Cookie #81 - Mallomars

While grocery shopping the other day, I was super excited to see the first batch of Mallomars out this season.  The delicate chocolate coating melts easily in the heat of the summer months.  Because of this, Nabisco limits their production to September through April.  I have heard of the extreme Mallomar connoisseur stockpiling Mallomars in their freezers to last them the summer. 

Why not make your own instead?

I found the slightly under baked graham crackers to be the perfect base for these cookies.  The soft, honey flavor and grainy texture reminded me of the Mallomar cookie.

Now what about the marshmallow? 
I toyed with the idea of using half of a jumbo marshmallow on top of the cookie, but the texture wasn't right.  The marshmallow needed to be softer.  Marshmallow fluff wouldn't work because it's TOO soft.
Finally, I resorted to making my own marshmallow. 

The task of making marshmallows from scratch sounds a little daunting.  I was actually surprised how easily it came together.  The hardest part was getting the mixture into the piping bags before it started to set.  You have to work quickly.  It's important to have everything you need set out, waiting for you so you're not scrambling.  Also, prepare to get messy.  This is sticky, runny stuff. 

I was quite pleased with the way these came out.  The chocolate snapped just right.  The marshmallow was nice and fluffy and the cookie was soft.  Just right to get you through the Mallomar-less summer months!

Homemade Mallomars

Cookie Base

2 1/2 cups + 2 tbsp flour

1 cup dark brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
7 tbsp butter, cold and cut into cubes
1/3 cup honey (I used local honey)
5 tbsp whole milk
2 tbsp (yes, tablespoons) vanilla

In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt, pulsing 5-6 times to combine. Add chilled butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
In a small bowl, mix together honey, milk, and vanilla. With the food processor running, drizzle in the milk mixture until the dough just comes together.
Divide the dough in half and form into a ball, dust lightly with flour and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface about-1/4" thick.
Cut dough out with a 2" circle cookie cutter and place parchment lined baking sheets. Chill at least 30 minutes before baking.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 10 minutes or until they just start to turn golden at the edges.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
While the cookies cool, make the marshmallow.
 
Marshmallow
 
1 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1 cup cold water, divided
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
2 egg whites
1 tablespoon vanilla
 
1 lb dark chocolate for coating
 
In a large bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water, let stand to soften.
 
In a medium sauce pan, combine granulated sugar, corn syrup, salt and 1/2 cup cold water.  Place over low heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved.  Increase the heat to medium and bring the mixture to a boil.  Continue boiling, without stirring, until mixture reaches 240 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 10 minutes.  Poor mixture over the gelatin and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
 
Beat the mixture on high speed until thickened and white and nearly tripled in volume.  This will take about 5-10 minutes depending on whether you use a hand or stand mixer. 
 
In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until stiff.  Beat whites and vanilla into the sugar/gelatin mixture until just combined.

Working quickly, transfer the mixture into piping bags or zip top freezer bags (it filled 3 for me).  Immediately pipe globs of marshmallow onto the cookie bases.  Transfer the marshmallow topped cookies to the fridge to harden, at least 3 hours.  Place an additional empty cookie sheet in the freezer.
 
Once the marshmallows are firm, melt chocolate in a double boiler until smooth.  Dip the marshmallow topped cookies in the melted chocolate, shaking off any excess, until evenly coated.  Place coated cookies onto the frozen cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Once all the cookies are dipped, put them back in the fridge until the chocolate is set.
 

Enjoy!!

Cookie #78 - Fig Newtons

I am currently working on creating a recipe to mimic the discontinued Girl Scout Lemon Pastry Cremes.  I've almost got it, but in the mean time, I bring you another favorite of mine:  The Fig Newton. 

I L-O-V-E figs. 

I have such an appreciation for the fruit.  They are like little gems. 

There is a restaurant here in town that has a fig appetizer that is to die for.  It's fresh black mission figs stuffed with goat cheese , lightly broiled, and served with an arugula salad with Parmesan and a lemon vinaigrette. 

It is one of the best things I have ever eaten. 

As much as I love figs, I've never actually cooked with them.  This was a first for me.

So, I headed out to the grocery store and bought 6 of the most beautiful figs. 

They're lucky they made it home from the store.  I could hear them calling to me from the produce bag.  After I made the filling for these, I decided that next year I'm going to try my hand at canning.  This filling is just too darn good to just use for these cookies.  I can only imagine how good it is on an English muffin or even just a plain piece of toasted homemade white bread. 

My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

As for this recipe, I used a combination of several recipes I had come across.  I can't say they tasted just like a Fig Newton, but they were very good.  I had some difficulty getting the same filling to cookie ration as the originals.  I think the filling needs to be chilled just a bit more to help hold it's shape as you from the biscuits.  I will also double the amount of filling I make.  As you can see the cookies don't have that much filling in them.  They really needed more.  They also needed me to stop eating the filling as I went along.

 

Fig Newtons

Dough:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup cake flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

3/4 cups butter

3 eggs

Filling:

2 cups chopped figs*

1 orange

1 cup apple juice

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

4 tbsp sugar

1 additional egg whisked with 1 tsp cool water

First, make the dough so it has time to chill.

Cream butter and sugar together until creamy.  Mix in three eggs and vanilla until well combined.

Sift together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and spices.  Add slowly to butter mixture until dough is formed.  Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, make filling.

Zest the orange, set aside.  Juice the orange and add water until it measures 1 cup. 

Combine zest, orange juice and all remaining ingredients in a sauce pan and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until mixture has thickened - about 15 minutes.  Transfer mixture to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.  Refrigerate until fully cooled. 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Divide dough into three parts.  Keep remaining dough refrigerated as you make the cookies. 
Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 1/8" thick.  Cut dough lengthwise into 3" strips. 

Spoon filling down the middle of each strip.  Brush edges lightly with egg wash and fold over the dough to seal in the filling.  Place each strip seam side down onto parchment lined baking sheets.  Brush with egg wash.  Repeat with remaining dough and filling. 

Bake cookies for 15-18 minutes until lightly golden brown.  Allow them to cool about 10 minutes on the sheet pans before transferring to a wire rack to fully cool.  Slice into 1 1/2" pieces.

*I used fresh figs.  If you choose to use fresh, make sure they are nice and firm, not soft and squishy.  I've seen recipes that used dried figs when making the filling or even substituted premade fig preserves. 

Enjoy!

Cookie #76 - Thin Mints

The first time I heard about this knock-off Thin Mint recipe, I didn't believe it was actually good.  I must say, this version does come very close to the original.  The crisp cracker center mimics the chocolate cookie almost perfectly.  I didn't find them nearly as minty as I would have liked them, but that could easily be fixed with the addition of some more peppermint extract. 
Again, I made the mistake of using semisweet chocolate chips melted with shortening to coat these.  They didn't harden well, much like the Peanut Butter Patties (note the finger prints on the picture below).  I plan on making these again for Christmas and when I do, I'll use candy coating.  Wilton even makes a chocolate mint flavored coating eliminating the need for the peppermint extract. 
I've written the recipe out below using the measurements that I've found to be the same throughout the many different versions I've found across the net.  I used the same amount of peppermint listed below for 12-oz of semisweet chocolate and I didn't find it minty enough.  Most likely, it'll depend on your palate.  My suggestion is to add the 1/2 tsp then taste the chocolate before dipping. 

Thin Mints

1 lb bittersweet chocolate (or dark chocolate candy coating)

80 Ritz crackers

1/2 tsp peppermint extract*

Before starting, place a cookie sheet in the freezer.  Like I've mentioned before, putting the sheet in the freezer will help you achieve a nice smooth bottom.  You may also choose to put the Ritz crackers in the freezer as well to assist the chocolate setting smoothly.

In a double boiler, melt chocolate gently until smooth.  Watch the chocolate carefully so it doesn't scorch.  I cannot stress the importance of this enough.  Here are a few tips to ensure that doesn't happen:

If the water under your double boiler is boiling, you obviously increase the chance of your chocolate scorching.  Keep the water simmering, not boiling.

As you stir the chocolate be sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as you stir.  If you just lightly stir you can burn the chocolate on the bottom of the bowl and that will ruin the whole lot. 

Once the chocolate is melted, dip the crackers one by one using a fork.  Tap the fork lightly on the side of the bowl to ensure the chocolate coating is even over the cracker.  Place on the cold cookie sheet.  Once all the crackers are dipped, transfer to the fridge to set.

Enjoy!!

Cookie #75 - Peanut Butter Patties/Tagalongs

Since the Girl Scouts discontinued the Lemon Pastry Cremes, I had to find a new favorite Girl Scout cookie.  The Lemon Chalet Creams don't come anywhere near the LPCs.  The cookies were lightly glazed and the filling was sweet and tart.  Oh, how I loved them and could eat an entire box in one sitting. 

Now that I think about it, it's probably a good thing they stopped making them. 

Then I discovered the Peanut Butter Patty.  Bad news, I tell you.  Bad, bad news. 

Once I buy a box (or three) they instantly go into the freezer to "ripen."  Once frozen, I eat the chocolate & cookie around the edges leaving a perfect mini tower of cookie and peanut butter topped with just enough chocolate. 

Just like the Samoas, I used a shortbread base for these.  Again, I didn't want to use a sugar cookie because I was afraid of the overwhelming sugar.  The texture just wouldn't be right, either.  The Peanut Butter Patty cookie is crunchy and buttery, but not at all sweet.  The shortbread I used was good, but I think I really needed a crispier cookie for this.  Even so, they were yummy! 

The other problem I had with these cookies was the chocolate coating.  It wasn't really a problem, more of an annoyance.  I used chocolate chips for the coating.  I melted it with a little shortening to aid in keeping the chocolate smooth and easy to work with. 

The problem? 

The chocolate didn't set as well as I would have liked.  These cookies had to be kept in the refrigerator with a piece of parchment between the layers.  The chocolate started to melt the second it was left at room temperature.  The next time I do this, I'll use candy coating, not chocolate chips, and I think I'll have better success. 

For the filling of these cookies, I made half using the same filling I used for the DoSiDos and half using just plain peanut butter.  They were good either way.  I didn't have a preference for either one.  It really depends on how much time you want to invest in these already time intensive cookies. 

They really are worth it though...

Peanut Butter Patties

Cookie Base:


1 cup butter
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Filling*:

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp milk
2-2 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar

OR

About 3/4 cup peanut butter

Coating**:

1 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoons vegetable shortening.

First, make the cookies:
Beat butter and sugar together until smooth. Mix in vanilla. Sift together flour and salt. Add slowly to butter mixture until well combined. Flatten dough into a disc, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


Roll chilled dough out on a well floured surface to about 1/4" thick. Cut out dough with a 2" circle cookie cutter. Transfer circles to parchment lined baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes until edges are just lightly golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling.

Cream butter and peanut butter together until smooth and well combined. Mix in vanilla and milk.
With the mixer on low, gradually add powdered sugar until creme reaches desired consistency. If the mixture gets too firm, add a little milk. Too thin, add more powdered sugar.

Place a teaspoon or so of the peanut butter filling on each cookie.  Place cookies on a cookie sheet and transfer to the freezer for 15-20 minutes, or until the peanut butter is firm.

Place chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on half power at 30 second intervals until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Be sure to stir well in between so as not to scorch the chocolate.

Remove cookies from the freezer and dip each cookie into the chocolate until well coated.  I used a fork to dip them.  Gently tap the fork on the edge of the bowl to shake off the excess chocolate.  Place the dipped cookie on the cold cookie sheet.  Once all the cookies are dipped, put them back in the freezer to harden. 

Enjoy!

*this recipe makes MORE than enough to fill the cookies, I kept the excess and used it as a dip for chocolate.....okay, I ate it with a spoon, but you catch my drift.

**this is the chocolate I used for these cookies.  If you choose to use the chocolate coating, simply melt according to the package directions.  If you choose the chocolate chip route, you may need more than 1 cup, depending on the amount of cookies you've made.  1 cup was enough for me to dip around 15 cookies. 

Cookie #74 - Samoas

19% of all Girl Scout cookies sold are Samoas/Caramel deLites making it one of the top selling GS cookies, just behind Thin Mints. 

What is it about these cookies?

The sweet, toasty coconut bathed in caramel.

The soft, buttery cookie.

The smooth dark chocolate.

Whatever it is, they sure are scrumptious. 

When I set out to make both this and the Tagalong/Peanut Butter Patties, I chose to use the same cookie base - a thinly rolled shortbread.  My original thought was to use a sugar cookie, but that would bring too much sweetness to the party.  The topping for both cookies is already sugar-laden, I didn't want the cookie to be overwhelmingly sweet. 

For this post, I'll concentrate on how I did the Samoas:

Samoas/Caramel deLites

Cookie Base:

1 cup butter
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Topping:

1 1/2 cups sweetened flake coconut
1-14 oz bag caramels
1 tbsp milk

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tbsp shortening

Beat butter and sugar together until smooth.  Mix in vanilla.  Sift together flour and salt.  Add slowly to butter mixture until well combined.  Flatten dough into a disc, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Roll chilled dough out on a well floured surface to about 1/4" thick.  Cut out dough with a 2" circle cookie cutter.  Transfer circles to parchment lined baking sheets.  Bake for 8-10 minutes until edges are just lightly golden.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping.

Place coconut in a large frying pan and place over low heat.  Keep stirring the coconut - DON'T WALK AWAY!!  Don't think: "Hey - lemme pour myself a glass of Pinot while this coconut is toasting."  Don't do it!  It will burn and then you will have to make your poor husband/wife/significant other, who isn't 2 glasses into a bottle,run to the grocery store to get another bag of coconut because you burned this one.  Don't ask me how I know...just don't do it.
So, keep stirring the coconut until it is fragrant and toasted.  Immediately remove from the pan to a bowl.  Don't leave it in the hot pan or it will burn and burnt coconut is stinky. 
Place unwrapped caramels in a microwave safe bowl with the milk.  Microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring well in between, until caramels are fully melted and smooth.  Stir coconut into the caramel until well combined.

Drop one tablespoon full of the coconut caramel mixture onto each cookie.  With moistened fingers, flatten the caramel mixture onto each cookie until the mixture covers the cookie.  Don't flatten it too much, you want it to still look a little fluffy.  Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, place an empty cookie sheet in the freezer.

Place chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave safe bowl.  Microwave on half power at 30 second intervals until the chocolate is melted and smooth.  Be sure to stir well in between so as not to scorch the chocolate. 

Remove cookie sheet from the freezer.  One at a time, dip the bottom of each cookie into the chocolate and place on cold cookie sheet.  This will help you achieve nice, smooth bottoms and half the chocolate set so they don't slide all over.  Once all the cookies are dipped, place the remaining melted chocolate in a zip top bag.  Snip the corner of the bag, just a bit, and drizzle the chocolate over the cookies.  Put the cookies into the fridge to fully set. 

Enjoy!  With or without the Pinot. 

Cookie #73 - Do-Si-Dos (Peanut butter oatmeal sandwiches)

One of Corey's favorite Girl Scout cookies is the Do-Si-Do.  He likes to put them in a bowl with milk and eat them like cereal. 
(Sound familiar?) 
I love it, too. 
It's one of those cookies that I convince myself is a breakfast food because it contains oatmeal and peanut butter. 
The GS variety consists of a creamy, light peanut butter creme sandwiched between two thin, yet soft, peanut butter oatmeal cookies. 
The ones I've made are a little more substantial.  The cookies are thick and  soft.  The creme center is soft and light and just sweet enough. 
I was so happy with the way these came out. 
While they do have the same flavors as the Do-Si-Do they are (dare I say?) better. 
Then again, isn't almost anything homemade better? 

Do-Si-Dos (Peanut butter oatmeal sandwiches)

Cookie:

1/2 cup butter + just a little extra for smooshing (techinical term) the cookies
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar + extra for smooshing the cookies
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
3/4 cup finely ground oats*


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cream butter, peanut butter and sugars together until smooth.
Add in egg and vanilla, mix well.
Sift together salt, baking soda and flour.  Add slowly to butter mixture until just combined.
Stir in oats.
Roll tablespoons full of dough into balls and place 2" apart on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Lightly butter the flat bottom of a glass and dip in sugar.  Smoosh each cookie to about 1/8 - 1/4" thick (depending on how thick you like your cookies - remember, you'll be eating two at a time.  I flattened them to 1/8")
Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool.  Meanwhile, make creme center.

Filling:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp milk
2-2 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar

Cream butter and peanut butter together until smooth and well combined.  Mix in vanilla and milk.
With the mixer on low, gradually add powdered sugar until creme reaches desired consistency.  If the mixture gets too firm, add a little milk.  Too thin, add more powdered sugar. 

Once cookies are cool, sandwich a teaspoon or so of filling between two cookies.  Enjoy!

*You don't have to grind your oats.  I did this because I like the texture better.  If you like or don't mind the texture of the whole oat, use them as is.  I found that grinding them also made the cookie less chewy. 

Cookie #72 - Oreos

Unlike my daughters, I'm not a fan of drinking milk.  I never have been.  There's just something about the way that it coats the inside of your mouth that doesn't appeal to me. 
However, give me a bag of Oreos and a tall glass of cold milk and I'm in heaven.
I love the way the cookie tastes after dipping into the cold moo-juice.  The cookie gets soggy and the cream gets cold and firm. 
I came across this recipe from cupcake project and I just had to try it out. 
After mixing up the dough, my official dough taste-tester, Corey, tried it out. 

"It's a bit bland." was his assessment.

I assured him that it was probably supposed to be a bit bland.  If you think about the actual cookie portion of oreo, they don't have very much flavor to them, other than the overwhelming chocolate taste.  The sweetness comes from the cream in the center.
I baked off the cookies and made the cream.

The cream was PERFECT.  It tasted just like the store-bought Oreo center, only better. 

After the cookies were cooled, I sandwiched them with the cream and took a big bite.

Oh my.

They were AWFUL. 

I mean, spit-them-out-and-rinse-your-mouth-awful.

I didn't understand.  How could this recipe get such rave reviews and be so bad?

Then, I consulted the recipe. 

I FORGOT THE SUGAR.

How could I do this?  Let me tell you how:  two curly-topped girls running underfoot, dinner in the oven, and a recipe that is just a *little* different than what I'm used to (you don't cream the sugar and butter first). 

They sure look yummy, though, don't they? 

I plan on trying this recipe again, tweaking the directions slightly.  I think they really have the potential to be an amazing cookie. 

Homemade Oreos
recipe from CupcakeProject.com

1 1/4 C all-purpose flour

1/2 C unsweetened cocoa
1 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1 C sugar (DON'T FORGET THIS)
1/2 C plus 2 T butter, room temperature
1 large egg

In a medium-sized bowl, mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt, and sugar.
Beat in the butter and the egg. Continue mixing until dough comes together in a mass.
Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet approximately 2 inches apart. With moistened hands, slightly flatten the dough. (I found that while the dough wasn't sticky enough to roll, I could press it flat with my hands like the recipe said and then use cookie cutters to cut perfect circles. If you just care about the taste, then there is no need for the cookie cutters. Also, remember this is a chance to get creative and use all kinds of cookie cutters.)
Bake for 9 minutes at 375 F. Set on a rack to cool.
 
Filling:
 
1/4 cup room-temperature, unsalted butter

1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sifted powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I used vanilla bean paste instead.)

Place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and at low speed, gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla.
Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2-3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.

To make a cookie, pipe teaspoon-sized blobs of cream into the center of a cookie using a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch round tip. (If you don't have a pastry bag, you could easily just spread the filling with a knife or use a Ziplock with the corner cut off as a pastry bag. I had a pastry bag, but I only had a star tip. The tip doesn't matter much.)
Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream. Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie. Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream.


I'd like to add that this batch of cookies did not go to waste.  My official taste-tester, Corey, ate them in a bowl with milk like cereal.  He tells me they weren't so bad once mixed up with the milk and cream.  His complaints of a belly-ache 30 minutes later tell me otherwise. 

Cookie #71 - The Infamous Nieman Marcus Cookie

Back when I got my very first email address, I received the following email from a friend:

This is a true story... Please forward it to everyone that you can.... You will have to read it to believe it....

My daughter and I had just finished a salad at Neiman-Marcus Cafe in Dallas & decided to have a small dessert. Because both of us are such cookie lovers, we decided to try the "Neiman-Marcus Cookie". It was so excellent that I asked if they would give me the recipe and the waitress said with a small frown "I'm afraid not." Well" I said, "would you let me buy the recipe?"

With a cute smile, she said YES". I asked how much and she responded, "Only two fifty, it's a great deal!" I said with approval, "just add it to my tab".. Thirty days later, I received my VISA statement from Neiman-Marcus and it was $285.00. I looked again and remembered I had only spent $9.95 for two salads and about $20.00 for a scarf. As I glanced at the bottom of the statement, it said, "Cookie Recipe - $250.00". That's outrageous!!!

I called Neiman's Accounting Dept. and told them that the waitress said it was "two-fifty," which clearly does not mean "two hundred and fifty dollars" by any POSSIBLE interpretation of the phrase. Neiman-Marcus refused to budge.. They would not refund my money, because according to them, "What the waitress told you is not our problem. You have already seen the recipe - we absolutely will not refund your money at this point." I explained to her the criminal statutes which govern fraud in Texas. I threatened to refer them to the Better Business Bureau and the State's Attorney General for engaging in fraud. I was basically told, "Do what you want, we dont give a damn, and we're not refunding your money." I waited a moment, thinking of how I could get even,or even try to get any of my money back. I just said, "Okay, you folks got my $250.00, and now I'm going to have $250.00 worth of fun."

I told her that I was going to see to it that every cookie lover in the United States with an e-mail account has a $250.00 cookie recipe from Neiman-Marcus... for free..She replied, "I wish you wouldn't do this" I said, "Well you should have thought of that before you ripped me off", and slammed down the phone on her.. So, here it is!!! Please, please, please pass it on to everyone you can possibly think of. I paid $250.00 dollars for this... I don't want Neiman-Marcus to ever get another penny off of this recipe....

I was appauled! 

How could Neiman's do that to someone! 

Of course, I forwarded the email to everyone I know.   

I come to find out (a lot later than I like to admit) this story is untrue. 

Still, the squash any remaining rumors, Neiman Marcus posted the cookie recipe on their website. 

This was the first time I made these cookies. 

I only have one question:  What was I waiting for? 

Upon first reading the recipe, I thought it was just another chocolate chip cookie.  I was wrong. The flavors are so much more pronouced and deep. 

The addition of the espresso powder really brings out the chocolate.  

The ratio of the brown sugar to white sugar results in a much softer cookie, as well. 

The cookies smell fantastic baking.  It's hard to not grab one right off the cookie sheet and eat it. 

Don't do it. 

Melted chocolate burns. 

Don't ask me how I know. 

Just trust me.  

The Neiman Marcus Cookie

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

1 cup light brown sugar

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1-3/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder

1-1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cream the butter with the sugars using an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy (approximately 30 seconds)

Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract for another 30 seconds.

In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients and beat into the butter mixture at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the espresso coffee powder and chocolate chips.

Using a 1 ounce scoop or a 2 tablespoon measure, drop cookie dough onto a greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2 inch circle. Bake for about 20 minutes or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a little longer for a crispier cookie.

Cookie #1 - Nestle Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies

These were the very first cookies I ever learned how to make. 
These were the very first cookies I ever taught someone how to make.  (I remember helping everyone in my junior hight Home-Ec class)
They are the type of cookie that just envokes this feeling of home and comfort.  There's something about eating one right out of the oven or dunking them in a cold glass of milk. 
ANYONE can make these - and no, I don't mean just opening up a tube and plopping them on a cookie sheet (though this was my preferred method when I was pregnant with my first daughter).  I mean honest to goodness make them from scratch.  No expensive, hard to get ingredients.  Chances are, if you cook at all, you already have the ingredients in your pantry and fridge. 
The best part is you can bake this one recipe a few different ways:  as cookies, as a cookie cake or as a bar cookie.  All you do is vary the pan and cooking time. 

So, I thought this classic cookie would be the ideal first cookie for this project.  With a little help from Sydney, I mixed together the ingredients and soon my kitchen was filled with the smell of fresh baked cookies.  They were as good as I remember.

Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 (12 ounce) package NESTLE® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
1 cup chopped nuts (these are optional and I chose to omit them)

PREHEAT oven to 375 degrees F.


COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.