Oreo's with Sophistication

Hiding away from slushy banks of snow...and I couldn't be happier. Normally, I develop cabin fever. I feel like there's something I should do outside, that I need to experience fresh air. But this Friday, I holed myself up with three good friends and made a day of reading, napping and of course, baking cookies.

Who knew the weather would have such a big impact on my baking? I added ingredients in a wave of chocolate craving inspiration. One by one they snowballed into the mixer (and yes, I finally have one of them too, but more about that in another post) forming a mound of cookie dough magic.

Cookies baked, I realize the flavor needed a little tartness to round it out. What about greek yogurt? FROZEN GREEK YOGURT. Voila. The Oreo matured into a much more engaging (gluten free) dessert.

Sophisticated Oreos

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup dark cocoa powder
1 cup gluten free flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp xanthum gum
1 tsp kosher salt (or more, see instructions)
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
3/4 cup coconut flakes

1 container Plain or Vanilla Greek Yogurt (Fage brand I find is best) 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, add softened butter, shortening and sugars and mix on medium setting until creamed.
3. On low speed, add eggs one at a time followed by the teaspoon of vanilla.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together. (I added extra salt to balance out the sweetness, about 4 teaspoons).
5. Slowly pour dry ingredients into the slowly churning butter. And beat until well combined.
6. Add chocolate, white chocolate and coconut.
7. Drop tablespoon servings onto an ungreased cookies sheet or parchment paper and bake for 10-13 minutes.
8. Let cool and devour!
9. When cookies are fully cooled (I prepared them two hours later), spread a hefty dollop of plain or vanilla greek yogurt on the bottom face of a cookie.
10. Close the sandwich with a second cookie and freeze for 20 minutes.

#Mmm: Saltie

Think maritime, think cozy, think sunny and clean. That's the atmosphere when you walk into Saltie, a cute bakery & sandwich treat spot on Metropolitan Avenue in Williamsburg. I ordered their recommendation for a dessert. Eying the options in the display, I knew I couldn't be disappointed: cranberry honey corn muffins, squash pockets and pumpkin oatmeal caraway cookies (pictured below). The server at the front jumped to the mousse immediately: a specialty of the chef standing nearby. "I'm so glad you ordered it," the chef noted, serving a dollop of rich chocolate into a white bowl, "cause I get to lick the spoon." On top she sprinkled a touch of coarse sea salt and a drizzle of, you'll never guess...olive oil. It is fantastic. Rich and flavorful, sweet with the bite of salt and a surprise of olive smoothness. The flavors accompany the chocolate in an unexpected medley of flavor and texture.

The owners and co-authors of the cookbook, Saltie, blend their various flavor comfort foods to invent recipes. Italian-American, Scandinavian-American and British-American: the combinations are inspiring. They use anise, rose, dried lavender flowers, currants and olive oil (and much more). Overall Saltie is an inspired collaboration; particularly for your taste buds. #Mmm.

Unbaked: The Journey of Cookie Dough

My friend, Gordon, sent me his father's recipe for oatmeal craisin chocolate chip cookies. Naturally I made them, but this time I took a photo of each step. Having made cookies so many times, I realize that some textures come instinctively to me. I know when butter and sugar are "creamed" and when you beat an egg into the batter until "fluffy." But how do you sense all of this from a description without someone showing you what that looks like? Stir until just combined. Well, okay...but what does that even look like?

Cookies baked, I ended up with 8 photos of the process. And while that's helpful, 8 is a lot. I opened them all in photoshop and got an idea: what about a grid?

Voila. Here you have it: a step by step of making this delicious recipe for oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Read left to right, top to bottom.

Oatmeal Chocolate Craisin Cookies 

3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt 
2 cups oatmeal
2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup craisins

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream sugars, butter and shortening.
3. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition until fluffy.
4. Stir in vanilla then maple syrup until well incorporated.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Pour dry mix into butter mixture and stir until just combined.
6. Add oatmeal, chocolate chips and craisins. Mix until well dispersed and dollop cookies by the tablespoon onto an ungreased cookie sheet or parchment paper.
7. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until the edges begin to crisp.
8. Devour.

Wine & Plum Chinese Chai Spice Cookies

This is my last installment for The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap! I got them from Alyson of Wine & Plum. They're Chinese Chai Cookies--a delicious and buttery cookie that I enjoyed at all times of day (yes, I've literally had one with every meal). You can check out her recipe here. Thank you for the cookies!

#Mmm: Big Bear Bubble Tea and Macaroons

I'd never had French macaroons until I devoured those pictured above. It was a sweaty September day when I first stumbled upon Big Bear Bubble Tea and saw that the entrepreneur, Jessie, was going to introduce macaroons into her milky product line. Having tried them, all I can say is I am changed. These cookies are a revelation.

Jessie tried her first macaroons at a restaurant in the city, "I fell in love with the raspberry rose flavor" she said--a cookie that literally smells like roses, and tastes like cookie perfume (Jessie uses lychee to accentuate the tartness of the raspberry creme). Determined to recreate the wafer like cookies, she researched dozens of recipes until she found a perfect balance for her new store: Big Bear Bubble Tea in Woodside, Queens. The other flavors came from the inventive baker: matcha green tea, raspberry rose, vanilla bean, cinnamon dark chocolate ginger, chocolate passionfruit and lavender (pictured above). 

I'm converted. Along with a warm bubble tea (that's right, she makes warm steamed milk teas with tapioca for the winter), I can't get enough of these macaroons! The thin wafer crust melts into the creamy center, forming a blend of texture and flavor that unfolds as you chew. My favorite, the lavender macaroon, has all the decadence of a cupcake without any of the weight. It's soft to palatte and rich in nuanced flavor. All the macaroons are made on site in Jessie's adorable shop and soon she will feature more experimental flavors. "I want to make spicy cookies" she said, "something like tom yum flavor and a tropical longan fruit flavor." Jessie is Thai and says her grandfather has a longan tree back in Thailand. "I hope I can find longan good enough here to get the flavor!" I hope so to! And, tom yum!? I can't wait to try it! 

Check out Jessie's site and facebook for more info on how to get your hands on these #Mmm macaroons!

Bourbon Spiced Shortbread Cookies from Rebecca

I got my last batch of cookies today for the cookie swap and they are delicious! Careful holiday themed shapes in a lovely box. The bourbon is a subtle flavor, but it certainly adds a kick to a standard holiday recipe. Thank you Rebecca for the cookies!

Getting Experimental: Curry Raisin Biscaitie

For the Great Food Blogger's Cookie Swap, I challenged myself to finally bake up an experimental Biscaitie flavor that my friend, Gordon, recommended over a year ago: curry raisin. I looked up recipes for curry confectioneries, and found that there are few. It's a savory spice, but think about it: curries are also sweet. In addition to the curry, I added subtlety to the spice to ease its "curry-ness." There's cinnamon, cardamom, and ginger, plus molasses, maple syrup and I soaked the raisins in vanilla and beaten eggs.

Curry Raisin Biscaitie

Dry Ingredients

3 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cardmom
1/2 tsp curry

Wet Ingredients

3 eggs beaten 
1 cup raisins
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup molasses
1 tbsp maple syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Beat three eggs in a small mixing bowl, add vanilla and raisins and let soak (about 15 minutes), stirring occasionally.
2. Whisk dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl until well combined.
3. Make a well in the center of the dry mound and pour the molasses, syrup and egg-raisin mixture into the middle.
4. Turing the dough over with your hands, mix the ingredients until well combined and form into two or three loaves (depending on the size cookie you desire).
5. Place loaves on a parchment lined cookie sheet and press flat. Using one beaten egg, glaze the tops of the loaves.
6. Turn pan into oven and bake for 30-40 minutes.
7. Once loaves are done baking, let them cool 5-7 minutes before slicing and returning to the oven for desired hardness.
8. Enjoy! 

Mocha Peppermint Cookies from Jenni

I got a beautiful dozen cookies from Jenni of Traveler in the Kitchen, and I must say, they're DELISH! They were mailed to me as a part of the Great Food Blogger's Cookie Swap. Rich in chocolatey flavor with undertones of mocha mint and a delightful peppermint drizzle, these cookies are truly a seasonal treat. What great presentation too! They came in a Christmas box with peppermint pine trees.

Thanks again, Jenni!

How Does Cooking Translate for a Baker?

I meant to bake today, but as I stared at the mournful vegetables in my kitchen, I decided it was about time they met in some medley before they reach the dump. I am not a cook. It's not that I don't cook, I just haven't ever focused on cooking in the way I bake. When I cook it's usually an effort to save ingredients that I purchased and forgot to use. They aren't bad, but verging on it.

Alright, that doesn't sound like a person you'd take a recipe from...but I signed up for a Skillshare class today called Creative Cooking: Design a Unique Recipe with Local Ingredients (it's free, so you should too!). I've always viewed cooking as a form of improvisation. The more you know about flavors and techniques, the better your improvisation will be, but the rest of it is like baking: your mood, ingredients and patience. The soup turned out well. I sauteed garlic, mushrooms and potatoes in red wine and spices (rosemary, basil, parsley) and added beans, carrot, and celery. Still, I call it my trial before I take the eat local course--that recipe I will share!

Bake Till You Drop

On Sunday I nearly lost it. I mean sitting in a chair, face flat on hands: I can't bake anymore. I made 20 Biscaitie each for 15 different people, that's 300 Biscaitie all made out of my dinky home oven. On top of that was packaging: wrap them, bag them, tie a bow, label and cushion them, tape them up in boxes and trudge them down to the post office. I'm not ungrateful for the task, because running a baking company I realize is mostly figuring out the logistics. Plus the sense of accomplishment at the end was immense! But the whole "bake till you drop" got me thinking: what is it about starting a new process that can be so frustrating? 

It's the learning curve. I started a new job recently too. I'm a barista at The Queens Kickshaw in Astoria. As with starting my last job, there's a lot of details to remember fast when someone orders a drink. Everything has a place that it's kept, every drink has a cup it's prepared in, every second counts. But when you're learning you make mistakes. You do the wrong thing and it's the only way to seal the idea in your mind that no, an americano is does not go in the small latte cup.

The good news? Every time you repeat a process it gets easier. I now know all the things I need for my shipping including tidbits like "to" and "from." So long as you don't drop, you've learned something. With this in mind, I push on to the next order: this time 100 boxes to ship, followed by a holiday bazaar and a catered office Holiday Party!

What I Call Market Research...#Mmm

I'm starting a new initiative I call #Mmm (Magnificent Morsel Monday) which means I'm going to sample a new dessert every week (and write about it on Monday) so I can absorb ideas about flavors, meet amazing bakers and learn more about confectionery entrepreneurs. Please connect through this blog post, facebook or #Mmm @Biscaitie if you have any suggestions or know someone I should meet!

Baking a Winter's Tale

I haven't set up and sold Biscaitie since the Skidmore Market days in college. Lucky for me I stumbled upon a couple of Shakespeare entrepreneurs who have started their own Accidental Shakespeare Company. Imagine this: all the actors are cast and do not rehearse their performance until opening night. There are props strewn for them to play with and a tally system to keep them on track with their lines. It's like watching Shakespeare improv, and everyone is laughing.

Plus did I mention, there's plenty of wine too! I themed my flavors for the occasion:

Sprites and Goblins: Mint Chocolate Chunk
Pursued by a Bear: Chocolate Coconut White Chocolate Chip
The Hermione: Lemon Poppyseed
Bohemian Winter: Gingerbread
La Perdita: Peanut Butter White Chocolate

Here's to eating, drinking and being merry!

Peanut Nutella Yogurt Cookies

When I first heard about gluten free baking my friend, Hannah, introduced me to a simple recipe for peanut butter cookies. I forgot until recently about making such delights! I adjusted the recipe and discovered these make great tea cookies: small, crisp and sweet.

Quick&Easy Peanut Nutella Butter Crisps

1 cup smooth peanut butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp nutella
1 tbsp greek yogurt
1 egg
1 tsp baking powder

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Mix peanut butter and sugar until well combined.
3. Add nutella, yogurt and egg and beat well.
4. Sprinkle baking powder over mixture and fold in until well dispersed throughout.
5. Make 1 tbsp sized balls out of the dough and roll them in a bowl of sugar (smaller sizes hold their shape better, as these are delicate cookies). Place the balls on the cookie sheet and press with a fork for a textured top.
6. Bake for 10 minutes or until the edges brown.
7. Cool, tray, devour.

Food for Thought and Thoughts on Food

People love to tune out on subways. It's a commute and for many, their only chunk of mental solitude in a bustling day of work and home life. And as I sit here, tuning out and subsequently trying to tune back in, I wonder: what is it that brings us all back together?

Well, food. Yes, we all love food. We love to socialize over food, express our culture and personalities through food. We celebrate with food and mourn with food. We meet over food and part over food. In fact, food interjects in our lives more times a day than most anything else. How much do you think about food? I would love to learn more about the impact that food has on our personalities. I read an article yesterday that claims the aroma of bread makes people friendlier. Think of all the times you've walked into a bakery and instantly felt more at ease. It's no wonder that we associate baking with comfort: it's built into feelings of nostalgia and the presence of good company--at least for those who have the luxury of such plenty. So here's to congregating over food!

Oatmeal or Chocolate Chip?

I saw a Sugar Loco tweet this morning: "Raisin cookies that look like chocolate chip cookies is one of the main reasons I have trust issues." I definitely don't agree, but it does make me wonder, why do people have such strong opinions about food? What do flavors bring out in us that make us so passionate one way or another?

I was never a picky eater growing up. My parents adopted a firm policy of "you don't have to like it, but you have to try it." And there were a selection of desserts that I would not touch: all pies, cooked fruit of any description, and any combination of peanut butter and chocolate. Ha! It's funny now to think how much all that has changed... The trend started with watching my parent's eating habits and ended when I began to experiment with my own tastes and opinions about everything. I remember my first bite of pumpkin pie (after realizing that it must be good if everyone in the family devours it). It was fantastic and I knew I had to try more. Not only that, but I started watching my aunt and grandmother make pie so I could make more myself.

It's a luxury to be a picky eater, and there's a foundation that supports our specific tastes (granted some are completely involuntary, so geneticists say). When did you develop your habits?

Chai Pumpkin Pie

I realized in the midst of my pumpkin obsession that pumpkin spice and chai spice are quite similar. The difference is that chai is a little more spicy--with cardamom and black pepper. So why not make the pie a little more spicy too?

I adjusted my trusted recipe for a richer flavor and was not disappointed:

Chai Pumpkin Pie

3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp clove
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cardamom

1 15 oz can pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract 
1 15 oz can evaporated milk

1. Preheat the oven to 425 F.
2. Prepare a single crust for your pie (either purchased or homemade).
3. Whisk the dry ingredients well in a separate bowl. 
4. Add pumpkin puree to dry ingredients and combine well before adding eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla.
5. Pour the evaporated milk in a small steady stream into the pie mix, stirring as you go.
6. Pour pie custard into prepared crust and bake in oven for 15 mins or until the exposed crust browns.
7. Reduce oven to 350 F and bake an additional 30 mins or until the center of the pie is firm.
8. Cool and place in the fridge until cold.
9. Share the sugar, delight in the spice.

Pumpkin Butterscotch Blondies

I've never made blondies. I'm a huge fan of chocolate (if you haven't already guessed) so the idea of taking chocolate out of the brownie seemed illogical. But blondies have been presented to me multiple times in the past few months. First was with my friend Valerie, who shared a blondie she purchased at Dean&Deluca, second was yesterday when my manager told me to try the blondies they ordered at work to see if I could replicate it. Challenge accepted!

Note: When baking anything with pumpkin flavor, upping the dosage of spice makes the flavor more pronounced (after all what is pumpkin without the spice?). I also find that making your own mix makes for a richer and more complex flavor than the pre-made pumpkin spice blend.

Here is my recipe for some delicious gooey pumpkin blondies:

Pumpkin Blondies

1 1/2 cups baking flour mix (one recipe recommended almond & coconut flour)
1 tsp xanthum gum
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking soda
4 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ginger
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp nutmeg

1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2 cups light brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup butterscotch chips

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
3. Cream butter and sugar in a separate bowl then add one egg and vanilla stirring well after each addition.
4. Mix in pumpkin puree and then pre-mixed dry ingredients. Once combined, add coconut water until batter is more like pancake batter than cookie dough. (*Why? Gluten free flours tend to soak up more liquid in the baking process than gluten-full flours. Adding extra liquid helps preserve the soft, gooey texture of blondies.*)
5. Pour mixture into pre-greased pan or a pan lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle butterscotch chips liberally over the top and bake for 30-40 minutes.
6. Slice and devour.

Pumpkin Pie

There are definitely benefits to having a baker in the house. For one thing, there is someone to make you pie when you want it. My housemate noticed a couple cans of pumpkin puree sitting out, so he ordered and paid for a pie. It was marvelous waking up this morning to make my favorite pie. I used the same recipe I've always used (yes, it's the one on the back of the Libby's Pumpkin Puree can) except I added more spice, and substituted sweetened condensed milk for evaporated milk. The pie is creamier and more flavorful.

Almond Chocolate Dipped Cookies

I tried to make marzipan for my mother's birthday. It was an arduous process, mostly because I've never attempted to make any candy from scratch. I found a simple recipe and followed it step by step, filling my sink with cold water, covering my cutting boards with powdered sugar and trying to gauge a "240 degree rolling boil" by instinct. All this and I ground the almonds myself in a coffee grinder--making them more thickly textured than marzipan should ever be. To finish them off (knowing the chocolate fiend my mother is) I set up a double boiler to melt various chocolates together to get the right bitterness and flavor to counter the sweetness of the varying shapes I molded.

In all, it's a lot of work. Then again, what recipe isn't the first time you try it?

After a final taste, I realize the final product is nothing even resembling marzipan, but as Almond Cookies (a gluten free natural) they turned out superbly. The texture works well so long as you don't expect it to be smooth, and the balance of flavors is altogether spot on.

Here's to more creativity inspired by my mom. Happy Birthday!

My Friend Impatience

Have you met impatience? We're much closer than I'd like to admit. Impatience visits me when I open the oven repeatedly to check on the rising status of a bread loaf and while I poke at a block of butter to see if it's room temperature yet. Impatience is there when I burn my finger on molten fresh-out-of-the-oven chocolate, and lingers around for my gluten free experiments as I fail over and over to reproduce the same recipe with new flour.

Baking is about the journey and not the destination. It's hard to expect that you'll produce something good if you don't take time to enjoy the process of getting there. I sample as I go, checking that there is enough banana flavor at the beginning of the muffin batter instead of cringing as I taste the finished product. And still I fail all the time. I've put effort into many things only to have them come out with the wrong texture, the wrong flavor, the wrong...everything. Impatience can dominate if you let it--a true symptom of product seeking.

So how do I deal with it? Well, I haven't figured out how to get rid of impatience entirely. My trick is to not look to the product as the ultimate goal. It seems impossible, I know, cause who bakes when they don't have a serious sugar craving? But if you find joy in the process then you won't feel quite so bad if the product is not what you expected. They say to keep your friends close and your enemies closer, so why not make friends with an enemy? Here's to my friend impatience, thanks for keeping me in the moment.