pb, chocolate & salt

a cool rainy thursday in nyc is the perfect day to bake! actually, any day is perfect for this easy combination of amazing flavors of peanut butter, chocolate and salt. we adapted this from an over ten year old bon appetit recipe found on epicurious.

also, check out what we've been up to lately:

- the spring issue of sweet paul magazine is out. we were happy to be a part of the kids issue developing & shooting 'freeze it' and especially enjoyed eating the strawberry shortcake ice cream sandwiches!

- hopefully you didn't miss andrew's latest work in the march issue of martha stewart living like these tasty cocktails, zucchini nut bread cookie sandwiches (and a fun stop motion video on the ipad), and lucinda's uncorned beef which we will definitely be making next week!

- i styled a great lamb article in the april/may issue of fine cooking and really enjoyed the roasted loins with mustard herb crust for dinner after the shoot!

- check out the blog at kosher.com, a great client we've been developing recipes for each month.

have a great weekend!

Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

makes 2 dozen

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup old- fashioned oats

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 stick unsalted butter, room temp

1/4 cup honey

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

5 ounces milk chocolate chips

2 tbs maldon salt

in a medium bowl, mix flour oats, baking soda and salt together. in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together peanut butter, sugar and butter until fluffy. add honey, egg and vanilla extract and mix until smooth. add dry ingredients in two additions and stir in chocolate. refrigerate dough 30 minutes or until no longer sticky.

preheat oven to 350 degrees F. roll a heaping tablespoonful of dough with your hands to make a ball and place on greased baking sheet, placing 12 on each sheet. using hands or the bottom of a glass, press balls down slightly so cookie is about 1/4-inch thick. sprinkle with maldon salt and bake 11 to 13 minutes or until beginning to brown but still slightly soft to the touch. cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. enjoy!

chocolate ginger cookies

these cookies are adapted from an old martha stewart living recipe i ripped out a few years ago. something about a simple sugar cookie combined with the flavors of chocolate and ginger seemed very appropriate for fall. perfect for a midnight snack with a glass of milk or cup of tea on a cool rainy october evening! or as you start to think about holiday cookies, this is a tasty one to keep close.

we celebrated our third wedding anniversary yesterday with a perfect new york afternoon. we had a great lunch at gramercy tavern (one of our favorites), a walk through central park, and a stop here for some cheeses and charcuterie for dinner - have you tried barely buzzed from beehive cheese co? the rind is rubbed in ground coffee & it's delicious!

hoping to finally get to the new amsterdam market this sunday - has anyone been? any vendors we shouldn't miss? also excited to get a copy of this new cookbook featuring recipes from many of our brooklyn faves. happy weekend!

Chocolate Ginger Cookies

makes 24 2 1/2-inch cookies

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

6 tbs unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup plus 2 tbs brown sugar

1 egg

1/4 cup molasses

1 tbs grated fresh ginger

vanilla sugar for sprinkling

preheat oven to 325 degrees F. whisk together flours, cocoa, spices, salt, baking powder and baking soda. cream butter and brown sugar on medium speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until pale and fluffy. add egg, molasses and grated ginger and mix until combined. add flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined.

wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate one hour. roll out on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thick. use 2 1/2 cookie cutters to make shapes and place 1-inch apart on parchment lined baking sheets. refrigerate 20 minutes or until firm.

sprinkle with vanilla sugar. bake until cookies are firm, 11-13 minutes. let cool on wire rack and enjoy!

lemon cornmeal cookies

cookies and milk are the ultimate comforting afternoon snack. these simple lemon shortbread style cookies have cornmeal in the dough for a lovely texture. my mom gave me this cookie cookbook for christmas and a recipe in it gave me the idea to add cornmeal. if you don't want to make 4 dozen cookies at once, the dough will keep for several days in the fridge or a few months in the freezer. we used a 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter but if you use a bigger circle the recipe will yield fewer cookies. enjoy!

Lemon Cornmeal Cookies

makes 4 dozen

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup medium or fine ground cornmeal

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

zest of 2 lemons

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

1 cup confectioner's sugar

preheat oven to 400 degrees F. combine flour, cornmeal, ginger and cinnamon in a bowl and set aside. using the paddle attachment in a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until pale and yellow. add lemon zest and vanilla and mix. add eggs, one at a time, and mix until fully incorporated. add dry ingredients and mix until combined. roll dough into a ball, cut in two and wrap each ball in plastic wrap. chill for 30 minutes. roll out one ball at a time on a lightly floured surface until 1/4-inch thick. cut out circles with a 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. bake for 12-14 minutes or until light golden brown. cool completely on a wire rack and dust with confectioner's sugar before serving.

nutella

we know it's been an entire week since our last visit but we really can't believe how quickly this week has flown by! lots going on and unfortunately, little time for cooking, baking and creating recipes. getting ready for a huge garage sale tomorrow since we are moving across the country in about 2 weeks - very excited but a little overwhelmed at the moment. our house, and kitchen, is overflowing with boxes and piles of stuff to sell, stuff to store and stuff to move - it's amazing to see how much junk we've accumulated over time! we had a cookie craving this morning and decided to make a bunch of these little gems to nibble on as we pack. who doesn't love nutella?! well, how about nutella sandwiched between two round buttery hazelnut cookies? um, yes please. when baking with hazelnuts, you usually toast them and remove the skins first. well, today i didn't have the patience to do that and the cookies still turned out fabulous, good to know. if you don't have any nutella in your pantry, these would be great sandwiched with your favorite jam or jelly as well. have a great weekend!

Hazelnut & Nutella Sandwich Cookies

makes about 36 cookies

1 cup hazelnuts

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup white whole wheat flour

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup nutella or jelly

in a food processor, grind hazelnuts until they are finely ground but not clumping together. in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. add vanilla and combine. add flours, salt and ground hazelnuts and stir until well combined. divide the dough in half and press each half into a flat disk. wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.

preheat oven to 350 degrees F. remove one of the dough disks from refrigerator and let soften slightly. roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper until about 1/8-inch thick. using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out dough and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. gather scraps and continue to re-roll until all the dough is used, returning briefly to refrigerator if the dough becomes too soft. bake cookies 14-16 minutes or until the edges begin to brown slightly. cool completely and sandwich with 1 tsp desired filling. enjoy!

french macaroons

macaroons are one of those delicate french pastries that make a beautiful display at a fancy patisserie but something i never thought of tackling at home. remember when i mentioned that we are going through years of old magazines and ripping out recipes and inspiration? well, leave it to martha stewart to have a great french macaroon recipe. you can read her recipe here which is basically what i used but with a few variations for flavors and fillings. they turned out beautifully and it was such a fun adventure! piping perfect circles took a little practice and unless you are a naturally patient person, make sure you attempt this recipe on a day when you feel especially patient. even if they don't turn out perfectly round and pretty, they'll still taste wonderful! i used the basic recipe to make three different flavors - pistachio with chocolate ganache, chocolate with lingonberry jam & espresso with caramel - check out martha's recipe for even more variations.

Pistachio Macaroons

makes about 35

1 cup confectioner's sugar

1/2 cup finely ground unsalted pistachios

1/4 cup finely ground slivered almonds

2 large egg whites, room temperature

1/4 cup superfine sugar

1/2 cup heavy cream

3 1/2 oz dark chocolate, finely chopped

pulse confectioner's sugar, pistachio flour and almond flour in a food processor until combined. sift mixture and if not fine enough to go through, grind again in food processor or spice grinder. whisk whites with a mixer on medium speed until foamy. increase speed to high and whisk until soft peaks form. reduce speed and add sugar. whisk until stiff peaks form and then fold in flour mixture. preheat oven to 300 degrees F. spoon batter into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip. pipe 3/4-inch rounds about 1-inch apart on parchment lined baking sheets. let macaroons stand at room temperature for 15 minutes or until a light crust forms. bake on upper and lower third racks until crisp, rotating halfway through, about 22-26 minutes. cool completely on baking sheets to harden bottoms and remove carefully with a spatula.

meanwhile, bring cream to a boil over medium high heat. pour over chocolate in a heatproof bowl and let sit 2 minutes, covered with a small sheet pan. remove cover and whisk until smooth. let cool and slightly harden before assembling cookies.

sandwich two same size macaroons with 1 tsp chocolate ganache and serve immediately. can be stacked between layers of parchment, wrapped in plastic and frozen for up to three months.

lavender and orange

little delights should be a part of everyone's day.  whether sneaking of a bite of chocolate or a kiss from your kids as they go off to school, i think we can all agree that the more smiles on your face per day really make it better.  we would like to think that these cookies fall into that little bit of goodness to brighten your day category.  light and flaky, subtle but addicting, we think these cookies are the perfect part of any coffee break in your downtime. but be careful, this subtle delight can turn into major delight if you keep the whole bag of cookies within reach.

lavender & orange shortbread

makes 22 cookies

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp fresh lavender

1/2 tsp orange zest

1 stick butter, softened

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

in the bowl of an electric mixer w/ the paddle attachment, cream the butter and the sugar.  add flour, salt, lavender and orange zest.  mix until this forms a ball.  put in fridge for 20 minutes. preheat oven to 350 degrees. between two pieces of parchment paper, roll out dough until a thickness of a 1/4 inch thick.  place dough on a sheet pan and back in fridge for 20 more minutes.  with a 2" round cookie cuter, cut round cookies and place on an ungreased sheet pan.  when all cookies are cut out, use remaining scraps of dough to form new ball and return to fridge for 20 minutes, roll out and repeat.  place cookies in oven for 18-20 minutes or until slightly browned.  transfer to wire rack and let cool.

cracked

these little chocolate cookies are beautiful and cute but oh-so dangerous. the light chewy texture and single bite size make them very easy to eat way too many of way too quickly. they crack as they bake, making for a pretty surface and are best when eaten still warm but not hot - it's a good test in patience to wait ten minutes after they come out of the oven before devouring a pile of them.

Cracked Cookies

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 cup hazelnuts

80z dark chocolate, chopped

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 tbs unsalted butter

2 eggs

1 1/3 cup granulated sugar, divided

1/2 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup confectioner's sugar

preheat oven to 350 degrees F. combine almonds and hazelnuts on a sheet pan and in the oven for 10 minutes. cool completely and grind in food processor until they become a fine meal. while nuts are cooling, combine chocolate, vanilla and butter in a small saucepan and carefully melt over low heat, stirring constantly. combine eggs and 1/3 cup sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium speed for 12 minutes, until foamy and pale yellow. pour the cooled chocolate mixture into the egg mixture and whip until just combined. switch to the paddle attachment and add flour, baking powder and crushed nuts. mix for about 30 seconds until everything is combined. cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour (or up to 3 days).

preheat oven to 325 degrees F. remove the dough from the fridge and scoop into tablespoon size balls, rolling each one in your hands to make round. place on an ungreased parchment lined sheet pan and put in the fridge for 5 minutes. pour 1 cup granulated and confectioner's sugar into 2 separate bowls. roll each ball first in granulated sugar and then in confectioner's sugar. bake 15 minutes or until they have expanded and cracked.