Tiger Butter Cookies

I've never had tiger butter before, and I'm not even sure where I heard about it, but once I learned that it was white chocolate/peanut butter, I had to make it into cookies. Here is the recipe I came up with.

1/2 cup butter (from Spring Hill)
1/2 cup peanut butter (fresh ground in the bulk section of the co-op)
1/2 cup cane sugar (fair trade of course)
1/3 cup rapadura
1 egg (courtesy of our backyard flock)
1 tsp homemade vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
3/4 cup white chocolate chips (fair trade of course)
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cream the butters and sugars. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth. Add in the dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. Fold in the chips, and drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a baking sheet covered in parchment and bake for 8-12 minutes.

Makes about two dozen cookies.

Holiday Cookies

Have you baked with browned butter?  It might be my new fav ingredient.  I don't usually indulge in all these, let alone all at once, but my spouse loves to bake and 'tis the season.  Happy Solstice!

Molasses Crisps with Candied Ginger

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 pound butter, cut into pieces
1 1/4 cups + 1/3 cup evaporated cane sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup powdered sugar

3/4 c chocolate chips or nuts (optional)

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Sift in the cocoa and set aside.

In another bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter and 1 1/4 cups sugar on medium speed until creamy, about 3 minutes.  Beat in eggs, one at a time; then beat in the vanilla.  Beat in the dry ingredients just until combined.

Roll the dough into quarter-sized balls.  Roll the dough balls in the remaining cane sugar, then in the powdered sugar until covered.  Place the balls about 2 inches apart on greased baking sheets.

Bake at 350°F until they are crackled and puffed, 10-12 minutes.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.  Adapted from Williams-Sonoma

Variations
Substitute the vanilla with peppermint extract or ground cinnamon

Roll in crushed candy cane

Roll the dough around around a piece of candy (chocolate, caramel, candied fruit, marshmallow) before rolling it in sugar

Brown Butter & Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies stuffed with Chocolate Hazelnut Butter
1/2 pound butter, cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups evaporated cane sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon sour cream or yogurt
2 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 1/2 cups dark chocolate raindrops, organic and direct trade from OB People's
1 jar of chocolate hazelnut butter - organic at OB People's
flaky sea salt for sprinkling (I like Murray River from Salt Farm at the Little Italy Farmers Market)

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. When it begins to foam, whisk constantly until the butter begins to brown and has a nutty aroma. Immediately transfer the butter to a bowl to prevent burning. Allow to cool and blend in the sugar. Beat in the egg and egg yolk, one at a time. Stir in the vanilla and sour cream. Add the dry ingredients and beat on low just until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Chill your dough and chocolate hazelnut butter for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Once dough is chilled measure about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball. Flatten the dough into a disc in your palm.  Make a depression in the middle and place a rounded 1/2 teaspoon of chilled chocolate hazelnut butter and fold dough around it; gently roll into a ball. Place dough balls on cookie sheet, 2 inches apart and gently flatten, just slightly.

Bake at 350° for 9-11 minutes or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown (they will look under cooked in the middle). Sprinkle each cookie with a few flakes of sea salt right after they come out of the oven, and cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 2 1/2 dozen.  Adapted from Clara Persis

DIY Figgy Newtons & Preserved Figs

These will not mesh with the luau theme of my aunt's party this weekend,  but 'tis the season.  And if we can control ourselves from eating them all, here's what we'll bring:

Figgy Newtons
1 stick cold butter, cubed
1/3 cup evaporated cane sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3 cups fig preserves (recipe follows)

Drain figs from their syrup (I'm reducing the syrup to save for another recipe). Puree figs into a thick paste.  Return figs to stove and simmer, stirring, to a thick jam consistency.

In a large bowl, cream butter & sugar together.  Add egg, vanilla, and zest and combine.  Add flour, baking powder, and salt and stir until well combined.

Using lots of flour for dusting, roll out dough into long stripes about 3-4 inches wide, 1/4 inch thick.  Spread fig paste and fold dough in half lengthwise and seal dough by pressing together along the edges.  Cut into squares and bake on parchment on cookie sheets at 350 degrees for 25 minutes until cookies begin to brown.

Fig Preserves
2 cups filtered water
6 cups evaporated cane sugar
9 inches of cinnamon stick
a lemon, seeded, quartered, sliced thin
1/4 orange, seeded, sliced thin

8 cups (36 ounces) fresh figs from my mom's neighbor's tree, washed & destemmed

Combine water, sugar and cinnamon in a pot and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and add figs and citrus slices.  Cover and cook 45 minutes.

If not using right away, can by filling sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space, add lids and rings (not too tight).  Boil jars for 15 minutes on a canning rack.  Remove from water bath and let sit, undisturbed overnight.

(adapted from HGTV recipes)

Ginger Molasses Crisps (aka iron cookies)

3/4 cup butter
1 cup rapadura sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup molasses
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup minced candied ginger, optional
big-crystaled sugar for rolling, optional

Cream butter, sugar, egg & molasses together.  Stir in the dry ingredients.  Stir in candied ginger if you like.  Shape into 1" balls and roll them in the sugar.  Flatten them out a bit on a greased cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes at 350°.

Make about 3 dozen cookies.

Ian's Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies + DIY Vanilla

We've monkeyed with many cookie recipes over the years and Ian's got this one absolutely perfected...

1/3 cup evaporated cane sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar
1 stick cold butter, cut into 1/2" cubes (must be cold!)
1 egg (love those Schaner Farm eggs!)
1&1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (I make my own)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup & 2 tablespoons all purpose unbleached wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
a heaping cup of chocolate chips (fair trade of course)
3/4 cup walnuts, roughly chopped (Terra Bella Farm has lovely ones)

Cream the sugar and butter together. Add the egg, vanilla and salt and mix well.  Add the flour and soda and mix until just combined. Fold in the chips and nuts. Drop rounded spoonfuls of dough on a greased baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 8-12 minutes.

Makes 2 dozen.

Variations
Chocolate chocolate chip cookies - reduce flour to 1 cup and add 1/4 of fair trade cocoa powder

Make Your Own Vanilla Extract
This is very, very simple:  after you use vanilla beans, save the pods!  They can be wiped clean or gently rinsed (if you've boiled them in cream, for example) and dried.  Put them in a dark glass jar (with a tight fitting lid) or bottle with 1/2 cup of rum, brandy or vodka (Ballast Point makes rum and vodka locally).  Wait a couple months before using. Keep adding vanilla pods whenever you use them!