Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Cookies

Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Cookies
Source: Maida Heatter's Brand-New Book of Great Cookies (Random House, 1995 ed.), pg. 99.

These are big, soft, moist cookies loaded with walnuts, raisins and chocolate chips. I dare you to just eat one!

1 1/2 cups raisins
1 1/2 cups walnuts, broken into small pieces
2 cups sifted unbleached flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

Steam the raisins in a vegetable steamer or strainer over shallow hot water. Let the water boil for a few minutes until the raisins are moist. Remove the raisins and place them on a sheet of foil to air out.

Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Beat the butter until softened. Add the vanilla.

 
 

Add the sugar and beat well.

 

Add the eggs...

Add the sour cream.

On low speed, add the sifted dry ingredients.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the chocolate chips...

the raisins...

and the nuts.

Place large heaping scoops of the dough onto the lined cookie sheets (about 2 inches apart). Bake for 13-15 minutes, reversing the sheets halfway through baking. If you are using only one cookie sheet, use the upper rack.

The cookies are done when barely golden and spring back when lightly pressed with your fingertip.

The cookies can be wrapped by placing 2 together, bottom to bottom.

Pinwheels

Pinwheels
Source: Maida Heatter's Cookies (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg. 184.

These cookies are fun to make but you may find them a bit time consuming. They look extraordinary and you will be proud of yourself when they come out of the oven. I still haven't mastered the art of rolling up a perfectly "round" roll - mine always end up a bit flattened. This will affect the appearance so try to make the dough roll as round as you can. And if you have any tips on doing this, let me know!

The cookies are good and actually better after a day or so. I found the almond, pecan and coffee flavors more noticeable than the chocolate, which I could not detect. But now that I think about it, I'm sure the whole purpose of the chocolate is to provide the darker colored dough.

I used powdered expresso instead of instant coffee. I don't believe it will make much of a difference.

Although the recipe says that it makes 56 cookies, I did not have this many (I probably cut the slices too thick). 

On a totally different note (and rant) - has anyone noticed that Baker's chocolate squares now come in 4 oz. packages instead of 8? And the price is not that much lower? Arrgghh!

1 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 oz. (1 square) unsweetened chocolate
4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. powdered instant coffee
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1/3 cup pecans, finely chopped

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. Melt the chocolate in the top of a small double boiler. Set aside to cool.

Cream the butter in a mixer bowl and add the vanilla and the sugar. Mix well.

 

Add the egg and beat well.

On low speed, add the sifted dry ingredients, scraping the bowl as necessary.

Divide the dough into 2 bowls.

To one half of the dough, add the melted chocolate and the coffee powder. Mix thoroughly and set aside.

To the other half of the dough, add the chopped nuts and the almond extract.

Tear off 4 pieces of wax paper, each about 17 inches long. On one piece, place one of the doughs.

Cover with another piece of wax paper and flatten it with your hands.

Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into an oblong shape about 14x9 inches.

When the dough is the correct size, remove the paper and cut away the excess dough and use it to neaten up the edges. Be careful not to have the edges thinner than the center or air spaces will occur.

Now do the same thing with the other piece of dough.

Place the 2 doughs on a sheet pan and let them chill in the freezer. Remove after chilled and place one of the doughs in front of you. Carefully place the second dough over the first and remove the top piece of wax paper.

Use the bottom piece of wax paper to roll the dough in a jelly-roll fashion. Wrap the rolled dough in wax paper and put it in the freezer to chill until it is very firm.

Preheat the oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment or foil. Unwrap the chilled dough and slice it with a sharp knife into 1/4 inch slices. Place the slices 1 inch apart on the lined pans.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until the cookies are slightly colored around the edges. Do not overbake. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Devil's Food Chocolate Ice Cream

Devil's Food Chocolate Ice Cream
Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 312.

Mmmmm, this is sinfully delicious! Extremely creamy and decadent, it is hard to stay out of it. Chocolate ice cream is one of my favorite things in the world and Maida Heatter says it is her favorite dessert.

I blundered and deleted my "how-to" photos that I usually include. However, this is very easy and not difficult to make.

11 1/2 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
1 cup milk
3/8 cup honey
7 egg yolks
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 cups heavy cream

Break up the chocolate and place it in a heavy saucepan along with the milk and honey. On moderate heat, scrape the bottom of the pan with a rubber spatula until the mixture has melted. Whisk until smooth.

Beat the egg yolks with an electric mixer. Gradually add the sugar and beat until it becomes pale in color. Slowly add the warm chocolate mixture on low speed. The mixture will be thick.

Transfer the mixture to a heavy saucepan and cook over low heat, scraping the bottom and sides constantly. Use a candy thermometer and when the mixture reaches 140 degrees, gradually whisk in the cream. Stir occasionally until smooth. Chill in the refrigerator until very cold and then freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions.

East Hampton Chocolate Icebox Cake

East Hampton Chocolate Icebox Cake
Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 313.

(Note: A reader tells me that ladyfingers were indeed smaller than the ones sold today.)
 
Okay, as you see from the photo, I didn't do a great job at putting this together! I debated over posting the recipe at all but since it was delicious, I thought I would go ahead with it. I think my problems arose with the ladyfingers. Maida says to use two 3-oz packages of ladyfingers. The ones I found (at Publix) were in 7 oz. packages so I bought one pack. When she wrote this recipe, maybe ladyfiners were smaller in size? Whatever the case, I'm not sure if they were supposed to stand so tall above the cake and there were not enough to go around the cake and cover the base (I ended up using vanilla wafers for the base). In hindsight, I suppose I could have cut the ladyfingers in half but she didn't say to do that.

This was very good though but be warned, it is a heavy dessert and a little slice goes a long way!

2  3-oz. packages ladyfingers
7 oz. semisweet chocolate
9 oz. milk chocolate
6 eggs, separated
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup Grand Marnier
1/2 tsp. unflavored gelatin
1 tsp. cold water
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar

The recipe says to use a 9x3 inch springform pan. Arrange the ladyfingers over the bottom and around the sides of the pan. (As you can see, my ladyfingers rose way above the pan - I don't think this is correct)

Melt both chocolates in the top of  double boiler over warm water on low heat.

Beat the egg yolks for about 5 minutes until they are pale and thick.

Stir in the vanilla and 1/3 of the Grand Mariner.

Sprinkle the gelatin over the water in a small glass custard cup and let stand for 3-5 minutes.

Add the remaining Grand Marnier to the gelatin mixture.

Place the custard cup in shallow hot water in a small pan over low heat. Stir occasionally until the gelatin is dissolved.

 

 

Add the warm gelatin into the egg yolks and beat at high speed.

Reduce the speed and add the melted chocolate. Remove the bowl and set aside.

In a separate mixing bowl with clean, chilled beaters, beat the egg whites with the salt until a soft shape is achieved.

Lower the speed and gradually add the sugar to the egg whites. Increase the speed to high again until the whites hold a definite shape.

In 3 additions, use a rubber spatula and fold about 1/3 of the whites into the chocolate. Then add the chocolate to the remaining whites and again fold gently until thoroughly incorporated (do not handle more than necessary).

Pour the chocolate mixture into the prepared pan. Cover the pan with a paper towel or napkin and then lightly cover with plastic wrap (the paper will prevent moisture from forming). Place in the refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight.

Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 TBS. confectioners sugar

In a chilled bowl and chilled beaters, whip the ingredients until they hold a shape. Spoon the whipped cream over the top of the cake or use a pastry bag to make rosettes. The cake can also be decorated with chocolate shavings or orange slices.

(Note: You may have to leave the cake on the springform pan bottom to serve. It can be transferred to another plate but you will have to be extremely careful. Good luck!)

Peanut Butter Pillows

Peanut Butter Pillows
Source: Maida Heatter's Cookies (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg. 176.

I was watching Michael Symon make peanut-butter sandwich cookies on The Chew and thought I would see if Maida had a similar recipe. This sounded the same but after they bake, the two layers almost completely meld together (or at least they did for me), so they looked nothing like the ones Symon made. Still, these are delicious!

When I first read this recipe (and always read the entire recipe before you begin!), I thought this might be difficult but it turned out to be a breeze. The dough must be refrigerated a few hours so keep that in mind if you are in a rush. My cookies turned out more oblong that I thought they should be but then when I thought about it, I realized that pillows are shaped like that so maybe they are correct.

The cookies have a sandy texture and are quite soft. They are very fragile and would not travel well. They are so good and if you are a peanut butter lover, you will love them!

1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter (softened)
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 TBS. milk
Additional peanut butter for filling (about 1/2 cup)

Makes 16-20 cookies

Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt and set aside.

In a mixer bowl, cream the butter.

To the creamed butter, add the peanut butter.

 

Add the sugar.

Add the corn syrup.

Add the milk.

On low speed, add the dry ingredients.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead it slightly. Then form the dough into an oblong shape about 7 inches wide and 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap the dough in wax paper and refrigerate. Let it stay there for several hours or longer.

Preheat the oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Use a sharp knife to cut half of the dough into slices about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Place them about 2 inches apart on the wax paper. (The cookies will spread while baking - I should have placed these farther apart. They ended up touching)

Place a teaspoon of peanut butter on each cookie.

Spread the peanut butter slightly with a knife or spoon. Leave a 1/2 to 3/4 inch border.

Slice the remaining dough the same way as before and place a piece on top of each cookie. Let it sit for a few minutes.

Take a fork and press the tops of the cookies slightly to seal them together. They will crack but don't worry about this.

Bake for 12-15 minutes. If you are using more than 1 pan, reverse and swap them half-way through baking. If you are only using 1 pan, bake them high in the oven). Let the cookies cool for a minute or two before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.