Peanut Butter Cookies for You *and* Your Dog!

It’s peanut butter time!

Adapted from LiisaN's recipe

Ingredients 

• 1cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1cup white sugar
• 1cup butter
• 1cup creamy peanut butter(Skippy)
• ¹⁄₂teaspoon salt
• 2large eggs
• 1teaspoon vanilla
• 2cups self-raising flour (1/4 cup more if needed)

Directions:

1. Cream together the sugars, butter, peanut butter.
2. Add the eggs and vanilla.
3. Sift the dry ingredients together and add gradually until blended well.
4. Roll into tablespoon size balls.
5. Roll cookie dough balls into sugar.
6. Place on cookie sheets- do not mash with fork in normal “peanut butter cookie” fashion!
7. Bake at 350° oven for 11-13 minutes.
8. Devour – interestingly, this cookie is best eaten cooled (it gets crunchy)!

NB: Don’t serve cookies too warm to your dog! Remember this is a SNACK – not a meal replacement. Discontinue serving if dog gets diarrhoea or other digestive issues. Feed with your discretion.

But ALL dogs love peanut butter! And it’s good for them!

Flourless Chocolate Cookies

Adapted from OverTimeCook

Ingredients:

• 3 cups confectioners sugar
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 2-4 egg whites (I used 3)
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee dissolved in 1 Tablespoon boiling water
• 10 oz chocolate chips or chopped chocolate (about 1 1/2 cups) OR chocolate bits of your choice

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F/177C. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. In a mixing bowl, stir together the confectioners sugar and cocoa.

3. Add two egg whites and the coffee.

4. Stir until combined. Batter should be like a very thick brownie batter.*

*If batter is too thick, add another 1 (or if needed 2) egg whites to achieve the correct consistency.

5. Gently stir in the chocolate chips. (I used Sublime Gelato’s Hokey Pokey Butter Balls instead. This made my cookies turn out more like toffee – which was a *slight* mistake, but okay.)

6. Place 1 inch mounds (or balls) of dough about two inches apart on prepared cookie sheet.

7. Bake at 350 for 13-14 minutes, until tops are crackly.

8. Leave cookies on parchment paper to cool completely, then gently peel off the parchment and serve.

Enjoy!

New Year Fortune Cookies

 

Adapted from All Recipes

Prep: 15 mins (per batch but may vary) / Cook: 10 mins (depending on your oven’s temperature)

Ingredients

• 3 egg whites
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons water

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets, or line with parchment paper. Have fortunes ready to go on small strips of paper.

2. In a large glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites and sugar on high speed of an electric mixer until frothy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and stir in melted butter, vanilla, almond extract, water and flour one at a time, mixing well after each. Consistency should resemble pancake batter. Spoon the batter into 3 inch circles on the prepared baking sheets. Leave room between for spreading.

3. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges begin to brown slightly. Quickly remove one at a time, place a message in the center, and fold in half. Fold the ends of the half together into a horse shoe shape. If they spring open, place them in a muffin tin to cool until set.

Mocha Chocolate Cookie Spoons

A fresh take on the adaptation of chocolate espresso cookies from Smitten Kitchen

Makes about 3 dozen.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp non-instant Godiva caramel flavoured coffee (actually, any will do but I’m fussy & YES *NON-instant*)
• 1 tbsp boiling water
• 227 g (8 oz) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips
• confectioners’ sugar, for dusting (optional)

Directions:

1. Dissolve espresso powder in boiling water. Set aside to cool to tepid.

2. Beat butter and confectioners’ sugar together on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is very smooth. Beat in vanilla and espresso, then reduce mixer speed to low and add flour, mixing only until it disappears into the dough. Don’t work the dough much once the flour is incorporated.

3. Fold in the chopped chocolate or chips with a sturdy rubber spatula.

4. Using the spatula, transfer dough to a gallon-size zip-loc bag. Put bag on a flat surface, leaving the top open, and roll the dough into a 9 x 10 1/2 inch rectangle that’s 1/4 inch thick. As you roll, turn the bag occasionally and lift the plastic from the dough so it doesn’t cause creases.

5. When you get the right size and thickness, seal the bag, pressing out as much air as possible, and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or for up to 2 days.

6. Preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C).

7. Put the plastic bag on a cutting board and slit it open. Turn the firm dough out onto the board (discard the bag) and, using your hands and a knife if necessary, cut out spoon shaped cookies from the dough.

8. Transfer the spoons to the baking sheets and carefully prick each one twice with a fork, gently pushing the tines through the cookies until they hit the sheet (okay, I didn’t poke the cookies and they’re fine).

9. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point (I didn’t do that either – I bake one sheet at a time). The shortbreads will be very pale–they shouldn’t take on much color. Transfer the cookies to a rack. If you’d like, dust the cookies with confectioners’ sugar while they are still hot.

10. Refrigerate the cookies so that they harden before serving.

 

Fortune Cookies + Ways to Jazz Them Up!

Adapted from All Recipes

Prep: 15 mins (per batch but may vary) / Cook: 10 mins (depending on your oven’s temperature)

Ingredients

• 3 egg whites
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons water

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets, or line with parchment paper. Have fortunes ready to go on small strips of paper.
2. In a large glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites and sugar on high speed of an electric mixer until frothy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and stir in melted butter, vanilla, almond extract, water and flour one at a time, mixing well after each. Consistency should resemble pancake batter. Spoon the batter into 3 inch circles on the prepared baking sheets. Leave room between for spreading.
3. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges begin to brown slightly. Quickly remove one at a time, place a message in the center, and fold in half. Fold the ends of the half together into a horse shoe shape. If they spring open, place them in a muffin tin to cool until set.

Be Inspired!

My original ideas:

1. Add coffee essence and/or kahlua and/or instant dissolved espresso powder and/or coffee mix

2. Spreads like…

Nutella

peanut butter

Or, take a cue from others…

Fortune Cookies – Sweet & Sour Chronicles’ Take

Add colouring for something special…

Condensed Milk Cookies

 

Recipe adapted Munaty Cooking’s recipe

Makes 21 cookies. 79 calories per cookie.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 7 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup chopped chocolate or you can use chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Whisk or sift flour with baking powder and salt. Keep aside.

2.  In a different bowl, beat the butter and sugar until creamy and lighter in color.

3. Add the condensed milk and beat until well combined.

4. Add the flour mixture and mix slowly until it’s combined. Add the chocolate chips and stir gently.

5. Cover the cookie dough and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

6. Preheat oven to 180C/350F and line your baking tray with parchment paper.

7. Take a heaping teaspoon from the dough, roll into a ball, place on the parchment paper and flatten with your fingers or back of a spoon.

 

 

8. Bake for 8 – 10 minutes.

9. Cool on a cooling rack and enjoy these cookies.

Espresso Chocolate Chip Shortbread

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Makes about 3 dozen.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp instant espresso powder (I like Moccona)
• 1 tbsp boiling water
• 227 g (8 oz) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips
• confectioners’ sugar, for dusting (optional)

Directions:

1. Dissolve espresso powder in boiling water. Set aside to cool to tepid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Beat butter and confectioners’ sugar together on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is very smooth. Beat in vanilla and espresso, then reduce mixer speed to low and add flour, mixing only until it disappears into the dough. Don’t work the dough much once the flour is incorporated.

3. Fold in the chopped chocolate or chips with a sturdy rubber spatula.

I used chocolate-covered coffee beans because I couldn’t find my chocolate chips ==’.

 

4. Using the spatula, transfer dough to a gallon-size zip-loc bag. Put bag on a flat surface, leaving the top open, and roll the dough into a 9 x 10 1/2 inch rectangle that’s 1/4 inch thick. As you roll, turn the bag occasionally and lift the plastic from the dough so it doesn’t cause creases.

 

Chocolate-covered Espresso Beans – Bought from Costco

5. When you get the right size and thickness, seal the bag, pressing out as much air as possible, and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or for up to 2 days.

 

6. Preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C).

7. Put the plastic bag on a cutting board and slit it open. Turn the firm dough out onto the board (discard the bag) and, using a ruler as a guide and a sharp knife, cut the dough into 1 1/2-inch squares.

8. Transfer the squares to the baking sheets and carefully prick each one twice with a fork, gently pushing the tines through the cookies until they hit the sheet (okay, I didn’t poke the cookies and they’re fine).

9. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point (I didn’t do that either – I bake one sheet at a time). The shortbreads will be very pale–they shouldn’t take on much color. Transfer the cookies to a rack. If you’d like, dust the cookies with confectioners’ sugar while they are still hot.

10. Cool the cookies to room temperature before serving.

We all need coffee!

Soft, Chewy, Fudgey, Chocolatey, Nutty Goddess Cookies

Adapted from here and here and taken from here
Makes about 10 cookies, double the recipe if you need more than that.

Ingredients:

• 1½ cups of walnuts (or a mixture of walnuts, pecans and cashews if you like)
• 2 cups powdered (caster) sugar
• ¼ cup plus 1½ tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (best quality possible)
• 2 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1 and ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• scant ¼ teaspoon salt

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F/180˚C.
2. Spread the walnut halves on a large baking tray and toast in the oven for 9-10 minutes until golden and fragrant.
3. Let cool, then transfer nuts to a clean work surface and coarsely chop.

4. Meanwhile, combine egg whites in a cup and set aside.

5. In a large bowl, blend sifted cocoa powder, sugar and salt using a fork—the powders are so fine that they tend to fly out of the bowl if you are using a whisk. Tip in vanilla and egg whites. Using a hand held electric mixer whisk everything together until just moistened without over beating as it will stiffen. The batter should look like a thick brownie mix. Now stir in walnuts.

 

6. Lower oven temperature to 325˚F/160˚C and position two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.

7. Spoon tablespoonfuls of batter on to each baking sheet in evenly spaced mounds leaving heaps of space in between—at least 3 inches.

8. On a large sheet I placed about 5 or 6 at the most. These cookies really expand, so err on the side of caution. Bake for 14-17 minutes until cookies are puffed up with glossy, lightly cracked tops. Shift the pans from front to back and top to bottom halfway through to ensure even baking. Cookies will seem a bit soft when you take them out of the oven. They firm up as they cool, so be careful not to over bake them.

9. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

10. Serve & enjoy! Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for 3-5 days.

Oohh! That hits the spot!

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

Oh you gotta, gotta try this!

…Make lemon crinkle cookies!

Adapted from Barefeet in the Kitchen

Makes 2-3 Dozen Cookies

 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted and reserved

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit or 180 degrees Celcius. Line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper and set aside. If you would like to skip the parchment paper, you can always lightly grease or spray the baking tray instead.

I didn’t have baking paper to line it with so I melted a bit of butter and greased it. HOWEVER – this worked really well! XD

2. In a large mixing bowl cream the butter and sugar together with a spatula until light and fluffy.

Cream butter and sugar – easy if butter is well melted.

3. Add the egg, lemon juice, zest and vanilla; beat until well combined.

Butter + Sugar and NOW, the Egg!

4. Scrape sides of the bowl, and mix for an additional 30 seconds. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until just until combined. Scrape sides of the bowl down with a spatula, and give once more stir just to ensure that you have incorporated everything.

Mix in the flour.

5. Place the powdered sugar in a shallow bowl or pie plate and set aside.

6. Portion cookies with a spring-loaded scoop in generous tablespoon portions or scoop about a tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll into a ball. Roll in the powdered sugar and then place on the cookie sheet.  Cookies should be placed about two inches apart, as they do spread. Repeat with the rest of the dough. I found that the dough was very soft and slightly sticky.  If you have the same problem, you can always lightly dust your palms with powdered sugar to keep the dough from sticking to your hands.

7. Bake for 9-10 minutes, or until the bottoms of the cookies begin to brown and the cookies are no longer shiny. Remove from the oven and let rest for three minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.  These stored well for 4 days, beyond that – I will let you know if they last that long!

 

My mum says she loves me FOR making these cookies… haha.

Many of my family have said that they are even *better* when cooled. Crunchy, crispy and yet soft…

 

 

 

 

 

Best-Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies

My family ate these cookies for breakfast!

Mum said, “If Santa had these cookies, he’d never go home to the North Pole!”

 

barely adapted from Anna Olson, Food Network Canada

Makes 1 dozen large-ish (Ms. Field-sized) cookies

Ingredients: 

• 3/4 c. unsalted butter, softened 
• 3/4 c. brown sugar 
• 1/4 c. granulated sugar 
• 1 egg 
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract 
• 2 c. all purpose flour 
• 2 tsp. cornstarch 
• 1 tsp. baking soda 
• 1/2 tsp. salt 
• 1 c. bittersweet chocolate chips

 

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C).

2.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars until fluffy and light in color. Add egg and vanilla and blend in.

Some elbow grease required!

Butter + Sugar

Some elbow grease required!

3.  Using the cooking spatula, mix in flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Stir in chocolate chunks.

4.  Using a cooking spatula and then your hands, roll dough in disc shapes on a prepared baking sheet.

Line the baking tray with baking paper.

Try for uniformity here!

5. Bake for 10-20 minutes (really depends on your oven), until barely golden brown around the edges.  The cookies will be easy to spatula off the baking tray but still soft inside.

Oh my… I can’t wait!

5.  Let cool, on the sheet, on a wire rack for five minutes.  Remove from baking sheet and serve warm or set aside to cool completely.

Ok… so they aren’t *totally* golden brown… but I promise you… one bite and you’ll never ask more!

 

Served with a scoop of strawberry cheesecake ice cream and a strawberry on top!

Alternatively, you can use choc fudge ice cream…

My mum also loving the taste.

My cousin, James digging in.

Savoring it…

Try not to eat them all!