Espresso Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

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chocolate, cookies, espresso, oatmeal

Whenever I’m in the mood for sweets, and I want them quickly, cookies are my go-to dessert of choice. They whip up quickly, bake in a relatively short amount of time, and can be eaten warm so they don’t need to cool as long! These cookies in particular are fast since it uses melted butter and can be mixed by hand. I based this recipe off my Oatmeal Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies, which is heavily adapted from Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies. All these are great to make with kids, by the way. I made the original chocolate chip cookies with my 4 year old nephew. He got to help mix, and even help scoop the cookie dough (and maybe sample some dough too…)! He had so much fun that he wanted to make cookies again the next time he came over. 🙂 But these oatmeal cookies are sort of an adult twist on a classic. The coffee flavor is mild but definitely present, and pairing it with chocolate and oatmeal makes it the perfect breakfast cookie, afternoon pick-me up treat, or even dessert. I might have been sneaking a cookie for breakfast every now and then myself… Give these cookies a try the next time you have a sweet craving!One Year Ago: Kimchi Fried Rice

Espresso Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 cups flour
2 teaspoons espresso powder
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups old-fashioned oats
1½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, espresso powder, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, mix butter and sugars by hand or with a mixer until thoroughly combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients and mix slowly until just combined. Gently stir in the oats, then stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop ¼ cup scoops of dough onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until edges are starting to harden and brown, but the center is still soft without being overcooked. Cool on cookie sheet for 10 minutes then move cookies to wire racks to finish cooling.

Source: Inspired by Brown Eyed Baker

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Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

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bars, caramel, chocolate, cookie, salted caramel

In case you haven’t figured it out, I’ve been in a sort of rut lately. Not really motivated to blog, or even bake and cook. It’s most unfortunate. I’m hoping it’ll get better soon because I’ve been bookmarking a bunch of recipes that I want to try! I did have this recipe bookmarked for quite a while now, and I even bought the caramels before I moved with the intention to make them a couple months ago. Obviously that didn’t happen… (and yes, I should really try to make my own caramel but it scares me! My first attempt years ago failed miserably, as in it burned, and I haven’t tried since.)

But about these cookie bars, they use the best chocolate chip cookie recipe which is chewy and scrumptious, adds a gooey layer of salted caramel, and a sprinkling of salt for a sweet/salty combo. These cookie bars are absolutely divine. And I wasn’t very eager to share! My husband and I ate most of them, but I did share a couple with my sister, because I’m that nice! Hehe. I mostly wanted to get them out of the house to resist temptation. 🙂 But you should totally make these… they’re worth turning the oven on!!!

One Year Ago: Pumpkin-Cranberry Bread and Zuppa Toscana

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Yield: 16 cookie bars

2¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, plus 1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
10 ounces caramel candy squares, unwrapped
3 tablespoons heavy cream
Fleur de sel or other sea salt, for sprinkling

Preheat oven 325 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan; set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients; set aside. In a large bowl, mix butter and sugars by hand or with a mixer until thoroughly combined. Beat in egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients and mix slowly until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the caramels and heavy cream. Microwave on high for 2 minutes, or until the caramels are melted, making sure to stir every 20 seconds.

Press half of the cookie dough into the prepared pan with either your fingers or a spatula, smoothing the top. Pour the hot caramel over the cookie dough in the pan and spread into an even layer, leaving a small border without caramel along the edges; sprinkle the caramel with sea salt. Take the remaining dough and flatten bits between your fingers to create shingles; place the shingles on top of the caramel, slightly overlapping them until all the caramel is covered. Smooth out the top layer of dough. Sprinkle the bars with additional sea salt.

Bake the cookie bars for 30 minutes, or until the top of the bars are light golden brown and the edges start to pull away from the pan. Cool the bars in the pan on a wire rack to room temperature, then refrigerate for about 30 minutes to allow the caramel layer to set. Cut into squares and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.

Source: Adapted from Brown Eyed Baker

Brownie Pops, and Happy 4th of July!!

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brownie, brownie pop, cake pop, chocolate, dessert

Hope everyone in the US is enjoying all the celebrations paired with July 4th! And everyone else, happy Wednesday! Personally, I don’t really have any spectacular plans. My husband always sees a Will Smith movie or an alien movie on July 4th, so I think we’re going to see Men in Black 3 and hopefully we’ll get to see fireworks! They’re my favorite part of this holiday, afterall! 🙂So for today, I don’t really have a recipe per say, but a festive treat nonetheless. My nephew turned 2 last week and he had his party over the weekend. Since I live so close to my sister now, I helped her decorate and prepare for the party. It was a cute red and blue themed train party! I was in charge of dessert, like usual, and her request was brownie pops. She didn’t want to go through the hassle of making cake and making frosting and mixing them together (and by that, I think she didn’t want me to take the time and dishes to do all that :P). She wanted it simple, so she asked if I had a good fudgy brownie recipe that would require no extra add-ins and could be made into pops due to the extremely moist and fudgy quality of the brownies. I immediately recommended the Baked Brownie. Best brownie ever, and awesome for brownie pops!Like I said, I was in charge of the baking, so with the help of my older nephew, we made the brownies. Once cooled, I squished and rolled them into 1-inch ball, placed them on wax paper, stuck a lollipop stick into them, and froze them for 30 minutes. They were then dipped into melted chocolate chips/melts, allowed to set, then dipped halfway into melted white chocolate chips/melts and dipped in sprinkles. For my first attempt at any sort of cake pop/brownie pop, they came out pretty well though they certainly are a bit of work and time! Everyone loved them and they came out quite adorable if I do say so myself, but I think I’ll stick to cupcakes and cookies and whatnot! 🙂 One batch of brownies made about 45 brownie pops, and then we served the other batch of brownies straight up with the extra chocolates drizzled over them and any leftover sprinkles. I also wanted to share with you these cool stars that my sister found. You make them yourself with your choice of scrapbook paper, and they were a really nice addition to the party decorations. She now has them hanging in my nephew’s room and they look really cute in there, too!

So, that’s it for today! Hope everyone has a wonderful July 4th, and happy Wednesday! 🙂

P.S. I apologize for the quality of the photos… camera phone 😉

One Year Ago: Panko-Crusted Salmon

Chocolate Whoopie Pies

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chocolate, dessert, marshmallow, whoopie pie

The move is done, we’re settling in, and we finally have internet! It’s been a while since I’ve moved and I forgot how much is involved. And over the years, especially after getting married, you really seem to accumulate a lot of stuff! And a lot of kitchen stuff, if you’re me. 🙂 So now it’s time to celebrate! And what better way than with some whoopie pies!

These are very traditional whoopie pies… chocolate (but of course!) with a marshmallow filling. And they come from one of my favorite cookbooks, Chocolate American Style. So much chocolatey goodness comes from this cookbook, such as this chocolate cream pie. I made these whoopie pies years ago when I first got this book, and my only complaint was that the filling was a little too soft and squished out too much. So, I made the cakes a little smaller and the filling a little stiffer, and we had pure whoopie pie bliss. They were so good, I pretty much refused to share… shame on me! I saved a couple for a friend, but other than that they were mine all mine. And my husband, but I think I ate more of them than he did!One Year Ago: Grilled Portobello Mushrooms with Tomatoes and Mozzarella

Chocolate Whoopie Pies
Yield: 18 to 20 whoopie pies

For the cakes:
2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 egg

For the filling:
¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup powdered sugar
1 (7-ounce) jar marshmallow cream
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

To make the cakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla, beating well to fully incorporate. With the mixer on low speed, add some of the flour mixture, then some of the buttermilk; alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk and mix until the batter is just combined and smooth.

Scoop heaping tablespoons of batter onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between each cake. Use slightly moistened fingertips to gently smooth and shape the cakes, if needed. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cakes are firm to the touch. Remove the baking sheets to wire racks, letting the cakes cool completely on the sheets.

To make the filling: In a large mixing bowl, combine butter, powdered sugar, and marshmallow cream; beat on high speed until smooth and fluffy; stir in the vanilla.

To assemble whoopie pies: Match up cakes in pairs by size. Spread filling onto the flat side of one cake of each pair. To make clean edges with the filling, transfer the filling to a piping bag and pipe a small amount one cake of each pair. Sandwich the cookies together, and press the filling to the edges. Serve immediately or wrap individually in plastic wrap and store at room temperature.

Source: Adapted from Chocolate American Style by Lora Brody

Chocolate-Dipped Strawberry Cupcakes

Tags

chocolate, cupcake, sour cream, strawberry

I know I’ve been gone for a while… again… In my defense, I’ve had no internet or computer for the last week, which makes it a little hard to do posts! 🙂 To make it up to you, I’m going to share some amazing cupcakes! Cupcakes make everything better, right? I totally thought I was being brilliant when I thought these up, that these somehow must be something that no one has ever made. Of course, I was wrong… It seems virtually impossible to make something that no one has made before, nowadays! But, in my defense, I do think these are different than most of the other chocolate-dipped strawberry cupcakes out there. Or maybe I’m just being hopeful!

I took a chocolate cupcake, filled it with some macerated strawberries, topped it with a strawberry buttercream, then finished it off with some chocolate ganache to truly epitomize a chocolate dipped strawberry. The components really melded wonderfully to mimic the flavors of the strawberry treats. And everyone loved them, which is always a good thing! 🙂

An interesting little story about when I made these… Whenever I’ve made Swiss meringue buttercream, I’ve never had a problem with the whole curdling effect and whatnot. And every time I make it, I think that to myself and hope that I don’t manage to jinx myself. Well, this time I did. I tried all the tricks that people use to help bring the frosting together again, and nothing seemed to be working. So I cheated, and it somehow worked! Which made me very happy with myself, that my frosting didn’t end up as a total epic fail, especially since I didn’t have enough strawberries to try again. So my personal trick, if all other attempts to fix a curdled buttercream fail, try adding some powdered sugar. A little bit at a time, beating for a while after each addition and crossing your fingers that it will come together. 🙂 But I’m thinking this was just a weird fluke as to why I had a problem, because this strawberry buttercream recipe has been used so many times by so many different people with such wonderful success. Maybe I was just having an off day.

So if you’re looking for a fun treat to serve at a fancy party, or as a way to say I love you to a special someone, or even just to make for fun like I did, please don’t hesitate to give these awesome cupcakes a try!!Chocolate-Dipped Strawberry Cupcakes
Yield: 24 cupcakes

Cupcakes:
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon Dutch-process cocoa powder
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon hot water
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
¾ cup sour cream

Strawberry Filling:
1¼ to 1½ cups strawberries, finely chopped
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Strawberry Buttercream:
1½ cups fresh strawberries (8 ounces), pureed
4 large egg whites
1¼ cups sugar
1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

Chocolate Ganache:
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into very small pieces
½ cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons vanilla

To make the strawberry filling: In a small bowl, combine the strawberries and the sugar; toss to fully coat the strawberries. Set aside and allow to macerate while the cupcakes bake.

To make the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

In a small bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder and hot water until smooth; set aside and let cool slightly. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar. Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Slowly mix in the vanilla extract then the cocoa mixture, beating until incorporated. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in two batches, alternating with the sour cream, beating until just combined.

Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners, filling them about ¾ of the way full. Bake 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan 5 to 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the strawberry buttercream: Set a heatproof mixing bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Combine the egg whites and sugar in the bowl. Cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F, or all sugar is dissolved and mixture is hot to the touch.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat on low speed for 2 minutes, gradually increasing to high speed. Beat until stiff peaks form and mixing bowl is cool to the touch. With the mixer on medium-low speed, gradually add a couple tablespoons of butter at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating on medium-high speed until thick and smooth. Add the strawberry puree and beat until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides as needed. Switch to the paddle attachment and beat on low speed for 2 minutes to eliminate air bubbles. Spoon frosting into pastry bag fitted with large decorating tip.

To make the chocolate ganache: In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the heavy cream until very hot, but not boiling; remove from heat. Place chocolate in a heat safe bowl. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for about 5 minutes. Whisk the cream and chocolate until smooth and thoroughly combined; stir in the honey and vanilla. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep it smooth; don’t let it sit too long or the ganache will harden.

To assemble the cupcakes: Using an apple corer or a paring knife, cut out a well in the center of each cupcake; discard the cores. Fill each well with about 1 tablespoon of strawberry filling. Frost with strawberry buttercream then pour a spoonful of chocolate ganache over the frosting to finish the cupcakes. Refrigerate the cupcakes until the ganache has set. Store cupcakes in the refrigerator and bring to room temp before serving.

Source: Cupcakes adapted from Martha Stewart, frosting adapted from Annie’s Eats, ganache adapted from My Baking Addiction