingredients are moistened and the mixture is formed into a cohesive mass. Let the mixture rest for 15 minutes before washing it off.

4. Portion 1 tablespoon (18 grams) of dough, using a #60 ladle, roll into balls, and arrange 13 servings evenly on first baking sheet. Flatten the balls a little with your fingertips. Repeat the process with the rest of the dough and arrange it on the second baking tray.

5. Bake until the edges of the cookies are firm and beginning to turn brown, 13 to 17 minutes. Halfway through the baking process, rotate the pans front to back and top to bottom. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes on a baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. After cooling, cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

Christmas Cookie Week: Pumpkin Cookies

 

Yes, it's that time of year again. Tonia's Kitchen is proud to walk down Christmas Cookie Lane in the runup to the big holiday. And this year, we have something extra special for you to try in your oven. They're called Pumpkin Snicker Cringles, kind of like a gingerbread with the warm winter spices that you might associate with the holiday, but with a different flavor profile involving pumpkin. The trick here, says Fabulous Modern Cookies co-authors Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin, is to make the sure the pumpkin doesn't turn the cookie you're making into more of a cake. Pumpkin, and other wet ingredients tend to do that. That's where their innovations come in. They studied something called Tangzhong Technique. It's a Japanese baking method by which you can trap the moisture of a wet ingredient, and allow the flavor to be more chewy, like a cookie, instead of soft like a cake.  It's a great Christmas Cookie!

Ingredients (makes about 3 dozen cookies):

• 2 1/4 cups flour, divided
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
• 3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together 2 cups flour, the baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.

Add your butter to a small saucepan over medium heat. Let melt and continue to heat undisturbed until it begins bubbling.

Once the bubbling begins to quiet down, start swirling the pan constantly for about 1 minute, or until you start seeing the solids at the bottom of the pan turning golden brown and the butter has a nutty aroma (this can go from seeing nothing to being quite golden brown in a matter of seconds, just as a heads up.)

Remove the pan from heat and stir in the brown sugar along with 2 teaspoons of cinnamon, scraping at the bottom of the pan to fully incorporate all of the browned bits.

Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

In a separate small, microwave-safe bowl, stir together the remaining 1/4 cup flour and the pumpkin puree.

Add the mixture to your microwave and heat in 30 second increments, stirring in between each one, until the mixture has thickened into a paste (about 2 minutes total). This is called the Tangzhong Technique

Add the pumpkin mixture to the large bowl with the brown sugar mixture.

Using an electric mixer, beat the mixtures together on medium speed to fully combine. Let set for 15 minutes, or until fully cool.

Once cool, mix in the egg yolks and the vanilla extract on medium speed.

Reduce the speed to low and mix in your flour mixture a little at a time, being sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl from time to time to make sure everything is fully combined.

In a separate small, shallow bowl, whisk together the remaining teaspoon and cinnamon and the confectioners’ sugar.

Use a cookie scoop to portion out a ball of the dough and drop it into the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Gently roll the ball around to completely coat and then place on your baking sheet.

Repeat, adding the coated dough two inches apart on your baking sheet.

Add to your oven and bake until the cookies are puffy and the tops are cracked, about 11 to 15 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Let cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheets then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Repeat with your remaining dough and cinnamon-sugar mixture. You can store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

Christmas Cookie Week: Thumbs-Up!

That's what these Thumbprint cookies normally elicit when they're served. These aren't your standard sugar cookies with any old jelly either. Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin, who-wrote the new cookbook, Fabulous Modern Cookies came by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about their Jam-On Toast Thumbprints. They told Tonia it's like eating buttered toast with marmalade, and ingredients are a high-quality. Things Panko and Whole Wheat Flour. It's a different taste to be sure, but it's delicious 

Jam-on-Toast Thumbprints

(Makes 16 to 21 cookies)

3/4 cup (43 grams) panko bread crumbs (unseasoned)

1/2 cup (71 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup (104 grams) whole wheat flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar

2 large eggs, separated, at room temperature

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup (200 grams) orange marmalade, preferably fine-cut

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line two 18-by-13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Toast the panko in a skillet over medium heat, stirring or tossing frequently, until light golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a small shallow bowl to cool completely.

Whisk together the all-purpose and whole wheat flours and the salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

Combine the butter and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater, and beat together on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks and vanilla until the yolks are incorporated and the mixture is uniform. Mix in the flour mixture on low speed until no dry flour is visible. Scrape the sides of the bowl and the beater with a silicone spatula to ensure all of the ingredients are properly mixed in and no stray clumps remain.

Lightly whisk the egg whites in a separate shallow bowl to loosen them.

Portion 1 tablespoon (19 grams) of dough, using a #60 cookie scoop. Roll the dough between your palms into balls. Roll the balls in the egg white, let any extra egg white drip off back into the bowl, and roll the ball in the panko. Place the coated balls on one prepared baking sheet (13 per sheet). Press an indentation into each ball, using a ball tool (a pencil-size tool with marble-size balls at both ends) or the very tip of your index finger. The cookies will puff some while baking, so the indentation can be fairly deep, but not so deep that it breaks through the bottom of the dough ball.

Bake the cookies for 12 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and use a ball tool, metal measuring spoon, or some other heatproof tool to re-indent the dimple that has filled in during baking. Stir the marmalade in a bowl until it is loose and no longer lumpy. Fill wells with 1 teaspoon of orange marmalade. Place the pan back in the oven to bake until the cookies are just browning at the edge, 13 to 15 more minutes. While the first pan bakes, prepare the next sheet. Remove the baked cookies from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough once the baking sheets have completely cooled, or prepare additional baking sheets. After cooling, the cookies can be stored in an airtight container or at room temperature for several days.

Note: For slightly smaller cookies, portion the dough with a 2-teaspoon scoop and fill with 1/2 teaspoon of marmalade. This will increase the yield to about 30 cookies. Also, although we usually opt to fill thumbprint cookies with a piping bag, the pieces of citrus rind in marmalade make the use of a spoon preferable.

Christmas Cookie Week: Portlandia in a Cookie!

Who doesn't love the quirky, coffee-obsessed TV Series Portlandia. The show, which shines a light on the eccentricrities of Oregon's largest city shows a real unique place to live or visit. And no visit would be complete without diving into a bar cookie (see what I did there :)) showcasing some of the most delicious products of the Pacific Northwest. We're talking Oregon produce like cherries and hazelnuts, combined with the rich coffee you'll find there. Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin, who co-authored the cookbook, Fabulous Modern Cookies, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about their Portland Pie Squares. It's a bar cookie that combines sour cherries, with sweet hazelnut and coffee. Give it a try this Christmas and enjoy a treat from the PNW!

Portland Pie Squares

Sour Cherries, Hazelnuts, Coffee Culture

Espresso Powder classic bar cookie, crumble

Granulated Sugar and light brown sugar for the crust

Tart Cherry Filling

• Canned red tart (a.k.a. sour) cherries, packed in water: Two 15-ounce cans (850 grams)
• Granulated sugar: 1/4 cup (50 grams)
• Cornstarch: 1 1/2 tablespoons (12 grams)
• Salt: ⅛ teaspoon
• Dried tart (a.k.a. sour) cherries, chopped: 3/4 cup (106 grams)
• Instant espresso powder: 4 teaspoons
• Almond extract: ⅛ teaspoon

Brown Sugar–Hazelnut Crust and Topping

• Unbleached all-purpose flour: 1 3/4 cups (248 grams)
• Light brown sugarPacked: 1 cup (200 grams)
• Old-fashioned rolled oats: 1 cup (100 grams)
• Salt: 1/2 teaspoon
• Ground cinnamon, preferably Ceylon: 1/4 teaspoon
• Unsalted butter, melted and cooled but still pourable: 12 tablespoons (170 grams)
• Hazelnut liqueur, such as Frangelico (or substitute 1/2 teaspoon hazelnut extract): 2 teaspoons
• Hazelnuts, toasted, cooled, and chopped: 1/2 cup (62 grams)

1. Make the Tart Cherry Filling: Drain the canned cherries, reserving 1/2 cup (121 grams) of the liquid. Whisk together the reserved liquid, granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium saucepan until the cornstarch has dissolved. Stir in the cherries.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Lower the heat to maintain a slow boil and continue to cook, stirring frequently to prevent sticking and pressing on the cherries to help break them down. Simmer until the mixture has the consistency of applesauce and mostly holds a trail when a spoon is dragged across the bottom of the pan, about 30 minutes. You will have about 1 1/4 cups (330 grams) of filling.
3. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the dried cherries, espresso powder, and almond extract. Transfer the filling to a bowl and leave to cool completely, about 2 hours.
4. Once the cherry filling has completely cooled, position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350F. Line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil and lightly spray with nonstick baking spray.
5. Make the Crust and Topping: Combine the flour, brown sugar, oats, salt, and cinnamon in a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater, and beat on low speed. While still mixing, slowly drizzle in the melted butter and hazelnut liqueur. Continue to mix until uniform and no dry flour remains on the bottom of the bowl.
6. Press about 2 1/2 cups (about 450 grams) of the flour mixture across the bottom of the prepared pan. The flat bottom of a drinking glass or dry measuring cup can be helpful in pressing the crust into a flat and even layer.
7. Bake until the crust is starting to turn golden brown all over and is firm when pressed in the center, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
8. Spread the cherry filling in an even layer over the warm crust, using a small offset spatula.
9. Mix the hazelnuts into the remaining flour mixture. Firmly squeeze small handfuls of the topping in your hand (sort of like a rubber stress ball); open your hand and break the piece into marble-size pieces of topping over the top of the filling. Repeat with the remaining topping and sprinkle the filling with remaining bits. Gently press the topping into the cherry filling.
10. Return the pan to the oven and continue to bake until the topping is beginning to brown along the top, 35 to 40 minutes. The edges of the filling might also begin to bubble.
11. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature in the pan on a wire rack. Use the foil to lift and remove from the pan before cutting into 1 3/4-inch squares. The squares can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for several days or well wrapped and frozen for several months.

Christmas Cookie Week: This Coffee Contains a Crunch!

 

And by crunch, we mean a cookie crunch. Cookies go well with coffee, we all know that. So what happens when you put the coffee in the cookie? Good question said Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin. They wrote the new cookbook, Fabulous Modern Cookies. Both stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about their Coffee Bean Crunchers. It's not a traditional Christmas flavor to be sure, but both told Tonia that it's more of a refined taste, probably for an adult palate. It's a rolled cookie that packs a bold kick, and would be perfect for an office party!

Unbleached all-purpose flour - 3 cups /425 grams

Salt 1/2 teaspoon

Unsalted butter, at room temperature - 16 tablespoons/227 grams

Granulated sugar - 1/2 cup /100 grams

Light brown sugarPacked - 1/2 cup /100 grams

Egg, at room temperature - 1 large /50 grams (weighed without shell)

Instant espresso powder - 2 teaspoons

Pure vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon

Whole roasted coffee beans - 1/2 cup/ 35 grams

Directions

1. Whisk together the flour and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

2. Combine the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater, and cream together on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the egg, espresso powder, and vanilla until the mixture is uniform.

3. Reduce the mixer to low speed, and mix in the flour mixture until combined and no dry flour is visible. Scrape the sides of the bowl and the beater with a silicone spatula to make sure all ingredients have been incorporated.

4. Place the coffee beans in a bag, such as a 1-quart resealable storage bag. Crush the beans coarsely, using a heavy object, such as a rolling pin or the bottom of a small pan. The goal is to still have small, crunchy nuggets of coffee bean that are smaller than 1/4-inch chunks but not a fine powder. Stir the crushed beans into the cookie dough, using a silicone spatula.

5. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half of the dough to a 1/4-inch thickness between two sheets of parchment or waxed paper. Stack the paper-covered sheets of dough on an 18-by-13-inch baking sheet, and refrigerate until cold and firm throughout, at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.

6. Position two racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat to 350F. Line two 18-by-13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

7. Use a coffee bean shaped cookie cutter (or any shape) to cut your desired shapes from the dough and transfer them to the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of space between cookies. If you don’t have a coffee bean–shaped cutter, find an oval or ellipse that seems reasonably close. Drag the back of a butter knife through the center of the cookie to draw that central coffee bean line. (Be sure to use the back of the knife—you just want to draw a line, not cut through it.) These cookies keep their shape well, so you can crowd the pan a little more than with cookies that spread more during baking. But keep them about 1 inch apart for proper heat circulation.

8. Bake until the edges are just starting to brown, 10 to 20 minutes. Halfway through baking, rotate the pans from front to back and top to bottom. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Large (over 4 inches) or delicate shapes should be allowed to cool completely on the sheets to prevent breaking. Repeat with the remaining dough, rerolling the scraps of dough, if necessary, once the baking sheets have completely cooled, or prepare additional baking sheets. After cooling, the cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

Christmas Cookie Week: A Cookie, Not a Cake

Yes, it's that time of year again. Tonia's Kitchen is proud to walk down Christmas Cookie Lane in the runup to the big holiday. And this year, we have something extra special for you to try in your oven. They're called Pumpkin Snicker Cringles, kind of like a gingerbread with the warm winter spices that you might associate with the holiday, but with a different flavor profile involving pumpkin. The trick here, says Fabulous Modern Cookies co-authors Chris Taylor and Paul Arguin, is to make the sure the pumpkin doesn't turn the cookie you're making into more of a cake. Pumpkin, and other wet ingredients tend to do that. That's where their innovations come in. They studied something called Tangzhong Technique. It's a Japanese baking method by which you can trap the moisture of a wet ingredient, and allow the flavor to be more chewy, like a cookie, instead of soft like a cake.  It's a great Christmas Cookie!

Ingredients (makes about 3 dozen cookies):

• 2 1/4 cups flour, divided
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
• 3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together 2 cups flour, the baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.

Add your butter to a small saucepan over medium heat. Let melt and continue to heat undisturbed until it begins bubbling.

Once the bubbling begins to quiet down, start swirling the pan constantly for about 1 minute, or until you start seeing the solids at the bottom of the pan turning golden brown and the butter has a nutty aroma (this can go from seeing nothing to being quite golden brown in a matter of seconds, just as a heads up.)

Remove the pan from heat and stir in the brown sugar along with 2 teaspoons of cinnamon, scraping at the bottom of the pan to fully incorporate all of the browned bits.

Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

In a separate small, microwave-safe bowl, stir together the remaining 1/4 cup flour and the pumpkin puree.

Add the mixture to your microwave and heat in 30 second increments, stirring in between each one, until the mixture has thickened into a paste (about 2 minutes total). This is called the Tangzhong Technique

Add the pumpkin mixture to the large bowl with the brown sugar mixture.

Using an electric mixer, beat the mixtures together on medium speed to fully combine. Let set for 15 minutes, or until fully cool.

Once cool, mix in the egg yolks and the vanilla extract on medium speed.

Reduce the speed to low and mix in your flour mixture a little at a time, being sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl from time to time to make sure everything is fully combined.

In a separate small, shallow bowl, whisk together the remaining teaspoon and cinnamon and the confectioners’ sugar.

Use a cookie scoop to portion out a ball of the dough and drop it into the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Gently roll the ball around to completely coat and then place on your baking sheet.

Repeat, adding the coated dough two inches apart on your baking sheet.

Add to your oven and bake until the cookies are puffy and the tops are cracked, about 11 to 15 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Let cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheets then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Repeat with your remaining dough and cinnamon-sugar mixture. You can store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.