Balsamic Strawberry Cookies for the Dark Side

Oh, how I love strawberry season. Here's my next installment of Cookies for the Dark Side. The strawberries are marinated in balsamic vinegar and sugar to bring out the flavor. I used my chocolate-infused balsamic vinegar. The cocoa powder adds a little extra to the flavor. The chocolate is not strong in these at all; it's an extra depth of flavor that you don't taste until the end. If you aren't a fan of the cocoa bean, you can easily leave it out. The overall effect is that of a refined strawberry shortcake that you can eat with your hands.

Balsamic Strawberry Cookies

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c strawberries, diced

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

1/2 tsp cocoa

1/2 c + 2 tbs white sugar

2 c unbleached flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 c butter, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

2/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375F.

In a small bowl, combine strawberries, vinegar, cocoa, and 2 tbs of the sugar; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

Cream together remaining 1/2 c of sugar and the butter; add vanilla. Cut the flour mixture into the butter mixture until combined; the dough will resemble coarse crumbs. Stir in the cream until dough starts to come together. Fold in the strawberry mixture, until just barely combined.

Drop dough by spoonfuls onto lightly greased baking sheets, about 2" apart.

Bake in preheated oven 15-18 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and transfer cookies with a spatula to a wire rack, and let cool. Makes about 30 cookies.

Chocolate Cinnamon Chip Cookies for the Dark Side

I realize this is a terrible picture, but trust me....the cookies are definitely worthy of admission into the Dark Side.

The texture is almost brownie-like in quality, and the cinnamon chips add just a hint of spice to the chocolate. While the offspring and I are strict milk-and-cookie types, I think a cup of coffee would compliment these very nicely. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cinnamon Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

2 c all-purpose flour

1/2 c unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

8 oz unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened

1 c brown sugar, firmly packed

2/3 c granulated sugar

1/2 c coarsely chopped dark chocolate

2 large eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 c cinnamon chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and the sugars. Melt the chocolate either in a double boiler or in the microwave. Pour melted chocolate into the butter mixture and beat until combined. Wisk in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture about 1/3 at a time until well-incorporated. Fold in cinnamon chips.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoon onto a lightly greased cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake 12-15 minutes, or until edges appear dry. Cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to rack to cool completely. Makes 24-30 cookies.

Oatmeal Pumpkin Cookies for the Dark Side

Here's my latest Cookies for the Dark Side venture. These are my favorite so far, and every one who has tried them has given them rave reviews. I took a batch to work, and my fellow nurses couldn't get enough. Suffice to say I was the favorite staff member that night!

In my directions, I indicate to bake 12-15 minutes. I prefer a chewy, fall-apart-in-your-hand cookie, so I tend to lean toward the 12 minute side of baking. If you like a sturdier cookie, aim for 14 or 15 minutes.

Oatmeal Pumpkin Cookies for the Dark Side

Ingredients:

2 c unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/2 c old-fashioned oats

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp salt

1 c (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

1 c packed dark brown sugar

1 c granulated white sugar

1 c (1/2 can) pumpkin puree

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 c bittersweet 60% cacao chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease baking sheets.

In medium bowl, combine dry ingredients.

In a large bowl, beat butter and both sugars until fluffy. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla extract; mix well.

Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets.

BAKE for 12 to 15 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned and set in centers. Allow to cool 2 minutes on baking sheets, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Cookies for the Dark Side

This is my second installment of "Cookies for the Dark Side."

Peanut Butter Cookies for the Dark Side

Ingredients:

1 1/4 c all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 c unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 c smooth peanut butter at room temperature

1/2 c sugar

3/4 c lightly packed dark brown sugar

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 tbs milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

8 dark Reese's cups, coursely chopped

Directions:

In medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl beat butter and peanut butter until fluffy. Add the sugars and continue beating until fully mixed. Add egg, milk, and vanilla extract and beat well.

Mix in half the flour mixture until combined, then fold in remaining flour and beat until well combined. Fold in Reese's. Cover batter with plastic wrap (leaving no air in between) and chill dough 24-36 hours.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Roll about a tablespoon of dough at a time into 1 to 1 1/2" balls and place onto ungreased cookie sheets, leaving a couple inches of space between drops for expansion. Lightly press each cookie with either a fork (making those ubiquitous criss-cross marks), back of a spoon, or your fingers.

Bake 8-10 minutes (they will look underdone, but this is important in making a soft cookie!).

Cool cookies on cookie sheet a few minutes before transferring to another surface. Keep cookies flat at least 15 minutes so that they retain their shape. Makes 24-32 cookies, depending on size and how much raw dough is eaten ;).

Cookies for the Dark Side, part one

"Come to the Dark Side....we have cookies."

"Well, what kind of cookies are they?"

This conversation sparked my creativity and a rare desire to bake. I don't enjoy baking, personally. I think it's boring. I like eating baked goods, of course, but the entire chore of measuring, mixing, rolling, baking, and cooling simply does not appeal to me. I prefer a freer form of cuisine.

But, sometimes a girl just needs a really good cookie. The flavor profile mimics that of one of my favorite low-cost wines: Mirassou Cabernet. The dark chocolate is the first taste perceived against the brown sugar background, followed by the tartness of the dried cherries. The key here is to use good chocolate; the bitterness is necessary to offset the sweet.

Chocolate Chip Cookies for the Dark Side

2 1/2 c all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 c butter, room temperature

1 1/2 c firmly packed brown sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

2 tsp vanilla (not imitation)

12 oz (2 c) bittersweet 60% cacao chocolate chips

1 c dried cherries

In small bowl, mix flour, baking soda, and salt.

Beat butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl until well-blended. Beat in eggs and vanilla until smooth. Add flour mix to butter mixture a fourth at a time and beat until well mixed. Fold in chocolate chips and cherries.

Cover cookie dough with plastic wrap, leaving no air in-between, and chill 24-36 hours.

Preheat oven to 400F.

Drop dough in 2-tablespoon portions, 2 inches apart, onto lightly greased baking sheets. Bake until cookies are lightly browned, 6 to 8 minutes; if baking more than one pan at a time, switch pan positions halfway through baking.

Cool on pan 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to racks to cool. Makes about 30 cookies.

Notes:

While it isn't necessary to chill the dough, it's a trick most people who actually enjoy baking swear by. After some research, I found that it allows the wet ingredients to soak into the dry ingredients and produce a better melding of flavors. See this article for a very good explanation.