Peppermint Whoopie Pies
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When I received the invitation for my friends’ annual Vodka Latke party (yes, there was a lot of vodka and latkes), I knew I had to bake something. But what goes with vodka and latkes? I couldn’t make cupcakes because they ordered some from Magnolia Bakery, so I asked the hosts and one of them suggested…peppermint whoopie pies of course. I mean, what else does a Jew bring to a Hanukkah party?
So, off to the store I went to buy candy canes. I think this was probably the first time I’ve ever bought candy canes, and I have no idea if some are better than others, but I did learn these things are a huge pain to crush. I put them in a Ziploc bag and used a rolling pin only to discover doing so created holes in the bag and consequently, crushed candy cane all over my kitchen. Next time, food processor.
Anyway, these are good. I don’t know what whoopie pies are supposed to taste like, but these were a hit so apparently they tasted like a whoopie pie. The cookie (which was kind of cakey) was soft and not too chocolately or sweet. The sweetness came from the filling and of course, the not-so-crushed candy canes on the outside. If you have some leftover candy canes, I recommend making these!
Whoopie Pie Ingredients
1 3/4 cups (230 grams) all purpose flour
3/4 cup (75 grams) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup (60 ml) buttermilk
1/2 cup (120 ml) lukewarm water
Filling Ingredients
1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 – 7 ounce (198 grams) jar of marshmallow creme or fluff
2 cups (230 grams) confectioners sugar, sifted
6-8 drops of red liquid food coloring
1/3 cup (80 ml) crushed candy canes
Whoopie Pie Preparation
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) and place oven rack in the center of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment (can also use a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg beating well. Beat in the vanilla extract. In a small measuring cup, mix the buttermilk and coffee (or water). With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk/coffee mixture, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Drop heaping tablespoons (can also use a small ice cream scoop) of the batter onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches (5 cm) apart. With moistened fingers or with the back of a spoon, smooth the tops of the cookies.
Bake for about 9-10 minutes or until the tops of the cookies, when lightly pressed, spring back. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Filling Preparation
In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth and well blended. Beat in the vanilla extract and marshmallow creme. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Then, on high speed, beat filling until it is light and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Add a little cream (if filling is too thick) or confectioners sugar (if filling is too thin) to get the right spreading consistency. Stir in crushed candy canes.
To Assemble: Take one cookie and spread a heaping tablespoon of the filling on the flat side of the cookie. Top with another cookie.
The assembled cookies can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for several days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Makes about 15 sandwich cookies.
Recipe from Joy of Baking.
Mint Chocolate Delights
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I wanted to love these cookies, I really did. I was so excited when I found the mint chips at the market and thought what could possibly be bad about chocolate and mint?
Well…these are just eh. The chocolate cookie is nothing special, the mint chips are barely visible, and the end product looks like a big chocolate blob. They didn’t spread at all and look nothing like the picture on the website. Disappointing, but maybe I was just having an off baking day. Has anyone made these before? What did you think?
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 2/3 cups (10-oz. pkg.) dark chocolate & mint morsels
Preparation
Preheat oven to 325° F.
Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels. Drop by well-rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake for 11 to 13 minutes or until cookies are puffed and centers are set. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Makes about 4 dozen cookies.
Recipe from Nestle.
Chocolate Chip Toffee Bars
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Earlier this year I thought it would be a good idea to buy a bag of toffee bits larger than my head. I’m not quite sure why I thought I’d go through that many toffee bits, so now I’m on a hunt for toffee related recipes so I can start to use the bits up.
Fortunately, I came across this recipe. The bars are buttery, chewy, and delicious! I brought them into the office and they were gobbled up in no time. Be warned–they are rather rich, so cutting them in small-ish pieces is recommended.
Ingredients
2-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 cup coarsely chopped nuts (I omitted these)
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
1-1/3 cups (8 oz. pkg.) toffee bits, divided
Preparation
- Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
- Combine flour and brown sugar in large bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (I used my hands to cut in the butter.) Add egg; mix well. Stir in 1-1/2 cups chocolate chips and nuts; set aside 1-1/2 cups mixture.
- Press remaining crumb mixture onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake 10 minutes. Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over hot crust; set aside 1/4 cup toffee bits. Sprinkle remaining toffee bits over sweetened condensed milk. Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture and remaining 1/2 cup chips over top.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Top with reserved toffee bits. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars. About 48 bars.
Recipe from Hershey’s.
Maple Chocolate Chip Shortbread
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When this month’s Bon Appetit showed up in my mailbox, I knew I was in heaven. There are a ton of maple recipes in this issue–maple cake, maple apple pie (going to try that one for Thanksgiving), and maple shortbread. Most of these recipes call for maple sugar, and having never heard of such a thing, I did some research which prepared me for the crazy price of a tiny bag of the sugar. I need to tell my coworkers they are eating gold or something, and they better like it because I doubled the recipe!
Not only is the shortbread made with the maple sugar, there is maple syrup brushed on the top, and more maple sugar sprinkled on top of that, giving it a nice crunch. The cookies themselves are chewy and buttery, and not cloyingly sweet like you might expect. They’re a nice change from traditional shortbread, and I have a feeling it’s only a matter of time before someone subs out the chocolate chips with bacon.
Ingredients
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus additional for pan
7 tablespoons finely ground maple sugar, divided
1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup (about) bittersweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons pure maple syrup, preferably Grade B (I used Grade A)
Bon Appetit note: If maple sugar is coarse, grind it in a food processor until it resembles granulated sugar.
Preparation
Preheat oven to 300°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. (I used a regular cake pan.) Using electric mixer, beat room-temperature butter, 6 tablespoons maple sugar, and coarse salt in large bowl until light and fluffy and sugar is dissolved. Add flour and beat just until blended. Pat dough evenly onto bottom of prepared pan. Press chocolate chips into dough in random pattern, spacing chips 1/2 inch apart (chips should show). Brush dough with maple syrup and sprinkle evenly with remaining 1 tablespoon maple sugar.
Bake shortbread until golden brown and firm to touch, about 55 minutes. Transfer pan to rack and cool shortbread 10 minutes. Gently push tart pan bottom up, releasing shortbread. (Or double-flip out of the cake pan onto a cutting board like I did.) Cut warm shortbread into 16 wedges. Cool shortbread wedges completely and serve.
Recipe from Bon Appetit.
Salted Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
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I think the first time I ever baked with fleur de sel was when I made Dorie Greenspan’s World Peace Cookies, and I was immediately hooked. Since then, I’ve made a slew of other salty-sweet recipes, including the super popular NY Times chocolate chip cookie recipe.
Then David Lebovitz‘s salted butter chocolate chip cookie recipe showed up in my Google Reader, and I knew it had to be made. David’s recipe uses ingredients you already have on hand–no need for special flour or gigantic chocolate pieces–and since the fleur de sel is mixed in rather than sprinkled on top, you get little bites with a salty crunch. Mmmm! If you’re a fan of fleur de sel in sweets, this is a must-make recipe!
Photos of the process.
Ingredients
4 ounces (115g) salted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup packed (110g) dark or light brown sugar
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cup (180g) flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt or kosher salt
1 1/3 cups (200g) coarsely chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate (I used milk chocolate chips)
1 cup toasted nuts, coarsely chopped (I omitted these)
Preparation
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or by hand, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar just until smooth and creamy.
- Beat in the egg and the vanilla.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Stir the flour mixture into the beaten butter until combined, then mix in the chopped chocolate (including any chocolate dust) and the chopped nuts.
- Cover and chill the batter until firm. (David suggest letting it chill overnight, but I only waited a few hours.)
- To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Form the cookie dough into rounds about the size of a large unshelled walnut. Place the mounds evenly spaced apart on the baking sheets, and press down the tops to flatten them so they are no longer domed and the dough is even.
- Bake the cookies for ten minutes, rotating the baking sheet midway during baking, until the cookies look about set, but are not browned.
- Remove from the oven and quickly tap the top of each with a spatula, then return to the oven for two to five more minutes, until the tops of the cookies are light golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let cookies cool.
Recipe from David Lebovitz.
