Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

Because there just aren't enough desserts on this blog . . .

I think this may be my favorite picture
I have ever taken on my own camera . . . 

Georgia B. made this amazing dessert when she hosted book club.  When she said the words "cookie" and "pie" together, I admit I was taken aback.  It sounded like too much.  It sounded like it was missing the words "bacon-wrapped" and "deep-fried."

But then I had a bite.  Next, I inhaled my beautiful wedge o' heaven-sent cookie pie.  Finally, I plotted about how to get another piece (never mind the other twenty girls who were at this particular book club meeting . . . in fact, what do you guys think about a new book club rule?  Only people who read the book can  have refreshments?)

I used my flakiest pie crust recipe for the shell

I think it actually looks prettier before it's cooked

This kind of crust needs a pie shield, so that it doesn't get crispy and burnt before the rest of the crust cooks.  Actually, unless your crust is exactly level with your filling, every pie needs a pie shield.  You just take it off the pie about 10-15 minutes before it is baked all the way. 

I have two pie shields--one is a solid aluminum ring, and it fits a nine-inch crust. The other is a re-sizeable silicone pie shield that I can use on just about any size pie pan.

55 minutes later . . . it should be a nice caramely-brown 

My husband happened to show up at this book club to collect our baby, and another book club member (Tonia) said, "Here, Allen, you should take a piece of this."  He was sold on one bite also.  {And Tonia and I are still friends, despite the fact that she A) appeared to be a more thoughtful wife than I am and B) ruined my plan to ask to take a piece home to Allen . . . which I had no intention of giving him.  Okay, maybe she is a more thoughtful wife . . . }

Georgia did not hoard the deliciousness.  And neither will I.

Mrs. Fields' Chocolate Chip Cookies (+ Chocolate)

Though I love my own CCC recipe, sometimes I crave that slight taste of oatmeal that only Mrs. Fields can deliver. This is a not-so-secret recipe that periodically makes the rounds of the Internet, but I like to add extra chocolate to mine. Growing up, these were my favorite chocolate chip cookies . . . and they're still as delightful as I remember.

This cookie dough makes seven dozen and DOES NOT refrigerate or freeze well--the oat flour makes it too dry and it crumbles apart.  So you have to make all seven dozen cookies soon after you make the dough.  Allen's Grandmother (check out her amazing chocolate cream pie recipe) gave me this giant Tupperware container--it's perfect for cookie storage.

I make these cookies when I am going to big family functions and they are gone in an evening.

*(Click the link to my CCC's to get all kinds of cookie-tips)

Bex Deluxe Triple C's (Chocolate Chip Cookies)

I've always disliked how inundated January is with weight-loss tips and must-have exercise equipment and fitness routines and recommended healthy snacks foods. I subscribe to mostly food/cooking magazines, and the hypocrisy of January's low-fat chickpea salads with lighter dressing is made all the more nefarious by the spate of December's best Christmas cookies EVER recipes, in close-up, full-color photos that essentially force me to don aprons daily and buy butter in bulk. Those marketeers have got my number.

But there's one cookie that I make year-round, never mind the delectable December duress. A cookie I have, in all the modesty I can muster, perfected. I've picked up a few tips here and there: Heather (who can go from zero to cookies in ten minutes) first introduced me to more-brown-than-white-sugar, Morgan and Carson shared an article with invaluable cookie-baking tips, and I picked up on Adriane and Tom's tendency to refer to this great American tradition as "CCC's." These things combined, with my own quest for the perfect see-see-see, have aided in the composition (and completion) of my masterpiece.

Here are the tips that make any CCC recipe even better:

• Double the recipe. If you're going to take the time for homemade, go ahead and make a lot, because chocolate chip cookie dough freezes beautifully, and it's great to have on hand for unexpected company or a last-minute dessert. (I freeze a dozen dough-cookies per quart-sized Ziploc and feel the security that only chocolate prepearedness can bring).
  
  

• Chill the dough--it keeps it from spreading too thin when it bakes, and is part of what makes the cookie crackle beautifully.
• Lower the temperature and lengthen the time in the oven, for a softer, more chewy-gooey cookie. A good rule of thumb is to add two minutes for every 25 degrees lower.
• Always use room temperature butter, and even room temperature eggs (if you remember to set them out in advance). They'll blend better and maximize the amount of air you can whip into the dough, which makes the cookie less dense and more moist.
• Bake on aluminum, or something shiny--dark pans almost always burn the bottom of your cookies.
• I change the sugar ratio (which is usually equal parts white and brown sugar) to one part white, two parts brown--makes it a little richer. Mmmmm.
• I always add whole wheat flour, which gives the cookie some texture and substance, using the ratio one part whole wheat to two parts white (in this recipe, the whole wheat flour is slightly greater than that). Plus, (hello!) healthy!
• Add more chocolate. Duh. To quote my chocolate-worshiping father-in-law, "I want a cookie with just enough dough to hold the chocolate together." Amen.

I was going to take a picture of myself eating a Bex Deluxe cookie, but candid eating photos never look good (I'm one step behind this Facebooking generation that has somehow mastered the art of photographing oneself flatteringly), so this low-light picture will have to suffice. I added the Lego R2-D2 as a point of reference. You're welcome.

Shout out to Shanna M. for this beautiful photo!!!

PS- If you are in the mood for my other favorite CCC, try Mrs Field's recipe.

Super Soft Sugar Cookies

I just made these for the umpteenth time for Valentine's Day.  I took some plates around to my friends that I visit-teach, and made a huge batch for my kids' Valentine parties at school.  A double batch makes SEVEN DOZEN.  They go so quickly because I always forget how addictive they are: one bite and suddenly there's a pile of crumbs on my shirt and in my hair and a half dozen are missing . . .

Double batch: time to bring out the Bosch

Roll into balls just smaller than a golf ball--20 on each cookie sheet!

I think the pictures speak for themselves.  This is my go-to recipe when I need to take cookies to one of my kids' classes at school . . . or on holidays . . . or when I am craving something delectably sweet . . .

I got these pie/cupcake carriers at Wal-Mart and I LOVE them.
I use three blocks to hold up the second "tier" inside--perfect for
a second grader to carry into school.  Here is a similar product:
Cupcake / Pastry carrier

Sweet Mollie loves to help "clean up"

Sweet Calvin loves to help "clean up" . . . 

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

This dessert is everything a brownie should be: moist, dense, rich, chocolatey . . . then multiply your dessert enjoyment by 10 when you add chunks of Reese's peanut butter cups.

This recipe card was one of the first ones I ever made, and what was I thinking with that font?  

Old card--do not use this one.
Scroll down to bottom for new card.

I found the recipe for Peanut Butter cup brownies in Wondertime magazine about five or six years ago (alas, Wondertime is no more).  They looked so good . . . but the first time I made them, they were far too sweet.  So, I reduced the sugar by half a cup, and eventually by 3/4 cup.  Then I added two more peanut butter cups to the recipe.  And a bit more salt.

Now they are perfect.

I actually only had 8 cups this time, but it's better
with ten.  Or even twelve.  Is there any kitchen
chore more delightful than shucking PB cups?

Cut each cup into fourths.  (A few times I have used a package of
bite-size Reese's instead and the brownies have been delightful)

Use real butter to grease the pan---no substitutions.

This is how it looks before you put it in the oven . . . 

This is how it looks before you put it in YOUR MOUTH

Mmmmmmm . . . brownies.  With Reese's . . . 

Strawberry Shortcake

This recipe has been in my cards-to-do list for a long time.  It is a Martha Stewart recipe and so scrumptious.  I made shortcake last weekend (in a fit of defying the two feet of snow in my yard) and remembered why I love it so much--the cake is crumbly and biscuit-like, and complemented perfectly by the sweet strawberries and soft cream.

It takes a more time to make individual shortcakes, but I think it's a little more special.

  This photo above I made one big shortcake in my deep-dish pizza stone, which is 10" in diameter.  I baked it for about 30 minutes and it turned out perfectly.

You might also like my heritage shortcake recipe from my husband's maternal grandmother.

Chocolate Truffle Cookies

I am going to add photos of the finished cookies next time I make them. I don't have photos because WE EAT THEM ALL.

This is how they look rolled in cocoa and ready to bake

The original recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe says to dip the cookies in powdered sugar, but I think they are much prettier (not to mention more rich and less sugary) when you dust them with powdered sugar instead.  But maybe it's because I love any excuse to use my OXO powdered sugar wand.  It's the most fun kitchen gadget you can own.  

Soft Ginger Molasses Cookies

Last year, Allen's parents stayed with us for Christmas, and his mom asked me before they arrived if I had molasses and ground ginger on hand.  I did.  But I never guessed that these two pungent ingredients could combine to make the most heavenly Christmas confection known to man.

They are beautiful and crackly and festive.  They are soft and rich.  They are so fragrant and chewy and sweet, with the perfect hint of spice.  They may have actually TIED WITH CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (gasp!) as my favorite cookies of all time.  In fact, these ginger molasses cookies differ specifically from CCCs in that, once I have eaten one, all I can think about is having another.  I can limit other kinds of cookies to one or two, but I feel like I never want to stop eating these.

This particular holiday treat comes with a pretty sweet story, too.  My mother-in-law clipped this recipe from her local paper years ago and everyone raved about the cookies . . . but then she somehow lost the clipping. Years later (tortured years of pining for the most-perfect-holiday-cookie-ever, no doubt) she went to the library and used the microfilm machine to look through years' worth of the Northwest Arkansas Times until she found it again.  The librarian copied it for her, and the rest is Renfroe family holiday history!

I love how Mom wrote out the triple-batch
amount to the side, which is what I put on the
recipe card below.  Go big or go home, people.

Mollie and I had so much fun making the cookies with Mom last year, made more fun by the adorable, matching, chicken-print aprons she sewed for each of us as an early Christmas present.

She gave me the recipe while she stayed with us, but then history repeated itself and I misplaced it.  Fortunately, I didn't have to use a microfilm machine--Mom just used her telephonics machine (read: iPhone 6) to snap a picture of her well-used recipe and send it to me via electronic mail . . . all taking about three seconds and zero research trips to the library.

I have made this tripled-recipe twice this December and am going for a third time tomorrow.  If you're going to make 24 dozen of any cookie during Christmas, this is the one . . .

My cookie helpers!

Brer Rabbit never tasted so good . . .

I hope we'll have some left for Santa--he might have to settle
for Oreos if we scarf through all seven dozen in the next four
days.  I wish I was kidding . . .

My house smells like Christmasy heaven . . .

Perfect cookies for large family / social / holiday functions!

Flakiest Pie Crust

Homemade apple pie is my very favorite food in the world.

This is more fragile than Never-Fail Pie Crust (which I recommend if you are a beginner--it's the recipe I used all through my college years).  The finished product here is so beautiful, flaky, and delicious I can hardly stand to write about it.

The key to any good pastry is to handle the dough as little as possible.  You want gluten (stringy strands of protein) in your breads, which is why you knead bread dough so much.  But since you want a flaky, airy pie crust  (not rubbery or tough) you don't want gluten to form.  That's why you use ice water, and why a food processor can do the job better than a pastry cutter--you won't be handling the dough as much, therefore it won't warm up, therefore little gluten will form.

I got this recipe from Every Day FOOD magazine (that Reader's Digest-sized Martha Stewart cooking mag) and it was photographed and explained so well that I was sold before I even took a bite.  So I tried to be as good about taking pictures for you.

After the dough comes together, form a ball, wrap in plastic,
then flatten into a 1-inch disk and chill for at least one hour

This is my best pie-crust tip ever: before you roll out the chilled
dough, indent the edges with your knuckles--it makes it so cracks
don't form and you end up with one big, round, pretty pie crust

See?

Another tip: carefully roll the dough around your rolling pin,
then unroll it over your pie dish--it makes transferring the
dough from counter top to pie pan a cinch.

I didn't take pictures of the actual apples.  I used my peeler/corer/slicer to prepare about nine apples.  Most were Pink Ladies, but I think there was a Braeburn and a Fuji in there as well. (People always say to use Granny Smith apples for pie--but they are not my favorite.  Pink Ladies are delicious and crisp, and won't go soggy like a Red Delicious . . . I almost always use three different kinds of apples).  I sprinkle about 2/3 cup of cinnamon sugar over the sliced apples (2 tsp cinnamon to 1 cup of sugar) and coat the apples evenly, then let them sit while I roll out the dough.  You can use a little bit of lemon juice to keep the apples from browning, but I never do. 

I bought this pie top cutter in an Amish village in Missouri--you can
get all kinds of designs online . . . just google "pie top cutter."
It's fun to make a pie that looks so perfect--but it is also a PAIN
to carefully cut out the shapes and remove the stencil.  Fortunately,
this one turned out without cracking the crust. 

Especially for the top, I recommend rolling
up the dough and then transferring.

You don't have to add the "cut-outs"--it looks pretty just like this.

I add the apples because my kids love eating them off the top after
it has baked (some people have a harder time waiting, obviously)

Before I put the dough-apples on top, I brush the whole crust with ice water, using a pastry brush.  It helps the apples stick.  I didn't use an egg wash on this particular pie--just the water.  Then I very lightly sprinkled cinnamon-sugar over the top before placing the pie in the oven.  Here are some tips for the tops of your pies:

My husband was strictly a chocolate dessert kind of guy before he met me.  I love chocolate, too, but nothing really beats a made-from-scratch pie.  He recently told me, in a reluctant-but-satisfied tone of voice, "I hate to admit it, Bec, but I think I like your apple pie just as much as chocolate cream pie."

I have arrived.

(Also, I wish I had the apron that happy housewife is wearing).