Chocolate Fudge Cookies

15 Sep

Well, it’s officially (sadly) turning seasons from summer to fall. I’ve started sleeping with the windows open, wearing light sweaters outside and cuddling under blankets in my apartment. I have a love/hate relationship with the fall. I hate it because it signals the end of summer which means no more beach days, no more flip-flops and no more summer dresses. It also signals the end of my fabulous summer of concerts/tailgates, rooftops, BBQs and much more. I love it though because fall is the season of fireplaces (even though I don’t have one), sweatshirts, football (I’m going to my first NFL game on Monday!) and the start of my Techniques of Baking class at the French Culinary Institute.

I’m very excited about the class! It starts this Saturday and goes until March. So you’ll have to check back soon so I can share with you what I’ve learned (and of course see the delicious treats that come out of it!). So in preparation of my weekend, I gave myself a little practice last night with these fabulous and easy Chocolate Fudge Cookies!


What You’ll Need


  • 8 Ounces of Bittersweet Chocolate
  • 3 Tbs of Unsalted Butter
  • 1 Cup of Granulated Sugar
  • 3 Large Eggs
  • 1 Tsp of Espresso Powder
  • 1 Tsp of Vanilla
  • 1 Cup of All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/4 Tsp of Baking Powder
  • 1/4 Tsp of Salt
  • 1 Cup (6 ounces) of Chocolate Chips

To Prepare

  • Only AFTER the batter is made: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F
  • Line 2-3 baking sheets with Parchment Paper (or lightly grease)

Directions

In a double boiler, or in the microwave, melt together the chocolate and the butter. I find that the easiest way to do this, so that you don’t burn the chocolate, is to melt the butter first then add in the chocolate so that the heat of the butter already partially melts the chocolate. If you’re using a microwave, only heat at 30 second intervals. Stir until all of the chocolate is melted.


In a separate bowl, beat together the sugar and eggs until they’re fully combined. Add in the hot melted chocolate and then stir in the remainder of the ingredients (It’s that easy!). The batter will get pretty thick, so I found that the easiest way to stir was using a rubber spatula. Don’t forget the bottom of the bowl either! Make sure everything is fully combined. Refrigerate the batter for 1 hour to make it easier to handle

This is the point where you’re going to preheat the oven and prepare the baking sheets if you didn’t already do so.

Take the batter out of the fridge and using tablespoon size amounts, scoop the batter onto the baking sheet. Make sure to leave about 2″ between the balls because they will spread as they bake.

Bake the cookies for about 12-14 minutes. If you’re baking more than 1 sheet at a time, make sure to rotate the pans half way through to get even baking. Keep an eye on the cookies in the last 2 minutes because when they’re done you’ll notice the tops start to crack across the top surface. Remember, the cookies will continue to bake even when you take them out of the oven.

Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool for about 5 minutes on the pan before transferring them to a cooling rack.

Enjoy!

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A Family Favorite!

6 Sep

Well I’ve officially had this blog for about 4 months now, and for about 4 months my family has been begging me to make one of their favorite pastries. Finally, here it is… My Rugelach!

Thanksgiving is one of the biggest holidays my family has. Family members come in from all over, my mom cooks enough food for a small country, we all drink enough to last us at least a week and we attempt a game of football in the front yard which always happens to be in the rain! We have a blast! Last year when I went home I baked a variety of pies, cakes and pastries and one of the treats was my Rugelach. My cousin Ted and his girlfriend Stephanie loved it so much that we all began brainstorming possible names for bakeries that I could open and different ways to promote me. Ted was actually the one to come up with Kristin’s Cravings! Unfortunately, Ted and Stephanie live in NC and can’t enjoy my Rugelach as much as they’d like to so I promised them that the next time I made it, I’d send a tin down to them. This was my first time transporting my pastries by mail, but it worked! They made it to NC in about 3 days (through Hurricane Irene!) and were devoured in less than 24 hours.

I like to experiment with my recipes a bit and change them up depending on what tastes I’m in the mood for. When I found this recipe for Rugelach it called for walnuts and apricot jelly as the filling and a heavy dough. I decided to switch things up and needless to say I’m pretty proud of my creation. What’s also great about this recipe is that it gives you a chance to be creative. Use fillings that jump out to you and change things according to your tastes.

So here it is.. The long-awaited Rugelach recipe!

What You’ll Need:

  • Puff Pastry
  • 1 Bag of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
  • 1/2 – 3/4 Cups of Nutella
  • 1/2 – 3/4 Cups of Strawberry Jelly
  • 1 Tbs of Cinnamon
  • 1 Tbs of Granulated Sugar
  • 1 Egg

To Prepare:

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper

Directions:

In a small bowl, scoop in the Nutella and strawberry jelly. Place the bowl in the microwave and heat for about 30 seconds; stir to combine. If they are not fully combine, place the bowl back in the microwave for another 10-15 seconds. Taste the mixture. If it’s a little too nutty add some more of the jelly and if it’s too sweet add more of the Nutella. This recipe is all about what you like.

For the Puff Pastry, this can be found in the freezer section of your supermarket, or made from scratch using my Puff Pastry recipe under the Baking Tips section of the blog. Either method you chose, take the pastry out of the fridge and roll out until is it about 1/8 inch thick. If you made the pastry from scratch you’ll want to cut it in half and only use one half for now. Place the other half back in the fridge. Once the pastry is rolled out, use a knife to cut out a 9-inch circle.

Use the Nutella and Jelly mixture you created earlier to spread a layer over the top of the rolled out dough. Be generous! I’ve been told by my ginnie pigs taste testers (aka my family) that they prefer more of the filling. Once the filling is spread, sprinkle plenty of chocolate chips over the top. Keep most of the chips away from the center and more toward the edges to make it easier to roll later on.

Using a pizza cutter or a sharp knife, slice the dough like you would a pizza into about 16 equal wedges. Beginning with the outside edge of each wedge, roll up to enclose the filling. This part may get a bit messy, but I’ve always found the messier the better! Place each roll about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining wedges.

Once all the dough is rolled and placed on the baking sheet, lightly beat an egg; brush over the tops of each roll and sprinkle with granulated sugar and cinnamon.

Bake the sheet, rotating halfway through, until the rolls are golden brown, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let them cool completely.

Enjoy!

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Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites

31 Aug

A little delayed due to Irene, but here is my salty, sweet and savory snack that I know you’ve all been waiting for! My colleagues were lucky enough to try these treats this past Friday and they were delicious and addicting.

I’ve been on a bit of a peanut butter and chocolate kick lately and these snacks fit right into my obsession! These bite-sized peanut butter pretzels are the perfect mid-day snack to get you though the final hours of work or an evening snack while curled up on the couch watching a movie. Careful though, it’s easy to eat the whole batch!

What You’ll Need:

  • 1 Cup of Creamy Peanut Butter (I used Jiff)
  • 2 tbs of Softened Butter
  • 3/4 Cup of Powdered Sugar
  • 3/4 Cup of Brown Sugar
  • 1 Bag of Pretzels (However many you want to make)
  • 1 Bag of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

To Prepare:

  • Nothing to prepare! No oven needed.

Directions:

In a large bowl, whisk together the peanut butter and softened butter (See my Baking Tips for Softening Butter!).  Add the sugars and mix to combine.

At this point if the filling will roll easily into balls without sticking to your hands you’re ready to go.  If not, add a little more of each sugar until you reach a consistency that is easy to roll.

Use a teaspoon measure to scoop the peanut butter filling.  Roll each portion into a small ball and sandwich them between two whole pretzels. I placed the pretzel sandwich on a wire cooling rack, but any tray should work. Once all the balls are rolled and sandwiched between the pretzels, place the whole tray in the freezer for about half an hour.

Pour the bag of chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl and heat at 30-second intervals, stirring occasionally until completely melted. Remove the pretzel sandwiches from the freezer and quickly dip each half-way into the melted chocolate.  Return to the tray and repeat with remaining sandwiches.  When all of them are dipped, return the tray to the freezer to set up completely.  Store the sandwiches in the refrigerator until you’re ready to serve (or devour yourself!)

Enjoy!

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