Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

I really need to practice making cookies.

But seriously.
I have cupcakes and layer cakes down.  Brownies? Check.  Biscuits, scones?  Super easy.  I can even do pie crust.
But cookies?  They're the first thing most kids bake!  The one thing that their moms will let them help with!  The foolproof dessert that can only get screwed up by not setting a timer!
I follow every direction, measure with extreme precision, set painstakingly exact timers...
And I CANNOT nail them!

I want to say I can blame my oven.  I probably need an oven thermometer so I can test what temperature "350˚" actually is.  And maybe I need to play with temperatures as well as times.

I'm just saying, for me, thick golden cookies that don't spread like the dickens are apparently a lot to ask for.
In the picture are the prettiest three cookies of nearly 3 dozen.  They just kept spreading and browning really quickly!
Grr.

At least they taste good!

Pretty will come with time.

I hope.

For now, I will accept any cookie tips and tricks that you lovely people have to offer me, and will also sit back with one of my poor dilapidated tasty cookies.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies
adapted from these cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp unsulphured molasses
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant or quick)
1-1/2 cups chocolate chips
scant 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Directions:
In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large bowl with a very sturdy hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until very light and fluffy - about 5 minutes.
In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, whisking together thoroughly until no clumps of baking soda remain.  Stir in the oats, raisins, and pecans.
Returning to the mixer, add the eggs to the butter and sugars one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Stir in the vanilla extract and the molasses.  Gradually add the flour and oat mixture on a low speed to the creamed butter mixture until well combined.
Chill the dough, covered, for a few hours or overnight - optional, but recommended.
To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350˚F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, a silicone baking mat, or (in a pinch) foil sprayed lightly with cooking spray.  For giant cookies, (cause who doesn't like a giant cookie??) drop the dough in 1/4-cup sized* balls spaced evenly on the baking sheet.  Place in the preheated oven on a rack centered in the oven.  Midway through the baking time, rotate the baking sheet so the cookies bake evenly.  If necessary, flatten the domes of the cookies with a spatula.  Bake the cookies for 20-22 minutes, or until the tops are just starting to brown - don't overbake them!  You'll be sad.  Remove from the oven, cool completely on a wire rack, and enjoy!

Oatmeal Raisin Pecan Cookies

I was not raised to be a cookie baker.

Strange, right?  Usually that's the first thing a kid will learn how to make.  But I grew up in a house with a mom who only made cookies once a year: at Christmas.  And those were cut-out sugar cookies.  Never (or at least hardly ever) was a homemade chocolate chip cookie seen emerging from our oven.

Instead, we made chocolate chip bars: from-scratch Toll House recipe cookie dough was pressed into a 9x13 pan and baked until still slightly gooey in the middle, then cut into squares or rectangles for consumption.

We were famous for those suckers.  With a hint of extra vanilla, two heaping cups of semisweet chocolate chips, and the precise right baking time that left them super soft and anything but dry for days and days, they were the perfect bake sale or party treat, and every friend I ever had in high school knew to be on the lookout for Angela's Chocolate Chip Bars.

But there's just something about cookies that you can't really replace.
As a form of baking therapy, the constant rotation of pans in the oven and the intoxicating scent of warm butter and sugar makes cookie baking immensely satisfying - when you have the time, that is.  And after visiting Levain Bakery in NYC, I knew I'd never be satisfied until I could make cookies anywhere close to that delicious on my own.

Now, the trouble for me is not in the dough - I've got cookie dough making down to a veritable science, complete with...um...quality control sampling :)  The trouble is in the baking time.  For someone who's used to sticking things in the oven and leaving them there for 20+ minutes at a time, short baking times and constant attention at the oven is, well, weird.  And a major guessing game.

It took me ages to photograph these cookies - not because I wanted to tweak the recipe at all, because I'm pretty sure what changes I made to an already excellent recipe made these the most addictive cookies of all time, but because I wanted to get the baking time exactly right for perfectly photogenic cookies.  I'm still not sure I've nailed it yet, but this third batch was by far the best - light golden brown and still super soft, so I have hope.  If you're experienced in the cookie world, feel free to leave me some advice!

Baking time correct or not, these cookies are definitely worth trying.  They're my husband's favorite kind - oatmeal raisin - from an excellent recipe that I found on David Lebovitz's blog, doctored up with a little whole wheat flour, molasses, sea salt, and pecans.  And my lord, are they tasty!!  Enjoy warm or at room temperature (or in a sundae? hmmm...).  If you don't want to risk consuming them all at once, bake a small batch, then roll the rest of the dough into balls and flash-freeze them, then store them in a freezer bag till a cookie craving hits!  A little self-imposed portion control never hurt anyone ;)

Oatmeal Raisin Pecan Cookies
Source: adapted from David Lebovitz, originally from Flour by Joanne Chang

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature 
2/3 cup granulated sugar 
1 cup packed light brown sugar 
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp unsulphured molasses
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant or quick)
1-1/2 cups raisins
scant 1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Directions:
In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large bowl with a very sturdy hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until very light and fluffy - about 5 minutes.
In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, whisking together thoroughly until no clumps of baking soda remain.  Stir in the oats, raisins, and pecans.
Returning to the mixer, add the eggs to the butter and sugars one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Stir in the vanilla extract and the molasses.  Gradually add the flour and oat mixture on a low speed to the creamed butter mixture until well combined.
Chill the dough, covered, for a few hours or overnight - optional, but recommended.
To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350˚F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, a silicone baking mat, or (in a pinch) foil sprayed lightly with cooking spray.  For giant cookies, (cause who doesn't like a giant cookie??) drop the dough in 1/4-cup sized* balls spaced evenly on the baking sheet.  Place in the preheated oven on a rack centered in the oven.  Midway through the baking time, rotate the baking sheet so the cookies bake evenly.  If necessary, flatten the domes of the cookies with a spatula.  Bake the cookies for 20-22 minutes, or until the tops are just starting to brown - don't overbake them!  You'll be sad.  Remove from the oven, cool completely on a wire rack, and enjoy!

*If you make smaller cookies, you'll need to drop the total baking time.  Rotate them after about 7 minutes and check on their doneness starting at 15 minutes.

Vanilla Glazed Sugar Cookie Bars

Sometimes, life just needs sprinkles.

This was one of those times.  I had exactly one cup of butter left in my entire apartment, I had leftover glaze in my fridge from the Bundt cake I made a couple weeks earlier, and I just wanted to make something simple and sprinkle-y to share with the dancers before we went into tech for the concert.  I found this recipe and declared it a winner.

The original recipe calls for a frosting, which I ordinarily would've made without batting an eyelash...duh.  Of course, ordinarily I would've made cupcakes instead of cookies...I guess it wasn't an ordinary day.  Anyway, considering the complete lack of butter and the presence of tasty glaze, I gave up on the frosting.  And the glaze was perfect!  It added just enough sweetness to the bars to make them thoroughly addictive without being cloying.

Plus, glaze = perfect sprinkle adhesive.  Truth.

These sugar cookie bars came together so quickly, made my kitchen smell incredible...and I may or may not have had three of them while I was making a plate for the dancers.
Hey - I cut them small!  Three is...a totally justifiable number...

I'll just...give you the recipe now...

Vanilla Glazed Sugar Cookie Bars
Source: lightly adapted from Annie's Eats ; original recipe from The Repressed Pastry Chef

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
5 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 recipe vanilla glaze, found here
Multicolored sprinkles (optional but highly encouraged) 

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚F with a rack placed at the center position.  Grease a 13x18" rimmed baking sheet and set aside. [Side note: I used the medium baking sheet from my set of three - I eyeballed it and it looked right.]
Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl.  Set aside.
In a large bowl with a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar on medium speed till pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and add the seeds and extract to the butter mixture, beating until well incorporated.  Switch to low speed and add the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.
Transfer the cookie dough to the prepared baking sheet and press it into an even layer.  Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, until light golden brown in color and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool to room temperature in the pan on a rack.
Once the bars are at room temperature, poke holes all over the surface with the tines of a fork or a toothpick.  Pour the vanilla glaze over the bars and spread as evenly as possible.  If using sprinkles (which you should!) add them to the top of the bars now so they set with the glaze.   Allow the glaze to set and harden before slicing into 1.5-2" square bars and serving.  Enjoy!

The Chocolate Chip Cookie Experiment: Part 1

I am a cake girl all the way.  If it's soft, sweet, and frosted, chances are I'll devour it like there's no tomorrow.

However.

Most people who read blogs or, well, live in New York City know about Levain Bakery and their fresh, gooey, quarter-pound cookies.  I had heard so much tell of them that when I had a day off from the Parsons Dance Company summer intensive I had to venture up to 74th and Amsterdam and give those suckers a try for myself.

Two words: life changing.

Chocolate chip cookies are now on my craving radar.
But really only those chocolate chip cookies - huge, thick, craggy, crisp on the outside and gooey on the inside, with hunks of chocolate and walnut tucked into every buttery bite.

So, I've now begun a quest to make such cookies for myself and anyone who will help me devour them.

This, my first try, was not all too far off from the cookies I love so much.  Not quite there yet, but pretty darn close!!
These gargantuan cookies didn't bake up as thick and gooey as my beloved Levain goodies, but they're buttery, rich, and chock full of big bites of chocolate and nut - I was low on walnuts so I supplemented with pecans: no complaints here!  These spread quite a bit for me, so I'll have to see if I can manipulate the recipe to keep them together - suggestions are welcome - or if the crappy rack placements in my oven are to blame...I can't wait to have a nice stove... Regardless, these beauties stayed soft and chewy, and are officially friend, roommate, and fiancé approved!

I'm glad to have found a go-to cookie recipe for now - any suggestions regarding what I could do to make them even better are welcome!

"Call Me Le Vain" Copycat Cookies
Source: verrrry slightly adapted from Cheeky Kitchen
Yield: a baker's dozen of big-as-your-face cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 cups nearly crushed walnuts (or 1 cup walnuts and 1 cup pecans)
3 cups good quality semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 390˚F (over 375, not quite 400) and line baking sheets with parchment paper.  Set aside.
Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar until soft and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Add in the vanilla and mix until incorporated.  Sprinkle the dry ingredients on top and mix until fully incorporated and a thick, creamy dough is created.  Stir in the nuts and chocolate chips.  Turn the dough out onto a clean counter and knead with your hands to fully incorporate all of the delicious chunks.
Pull off lemon-sized hunks of dough and place on the lined baking sheets with plenty of space between them - keep the pieces of dough loose so they bake up charmingly craggy.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the tips of the cookies have turned light brown.  Allow to cool for about 2 minutes on the baking sheet before removing them to a rack.  Consuming these treats while they're still warm is highly recommended - enjoy!