Chocolate-Dipped Macaroons

I'm reading "The Sweet Life in Paris" by David Lebovitz, and have become a tad obsessed. His tales of bribing convincing less-than-helpful French visa clerks with his decadent, homemade desserts has filled my dreams with visions of dark chocolate and Parisian société.

One of the recipes that has popped up in my near-stalking of his works is chocolate-dipped macaroons.  Not to be confused with macarons: the delicate, filling-enhanced merengues made legend by Paris' Ladurée.  No, these are the rustic cousins that require much less precision to make, and definitely less aloof attitude to enjoy.

And enjoy we have.

Funny thing...I recall distinctly disliking shredded coconut as a child.  I think my parents didn't care for it, and that opinion was somehow passed along to me.  Fast forward thirty years to a small get-together at some friends' where I enjoyed one of the giddiest, most-blissful little bouts of "the munchies," and what was served - none other than coconut macaroons!

Nothing tasted better.

Please tell me you know what I mean. :D

So, yeah.  Since then, coconut and I have had a renewed relationship.

Chocolate-Dipped Macaroons

recipe adapted from David Lebovitz

Makes about two dozen cookies

Ingredients

• 4 large egg whites
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon honey
• 2 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 ounces bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

Directions

1. In a large bowl, mix together eggs, sugar, salt, honey, coconut and flour
2. Transfer to a large skillet, and heat over low-to-moderate heat on the stovetop, stirring constantly, scraping the bottom as you stir.
3. When the mixture just begins to scorch at the bottom, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.  Transfer to a bowl, and allow to cool to room temperature. *David notes this mixture can be left in the refrigerator for up to one week, or frozen up to two months.
4. When ready to bake, line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat, and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
5. Form the dough into 1 1/2 inch mounds, spacing them evenly on the baking sheet. (I used a small ice cream scoop - mine were a little larger, but it was OK)
6. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until deep golden brown.  Cool completely.

For the chocolate bottoms

1. Melt the chocolate in a clean, dry bowl - either by double boiler on the stove, or in the micro.  Place a baker's cooling rack over a cookie sheet.  Dip the bottoms of each cookie in the chocolate and set the cookies on the cooling rack.  When finished dipping all the cookies, place them in the refrigerator for 5-10 minutes to set the chocolate.

Zucchini Bread "Whoopie Pies"

Sandwich cookies are almost always a good thing.  When I can make myself feel they're somehow good for me by way of a vegetable ingredient - well, of course, they're that much bettah!

This one is an adaptation of zucchini bread - turning it into a cookie, then going one step further by adding a rich, sweet filling.  It's from Martha.  Oh, Maaaatha!

Zucchini Bread "Whoopie Pies"

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour *I substituted Whole Wheat*
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• Coarse salt
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, divided (Need at room temperature)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup finely grated zucchini
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted

Directions

1. Sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt into a bowl. 
2. In a separate bowl or stand mixer, beat 1 stick butter and the sugars until pale and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla.
3. Beat flour mixture into butter mixture. Mix in zucchini, oats, and walnuts. Place batter in refrigerator until set or firm - about 15 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
5. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop (about 2 tablespoons), drop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges are golden, about 17 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.
6. Beat together remaining 1/2 stick butter, the cream cheese, and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Spread 1 heaping tablespoon filling onto the flat side of 1 cookie, and sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining filling and cookies.

*Makes about a dozen average-size cookies.  If you want a smaller version like I did for my kiddos, use about 1 tablespoon of batter. 

♥ Linzer Cookies ♥

About once every five years, I decide to make Linzer Cookies for Valentine's Day.  In theory (and in recipe) they are relatively simple, but after I make them, I always feel like I was somehow duped by the short ingredient list.  Maybe it's just that I'm not a big cookie cutter kind of gal.  For the few times I put the effort into these delicate darlings, though, it is SO worth it!

I feel like I should be sitting down to High Tea with the Queen...  

Linzer Cookies   

adapted from HERE

Ingredients

2 ½ cups All Purpose flour

2/3 cup of finely ground almonds

¼ tsp cinnamon

1 cup butter, softened

2/3 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

Raspberry Preserves or Jam (I use Seeded, but you can use Seedless if you prefer)

Directions

• In a medium bowl, combine the flour, almonds, and cinnamon. Set aside.

• In a large bowl, or stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well.

• Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, mixing well.

• Divide the dough into two parts and roll into a ball and the press into two discs. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours up to overnight. The dough should be firm enough to roll out.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

• On a floured surface, roll out one disc until it’s about 1/8” thick. Keep the other disc in the refrigerator until ready to use.

• Cut the dough with a cookie cutter dipped in flour.  Cut enough dough to have tops and bottoms.

• Transfer the cut outs to a baking tray lined with either parchment paper or a Silpat mat.

• Repeat with the remaining dough and the second disc.

• Bake for 10-12 minutes until a light golden brown. Cool on the baking tray for five minutes then transfer to a cooling rack. Cool completely.

• When ready to fill, invert the bottom cookie (so you have a nice bottom) and spread with about ½-1 tsp of jam.  Dust a top cookie with Confectioner’s sugar then gently place on top of the jam making a sandwich cookie.

   Arrange and take photos, because they're almost too pretty to eat!

One Skillet "Cowboy" Cookie

I think it's probably a fair call to say this recipe was a FAIL for me.  But then again, can you really say that something that at least resembles and tastes like a chocolate chip cookie is a failure?  Exactly.

I saw a recipe for a one-skillet chocolate chip cookie.  The seeming ease of it all was too much to resist.  I call mine a "Cowboy" Cookie, because preparing it in a cast-iron skillet reminds me of the cowboy biscuits you encounter on trail rides, roundup breakfasts, etc.  If you have no idea what I'm referring to, well, you're not from Texas, and just disregard. :)

 One-Skillet "Cowboy" Cookie
recipe adapted from here

 Ingredients

• 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour *I substituted whole wheat
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in a cast iron skillet set over medium-low heat. Stir in sugars and vanilla and remove from heat. Let rest until pan is warm, but no longer very hot, about 5 minutes.

2. Crack an egg into the butter and sugar mixture*, and whisk it well into the mixture. Place flour, baking soda, and salt on top, and very carefully stir into the mixture until smooth and well-mixed. Stir in chocolate chips. Place in the oven for 15 minutes, or until starting to turn golden on the top and around the edges, but soft in the center.

Easy enough, right? 

Here's why I say mine was a bit of a fail:  mine was very dry and crumbly. 
Can you tell?

 I think I can attribute this to two possible things:

1)  The butter here in Brazil is sold in a 500 g block, roughly two of our sticks.  However, instead of converting the stick-to-gram ratio exactly, I "guesstimated" on a stick of butter, and it may have been a little short.

2)  I used whole wheat flour.  I know, I know...it's a chocolate chip cookie for Lawd's sake, but I just sort of go on autopilot about substituting whole wheat for processed white - to increase the fiber in a baked good.  You know, for my kids... ;)  Anyway, it certainly made the cookie "grittier," and possibly drier to boot.

*Another Tip*

Although the recipe tells you to let the skillet cool a bit before adding the egg, I suggest tempering the egg by letting it sit atop your warm stove before putting it in the batter.  I had bits of cooked egg floating in my batter because the skillet/batter were still too warm for the egg.  Boo.

Next time, I'll stick to the original recipe, and see what happens.  Really, though, with a big glass of milk, does this look so bad?