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,

Slate floor in the Master Bathroom and a river rock shower floor

the built-in bookshelves were in place in the library

Built-in cherry wood cabinet

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 sunroom fireplace.

This cedar plank will be highly polished and will float as a mantel over the sunroom fireplace

Then I went to a stone yard and found some layered and mica flecked granite to use for the fire surround.

It may sound crazy to some but I had so much fun.

Of course, it’s not always smooth.  I was also in Lowes and Home Depot at 4PM searching for some replacements sinks since, due a misunderstanding between cabinet maker and contractor about the size of the sinks, the sinks I had ordered didn’t fit in the cabinets.  But all construction has its “Ooops!” moments and making it work is what it is all about.

Today the granite counter tops will be measured and the stone will be cut and installed next week.

Meanwhile, in my garden, the zucchini continues to limp alone.  Every time I look at the gnarled and insect gnawed stems I think they must be  finished.  But the plants keep on cranking out two to three zucchini a week and I regularly find an oversize one when I return from my travels.

I had one large zucchini and a lot of people crawling over my lot, building and creating so I decided to pair the two and make some Cranberry-Zucchini cookies as a thank you to my crew. (One thing I have learned is that most people aren’t overwhelmed with the gift of a zucchini or two but they almost never say no to something made from that same zucchini.)

I assembled my ingredients, choosing to use cardamom instead of cinnamon because I love how it pairs with zucchini.  Of course my butter was rock solid.  Here’s a tip for when that happens:  cut the butter into small chunks and let it rest on your cutting board while the oven preheats and you work on the rest of the recipe.  This butter went from frozen solid to usable in less than 30 minutes.

I choose to use a large grate for the zucchini.  I was  afraid the finer grate would make them too moist. And I like to see the flecks of green in the finished cookie.  Of course, if you are making these to try and slip some vegetables in on someone you can peel the zucchini and they will never know it’s there!

I beat the butter and sugar together well then added an egg and vanilla.  Flour and zucchini are added in turns. Finally, I stirred in a cup of dried cranberries.

Into the oven they go.  You want these cookies to be soft so bake them just until they are done.  They should still be a little soft to the touch.  After you take them out of the oven, leave them on the baking sheet for a minute or two. They will cook a little more as they cool.

The cookies will still be a little soft to the touch and just barely brown around the edges

Then onto a plate and off to be shared!  (My crew loved them.)

Print

CRANBERRY ZUCCHINI COOKIES

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• ¼ tsp ginger
• ½ cup butter
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla
• 1 ½ cup grated zucchini
• 1 cup dried cranberries

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or grease lightly.
3. Sift the dry ingredients together (or whisk them well) to mix.
4. Beat together the sugars and butter until they are light and fluffy.
5. Add the egg and vanilla to the butter and sugar and beat well.
6. Stir in the flour and zucchini, alternating one-half of the flour and half of the zucchini at a time.
7. Stir in the cranberries.
8. Drop batter in heaping tablespoons on to the prepared cookie sheets and cook for 10-12 minutes. Cookies should be soft to the touch.
9. Remove from the oven and let cool for two minutes on the sheets before removing to a drying rack to cool completely.

Recipe Notes

Makes 2-3 dozen