Posts tagged ‘easy’

April 26th, 2013

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

by Chrissy

Bold claim, I know. But these cookies are the business.

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From a young age I loved baking chocolate chip cookies. If I’m being honest, it was probably more of an obsession…but who needs to know that.

And I wasn’t a fat kid, if you were wondering, based on the last comment. Who knows how I dodge that one, but maybe it had something to do with the variety of sports I played.

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At the age of 10, the recipe on the back of the Nestle chocolate chip bag was ingrained into my memory, so I could bake them on a whim whenever I felt like it. I just had to be sure that there was some softened butter conveniently lying around on the counter.

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Sheesh. Just check out that melty, chocolaty goodness. It’s pure heaven biting into one of these, fresh from the oven.

Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies_LYK1When I finally got an Easy Bake Oven for Christmas, I felt that it further honed my baking skills and recipe repertoire (you know with Pop Tarts, mini doughnuts and bite-sized brownies). The only drawback, was that this miniature oven made like 1 medium-sized cookie or 4 little cookie nibbles and I had 5 other siblings.

You do the math.

I would be baking baby cookies with a light bulb for HOURS if I didn’t realize the real oven was the way to go when it came to chocolate chip cookies. Baking anything with a light bulb just sounds like slave labor, because it is.

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With years of cookie baking under my belt, I’ve tried a variety of recipes–dozens and dozens of recipes—but I am confident in saying that this one suits my fancy.

These have the perfect amount of chocolate chips. They are chewy but not too under-baked and doughy. They are slightly cakey and hold their shape, rather than turning into a crispy pancake in the oven.

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Sidenote: the crispy pancake cookie, in my opinion, is the absolute worst kind, because they look so flat and sad. Also, when you try to take them off the sheet they are all baked together and crumbly. Which means that you automatically have to eat them up right away, since you can’t let those precious cookie pieces go to waste, and you don’t want there to be evidence of the ugly cookie disaster that just went down.

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But these little beauties, they are perfect in every way. Follow this recipe, and you’ll have no shame in baking these up for friends, or perhaps bringing them along when meeting the parents for the first time (don’t worry, it went over very well Smile ).

Just watch yourself, because you may have mad riots coming your way when the last cookie has found the bottom of someone’s belly.

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Enjoy these tasty morsels, fresh from the oven, with a glass of milk, or even a week later if they are stored in an airtight container.

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Print Recipe!

Makes about 3 dozen, medium-sized cookies

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed light-brown sugar (I used half dark and light brown sugars)

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the softened butter with both sugars and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, for about 1 minute. Add the vanilla and eggs and beat on medium until well mixed, for another minute. Gradually, add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop heaping tablespoon-size balls of dough about 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with a silpat or parchment paper. *We use a 1 ½-Tbsp sized cookie scoop and they make perfect medium-sized cookies.

Bake until cookies are golden around the edges, but still soft in the center, about 9 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely. You can store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature up to about 1 week.

 

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

April 22nd, 2013

Breakfast Cookies {Gluten-free}

by Chrissy

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Whoaaaa, say what?! There are really cookies that you can eat, for breakfast??

Yes. The glorious answer is, yes.

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When I was a kid, I used to hope, wish, and dream that I could eat cookies for breakfast (It might have had something to do with this commercial). I tried with all my might and with all my greatest persuasion skills, to try to convince my mom to buy Cookie Crisp, knowing full well that although those weren’t real cookies, they were the closest type of cookie that I could try to get my hands on in the morning.

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No matter how dedicated I was to this task, my mom wouldn’t budge. For the longest time, the only sugary cereals that were allowed in the pantry consisted of Raisin Bran (barf) and Honey Bunches of Oats. On very special occasions or for “dessert” we were able to have Apple Jacks. Not too shabby, but definitely no Lucky Charms or Cookie Crisp.

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All that time, I had always thought I was missing out on the good stuff. Well, it turns out I was just missing out on childhood obesity and early onset diabetes.

Yea, no thanks.

I was happy to stick with Cheerios, topped with sliced banana.

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Each cookie packs a good amount of fiber and energy to get your day going. And for all you Gluten-Free folks out there, these are fair game for you, too!

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These cookies store well, so go ahead and make a full batch for the week. You can also freeze the baked cookies and eat them in the near future. They are such great snacks and remind me of really tasty oatmeal, in baked form, that are easy to nibble on the run.

What more could you ask for? Really, though.

 

Breakfast Cookies {Gluten-free}

Print Recipe!

Adapted from Blommi.com

Makes about 3 dozen

Ingredients:

5 cups rolled oats (2½ for flour, rest stays whole)

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

3/4 tsp cinnamon

2 large eggs

1 1/2 tsps pure vanilla

1/3 cup turbinado sugar (or granulated)

⅓ cup coconut oil, melted and cooled

⅓ cup maple syrup

¼ cup almond milk

1 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup pistachios, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a food processor, grind 2½ cups of the oats, until the consistency of flour. Add the baking powder, salt and cinnamon to the food processor and pulse a few more times to incorporate; set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add lightly beaten eggs, vanilla, sugar, coconut oil, maple syrup and almond milk. Mix well, on medium speed, for about 1 minute. Add the flour mixture and mix well, about 1 minute. Add the remaining unground oats, cranberries, pistachios, and shredded coconut. Stir until incorporated, evenly, scraping the sides, if needed.

Scoop about 2 tablespoon size balls of dough onto a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. (We use a 1 1/2 Tbsp cookie scoop.)

Bake for 14-15 minutes. Allow to cool slightly on cookie sheet before transferring them to a wire rack. Store at room temperature for about a week.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

April 16th, 2013

Lemony Poppy Seed Scones {with Sweet Vanilla Glaze}

by Chrissy

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One word. Zesty.

These little scones are zesty. And they have the perfect balance of sweetness.

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They are buttery and lemony tidbits of joy, glazed with a sweet vanilla drizzle. These scones are perfect for tea parties, brunches, breakfast, or a slightly sweet & sinful treat, just because.

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I love making treats for people. Nothing can beat the smile that is received, in return. Sharing homemade goods really spreads the love, and also maybe the calories, but who cares? When it comes to serving and blessing others, calories don’t count.

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For those of you who aren’t so inclined to baking, scones are fairly simple to make and always a joy to savor, so try them out!

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The only thing I wish I had was a good circular cutter. I never seem to have one that’s the right size. My mom has this really cool two-sided round biscuit cutter, with two different sizes and it is heaven-sent. It’s an old brown plastic thing from the 70’s that looks like it will break at any given moment, but somehow it has lasted through the ages.

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So, when I can’t seem to find the right size cutter, I get creative and start checking out the glassware. I’ve found that wine glasses work best, for a few reasons:

1. You can justify enjoying a glass of wine immediately following the cutting out of scones. I mean, it’s already down from the cabinet. Just give it a good rinse and you’re set.

2. Thin-rimmed glasses are precision cutters…just be absolutely sure to flour the rim each time.

3. See #1. Obviously.

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Lemony Poppy Seed Scones {with Sweet Vanilla Glaze}

Print Recipe!

Makes about 30 small scones or 15 larger scones

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

3 Tbsps poppy seeds

1 Tbsp baking powder

1 1/2 Tbsp lemon zest

1/2 tsp salt

10 Tbsps (1 1/4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 large egg

3  Tbsps fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup whole milk (or alternative milk)

1 tsp vanilla

Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling tops

 

Sweet Vanilla Glaze:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

2 Tbsps lemon juice

1 tsp pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt. Add pieces of butter and work it into the dry mix with your hands, until it resembles a course meal (or you can use a pastry cutter).

In a medium bowl, whisk egg, lemon juice, milk and vanilla in medium bowl to blend. Add to flour mixture and mix until it is incorporated into a dough. If sticky, add a touch more flour and if too dry add another splash of milk.

Using floured hands, gather dough into ball and on a lightly-floured surface, flatten dough into a 1/2- 3/4 inch thick round. With a biscuit cutter, cut into desired size circles. Transfer scones to a silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet; lightly brush the tops with milk and sprinkle each with a pinch of Turbinado sugar.

Bake until scones are lightly golden brown, about 20-25 minutes (adjust baking time to size of scone). Transfer to rack and cool.

To make the glaze: mix ingredients together and drizzle over completely cooled scones. Allow glaze to dry before storing them.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

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