High Mountain Musing » cookies

Biscotti

highmountainmuse — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 18:17:09 +0000

Our experiments with baking Biscotti

Over the holidays, a friend sent a bag of home baked biscotti up this way. For those who have never had, biscotti are a dry, twice baked Italian cookie best served with a cup of hot black coffee.

They did not last long.

I remember baking these, many varieties, year ago, and distributing them for Christmas presents. It’s been a while since I’d made any myself, but after the three of us enjoyed the little gift bag we received so much, I figured it was time I tried again.

Here are a couple recipes that we tried this past week. The cookie jar is empty once again; time to try some new ones, so I suppose that means these went over pretty well. Best part about these, besides the wonderful dry crunch, is that they are very easy to make. Experiment with what you can put in them, depending on what you have on hand – keep it simple with just toasted almonds, or get more fancy with orange zest, dried cranberries and pecans.

I hope you try and enjoy.

Biscotti with macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips

In a medium bowl, mix together until smooth and creamy:

1 stick butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

Stir in:

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

1 teaspoon almond extract

Then combine and stir in the following:

3 ¼ cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Finally, stir in the “mix ins,” in this case, I used:

1 ¼ cups toasted macadamia nuts (to toast the nuts, put them in the hot oven single layer on a baking sheet for about 5 minutes or so)

1 ¼ cups white chocolate chips

I used my hands to finishing the mixing to evenly distribute the “mix ins.”

Then divide the dough in two, and with each half, on a cookie baking sheet, with your hands, form a log about the length of the cookie sheet and almost half the width, and about ½ inch thick. Bake these in an oven preheated to 375 degrees for about 20 minutes. Take them out right before golden brown on top. I found if I waited until browning, they would crumble and be too delicate at the next stage (though they still turned out tasting mighty fine).

On the cookie sheet with a sharp knife or the edge of a metal spatula, cut each baked log into the “cookies,” resulting in long wedge shapes each about 1 inch wide. Spread them out on the cookie sheet and put them back in the oven, and bake for another 6-8 minutes, now until they are golden brown. Remove from heat and cool on a wire rack.

Biscotti dough spread out in pan before the first baking

Biscotti with toasted pecans and dark chocolate chips

In a medium bowl, mix together until smooth and creamy:

1/3 cup vegetable oil

¾ cup white sugar

Stir in:

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

1 teaspoon almond extract

Then combine and stir in the following:

2 ¼ cups flour

1 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Finally, stir in the “mix ins,” in this case, I used:

1 cups toasted pecans nuts (to toast the nuts, put them in the hot oven single layer on a baking sheet for about 5 minutes or so)

1 cup dark chocolate chips

I used my hands to finishing the mixing to evenly distribute the “mix ins.”

And a warm thank you to J. Ruth Kelly for sharing a bit of sunshine today!

Grandma cookies a.k.a. High Mountain Chocolate Chip Cookies

highmountainmuse — Sun, 03 May 2009 13:49:25 +0000

Grandma cookies a.k.a. High mountain chocolate chip cookies

I’ve never been great at following recipes. More often than not, I use them for inspiration, but not direction. My mom is the opposite. She’s good at following a recipe. Uses the right ingredients and correct measurements. There’s no one right way, both ways work well for each of us. But herein lies the problem: sharing recipes. It’s easy when they come from her to me. It’s all spelled out on paper, and I’m then free to do with it as I like. But trying to get what I just cooked on paper for her is often more complicated. It requires that I measure! Words and expressions like “some” and “a little” just don’t cut it. I’m learning…

So, first I want to share a recipe that came from my mom. When Forrest was a wee boy, she used to make them for us, in a jumbo size, wrap them up well, and mail them clear across the country to us in a care package when we lived too far away to visit regularly. Always a most welcome treat, like a big warm grandmotherly hug. Although she no longer sends them in the mail (we get to see visit my folks more often now as we all live in Colorado), we still make them ourselves quite regularly. And we still call them “Grandma Cookies.”

I think if we had to choose just one cookie that would be the only treat inside the cookie jar, this would be it. You just don’t tire of “regular” chocolate chip cookies, and these ones are extra special. I suppose because they are made with love!

And afterwards, I want to share some further details to my basic bread recipe. I suppose I should do that in a separate post. So… that information to follow! For now…

Grandma Cookies a.k.a. High Mountain Chocolate Chip Cookies

In a large bowl, cream together with a big fork or a mixer:

½ cup (1 stick) butter, room temp.

½ cup shortening (Crisco or similar)

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

When this is mixed well, light and fluffy, then add:

2 eggs

2 tablespoons milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Mix that together well. Then add on top, all at once:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

Fold in the dry ingredients until everything is well combined. Then stir in:

2 cups quick-cook oats

Gently fold in. Then stir in until evenly distributed:

2 cups chocolate chips

(At this point you can also add a cup of coconut, or toasted coconut like my mom does, and/or a cup of chopped nuts if you have them. We usually don’t add these things, mostly because we usually don’t have them on hand.)

Cover and chill for at least an hour. I often make the dough in the evening and leave it in the fridge over night.

When you’re ready to bake, make sure your oven is medium hot (about 350). Grease your cookie sheet. Take out the dough and with two teaspoons, form the dough into balls, about 1 ½ inch diameter each. I fit 13 per cookie sheet. They spread out, so leave room. Bake each batch for about 8-10 minutes. They might still look soft and pale in the center, but golden on the edges. Remove and cool on wire rack. Makes a good size batch, and they freeze well. Good for care packages, too…

Hope you enjoy!

Cranberry Coconut Cookies

highmountainmuse — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 13:42:24 +0000

Cranberry coconut cookies

I suppose it’s because of the elevation, but we do burn our calories, and we do go through the cookies. Someone asked me once how and where I stock up enough bread and cake and cookies to get through the winter. I showed them the 50 pound sacks I store in our Trading Post. A few of those last us through the winter, and provide all the bread and goodies we need. Can you imagine the size of the freezer I’d need to put up all that stuff otherwise?

Anyway, I do enjoy baking. You probably figured that. And you know, if the wood cook stove is going, you might as well use it, right?

Today I’d like to share a recipe for a cookie I just started making. I took the time to write the measurements down last week when I baked these to make sure I had it right. I’m one of those who measure by “more or less” and use the palm of my hand for measuring spoons, but I have since learned that doesn’t work too well for sharing recipes. (Right, Ma?)

I first experimented with these cookies over Christmas. (Karen & Ron, and several friends and family in Creede – you had some of the first experimental batch in the care packages I shared over the holidays.) Those ones were slightly different – I think I used pecans in them, and did not use the orange peel – and they were pretty good too. Like with all baking for those of us who don’t live near the grocery store to pick up all the right ingredients, “more or less” works well for baking. It’s making do. That’s fine for baking, but I don’t really like to settle on “more or less” for other aspects of my life.

These are really good! I hope you try and enjoy.

Cranberry Coconut Cookies

In a medium bowl, cream together:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

2 cups white sugar

Again, I use my Big Fork and a lot of elbow grease, but a mixer would make light work of this if you must.

Cream into the butter/sugar mixture:

2 tablespoons cream or evaporated milk

1 egg

1 tablespoon grated orange peel

2 teaspoons vanilla

Then gently mix in the dry ingredients all at together:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

When this is well blended, fold in:

1 ¼ cup dried cranberries (I had a sweetened variety, and they were great)

1 ¼ cup flaked dried coconut (here, I had an unsweetened variety)

1 ¼ cup white chocolate chips

When all ingredients are well combined, form round ball with two small spoons on your cookie sheet, evenly spaced (I fit the bakers dozen, 13 per sheet), each ball about 1 ¼ to 1 ½ inch in diameter.

Bake in a medium hot oven (350 degrees), each batch for just under 10 minutes. Cool cookies on wire racks.

As you can see from the picture, it makes a good size batch, and those that won’t be consumed in a day or two, do freeze well.

Mocha Chip Cookies

highmountainmuse — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 22:33:49 +0000

With the wind blowing like this, it was a good morning to stay inside and bake (or get that bean soup cooking on the wood stove?).

These ones are Forrest’s favorite, and the favorite of many visitors to our ranch and our home. They make a big batch, and freeze well, but I find they don’t last very long…

A batch of Mocha Chip Cookies, less the ones we ate as they came out of the oven. Notice the "recylced" wire cooling rack - a shelf from out of an old fridge.

Mocha Chip Cookie Recipe:

Cream together: 1 stick butter, ½ cup crisco or shortening, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup white sugar. Again, I use a big table fork for my blender – if you have plenty of electricity and prefer, a mixer would work well.
Mix in: 2 eggs.
In a separate small bowl or cup, mix: 2 tablespoons hot coffee or water, 2 teaspoons vanilla, and 2 tablespoons instant coffee (you can use de-caf if you’re concerned about the caffeine, but I’m thinking it doesn’t amount to much coffee per cookie). Add this to the butter/sugar bowl, and mix well.
Add 3 cups flour, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder and ½ teaspoon baking soda. I put all the dry ingredients on top of the wet, no sifting, but I mush them around first on top to make sure they are somewhat evenly distributed. It always works pretty well. Mix this dough up well.
Stir in one bag, or 2 cups of chocolate chips. We like the milk chocolate ones best for this recipe.
Bake in a pre-heated, moderate oven (325 degrees) for about 8 minutes per batch. Don’t forget to double pan if you’re baking in the elevation (we’re at almost 10,000 feet here) so you don’t burn the bottoms! The tops should just start to be getting some golden brown specks, but will still be somewhat soft when you take them out.
Cool on a wire rack.