a sweet & spicy cookie

Anyone else love those fancy Lindt Chocolate & Chili bars??

Yeah, me too.

I’ll be honest, I really like anything spicy. I like to eat food that makes my nose run and my face sweat. I especially love things with cayenne pepper or red chili flakes. I once was stupid enough to try the “Thai hot” level of hot at a Thai restaurant. Horrible, awful, terrible mistake, people.

But I saw one of those delicious, dreamy chocolate bars at Tar-jay the other day and thought about how awesome it would be to make a chocolate and chili cookie.

And thus was born the Sweet & Spicy Cookie… just in time for a sweet and spicy Valentine’s Day (yes, I know it is in 2 weeks but a girl needs to prepare accordingly).

Sweet & Spicy Cookies (makes 15-18 cookies)
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 – 1/2 cayenne pepper (more or less to spice preference, I went with more!)
1/2 cup chocolate chips, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 T molasses
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cayenne pepper. Mix well. In a separate mixing bowl combine melted chocolate, vanilla, molasses, milk, and egg (be sure to make sure the chocolate has cooled a bit so the egg doesn’t cook!). Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until you have a smooth, loose batter (like a cake batter). Heat the oven to 350* and on a well greased/butter baking sheet, drop large spoonfuls of the batter 3 inches apart from each other. Bake for 13 minutes. Remove from baking sheet to cool. Enjoy with a glass of milk to help the spice!

my contribution to the holidays

I’m very iffy on Christmas spirit this year. One second I’m loving Christmas and the time I finally have to relax and visit some family. I’m known for sneaking looks at my presents and not sleeping the night before Christmas. But another second, I’m ready for it to be over. There’s so much drama related to Christmas and I don’t have the energy to assign dishes, wrap presents, and figure out the ever-changing plan for when everyone is showing up at everyone else’s house.

Too much work.

Plus, my mom is verbally not looking forward to the holidays since my brother Hunter is deployed. Last year he was deployed in Korea, this year in Afghanistan. And apparently I’m chopped liver. I kid, I kid.

Well yesterday I made an attempt at being spirited and finally made the sugar cookies my mom had been begging me to make. The pictures are a little sparse because a) I forgot to take them and b) I got distracted and went skiing halfway through making them (no joke).

I’d like to thank my best friend Tiffany’s husband, Johnny, for lending me an extra jacket!

But here they are, in all of their sorta holiday glory! Get out your butter!

Peppermint Sugar Cookies (makes 15-20 cookies)
For cookies:
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1 egg
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/3 cup flour
For icing:
1 stick butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1-2 T heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1-2 drops green food coloring (optional)
In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. When well combined, mix in the vanilla, peppermint, and egg. In another mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mixing slowly, incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until a dough has formed. Roll the dough into balls (smaller or larger to suit your taste, but I recommend ping-pong size) and place onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350* for 10-12 minutes until edges are just brown. Remove from oven and cool on a cookie sheet. They will be nice a chewy! After the cookies have completely cooled, beat together butter, powdered sugar, and peppermint extract for the icing, drizzling in heavy whipping cream to give it the perfect icing consistency. Once satisfied with the texture, add in the food coloring (optional) and mix well. Spread icing on cookies — lay it on thick! Enjoy!

recipe shout out

I left my camera at my mom’s house in Virginia this weekend! Oh no! I’ll get it back over Christmas, rather than have her waste money sending it to me. But until then, I’m very glad I had a few posts written ahead of time with real pictures! When I run out, I’ll have to dig my point-and-shoot out of the depths of my closet… Until then, enjoy this recipe shout out!

I’d like to give a recipe shout out to Back to Her Root’s recent recipe for No Bake Butterfinger and Pretzel Cheesecake.

My friend Mary came over and I swung by the grocery store for the ingredients (including Texas shaped pretzels!) and gave it a try.

It was delicious, but apparently I’m illiterate as I misread a critical step and my filling was way more liquidy than it should have been. Also, my crust may have baked too long so it was pretty hard. It was delicious, but since it doesn’t stay together when not frozen, I’ve been slowly picking at the leftovers straight from the freezer and they’re divine. Make it (correctly) and love it!

my fall favorites

I suppose it is “fall” now, being that we have had weather consistently in the high 80′s for the past week.

And fall makes me think of comforting foods, prepared lovingly by my family. I was looking through some old pictures and was reminded of these foods.

So here are my 3 favorite fall foods… plus bagels because I just love them so much.

First up: My Aunt Nell’s Classic Apple Pie

Next, we have Hot Virginia Dip. Oh how I long for it…

Now for my Mama’s (Famous) Mac n Cheese (and my most popular recipe ever!)…

And now for the bagels… Oh the bagels!

Feed some friends this weekend! Happy cooking!

Single Gal Survival: Cupcakes

Missed the previous Single Gal Survival posts? Check them out here!
_________________

Yes, you’re right. I’m not technically a single gal. But I may as well be since Rahul is now 1,526 miles from me. Distance makes me bored and lonely. And sometimes, as you may well know, a girl can’t help but need a cupcake.

And while these days there are cupcakes galore available from fancy bakeries and food trucks here in Austin, some days I am far too weepy and/or lazy to put on real clothes and interact with human beings. And Lord knows I don’t need to go to the grocery store and buy a dozen of their pre-made, generic cupcakes. Because then who would be forced to eat all 12 of them? Me. And my stretchy pants are enjoying their summer off.

So, single gals everywhere, I have found the solution to your cupcake woes. Cupcakes for 1 (or 2 if you’re feeling generous and not hormonal).

I researched proportions of ingredients and came up with a basic cupcake recipe, to which I personally added peanut butter and topped with chocolate chip butter cream. But you can feel free to make any flavor cupcake that floats your boat!

Cupcakes for 1 (makes 2 cupcakes)
2 T butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg white
2 T brown sugar
1 pinch salt
1/4 heaping cup all purpose flour
1/4 heaping tsp baking powder
~1 T milk
In a mixing bowl, combine melted butter, vanilla, egg white, and brown sugar. Whisk thoroughly until fully incorporated and slightly bubbly. In a separate bowl, combine salt, flour, and baking powder. Once mixed, slowly incorporate into butter mixture, forming a thick batter. Mix in milk, starting with 1/2 T and adding more to get it to a cake batter consistency. Spoon into greased muffin papers in a muffin pan. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes or until a knife comes out cleanly from the middle. Top with your favorite icing and go to town!

I did it all for the cookie

I think that, without a doubt, my two favorite cookies are sugar cookies (try these!) and oatmeal raisin cookies. But I’m very picky about both. They have to be soft and chewy, but obviously completely cooked. And when it comes to oatmeal raisin cookies, specifically, I prefer them to be as healthy as possible.

For the following cookies, you could make them even healthier by cutting down on the butter, but why would you? When the cookies are already filled with goodness — raisins, oats, whole wheat flour — a little butter never hurt. And when you consider how many cookies are made with that butter, it seems like a lot less. In fact, there’s about 3g fat per cookie depending on how big or small you make them. I can deal with that.

So I ventured out to make my favorite cookie, and then spent the subsequent week trying to give away as many as possible.

But, I tell ya… with a cold glass of skim milk, two of these babies make the perfect mid-day treat to brighten anyone’s spirits!

Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (makes 24 cookies)
1 stick salted butter, softened
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg white
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 pinch salt
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup seedless raisins (add more or less depending on your preference!)
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter with both sugars until smooth.  Then, add in the egg white and vanilla, beating until well combined. In a small mixing bowl, thoroughly combine whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, baking soda, and salt. Using a mixer, slowly incorporate the flour mixture into the butter mixture until fully combined. Using a large spoon, fold in the oats and raisins into the mixture until just combined. Drop onto a greased cookie sheet in large spoonfuls and place about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350* for 12-13 minutes until just done and lightly brown around the edges. Remove from oven and let cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes and then place on cooling racks (this makes them optimally chewy).

a baking lovechild

Today I simply wish to show you one of my very favorite cookies made in my family. They are the lovechild of a Snickers bar and a chocolate chip cookie and I love them.

I suppose you could switch out Snickers for any other mini candy bar, but why would you?

Stuffed Snickers Cookies (makes 16-18 cookies)
1 stick butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
16-18 mini Snickers bars, unwrapped and set aside
In a mixing bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar, sugar, and vanilla until creamy and smooth. Slowly beat in the egg. In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda. When fully incorporated, gradually add it into the butter mixture, mixing well to form a soft dough. Using your hands, pinch off a ping pong ball sized piece of dough and roll it completely around a mini Snickers bar. Place on the baking sheet. Repeat to use up all of the dough and Snickers bars. Space evenly with 2-3 inches between the cookies. Bake at 375* for 9-11 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool upside down on a baking rack (trust me: put them upside down in case some Snickers caramel is dripping from the bottom and sticks to your counter). Allow to cool for a few minutes then devour!

special brownies

No, no. Not that kind of brownie. But these are so good they should be illegal.

Last night I went over to the apartment of my gentleman friend and baked him brownies from a brand new cookbook. Several weeks ago I was sent a copy of My Mama Made That, the new cookbook from the Hampton Roads Junior League. It is full of classic Virginia recipes from the region where I grew up and I was oh-so excited to pick a recipe to show y’all. Thanks to Suzi R for sending it my way!!!

This is a great cookbook if you are looking for some classic, indulgent Southern recipes. The seafood section looks especially delectable — being that I grew up in a water town — but the seafood is so expensive in Texas that I have yet to try any of the recipes.

I believe the exact words of my gentleman friend, upon trying the brownies, were “These are so wrong. This shouldn’t be allowed.”

These babies become double decker, gooey goodness. I had a picture of all the melting chocolate and caramel oozing, but my camera ate it. As did my tummy.

FYI: the recipe suggests a 9×13 baking dish, but we used one a bit smaller to have thicker brownies. Be like me.

Caramel Fudge Brownie Bars (makes 12 large brownies)
From the cookbook, My Mama Made That
1 package devil’s food cake mix
1 1/2 sticks butter, melted
2/3 cup evaporated milk, separated
1 package soft caramels, unwrapped (14-oz)
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
In a mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, butter, and 1/3 cup of the evaporated milk. Stir until the dough begins to stick together. Press 2/3 of the cake mixture into the bottom of a greased baking dish and bake for 6 minutes at 350*. Meanwhile, in a small sauce pan, combine the caramels and the remaining 1/3 cup evaporated milk until melted. When the first layer of brownies comes out of the oven after 6 minutes, pour the chocolate chips and caramel sauce onto the bottom layer. Then carefully spoon the remaining cake mix onto the top and swirl with a spoon. Continue to bake for 20-25 minutes or until the brownies test done. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Cut into bars.

late night baking

In case you weren’t already absolutely certain about this earlier, let me tell you now about how ridiculous my life is. I stayed up past midnight on Friday night baking with my best friend Emilie. MIDNIGHT.

We played with science, xanthum gum, and wine to make gluten-free oreos for y’all. They are delicious and amazing and easy. And I had planned to post that recipe today, but I misplaced the recipe and instead found these pictures lurking on my camera from this weekend.

Come back tomorrow when I will have hopefully recovered the recipe and the other pictures on my camera. I promise you’ll like these cookies if I ever tell you how to make them.

restaurant review: Red’s Porch in Austin, TX

Recently I met one of the owners of Red’s Porch here in Austin, a venue I had heard a lot about. As soon as I checked the menu online, I couldn’t believe that I had never visited! The menu boasts a cool mix of cajun dishes and Tex-Mex specialties. Well, I was given an offer I couldn’t refuse (free food!) and took my camera along to snap some pictures.

So my friend Emilie and I headed to Red’s, along with two of her out-of-town guests, Caroline and Diana. Nothing starts off dinner like a cocktail: the spicy Voodoo Queen. Best Bloody Mary I’ve had in Austin, hands down. And the waiter even made sure mine had a smiley face for the picture!

Glancing at the appetizer menu, we decided on the Boudain Balls and the Cheese Biscuits with Bacon Gravy. Any time I see biscuits and gravy on a menu, I simply must eat it. At one point the waiter tried to clear our plate when there was just crumbs and gravy left and we slapped his hand out of the way. I believe I actually said, “You never take gravy away from a Southerner.” I’m sure he loved me.

Then came the main event and no one could decide. Caroline and Diana ended up ordering a burger and a sandwich and splitting, so Emilie and I did the same. We split the Oyster BLT and the Smokey Goat burger. As a Virginia girl, the combination of fried oysters and bacon took me right back to the marshes of my youth. And we know that I am a sucker for anything with goat cheese on it. They were both delicious in their own way, but I think the burger was my favorite.

I think Emilie liked the BLT.

I threw caution aside and dove right into my burger, covering myself in ketchup along the way.

As we digested another round of cocktails and our burgers, we sat back and took in the scenery. I love the fact that I can eat outdoors at the restaurants of Austin almost every day of the year. And Red’s has an incredible view, especially from the top floor of the porch!

Eventually dessert arrived and we enjoyed the Fruit Cobbler and the Fried Snickers Bar. We all agreed that, while delicious, the cobbler was not a traditional cobbler. It was more like a cake than a cobbler, but still good with melty ice cream on top! However, the Fried Snickers Bar was the best. I’ve had deep-fried Snickers at the Virginia State Fair but this was way better! It was as if it has been fried in crepe batter and not just heavy breading. Delicious!

My arteries made the sacrifice to taste that for you. This is just my cross to bear.

All in all it was a delicious evening at Red’s Porch with good service, tasty cocktails, and amazing food. If you’re in Austin, head to Red’s Porch on S Lamar (across the street from Broken Spoke) and relax on the porch!