From the Kitchen: Maldon Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies

My sister-in-law made these cookies for a girls' night - they are SO good!  I am a sucker for the sweet/salty combo.  The Maldon sea salt is what completely makes these cookies - I bought it on Amazon, but they also sell it at Central Market locally.  They're huge, crunchy flakes (as opposed to crystals) of salt - they give a perfect salty crunch to these cookies!

These cookies are made using frozen dough; the recipe below yields a large batch (40 cookies), so the dough is perfect to make in advance and pull out of the freezer for homemade cookies in minutes!  I freeze the dough on a cookie sheet and, once frozen, transfer the dough to a freezer Ziploc bag.

Maldon Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from Draper James
Yield: 40 cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup old-fashioned oatmeal

1 cup butter (two sticks), room temperature

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 eggs

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 cups chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet)

Maldon sea salt for sprinkling

Directions:

Place the oatmeal in a blender or food processor (I used a Magic Bullet) and blend until it's a fine powder.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the 2 sticks of butter, brown sugar, and sugar, and mix on medium speed until fluffy.  Add the vanilla extract and 2 eggs, and mix until well combined.  Add the dry ingredients (oatmeal powder, flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon), and mix until just combined (do not overmix).  Stir in the chocolate chips.

Using a cookie scoop (I use this one), drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto a parchment-paper lined cookie sheet.  Place in the freezer for at least 1 hour (the cookies are baked using frozen dough).

To bake, preheat the oven to 350.  Place frozen cookie dough on a greased or parchment-paper lined cookie sheet, sprinkle with Maldon sea salt, and bake for 12 minutes.  The cookies should be lightly browned on the edges but soft in the middle.

From the Kitchen: Pioneer Woman "The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever"

It's hard to go wrong with a Pioneer Woman recipe - they are all SO good (probably because they're so unhealthy, but I try not to think about that).  I needed a dessert for last weekend when we had some of B's high school friends over for dinner; however, I was helping a friend out by watching her 3-year-old son while she went to a funeral that day, so I needed something I could make a day in advance.  This was my first time trying this Pioneer Woman cake, and it was delicious - and tasted great even though it was made a day ahead of time!

All of the Pioneer Woman's recipes are scaled to feed a small army; this is a halved version of her recipe so that it makes one 9x13" Pyrex-sized cake.  (Her original recipe makes a whopping 18x13" sheet cake that "feeds 24".)

Pioneer Woman's "The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever"

Serves: 12 (makes one 9x13" Pyrex cake)

Ingredients:
Cake:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 heaping tablespoons baking cocoa
• 1 stick butter
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1/4 cup buttermilk (you can use regular milk + 1 Tbsp lemon juice or vinegar instead)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

• 1/4 cup finely chopped pecans (optional)
• 7 tablespoons butter (7/8 stick)
• 2 heaping tablespoons baking cocoa
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and use cooking spray to grease a 9x13" glass Pyrex baking dish.

In a medium saucepan, melt 1 stick of butter.  While the butter is melting, measure 1 cup flour and 1 cup granulated sugar into a mixing bowl.  Add 2 heaping tablespoons of baking cocoa to the melted butter in the saucepan.  Stir, then add 1/2 cup boiling water.  Allow the mixture to bubble for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and pour into the mixing bowl over the flour and sugar, and stir to mix.

In a measuring cup, pour 1/4 cup buttermilk.  Add 1 egg and beat with a fork.  Add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and stir to mix.

Pour the milk/egg mixture into the mixing bowl and stir.  Pour into the greased 9x13" baking dish and bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

While the cake bakes, melt 7 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan.  While the butter melts, finely chop 1/4 cup of pecans.  (If you don't like nuts, you can just omit.)  Add 2 heaping tablespoons of baking cocoa to the melted butter in the saucepan.  Stir, and allow the mixture to bubble for 30 seconds.  Remove from heat and add 3 tablespoons milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.  Stir, then add 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar.  Whisk the icing until no powdered sugar clumps remain.  Stir in the chopped pecans.

Pour the icing over the warm cake, spreading evenly.  Allow to cool slightly before serving (or, if you're like me, make it a day ahead of time and warm in the oven.)  This cake is great served with vanilla ice cream!

Click here to see my other Pioneer Woman recipes!

From the Kitchen: No-Bake Energy Bites (lactation boosting!)

Nursing or not, these energy bites are an easy and delicious filling snack to have on hand!  They are super quick to make, since they don't involve baking, and taste ALMOST as good as cookie dough!  As a bonus, they contain several lactation-boosting ingredients (galactogogues), including oatmeal, brewer's yeast, and flaxseed, as well as a dose of protein from the coconut and peanut butter!  If you're not nursing, you can easily omit the brewer's yeast if you'd like.  

No-Bake Energy Bites

Adapted from I Can Teach My Child

Yield: ~30 bites (depending on size)

Ingredients:

1 cup old-fashioned oatmeal (rolled oats)

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup ground flaxseed (sometimes called flaxseed meal; you can find it in the bulk section, if your grocery store has one, or in the baking aisle)

1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

1/3 cup agave or honey

1/2 tablespoon brewer's yeast (nutrition/health stores sell it, or you can order it on Amazon)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:

Put all the ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer and mix until well combined.  (You could also use a hand mixer or even stir by hand). Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then form by hand into balls.  I made mine tablespoon-sized and ended up with about 30 balls.  Enjoy!

*note: these also freeze well! Make a double batch and keep the extras in the freezer!

From the Kitchen: DoubleTree Hotel Copycat Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

My sister swears up and down that these are the best chocolate chip cookies out there, so I had to make them!  I don't know that I've ever stayed at a DoubleTree hotel, but they're supposedly the same (or at least similar) to the cookies they serve to guests there.  Regardless, they are fabulous!  The ground oats and walnuts add a great texture to these cookies!

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
2 eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats, ground to a fine texture in a food processor (I used a Magic Bullet)
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used 1 cup mini chocolate chips and 1 1/2 cups regular chocolate chips)
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Directions:

Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice.  Add the eggs and mix until smooth.  Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well.  Add the chocolate chips and walnuts and mix by hand until the ingredients are well blended.

Chill the dough in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.  THIS IS CRITICAL TO THE TEXTURE OF THE COOKIES!!!!

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.  Use a cookie scoop to spoon the cookie dough (approximately 1.5 tablespoon portions) onto a Silpat-lined cookie sheet.  Make sure to put the rest of the dough back in the refrigerator between batches!! Bake for approximately 8 minutes* (the cookies will still look slightly underbaked but will continue to bake on the cookie sheet). 

Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool for 2 minutes on the cookie sheet before placing on a wire baking rack.

*8 minutes was perfect in my oven, but all ovens are different; start checking around 7 minutes and continue to bake in 30-second increment until you reach the right level of doneness!

From the Kitchen: Andes Mint Chocolate Cake

I made this Andes mint chocolate cake for my dad's 60th birthday....and it was seriously probably the best dessert I have ever eaten.  If you're as obsessed with chocolate and mint as I am, you NEED this cake in your life...delicious chocolate cake, mint buttercream, rich chocolate ganache, and a chopped Andes mint garnish  We served it at room temperature on my dad's birthday, but I think it was even better served cold the next day.

 

Andes Mint Chocolate Cake

Adapted from Bird on a Cake

Ingredients:

Chocolate Mint Cake

1 cup boiling water
2 cups granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped Andes mints

Mint Buttercream:

1 cup (2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
6 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
4 drops green food coloring

Chocolate Ganache:

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Garnish: 

1/4 cup chopped Andes mints

Directions:

Chocolate Mint Cake:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Line the bottoms of 3 9-inch cake pans with wax paper and spray the sides of the pans with cooking spray.  Using a kettle or saucepan, start bringing some water to a boil so it will be ready to add to the dry ingredients later.

In a large mixing bowl (I used my KitchenAid mixing bowl), combine the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Stir together the dry ingredients, then add in the eggs, sour cream, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract.  Beat with an electric mixer (I used the KitchenAid paddle attachment) until well blended.

Add 1 cup of boiling water to the mixture and carefully stir with a spoon (don't use the electric mixer at first or you will splash boiling water all over yourself!)  Once it is incorporated into the rest of the mixture, beat the batter with an electric mixer for approximately 1 1/2 minutes.  Fold 1 cup of chopped Andes mints into the batter.

Pour the cake batter into the pans, dividing evenly between the 3 pans.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Use a knife to release the edges of the cake from the pans and invert onto wire cooling racks to cool.

Mint Buttercream:

Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla extract, peppermint extract, and food coloring.  (I don't measure powdered sugar when making buttercream - I just add sugar until it reaches the right consistency).

Chocolate Ganache:

Heat the heavy cream in the microwave in a glass measuring cup or bowl until it is simmering.  Pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips and allow it to sit for a few minutes, then carefully stir until all the chocolate chips are melted into the cream.  Add the vanilla and stir.  Allow the mixture to cool so that it will thicken; I left it at room temperature for a couple of hours and then moved it to the refrigerator to thicken it faster.

Assembly:

Place the bottom cake layer on a cake plate or turntable and frost the top with mint buttercream using an offset spatula.  Repeat with the remaining 2 layers, then frost the sides of the cake.  Pour the thickened chocolate ganache on top of the cake, using an offset spatula to spread the ganache over the top of the cake to the edges so that it drips down the sides of the cake.  Spinning the cake plate or turntable slowly, use the offset spatula to smooth the ganache around the sides of the cake to completely coat the mint buttercream.

Garnish the top of the cake with 1/4 cup of chopped Andes mints.  Allow the cake to stand at room temperature for at least 2 hours for the ganache to set.

From the Kitchen: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

These chocolate ship cookie dough truffles were another of the desserts we served at my friend Erin's baby shower - they are one of her specialties, so we recreated them in her honor!  Erin actually made these at MY baby shower too, and one of my friends (who had never met Erin before) loved them so much that she offered to pay Erin to make them for her son's birthday party!  So they are definitely a party favorite :)

Who doesn't love chocolate chip cookie dough?  Dipping it in a rich chocolate shell with mini chocolate chips on top as a garnish makes it pretty and much more shower or party-appropriate than eating cookie dough directly from the mixing bowl with a spoon (not that I've ever done that...)  This cookie dough is eggless, so no worries about serving raw cookie dough to your guests!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

Yield: 20 truffles

Ingredients:

1/2 cup shortening

1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup and 2 tablespoons flour

1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus extra for garnish

1/2 package chocolate almond bark

Directions:

Mix the shortening, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, and milk until well blended.  Add the baking soda, salt, and flour, and stir well.  Stir in the mini chocolate chips.  

Using your hands, roll the dough into 20 balls.  Place the truffle balls onto 2-3 plates and put in the freezer for about an hour. 

Melt the chocolate almond bark in a small bowl (heat for 1 minute, stir, and continue heating and stirring in 15 second intervals until completely melted). 

Remove 1 plate of truffle balls from the freezer (leave the other plates in the freezer so they don't thaw too much while you're coating the first plate of truffles in chocolate).   

One at a time, put the truffle balls into the melted chocolate, using a spoon to coat it completely in chocolate.  Use a toothpick to spear the truffle ball, remove it from the chocolate (allowing the excess to drop back into the bowl), and place the truffle ball on wax paper.  Immediately dip the toothpick back in the melted chocolate to fill in the hole you created when spearing the truffle ball.  

Sprinkle the top of the truffle ball with mini chocolate chips as a garnish while the chocolate coating is still melted.  Repeat with the remaining 19 truffle balls.

Refrigerate and serve cold (they are better cold than at room temperature).

From the Kitchen: Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles

We served these peanut butter pretzel truffles at my friend Erin's baby shower - she is famous for her truffles, so it seemed fitting to serve them at her shower!  They are one of my favorite treats, and the two-bite size is perfect for a shower or party menu.  They're the perfect combination of sweet and salty - chocolate, peanut butter, and pretzels make for a great dessert!

Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles

Yield: 12 truffles

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups pretzel pieces, plus a few extra for garnish (use the small twists)
1 package chocolate almond bark (you'll need 4-5 "cubes")

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, stir together the butter, brown sugar, salt, and peanut butter.  Add the powdered sugar and stir well.  

Break the pretzels into a few pieces (but not crushed - you'll use too much if crushed and the mixture will be too dry!) to measure them.  Place them in a Ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin.  Add the pretzels to the mixing bowl and stir well.  Refrigerate the truffle dough for at least an hour.

Using your hands, roll the dough into 12 two-bite size balls.  Place the truffle balls on a plate and put in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.

Put a few additional pretzels (5-10) for garnish in a small Ziploc bag and crush with a rolling pin.

Melt 4-5 cubes of chocolate almond bark in a shallow bowl.  Remove the truffle balls from the freezer and, one at a time, put the truffle balls in the chocolate and use a spoon to completely cover the truffle ball in chocolate.  

Use a toothpick to spear the truffle ball, remove it from the bowl of chocolate (allowing the excess chocolate to drip back into the bowl), and place it on wax paper.  Quickly dip the toothpick back in the melted chocolate and use it to fill the hole in the truffle ball from the toothpick (so the hole doesn't show).  Sprinkle crushed pretzels on the top of each truffle ball immediately to garnish.  Repeat with the remaining 11 truffle balls.

Refrigerate and serve cold (they are much better cold than room temperature!)