whole wheat chocolate chip cookies

I stumbled upon this recipe the other day and had to try it. I love chocolate chip cookies of all kinds, but I haven't seen a whole wheat recipe before. So, for you (and mostly for me) I decided to try it. And I'm glad I did. I adjusted it a bit from the recipe on Butteredup, I made my cookies smaller and just used semi-sweet chips (cause I'm lazy), but I was super happy with the result. 

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

Seen on Butteredup adapted from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce via Orangette

Ingredients: 

3 cups whole wheat flour 

1 teaspoon baking powder 

1 teaspoon baking soda 

1 ½ teaspoon sea salt 

1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar 

1 cup sugar 

2 large eggs 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

8 semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preparation: 

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, and whisk to blend. 

2. Put the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, mix just until the butter and sugars are blended, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture to the bowl, and blend on low speed until the flour is just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the chocolate, and mix on low speed until evenly combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and then use your hands to turn and gently massage the dough, making sure all the flour is absorbed. Chill dough for at least 12 hours. 

3. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, and preheat to 350°F. Grease or line two baking sheets with parchment or silpats.

4. Scoop cookie dough onto cookie sheet. (I used a medium cookie scoop to get the size I wanted).   

5. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until somewhat cracked and browned.

zucchini banana bread

(sorry about the crappy phone photo)

Zucchini season is here! And there is a LOT of it. I had the pleasure of receiving some gigantor garden variety zuccs recently and had to find a load of zucchini recipes to use up the copious amounts of the veggie I now had in my possession. The first recipe is yummy, moist-deluxe Zucchini Bread, adapted from Southern Plate: Classic Comfort Food That Makes Everyone Feel Like Family. It's sooooo good, you must try it! 

Zucchini (with banana and coconut - added by me) Bread.
makes 2 loaves

3 eggs
1/2 c. vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1/2 c. greek yogurt
2 t. vanilla extract
splash almond extract
2 1/2 cups shredded zucchini
1 mashed banana
1/2 cup coconut
3 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease two 4 x 8-inch loaf pans.

In a large bowl, beat the banana till soft. Combine with the eggs, oil, yogurt, sugar, vanilla, almond extract, zucchini and coconut. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix all ingredients together.

Pour into the pans and bake for 1 hour, or until the centers are no longer soft.

PS: If you haven't tried Banana or Zucchini Bread toasted with butter, you are missing out, so go fix this mistake!

PPS: If you are trying to save your extra shredded zucchini for later, do not use a food saver, if you have one. I learned the hard way that you just need to measure it out into ziplocs and not try to be fancy and food-save it, unless you want green juice all over everything.

famous!

My friend, Julia (remember her from all the great photos?) did a little interview with me. Go here to see it!

(photo by Julia Bender)

re-cap: made by tom dinner from june 2011

(photo by julia bender)

My dear friend Julia shot photos and did a little write up of the Made by Tom dinner I helped out with in June. Take a peek!

banana oat squares

I like sleep. Sleep is good. This love for sleep sometimes makes it hard for me to have a decent breakfast before I have to get out the door. Because of this constant conundrum, I'm always looking for a grab-and-go options. I can't remember how I came across this recipe, but it fits the bill. It's filling and pretty healthy. I added ground flax seed and toasted wheat germ and swapped the type of nuts, and I am pretty happy with the result. While I use these as a breakfast booster, these could be a substitute for granola bars or cookies. They have a soft and light texture, with a hint of hearty-ness. Check out the recipe below!

Banana Oat Squares, adapted from Sweet and Savory Tooth via Notecook

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 to 1 cup mashed bananas (3 bananas)

2 tablespoons ground flax seed

2 tablespoons toasted wheat germ
2 cups old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and beat well. Add salt and mashed banana and mix until incorporated . Add oats and nuts. Stir. Spread in greased 8×8 inch pan. Bake for almost an hour until firm. Cool and cut into squares.

olive oil granola with dried apricots and pistachios

(photo by Julia Bender)

Remember how I'm obsessed with granola? I see a new variation, and I can't help but try it. This was my latest discovery, and I sure do love it. I found this recipe from the New York Times, via thekitchn (have you noticed I like that blog? Cause I'm siting it in almost every post? Can I work for them, please?) It's so delicious. It's got a bit of a savory vibe, working with a little bit of sweet. It's like a sophisticated granola. The ingredients are a little on the expensive side, so in the future, I'd like to try swapping out different nuts and seeds to make a less expensive version. But try this at least once, you'll love it! I know I did. Lots.

Olive Oil Granola With Dried Apricots and Pistachios

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 cups raw pistachios, hulled
1 cup raw pumpkin seeds, hulled
1 cup coconut chips
3/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
3/4 cup chopped dried apricots
Fresh ricotta, for serving (optional)
Fresh berries, for serving (optional).

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, combine oats,
pistachios, pumpkin seeds, coconut chips, maple syrup, olive oil,
brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and cardamom. Spread mixture on a rimmed
baking sheet in an even layer and bake for 45 minutes, stirring every
10 minutes, until golden brown and well toasted.

2. Transfer granola to a large bowl and add apricots, tossing to
combine. Serve with ricotta and fruit, if desired.

Yield: About 9 cups.

ice cream sandwiches: roasted cherry coconut ice cream with gingersnap cookies

(photo by Julia Bender)

As it turns out, I have pretty rad and talented friends. I know a lot of people say that, but allow me to brag for a moment. Julia is a gorgeous and talented photographer, not to mention fun roommate and travel companion and secret code talker. We lived together in SF for 4 years and became like sisters. This summer has been extra fun for me, cause she's been in town, and we've been recreating our old times of awesomeness. Including this little mini photoshoot of a practice round of ice cream sandwiches and some granola (this recipe is coming, just you wait). Isn't she awesome? Also, while in SF, we became good friends with Chef Tom Call. I talked about him before here. Well, the ice cream sandwiches I was testing and Julia was shooting were for this event. When I got my ice cream maker, all I could think about was ice cream sandwich combos. This was the first one I thought of. I liked the idea of cherry ice cream with gingersnaps. I felt like the combo of a chewy and slightly spicy cookie with the freshness of a summer fruit was pretty ideal for an outdoor summer meal. I did a lot of practice tests and research on possible recipe combinations. For the ice cream, I loved this recipe by Faith Durand; who's recipes are always so on point. She doesn't disappoint this time, either. I mean, c'mon, it's got COCONUT MILK in it. You know I'm down for some coconut. (I don't know how her ice cream stays white, I've made this recipe a few times now, and it always ends up pink with the juice from the cherries. Still tastes delish, though.)

Quick Coconut Ice Cream with Roasted Cherries
(makes 1 quart)

For roasted cherries:
1 pound Bing cherries
2 tablespoons sugar

For coconut ice cream:
One 14-ounce can coconut milk
1 cup cream
One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
Pinch salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Heat the oven to 450°F. Toss the cherries with the sugar and spread them out in one layer on a large baking sheet. Roast for 15 minutes, stirring several times, and watching to make sure the sugar and juices don't burn. Remove from the oven and let cool. Pit the cherries and set them aside.

Whisk together the ice cream ingredients in a large bowl. Make sure the sweetened condensed milk has been thoroughly mixed into the cream.

Put the ice cream mix in your ice cream maker and freeze according to instructions. When the ice cream is the texture of soft-serve, scrape it out and fold in the roasted pitted cherries. Transfer to a bowl or container and cover the ice cream with plastic wrap so that the plastic wrap is in full contact with the surface of the ice cream. Freeze for another 2 hours, or until firm.

Tip: Chill the separate ingredients (coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk) for an hour in the refrigerator before mixing everything together. This will help the mix be colder and therefore freeze faster when you put it in the ice cream maker.

****

For the cookies, I tried a few things, but I settled on an adaptation of this cookie from Martha Stewart (when in cookie doubt, go Stewart!). I really don't know what the deal with this recipe was, but I made it four different times, and I could never get them this fluffy, and mine were much darker than the picture. I wanted these to be really chewy, too, so I added ground oats and more flour. It also helped when the dough was refrigerated overnight and rolled into balls and put in the oven to bake when still cold.  I wanted to make sure they were solid enough to hold ice cream without leaking, but not so thick that it overpowered the ice cream. I think with the few tweaks I noted, that it's a great cookie solution. Here is the original recipe:

Ingredients:
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour (I ended up with 1 1/4 cup)

(I added 1/2 cup of ground oats)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
Pinch of baking powder
Pinch of kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar plus some for sprinkling (I didn't sprinkle any extra)
1 large egg
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons molasses

Directions:
Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger. In a large bowl, combine the butter and sugar and mix on medium speed until the mixture holds together. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg, vanilla, and molasses. Mix on medium speed until incorporated. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and mix until incorporated, about 1 minute.

Place the dough on parchment paper and roll out into an 8-inch-long X 1 1/2-inch-wide log. Freeze until firm, up to 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Slice the log into 1/4-inch rounds, place on a baking sheet 1/2 inch apart, and sprinkle with sugar (I skipped this part, because I was filling these bad boys with ice cream - no extra sugar needed!) Bake until the cookies crack slightly on the surface, about 12 minutes (9 minutes was my magic number). Remove from the oven and let cool for 2 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.

peanut butter ice cream

I was hangin' with my awesome niece this weekend, and we decided we wanted to make ice cream. I think it's well established that I love all things peanut butter, so naturally, that was what I was looking for. Thankfully I found this recipe. And I'll tell you what, it delivered. I loved it, the niece loved it, and so did all the other taste testers. So bottom line is, you need to make this! Like right now!

Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
Yield: About 7 cups of ice cream
Prep Time: 12 min + processing time

A peanut buttery ice cream with chocolate peanut butter cup chunks mixed in...

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups smooth peanut butter
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1 1/4 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups chopped chocolate peanut butter cups (I used a bag of the mini Reece's peanut butter cups)

Directions:
1. Make the base: In a medium mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to combine peanut butter and sugar until smooth. Add milk and mix on low until sugar is dissolved- a full two minutes. You don't want to be tasting crunches of sugar in your ice cream, so give it a chance to dissolve. Mix in heavy cream and vanilla and beat until well combined and smooth.

2. Process the ice cream: Turn on your ice cream machine, pour the base in the freezer bowl, and let mix until thickened, about 25 to 30 minutes. A couple of minutes before you're ready stop the mixing, add in the chopped peanut butter cups. The ice cream will be a soft-serve consistency. You can eat it right away, or freeze to eat later. If you freeze it for later, it will be more ice-cream-scoopable. Let it sit out for a few minutes before you try to scoop it.

Source: RecipeGirl.com (adapted from The Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker recipe booklet)

bakesale betty's fried chicken sandwiches and lemon ice

A long time ago, I posted about going to Bakesale Betty's in Oakland. It was so inspiring and delicious. If I opened my own storefront, I'd love to run it similar to her business model. The last week I was in SF for work, I stayed the weekend to hang with the parents, and I dragged them out to this giant White Elephant Sale, then to Bakesale Betty's. I've been craving that lemon ice since I first had it years ago and I just wanted them to see this place that really inspired me to want to do my own thing with food one of these days (someday? hopefully?). When we were ordering in line and Ms. Bakesale herself realized my mom had never been there and we were just getting lemon ice's, she gave us two of their famous fried chicken sandwiches—on the house. Seriously, I love this woman! We took it home and split them up between the parents and myself. We were all blown away. A few weeks later, my dad did his thing and found the recipe for this online and for the lemon ice that haunts me on the daily. Fast forward to Memorial weekend, when my parents and I were visiting two of my sibs in Southern California. Needless to see, we made these ridiculously good sandwiches and the drink. Everyone LOVED it! The cole slaw that you make really puts it over the top. My rad sis-in-law who haaaaaates onions totally got down with these bad boys. I'd call this success for all parties. See recipes below.

Bakesale Betty's Fried Chicken Sandwich

Serves 4
You'll have some breading left over, even after dipping twice. This makes a hefty sandwich in all regards - you'll need two hands to eat it.

INGREDIENTS:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 6 ounces each (we sliced the chicken breasts in half, to make sure they weren't too thick. Or you could pound them to be flatter, if you don't want to slice them)
Kosher salt to taste
1 quart buttermilk
The vinaigrette1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
The coleslaw1 small red onion, very thinly sliced (we used half this amount)
1 cup red wine vinegar
2 jalapenos, seeded, cut in half and sliced crosswise
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 green cabbage, core and outer leaves removed, and very thinly sliced
Kosher salt
The breading1 pound all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon kosher salt + more to taste
11/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 quarts vegetable oil, for frying
4 Acme Bakery torpedo rolls, sliced lengthwise (we found rolls as close to this as possible. We also buttered and toasted the buns, to avoid soggy bread)

Instructions: Season chicken breasts with kosher salt. Let sit at least 5 minutes. Fill a wide, shallow nonreactive bowl or casserole dish with buttermilk. Add the chicken and soak in the refrigerator for 1 hour up to overnight.
For the vinaigrette: Combine mustard, vinegar and salt in a bowl. Slowly whisk in olive oil until well blended.
For the coleslaw: Macerate onions in red wine vinegar, and let sit at least 20 minutes. Remove onions and discard vinegar. Toss onions with jalapeno, parsley, cabbage and salt. Toss with vinaigrette until evenly coated.
To fry chicken: Pour vegetable oil into a large stockpot. Do not fill up more than halfway, or the oil could splatter. Bring oil up to 365°, using a digital thermometer/candy thermometer to monitor the heat. Prepare the the breading while waiting for oil to heat up.

In a wide shallow bowl, mix flour, cayenne, salt and pepper. Pull a chicken breast out of the buttermilk one by one, letting excess drip off, and dredge completely in flour. To create a thick crust, place in buttermilk and dredge in flour a second time. Do not drain or shake off excess buttermilk or flour during the breading process.

When the oil is at 365°, carefully place chicken pieces into oil one by one. Let it cook for a minute before disturbing chicken, then help it "swim" in the oil with tongs, until it is evenly cooked, about 5-7 minutes. Remove chicken from oil and drain on paper towels. Season immediately with salt.

For the sandwich: Place fried chicken breast on bottom of torpedo roll and top generously with coleslaw.

(recipe found via)

Bakesale Betty's Lemon Ice
Makes about 5 drinks
This recipe is from Alison Barakat (a.k.a. Betty), owner of Bakesale Betty in Oakland, where the lemon ice is kept frozen in a slush machine. This is an adapted version for home cooks.

3/4 cup sugar
1 cup hot water
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, strained
Instructions: In a 2-quart pitcher, whisk sugar with hot water until sugar is dissolved. Add 2 cups cold water and the lemon juice, and stir until combined.

Pour 2 1/2 cups of the lemon mixture into ice cube trays and freeze. Store the rest in the refrigerator. Add lemon ice cubes and liquid mixture to a blender and pulse until you get a slushy consistency. Pour into 5 glasses and serve immediately.

(We used an ice cream maker and mixed it until it was slushy enough, since we didn't have time to make the cubes.)

recipe found via

chocolate chocolate cookies with caramel bits

I could probably think of a more fancy sounding name for these cookies, but why not call a spade a spade? Or a chocolate chocolate cookie with ooey-gooey bits of caramel just what it is? I wanted to make a cookie and I was feeling really uninspired at the time, so I called me oldest sis for some guidance. We both are recent Cuisinart food-processor owners (her even more recently), so she pointed me to a double chocolate cookie recipe from the cookbook that comes with the food processor. We clearly come from the same gene pool, because we both thought the dough would be chocolatey, with chocolate chips to boot. Don't tell anyone but, I often break the cardinal rule of baking—which is—READ THE RECIPE before you start baking. But, since I take after my mom and have a very well stocked kitchen, I almost always have what I need on-hand, or can substitute something better, I sometimes just dive in without reading. This time was no exception; most of the way into the recipe, I realized that "double chocolate" meant white chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips. Whoopsie! I don't really like milk chocolate chips anyway, or white for that matter, so I made some swaps and added my favorite ingredient: CARAMEL. Yums Magee! I tried these out on my family and they approved. You could ask my niece, who swiped the cookie from her mother and shoved it in her mouth, but her favorite word is bubble, so she may not be able to wax too poetic -- so, you'll just have to take my word for it. Here is my altered recipe:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup pecans

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 to 1/3 cups cocoa powder (depending on how rich you want these)

2 large eggs

3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup caramel bits (I cut up Kraft caramels into little bits - I also tried a recipe using the pre-made bits, but I liked the chopped up version better. See how dedicated I am to making the perfect recipe??)

Preheat oven to 375°

Put flour, pecans, soda and salt in bowl of food processor; process to combine and finely chop pecans (pecans should not be chunky—they should mix in will with the consistency of the flour). Reserve.

Process eggs and sugars for 1 minute. Scrape work bowl. Add butter, vanilla and cocoa; process for 1 minute. Scrape work bow. Add reserved chocolate, caramel bits and flour mixture. Pulse until combined.

Drop by rounded tablespoons, about 1 inch apart, onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake until golden brown, for 10 minutes (the tops should crack). Allow to cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack.