It’s week two of my Great British Baking Show Challenge. This week’s show revolved around Biscuits. For those of you who don’t know, a biscuit is what Americans call a cookie. Each episode of the Baking Show has three challenges to it. The Signature Challenge in which the bakers get to show off a recipe that they have perfected at home, The Technical Challenge in which the bakers are asked to show how much they know about baking in general by baking from a recipe which they have never seen before with limited instructions, and The Showstopper in which the bakers are asked to ...
Cookies
CHRISTMAS COOKIE SERIES: PEPPERMINT CHOCOLATE MACAROONS
Every holiday cookie tray needs a show stopper, don’t you think? Here's mine for this year! These coconut macaroons are topped with dark chocolate and sprinkled with crushed peppermint for a cookie that is reminiscent of a Mounds Bars. Not to be confused with the French macaron, the macaroon was initially an Italian confection. The two are similar in using beaten egg whites as the leavening agent. But, aside from confusingly similar spellings, the similarity stops there. Shaped like small mountain peaks the Macaroons rise above their flatter cousins and catch the eye of everyone’s inner ...
CHRISTMAS COOKIE SERIES: GINGERSNAPS
Soft Gingersnap cookies, filled with candied ginger and given a sweet crunch with a sugar coating The Holiday Home Tour is tomorrow and what was I thinking when I said they could show my house? Did I realize it was one week after Thanksgiving which meant my legion of decorations must be up and the house cleaned to suit my relentless eye which can always, always, find a spot of dust, a smear, or a tiny piece of lint that I missed? And that I would have less than a week to do it in? Well I got it done and there will be no cooking in my kitchen tonight so that it will look as good as I could ...
TEA AND SPICE SHORTBREAD
For many of us, with Christmas comes cold weather. It’s a time for cups of tea and hot chocolate. And tea and hot chocolate are always better with something to nibble on (or dip!) along with our drinks. This recipe makes a rich shortbread, flavored with a winter spiced tea and topped with an orange drizzle icing. It comes together quickly, keeps well and meets both the criteria above. You can nibble on it but I like it best dipped into my tea or coffee! It starts with the tea. When I think of spiced tea my mind goes back to my past and Constant Comment Tea by Bigelow. This is a ...
CHRISTMAS COOKIE SERIES: KEY LIME KRACKLES
Zesty Key Limes are the base for this melting bite of cookie with crackle crust. Thanksgiving has come and gone and we can move from pies to cookies. The Christmas cookie is a tradition beloved by bakers and eaters alike. It is a tradition of long standing. Cookies came into being as a part of the Winter Solstice Celebrations when people would gather to celebrate the changing seasons. As Christianity flourished, the cookie became one of the traditional foods served at Christmas feasts. Queen Elizabeth I is credited with inventing the Gingerbread man when she had gingerbread cookies made ...
GOING THERE: GLUTEN-FREE WHITE CHOCOLATE AND BUTTERSCOTCH CHIP COOKIES
I never thought I would be baking gluten-free cookies. But here it is, a plate full of White Chocolate and Butterscotch Chip Cookies, gluten-free. How did this come about? At the Carolina Bed & Breakfast it was not uncommon for people to specify a gluten-free diet when they came to visit. We were happy to accommodate them with some of the amazing gluten-free baked goods made by specialty bakers here in Asheville. I could have made them myself, and I did look at some gluten-free recipes, but the range of ingredients needed to make a decent substitute for wheat flour was daunting ...
Holiday Cookies: Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies with Eggnog Filling
This is not my original recipe. I found it online, or on Instagram, or somewhere (Two Cups Flour ) but the combination of eggnog and gingerbread spoke to me. Now that I have made it I can tell you that you aren't going to get a lot of eggnog flavor out of it but it's pretty good cookie anyway! And the best part is that you can make Gingerbread Thumbprint Cookies with Eggnog Filling or you can skip the eggnog and white chocolate altogether (but why would you?) and make straight-up gingerbread cookies. Now, since it is the holiday season and there are a million other things to do, let's ...
MURRAY COOKIES: THE EVOLUTION OF A RECIPE
I have been making these cookies for at least 50 years. Actually, I realized the other day that I don’t know when I first made them. When I was little my mother baked them for us. When I got older I made them with her. Somewhere along the way she stood back and I made them myself. These cookies however are not the same as my mother’s. Over time they have changed and been adapted until they became what they are today: a mixture of butterscotch and chocolate chips in a soft, sweet and salty oatmeal batter. This is my most requested recipe. And this is the story of how they became ...
GAD ZUCCHS! PART THREE: CRANBERRY ZUCCHINI COOKIES
These are exciting times around here! My house is coming together before my eyes. I went to Chicago for five days and when I came back, the exterior was being painted, the bathroom tile was being installed, the built-in bookshelves were in place in the library and the fireplace mantel in the front parlour had been built. Now that I am back I need to make some choices. Yesterday was one of those days I really enjoy when building a house. I went to a reclaimed wood shop where I picked out a beautiful cedar plank to polish and use as a floating mantel over the ...
Outrageous Cookies: White Cheddar Popcorn, Peanuts and Toffee!
Hey! Did you march with the women in January? I did. This year I was in Asheville. The march was a lot smaller than the one last year in DC but no less meaningful or heartfelt. And it meant a lot to me. 2017 was a difficult year for so many reasons. There was a pocket of true and unforgettable joy when my daughter got married but otherwise the year seemed and felt like an unending series of hard moments both on the national stage and in my personal life. Returning to march again with the women, children and men of Asheville renewed me and gave me energy to work towards a more ...
