Mmm Chocolate Chippers!

Is there anything better than freshly baked cookies? I think not. Whenever we have company, or I'm simply bored, I make cookies. But what is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe? Everybody thinks that their cookies are the greatest, but it seems that we are always at an impasse. Some like them soft and gooey, others likes them flat and crispy. And the ever elusive soft and gooey in the middle, and crispy on the edges. My brother had some friends over, so I decided to try out the cooks illustrated version! Well technically these are the "Liz classic" cookies. Anyways, they were a total hit! All of them were gone at the end of the night. Who said cookies aren't the perfect bon-fire food!









The brown sugar gives it that classic homemade taste, wile the walnuts give it that slightly nutty flavor. I gotta tell you, I'm not generally a nut fan, but they give these cookies such an irresistible flavor! I don't like large chunks of nuts, so I used this chopper thing that turns these nuts into almost like a powder, so you get the nut flavor without the nut chunkies! Its the best of both worlds! For me, the hardest part about making cookies, is to not eat all the dough! I think that it is always better than a baked cookie!So if you are in need of a sure fire cookie recipe to try, these are great! They are a really deliciously crisp on the outside, yet remained soft and perfect in the middle.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Cooks Illustrated
Liz aka Baking Brunette ; )

• 2 1/4 cup flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 sticks unsalted butter softened
• 1 cup of brown sugar (darker brown sugar will yield a browner cookie)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp water
• 2 cups chocolate chips
• 1 cup nuts( I used 1/2 cup because I don't like too many nuts, I also chopped them very finely, almost to a powder)

1. Adjust oven racks to upper and lower middle positions and heat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk flour, salt, and baking soda together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. By hand of with an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes on medium power. Add eggs, vanilla, and water. Beat until combined about 40 seconds.
   
3. Add dry ingredients and beat on low speed until just combined, 15-20 seconds. Add chocolate and nuts. Stir until just combined.
4. Drop batter by tablespoons on ungreased cookie sheets, spacing dough about an inch apart. Bake reversing position of cookie sheets half way through baking to insure even browning. Bake until light golden brown, and the edges are beginning to crisp, 8-10 minutes. Cool on sheet for a couple of minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
5. Store in an airtight container if your resistance holds up ; D
   

Orange almond Biscottis

Hey! Its so great to be back. My vacation was great! Unfortunately, when I got home, I realized that my computer is busted. Doh. Well, guess that I will have to post on my mom's laptop till we get another computer. When everything gets straightened out I will have some cool pictures to show you! Ok, now for the good stuff. Me and my friend Liz made these orange almond biscottis. Like isn't midnight the perfect time to bake? We thought so, and it turned out awesome. These are the best biscottis ever. It was fun and simple to make too! These cooks illustrated recipes that I have been trying never cease to amaze me! The ingredients are really simple, and great! I have never made biscottis before, its a good thing that Liz is a biscotti pro!
These toasted almondsmade the kitchen smell amazing!After making the dough, you shape them into these cool logs. The dough tastes as good as the finished product, watch out!
Then you bake them once, them cut them, then bake them again!
I cant even begin to explain to you how simple and amazing these are. And, they are pretty much healthy ; )
Me and Liz cut them into small biscottis, so that you can eat a couple, instead of eating one huge one! That way, you think that your eating more, but your really not. Hehe.

Orange Almont Biscotti
Cooks Illustrated
Compliments of Liz

• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 tbs unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract
• 3/4 of a cup of whole almonds with skins toasted, cooled, and chopped coarse
• 2 tbs minced orange zest (zest from like 2 oranges)

1. Adjust middle rack to center of the oven and heat to 350 degrees.
2. Whisk flour, salt, baking powder in a medium bowl. Either by hand, or in mixer, cream butter and sugar together until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, then extracts.
3. Stir in almonds and zest. Sprinkle dry ingredients into egg mixture, then fold until just mixed.
4. Halve dough and turn each portion onto oiled cookies sheet covered with parchment. Using floured hands, stretch dough into a roughly 13x2 inch log. Pat each dough shape to smooth it. Bake turning pan once until loaves are golden, and just starting to crack on top, about 35min.
5. Cool the loaves for 10 min.Lower oven temp to 325 degrees. Cut each loaf diagonally into 3/8 inch slices with a serrated knife.
6. Lay the slices about 1/2 inch apart, and return to the oven. Bake turning over each cookie half way through baking untill crisp and golden brown on each side, andout 15 min all together.
7. Transfer to biscottis to a wire rack and cool completely( Biscottie can be stored in airtight container for up to 2 weeks).
   
   

A little something special**

Now, I wanted to leave you all with something spectacular. Spring break is here, and I'm going to Virginia Beach! So, I will not be able to post for a week or so. I know that you have seen a lot of bread before, and probably some bread that looks like the picture above. Don't be fooled. I hate to pick favorites, but I have to say that I am partial to this bread! I think that it was the second bread that I have made from the bread bible, and probably the best ever. This is the softest bread I have made, and has the most tender crumb ever. It has a rich and buttery taste too. Every couple of weeks my mom requests this bread, it is her favorite. I think that it is everybody's favorite! Hehe. This bread is not that difficult to make either. The directions can be a little intimidating though. . .









Its nice to have all of this clarification, but yeah. . . it is a little long.
I have made this bread so many times now that I don't have to read the directions, just make sure I add the right amount of ingredients. It is fun to work with the dough, it is silky soft. You can probably tell that I made the bread at night, because of the tint of my pictures. Its just that, when the need for fresh bread hits, resistance is futile. I HAVE to make it. now. So as usual, I cant wait for it to cool properly because everyone in the house is hovering over it. Yohann finally goes, "well are we going to cut it open, or just look at it all night."Right now as my mom glances over my shoulder, she's telling me wants me to make another batch of this bread for our 12 hour car ride tonight and tomorrow. When I get back I will have lots of pictures of the beach for you to see! : D
Basic soft white sandwich loaf
The bread bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum


Sponge:

• 2 1/4 cups plus 2 1/2 tbs all purpose flour.
• 1 3/4 cup water
• 2 tbs + 1tsp honey
• 3/4 tsp instant yeast

Make the sponge. In a mixer bowl or other large bowl, combine the flour, water, honey, and instant yeast. Whisk until very smooth, to incorporate air, about 2 minutes. The sponge will be the consistency of a thick batter, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.

Flour mixture:

• 2 cups + 3tbs all purpose flour
• 1/4 dry milk
• 3/4 tsp instant yeast
• 9 tbs butter softened
  
• 2 1/4 tsp salt

-->Make the flour mixture and add to the sponge. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour (reserve 1/4 cup if mixing by hand), dry milk, and instant yeast. Sprinkle this on top of the sponge and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Allow it to ferment for 1 to 4 hours at room temperature. (During this time, the sponge will bubble through the flour blanket in places: this is fine).

-->Mix the dough.

HAND METHOD:
-->Add the salt and butter to the bowl and, with a wooden spoon or with your hand, stir until all the flour is moistened. Knead the dough in the bowl until it comes together, then scrape it onto a lightly floured counter. Knead the dough for 5 minutes, enough to develop the gluten structure a little, addind as little of the reserved flour as possible to keep the dough from sticking. Use a bench scraper to scrape the dough and gather it together as you knead it. At this point, it will be very sticky. Cover it with an inverted bowl and allow it to rest for 20 minutes. (This resting time will make the dough less sticky and easier to work with).

-->Knead the dough for another 5 minutes or until it is very smooth and elastic. It should still be tacky enough to cling slightly to your fingers a little. If the dough is still very sticky, however, add some of the remaining reserved flour, or a little extra.

-->Shape the dough and let it rise. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and cut it in half. Shape each piece into a loaf; the exact size is not important at this point. (A long side of the dough should be facing toward you). Dimple the dough with your fingers to deflate any large bubbles. Fold over the right side of the dough to a little past the center. Fold over the left side of the dough to overlap it slightly. Press the center overlap section with the side of your hand to seal the dough. Starting at the top end of the dough, roll it over three or four times, until it reaches the bottom edge of the dough: with each roll, press with your thumbs to seal it and at the same time push it away from you slightly to tighten the outer skin. As you roll and press, the dough will become wider. If it is not as long as the pan, place both hands close together on top of the dough and, rolling back and fourth, gradually work your way towards the ends, gently stretching the dough. For the most even shape, it is important to keep a tight skin on the surface of the dough and not to tear it. If you want the edges of the loaf to be smooth, tuck the sides under. Place the loaves in the prepared loaf pans; the dough will be about 1/2 inch from the top of the pans. Cover them with a large container, or cover them loosely with oiled plastic wrap, and allow to rise until the center is about 1 inch above the sides of the pan, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. When the dough is pressed with a fingertip, the depression will very slowly fill inches

-->Preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 350F 45 minutes before baking. Have an oven shelf at the lowest level and place a baking stone or a baking sheet on it, and a cast-iron skillet or sheet pan on the floor of the oven, before preheating.

-->Bake the bread. Quickly but gently set the pans on the hot baking stone or hot baking sheet. Toss 1/2 cup of ice cubes into the pan beneath and immediately shut the door. Bake for 50 minutes or until medium golden brown and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center will read about 210F). Halfway through baking, turn the pans around for even baking.

-->Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack, for as long as you can manage ; )