More Smugness--Double Chocolate Cookies

Ok, once you get me started with cookies it is all over, but just one more. This is a Nigella recipe that is dead simple, and I almost always have the ingredients on hand to make them. I've used M & M's in these, and white chips too just to mix things up. I love the super-size of these cookies, but they can easily be made smaller, just watch the cooking time. They are also perfect for scooping out the dough and freezing in in cookie size balls, to cook later. I made these once when I served smores at a party as an alternative to graham crackers.

Totally Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
from Nigella Express

	INGREDIENTS 4oz dark chocolate, minimum 70% cocoa solids 1 cup flour 1/4 cup cocoa, sieved 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup, 1 stick soft butter 1/2 cup light brown sugar 1/4 cup white sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 egg, cold from the fridge 2 cup (about 1 bag) semi-sweet chocolate morsels or dark chocolate chips Serving Size : Makes 12

1.	Preheat the oven to 325 . Melt the 4oz dark chocolate either in the microwave or in a heatproof dish over a pan of simmering water.
2.	Put the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt into a bowl.
3.	Cream the butter and sugars in another bowl. (I use my freestanding mixer, itself an odd source of comfort to me. this is so true!) Add the melted chocolate and mix together.
4.	Beat in the vanilla extract and cold egg, and then mix in the dry ingredients. Finally stir in the chocolate morsels or chips.
5.	Scoop out 12 equal-sized mounds – an ice cream scoop and a palette knife are the best tools for the job – and place on a lined baking sheet about 6cm apart. Do not flatten them.
6.	Cook for 18 minutes, testing with a cake tester to make sure it comes out semi-clean and not wet with cake batter. If you pierce a chocolate chip, try again.
7.	Leave to cool slightly on the baking sheet for 4–5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to harden as they cool.

Smugness in the kitchen

One of the many reasons I love Nigella Lawson is that she acknowledges and embraces the smugness that goes along with cooking, and particularly baking. Bringing something to a party that people fawn over and just saying, of yeah I just threw that together before I left the house (especially if your friends don't bake) is a wonderful, and lets admit it smug and superior feeling. In a world where very little is in my control, I at least know I can count on a few recipes to impress people.
Here is one of my favorite ways to be a smug domestic goddess or god in the kitchen. Make a double batch of drop cookies (my favorite recipes follow), get a large sheet train and dollop out the dough with a small ice cream scoop, or whatever you use for cookie dishing. Then put the whole tray in the freezer. In an hour you can pull the frozen dough off the tray and pop them into plastic freezer bags or some other mode of containment and stash back in the freezer. You can cook them like normal directly out of the freezer. This way when you have an overnight guest you can say, would you like some cookies, whip out your tray pop them in the oven and you are only 10-15 minutes away from homemade bliss. This makes you look like a crazy prepared 50's housewife with none of the drawback, like severe psychological trauma. Plus if someone springs a party invite on you, even if you are super busy you can throw cookies in the oven and look like a culinary super star when you get to their house. The smugness that goes along with always knowing you have homemade cookie goodness in the freezer cannot be underestimated.
Now I know what you are about to say, don't you just eat all the cookie dough. I really don't and I love cookie dough as much as anyone, trust me, fights break out over licking batter and dough in my family, but I find that when it is present in the freezer and easy enough to cook up, I really don't find myself with my hand constantly in the freezer. I also think for personal eating it is nice to just cook up say 5 cookies for a midnight snack with milk, rather than the temptation of several dozen. Anyway, here are some recipes to get you started on the road of culinary smugness.

Classic Chocolate Chip
this one never lets me down and easily doubles. You can skip sifting in any recipe I think if you put the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk them together. I use milk chocolate chips or M &M's but use whatever you like. White chocolate chips and dried cranberry's can be quite elegant for the winter as well.

• 11 1/2 ounce(s) Milk Chocolate Chips (Ghirardelli's please!)
  
• 2 1/4 cup(s) unsifted flour
• 1 teaspoon(s) baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) teaspoon salt
• 1 cup(s) (2 sticks) butter
• 3/4 cup(s) sugar
• 3/4 cup(s) packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoon(s) vanilla

Preheat oven to 375ºF (skip this if you are freezing them all).
Stir flour with baking soda and salt (use a whisk here); set aside.
In large mixer bowl, cream butter with sugar, brown sugar, you want this to lighten in color, it taks a couple minutes
add the eggs, and vanilla.
Gradually blend dry mixture into creamed mixture.
Stir in chocolate chips or whatever else you want.
Drop 1 tablespoon of dough per cookie onto ungreased cookie sheets. (I use a silpat, which is a bit of an investment $20 usually, but worth it because your cookie bottoms won't burn.)



Cowgirl Cookies (this is what my best friend calls them and I like the name, they are oatmeal chocolate chip, and seem to have at least a theoretical added health value add nuts if you must, but I'm a purist)

1 cup (2 sticks) of butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

½ cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1½ cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp salt

3 cups Oatmeal (old fashioned or quick cook)

1 bag of chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350

Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy, add egg and vanilla and beat in well.

Mix up flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl with a wire whisk.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat just enough to combine, then stir in the oatmeal and the chips.

Dole out the cookies with a small ice cream scoop or a teaspoon onto a cookie sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes.

You can also freeze the dough in zip top bags in cookie sized balls and bake off as needed.

Yields: 3-4 dozen

Jam Thumbprints

So in case those weren't enough cookies for you, here is another family favorite, Jam Thumbprints. I say splirge on the jam with these and go with Bonne Maman jam, it means Grandma in french, how could you go wrong, especially since my grandma always made these for christmas. I should also note that I brought these to my qualifying exam just before christmas last year and I passed, there was a blizzard, it was very dramatic. Anyhow I like to think that my cookie bribe hedged my bets a bit with my dissertation comittee. Another possible variation whihc I think is super elegant is to do Rose Thumbprints. I found rose petal jam at the Middle Eastern market where I live, I bought it in the middle of the summer wiht no idea what to do wiht it, and then it dawned on me. I added some rosewater (whihc you can usually find at the regular market near the vanilla) to the dough, and the rose jam to the centers. I makes a really lovely floral cookie, not to sweet. Enjoy!

8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

½ cup granulated sugar

2 large egg yolks, room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon coarse salt

Jam

Make the dough: Cream butter and granulated sugar with a mixer until pale and fluffy. Add yolks and vanilla, and beat for 1 minute. Reduce speed to low, and beat in flour and salt until combined. Cover, and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour (or up to 1 day).

Preheat oven to 325.

Roll balls using 2 teaspoons dough for each. Place 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. With the handle of a wooden spoon, or your thumb press gently in the center of each to create an indentation. Put enough jam in the center to just fill it. Bake for about 14 minutes until brown around the edges.

Yields: about 60 cookies

Triple Ginger Crisps

Here is a favorite of my Mom's, Triple Ginger Crisps. I like these because they are simple but elegant, especially since you roll them in sugar before they go in the oven.

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon baking soda

¾ teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1½ cups granulated sugar

1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

2 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger

⅓ cup unsulfured molasses

Coarse sanding sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with nonstick baking mats or parchment paper; set aside. Whisk together flour, ground ginger, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg and egg yolk; beat to combine. Add grated and crystallized ginger and continue beating until combined. Add flour mixture, alternating with molasses, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Continue beating until fully incorporated.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls. Coat each ball with sanding sugar, and place on prepared baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake, rotating pans once, until flattened and dark golden brown around the edges, about 12 minutes. Cool on pans 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely. Cookies may be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Hanukkah Cookies

So this is what happens when you are in graduate school, you start something and forget all about it for almost a year, but I've had a request for some cookie recipes for the holidays. I think food gifts are the best, cheap, fun to make, and thoughtful. This year I'm planning on making some pound-cakes, but in years past I've done lots of cookies. Here is a basic sugar cookie that is nice for cut outs that you can ice. This is Alton Brown's recipe which I've had luck with, I did his peppermint swirl variation which went down well at a dessert potluck. It looks cool but does not require cookie cutters, or frosting. I'll put up a few more cookies I like in the next few posts. Happy Cooking!

Basic Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tablespoon milk
• Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

Directions

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar. Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill. Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time. Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or ice as desired. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.

Chocolate Peppermint Pinwheel Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 batch Sugar Cookies, recipe above
• 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1/2 cup crushed candy canes or peppermint candies

Directions

Divide the dough in half and add chocolate and vanilla to 1 half and incorporate with hands. Add egg yolk, peppermint extract, and crushed candy to other half of dough and incorporate with hands. Cover both with plastic and chill for approximately 5 minutes. Roll out doughs separately to approximately 1/4-inch thickness. Place peppermint dough on top of chocolate and press together around the edges. Using waxed paper or flexible cutting board underneath, roll dough into log. Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Remove dough from the refrigerator and cut into 1/2-inch slices. Place cookies 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat and bake for 12 to 13 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through cooking time. Remove from oven and let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.