Long ago

And oh so far away

I was in a social club

Lived on sorority row

It probably isn’t appropriate to riff on a Carpenters song in the same post as a cookie recipe.  It also isn’t particularly appropriate or appealing to use the words dirt and cookie in the same sentence.

But anyways.  I think we’ve already talked about the whole sorority thing  right?  I loved my Hellenic days and now more than 20 years later, I continue to be impressed by the accomplishments of the women I chose as friends in college.

But what does this have to do with dirt?  Long before Pinterest, some clever member came up with (or borrowed) a bid-day treat that was as much an institution in our organization as owls and the Chi Omega Symphony: flower pot sundaes.

Nowadays, anyone who can Google garden party knows what these are.  Crafted in tiny flower pots,  a layer of ice cream is topped with fudge and then finished with ground-up Oreo cookies.  A straw is  inserted into the concoction so that an actual daisy pops out of the center.

Pretty mundane by today’s standards, but in the mid-nineties, these were the pinnacle of sophistication (at least to me…so take it with a grain of salt).

What does all of this have to do with today’s post?  Well, I’ve been playing with Christina Tosi’s cookie recipes (again) and made her chocolate-chocolate cookies to get the wheels turning.  Simple though it appears, this deep, dark treat is fortified by a chocolate crumb.  Or, for the more literal, chocolate dirt (I think Ms. Tosi would support and encourage this idea).

Consider yourself warned.  In the coming weeks, alternating between Via Corona posts, I have half a dozen riffs on Christina Tosi cookies.  This one is a straight shot, but future cookies will feature ingredients like jalapeño, Nestle’s Quick, graham crackers, honey powder, crunch berries and Ritz cracker sand (in no particular order or combination).

Chocolate Chocolate Cookies

In milk momofulu milk bar by Christina Tosi

for the chocolate crumb

Ingredients

• 1/3 C, 53g flour
• 1/2 tsp cornstarch
• 50 g sugar
• 1/3 C, 53 g cocoa powder (preferably Valrhona
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 3 TBS, 82 g butter, melted

Directions

1. Heat oven to 300 degrees
2. Combine the flour, cornstarch, sugar, cocoa powder and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.  Paddle on low until mixed.
3. Add the butter and mix on low until the mixture starts to come together in small clusters.
4. Spread the clusters on a parchment or Silpat-lined sheet pan.  Bake for 20 minutes, breaking up the clusters occasionally.  The crumbs should still be slightly moist to the touch at that point; they will dry and harden as they cool.
5. Let the crumbs cool completely before using in a recipe or eating.  Stored in an airtight container, they will keep fresh for 1 week at room temp or 1 month in the freezer.

for the cookies

Ingredients

• 15 TBS, 2 sticks, 225g butter at room temp
• 1 1/2 C, 300g sugar
• 1/4 C, 100g glucose
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 2 ounces, 60g 55% chocolate, melted (the chocolate police won’t come and arrest you if you use semi-sweet)
• 1 1/4 C, 200g flour
• 3/4 C, 100g cocoa powder
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 3/4 tsp kosher salt
• Chocolate Crumb

Directions

Combine the butter, sugar and glucose in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle.  Cream together on medium-high for 2-3 minutes.  Scrape down bowl, add the egg, vanilla and melted chocolate. Beat for 7-8 minutes.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flora, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Mix just until the dough comes together–no longer than 1 minute,  Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Still on low speed, add the chocolate crumbs and mix just until incorporated, about 30 seconds.

Using a 5/8 ounce scoop (or heavily rounded tablespoon), portion out the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan.  Pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat.  Wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 1 week.  Do not bake at room temp, they won’t bake properly.

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 3 inches apart on parchment-lined pans.  Bake for 10 minutes, rotating pans halfway through.  The cookies will puff, crackle and spread.  It’s tough to gauge if a cookie that is this dark is done.  If, after 10 minutes, the cookies still seem doughy in the center, give them another minute in the oven.

Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or an airtight container for storage.  At room temp, the cookies will keep fresh for 5 days, in the freezer they’ll keep for up to a month.

These muffins have been sitting in my SmugMug account for several months.  Well, not the actual muffins…those are long gone…but you know, the pictures.  The thing is, I keep stumbling across the photos, wondering why I haven’t posted and then remembering: oh yeah, there are no photos of the final product.

I have no explanation for it.  Just no finished muffins.  Alas, what feels like weekends and weekends of yard work (I know, TD and I are the first and only people to ever attempt to landscape their yard on their own EVER.  Or at least, that’s what it sounds like) has seriously eaten into my baking time.  So, I’m down to my last couple of reserve bakes.

But back to the muffins.  You’ll have to take my word for it:  these were very tasty and kind of an unusual twist on the traditional morning baked good.

The orange doesn’t add a ton of flavor–there isn’t much of it and it’s hard to compete with the dominant ginger.  But, it did make the batter prettier.  So, there is that.

These are great slightly warmed with a dollop of plain Greek yogurt.

Ginger Orange Muffins

adapted from Double-Ginger Sour Cream and Bundt Cake with Ginger Infused Strawberries by Abigail Johnson Dodge, Bon Appetit, April 2009

Makes about 12-18 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 C all purpose flour
• 4 tsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 C sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 C sour cream
• 1/2 C orange juice (blood orange or other)
• 2 TBS orange zest
• 1 C chopped crystallized ginger
• 1/4-1/2 raw sugar for sprinkling on top

Directions

1. Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F.
2. Line cupcake pan with 18 liners.
3. Whisk flour, ground ginger, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl.
4. Using electric mixer, beat 1 cup butter in large bowl until smooth. Add 2 cups sugar; beat on medium-high speed until blended, about 2 minutes.
5. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in 1 egg yolk and vanilla, stopping to scrape down bowl as needed.
6. Add-in zest and orange juice, beat to combine.
7. Add flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with sour cream in 2 additions, beating on low speed just until blended after each addition. Mix in crystallized ginger.
8. Scoop batter into cupcake tins, about 3/4 full.
9. Sprinkle tops with raw sugar
10. Bake cake until tops are light brown and tester inserted near center comes out with a few small crumbs attached, about 20-25 minutes.

So, you made my tahini blondies but you’ve got some tahini left and don’t really feel like making hummus.  What should you do?

Four words: Cinnamon apple tahini muffins!

These were super easy to whip up while Gracie and TD read the Sunday paper.

While these are a nod to a lunch box favorite, apples and peanut butter, the spice mixture makes them a little more exotic.  The tops get crunchy while the apples help to keep the insides moist.

Cinnamon Apple Tahini Muffins

taken directly from Food 52 (where it seems all my recipes have come from this year).

makes 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 2 C all-purpose flour
• 1 TBS baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 3/4 C brown sugar
• 1/2 C tahini
• 1/3 C butter, melted
• 1/2 C milk
• 1 egg
• 1 C diced, peeled apple (about 2 medium apples)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners, or grease each tin.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, and brown sugar.
3. Whisk together the tahini, butter, egg, and milk. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
4. Stir in the chopped apples.
5. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 cups.
6. Bake the muffins for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown on the top and just set. The muffins should still look slightly underbaked.

A couple of years ago my immediate family descended on our favorite spot in Maui to celebrate my mom’s 70th  birthday.

At the time, my nephew was two, full of energy and ready to take on the gentle surf of the Napili Bay.

One afternoon post naps and just as the sun had shifted enough to cool things down a bit, my nephew co-opted my husband into some kind of bizarre leg-race to the water’s edge.  As far as I could tell the activity consisted of one of them yelling “on your marks, get set, go” which was followed by a race to the water whereupon TD would unceremoniously belly-flop into the incoming tide.

As with most things two-year-old related, once was not enough and the two repeated this for the better part of half an hour.

Among other things, including a sand rash and sore calf muscles, this little shore activity earned TD the nickname of Crazy Uncle Tom.

Two-year-olds: they call them as they see them.

The name stuck.

I stumbled across a recipe for what claimed to be the world’s best cake.  Of course had to try it out for TD’s birthday.  It’s kind of a love child between banana cream pie and mild spice cake.  There is sponge.  There is meringue. There is toasted coconut and creamy banana.  There is vanilla bean speckled whipped cream.   It’s crazy–just like Crazy Uncle Tom.

As far as being the world’s best cake.  Well.  It’s kind of like when Buddy the Elf takes Jovie to try the World’s Best Cup of Coffee.  Enthusiasm and joie de vivre outweigh actual caliber but it doesn’t matter.

World’s Best Cake

Food52

Ingredients

• 10 1/2 TBS (1 stick plus 2 1/2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 2/3 Csugar, divided
• 1 1/3 C (170 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1 pinch salt
• 5 large eggs, separated
• 1/3 C whole milk
• 1/2 C unsweetened coconut flakes (I used coconut chips on accident and things turned out just fine)
• 1 C heavy cream
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 to 2 bananas, sliced

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F and place a rack in the middle. Line a 9- by 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper, allowing some to drape over the sides of the pan.
2. Whisk together flours, baking powder, salt and spices.  Set aside.
3. In a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and 2/3 cup of the sugar until light and creamy, about 3 minutes.
4. Working on low speed, add the flour, baking powder, spices, and salt and mix well.
5. Mix in the egg yolks and the milk until combined, then scrape the batter into the prepared pan.
6. Clean and thoroughly dry the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Pour in the egg whites, making sure there are no specks of yolk, and add the remaining 1 cup of sugar. Beat to soft peaks.  Spread this carefully on top of the cake layer.
7. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the meringue is golden brown and puffed. About 15 minutes through baking, cover the meringue with coconut flakes (this way, the coconut can adhere to the still-damp meringue but it will not burn in the oven.)
8. Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack. Meanwhile, make the whipped cream: Pour the cream into a medium bowl and scrape in the vanilla seeds, discarding the pod. Beat to soft peaks with an electric mixer, about 3 minutes.
9. Carefully transfer the cool cake to a cutting board. Cut the cake in half crosswise with a serrated knife. Place one half of the cake on your serving tray of choice and cover with the cream and banana slices. Place the other half, meringue side up, on top.
10. Place the cake in the refrigerator to chill and soften for 1 hour before serving.

My love for all things sesame is well documented.  Black sesame macarons?  Sounds good.  Black sesame ice cream?  Yes! Tahini lunchbox cookies? Groovy.

How about tahini in bar form?

With added currants (or just about any dried, chopped fruit), these bars are a cross between a peanut butter cookie and a fig newton.  They’re dense, nutty, soft and chewy.

AND, they’re even better when eaten frozen.  Full disclosure: I feel the same way about white grocery store birthday cake and those Lofthouse cookies with the icing and sprinkles on top so, consider the source.

Tahini Blondies

Ingredients

• 1 stick (4 ounces) butter, melted and cooled
• 3/4 C granulated sugar
• 3/4 C golden brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 C tahini paste (make sure sesame is the only ingredient…unless you like your blondies garlicky)
• 1 1/4 C all purpose flour
• Currants or raisins (if desired)
• Sesame seeds for sprinkling on top (if desired)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line an 8X8 baking pan with parchment.
2. Whisk melted butter into the sugars.  Add salt.
3. Whisk eggs into sugar mixture one-at-a-time.  Whisk in vanilla.
4. Fold-in tahini.  Fold-in flour until just incorporated.  Fold-in currants.
5. Pour mixture into prepared pan.  Top with sesame seeds.
6. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean.

It’s pretty embarrassing that until today, this blog did not have a recipe for Irish soda bread.  My Irish ancestors (because we all have them) are probably tipping over on their heavenly bar stools.

I can’t quite figure out why I’ve never posted a recipe for Irish soda bread.  This bread is quick (literally), fun to make and is ridiculous as toast with butter and a drizzle of honey.

Soda bread itself isn’t actually Irish.   I read that Native Americans were making a version of this bread long before sodium bicarbonate was introduced to Ireland in the mid-nineteenth century.  As luck would have it, the type of wheat that grew in Ireland was more responsive to baking soda as a leavening agent than yeast and so became the favored method for bread baking.

Folklore says it that the cross was cut into the top in order to ward off the devil.

In our neighborhood,  the Goodyear serves the same purpose and he was flying laps around the house as I was baking this bread.  Unlike soda bread, the Goodyear Blimp’s leavening agent is helium and a lot of hot air (and cheerleaders).

Though there are many variations on Irish soda bread, I’ve gone with a currant, orange zest and sour cream version here (sometimes called a spotted dog) mostly because I had sour cream in the fridge.

While we’re on the subject, happy St. Patrick’s Day to all.  I often find myself on other continents for the grand celebration of green beer.  This year I’m in Beijing but in other years I have celebrated from Taipei and Hong Kong.  One year I was even at the source in Dublin.

Irish Soda Bread

borrowed from All Recipes

Ingredients

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs
• 1 pint sour cream
• Zest of an orange
• 1 cup raisins or currants

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease an 8 or 9 inch round cake pan, an 8X8 square pan or  two 8×4 inch loaf pans.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the eggs, sour cream, orange zest and currants/raisins and mix until just combined.
3. Form dough into a rough ball. Score top if you desire your bread to be demon free.
4. Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for 1 hour.

 

I was obsessed with that song (via Resevoir Dogs, not in the original) for a summer in between my junior and senior year of  college.

College was a confusing time for me musically.  And don’t get me started on the fashion.

Dorie Greenspan’s new cookie book has an entire section on sables.  This tropical, crunchy, citrusy version was the first one I made under the guise of  attempting to heat our open to the elements house in late December.

There are few smells better than the aroma of toasting coconut.

For these and a host of other recipes in her book, Dorie uses a baking technique that involves muffin tins.  When I made this recipe, all of my muffin tins were in storage and so I  used the roll, slice and bake method here.

I should be reunited with my muffin tins (why does this sound like code?) later this month.  When the time comes, I’ll be sure to play with the technique and share the results.

Coconut-Lime Sables

Adapted from Dorie’s Cookies, Dorie Greenspan

• makes about 2 dozen

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 C (204 g) all purpose flour
• 1/4 C (32 g) cornstarch
• Pinch of ground coriander
• 2/4 C (134g) sugar
• Zest of 2 limes (don’t forget to juice them and use it for a margarita)
• 2 sticks (8oz, 226g) unsalted butter, cut into chunks, at room temp (cut into chunks when cold)
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt (kosher salt will work)
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2/3 C (80g) shredded sweetened coconut (toast 1/3 C and set aside)
• Shredded coconut for sprinkling

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch and coriander.
2. Add sugar and lime zest to bowl of a stand mixer (or use hand mixer), using your fingertips, work the zest into the sugar until it is moist and fragrant.
3. Fit mixer with paddle attachment and add butter and salt to bowl.  Beat on medium for about 3 minutes.  Beat in vanilla.
4. Turn off mixer and add flour mixture all at once.  Pulse mixer until flour stops flying.  Adjust speed to low and mix until flour just disappears into the dough.
5. Fold-in toasted and untoasted coconut.
6. Turn dough out and divine in half.  Working with one half at a time, gently roll into two logs (I like to start the log and then roll it back and forth across a piece of parchment paper to lengthen the log.   Wrap each in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or freeze).
7. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
8. Slice dough (I like about 1/4 inch cut) and place on sheets.  You should be able to comfortably fit 1 dozen on each sheet.  Sprinkle tops with coconut.
9. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until cookies are a pale golden brown, rotating sheets halfway through.  Let cool completely on baking sheets.

 

 

 

This recipe is a forehead slapper of a “why didn’t I think of that?”

These cookies were also a surprise hit and more than a couple of  people have asked for the recipe (I can never guess what people will fall in love with which is part of the fun).

Think snickerdoodle base with the beautiful bouquet of cardamom and dried currants for a little depth and texture.

These cookies are exotic enough to be interesting but familiar enough that even the xenophobic will like them (though I’m not sure why we should give them cookies).

 

Cardamom and currant snickerdoodles

recipe by fiveandspice via Food52

Ingredients

• 1 C unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1/2C packed golden brown sugar
• 1 C granulated sugar
• 3 C all purpose flour
• 1tsp ground cardamom (preferably freshly ground, or at least fresh)
• 1tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 C dried currants
• 3 TBS granulated sugar (for cookie coating)
• 1 tsp ground cardamom (for cookie coating)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the sugars, flour, 1 tsp. cardamom, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs into the melted butter, then stir in the vanilla.
4. Fold the wet ingredients and the currants into the flour mixture, stirring just long enough for everything to come together into a dough.
5. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. In a small bowl, stir together the 3 Tbs. sugar and 1 tsp. cardamom for the coating.
6. Roll the chilled dough into 1 ½ inch balls then roll each ball in the sugar coating, and place onto ungreased, parchment-lined cookie sheets with about 2 inches of space in between.
7. bake for 8-9 minutes, until they look golden and cracked on top but still a bit doughy in the middle.
8. Transfer immediately from the baking sheets to a cooling rack and allow to cool.

 

I spend a lot of time on the 110 freeway.  My daily commute is 22 miles each way: 40 minutes in the morning, 60 in the evening.   This is a statement of fact, not a complaint.  As La La Land so melodiously exposits: if you live in Los Angeles, you commute (unless you are TD and then you just walk down the hall).

[Tidbit: the opening scene takes place on the 105 E expressway transition to the 110 N which is odd because that ‘aint how you get to Hollywood.  Normally this wouldn’t mean anything except this movie is a tribute to the industry which means everyone included in the homage knows exactly where that scene takes place.  Another inaccuracy: Hollywood peeps don’t slum it in the South Bay–no matter how good the jazz.  LA’s South Bay is to LA’s mid-city as  LA is to New York.  Apparently beach living is too easy for the actor set.  Venice being the exception for some reason. And yes, I realize that I may be the only person in LA…nay…the entire country who isn’t totally gaga over La La. For the record, I didn’t like the English Patient either so, there you go.]

But back to my commute.  On the way in, I listen to the radio.  Usually a combo of KROQ and KCRW.  It’s dark and I want to know what’s going on in the world (okay, KROQ isn’t super great for the latter but it’s an institution).  One the way home I usually listen to audible and podcasts.

I don’t know about you but I categorize my podcasts.  There are the ones to which I subscribe in order to learns new things.  There are ones that entertain me.  And then there are the ones that I listen to when I actually just want to think and there is something about the host’s voice that helps me to tune-out and tune in to my own brain.

One of the things I like to think about are new recipes (I’ve never claimed the thoughts were deep).  I find it very enjoyable to think about flavor and texture combinations.  I’ve come up with some really great ones over the years.  The only problem is that about 90% of the time whatever it is I’ve been thinking about immediately flits out of my noggin’ upon arrival at the gym, or home or wherever my after-work destination that day happens to be.

Luckily, this one stuck: basil and citrus in a cookie.  And then I had to sit on it for four months until I had a kitchen.  Mwah mwah.

The original idea included basil and candied citrus zest.  However, when it came down to it, I got lazy and subbed-in fresh tangerine zest for the candied.  To get the flavors really infused, I added the zest and chopped basil to the sugar and allowed everything to mingle for a couple of hours (this would make a fantastic sugar scrub).

The results were a surprise hit!

Basil and tangerine sables

adapted from the French Vanilla Sables in Dorie’s Cookies

makes about 30 cookies

Ingredients

for sables

• 3-4 large basil leaves
• 2 oranges or large tangerines, zested with juice set aside
• 1/2 lb (2 sticks, 8 ounces) unsalted butter, on the cold side of room temp and cut into chunks
• 1/2 C (100g) sugar
• 1/4 C (30g) confectioner’s sugar, sifted
• 1/2 tsp salt (I used sea but kosher would be fine)
• 2 large egg yolks at room temp
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 C (272g) all-purpose flour

for icing

• juice from the oranges
• 1.5 C confectioner’s sugar

Directions

1. Chiffonade (thinly slice) your basil leaves.  In a sealable baggy or small container, combine citrus zest and basil. Close container and shake to combine.  Let sit for at least an hour.
2. In a standing mixer, cream butter for 60 seconds.  Add-in sugars and salt, beat on medium for 3 minutes.
3. Reduce mixture speed to low and beat in the egg yolks one at a time.  Add vanilla.
4. Turn off mixer.  Add flour mixture and pulse on low until the flour stops flying (alternately, cover top of mixer and bowl with a clean dishtowel so that the flour doesn’t fly and turn on low).  Mix on low until the flour just disappears.
5. Give the dough a few turns with a stiff spatula.  Turn out onto a clean surface and divide in half.  Roll each half into a log about 1.5 inches in diameter.  I find the easiest way to do this is to start the log and then roll it back and forth over a piece of parchment paper by holding the ends of the parchment.  This helps create an even log.
6. Wrap each log in plastic wrap and let cool in the fridge for at least 2 hours or freeze.
7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
8. Remove dough from plastic and cut into disks (I like them about .25-.125 thick but cut to desired thickness not to exceed .5 inches).  Place disks on baking sheets with 2″ distance between.
9. Bake for 16-19 minutes until they are firm to the touch and slightly golden around the edges.  Be sure to rotate sheets halfway through.  Allow to cool on sheets for a couple of minutes and then transfer to cool completely.
10. Slowly add citrus juice to confectioner’s sugar until you reach desired consistency.  Above I’ve mixed it thin to cover the entire cookie but icing could be mixed thicker (less juice) and drizzled.  Ice cookies and allow to set-up.
11. Store in air-tight container.