My very own oatmeal cookies… soft, tasty, fruity amazingness

I love coffee and every time I end up at Sanoma Bakery or a little boutique deli the cookie jars are tempting me with sweet (and savoury) morsels. More often than not I manage to make my order and turn away before I give in a my sweet tooth. This in not an issue of not indulging or not wanting rather I do not have $4.50 to spend on a snack that I know I can make myself.

 

When I buy something from a bakery, or go out to dinner I always order something that I could not make myself, or would never have the patients for. Cookies, brownies, sausage rolls I can make so this morning (raining still), I decided to make my very own fruity, nutty, spiced oatmeal cookies.

I based my recipe from williams-sonoma oatmeal cookies but the date, walnut simplicity was not exactly what I wanted so I tweaked it and I definitely my combinations trump them. My unique additions of wholemeal flour combined with dried apricots, figs, and dates, swirled with a tang of coconut and nuts really boosts these cookies into a realm of their own. I had to share them because you have to try them…

(first batch was slightly over done…)

Luckily for me the recipe makes a LOT of cookies; plenty for now, some for later and some frozen to bake on demand. I also like this recipe also cause it uses two eggs. Easy to divide the entire recipe in half when I do not need such a high quantity.

Hope you enjoy these as much as I do… I think I might go get another one now and watch another mad men.

Cookies:

• 2.5 cups flour (1.25 cups wholemeal, 1.25 cups plain)
• 1.5 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
• 250 grams butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup raw sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3 Tbs. dark molasses
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup chopped apricots
• 1/2 cup chopped cranberries, dates and/or figs
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup coconut

Method:

1. Preheat an oven to 180°C. Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
2.  Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice; set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter on high speed until fluffy and pale yellow. Add the both sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is no longer gritty. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrap the sides if necessary. Beat in the molasses and vanilla. (this is my favourite part when the colour changes from yellow to a dark caramel)
4. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed or stir with a wooden spoon just until blended. Beat or stir in the oats, dried fruits coconut and walnuts just until evenly distributed.
5. Roll two tablespoons into little cylinders then squish ends to make circular round cookies. Distribute on prepared pans about 3 centimetres apart
   (Freeze any cookies you want for baking-later now)
6. Bake the cookies until the edges are golden, 8 to 10 minutes
7. Sprinkle the cookies with coarse sugar while they are still warm. Let the cookies cool on the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes, then transfer them to the racks and let cool completely

Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

 

adapted from http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/oatmeal-date-and-walnut-spice-cookies.html

Tarte Au Flan (vanilla custard tarts)

I am in love with custard and puff pastry. And so it happens I am in a serious relationship with danishes. However my recent unemployment makes the $4 (minumum, I have paid up for $6) almost unjustifiable. Like always, I decided I would try to make my own. 

Inspired by: Croissant d’Or, Potts Point. Sydney.

In browsing my cookbook library I discovered there are so many variations; cream, milk, marscapone. I decided on a classic french vanilla custard that used milk. I chose right… this custard is delicious (but not so nutritious). 

My first batch I made mini-custard tarts, the thought of a single 12″ of custard was too daunting. When in the miniature form I can grab-and-go, share with my sisters and enforce  some sore of moderation. The downside… there was excess custard mixture. I say this in a sarcastic tone because as I said… I love pastry and I love custard. 

After defrosting puff-pastry from the freezer, allowing a quick short-bake then filling it up with custard and organic berries I made my very own french vanilla custard pastries. 

Inspired by: Taste Baguette, university of sydney.

I have provided both the homemade pastry and the frozen pastry options below.

Overall, these tarts are phenomenal and cost me close to nothing. I am so glad to uncover how easy danishes/tarts are to make. These will definitely be something I bring to my next picnic or luncheon.

Next on the list… learn how to make my own pastry. 

Tarte au Flan

the pastry

1 1/4 cups Flour

1/8 teaspoon Salt

1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, cold and cut into pieces

2-3 tablespoon Ice Water

 

the Flan

300 ml Milk

3 Eggs

1/2 cup Sugar

1/2 cup Flour

2 teaspoons Vanilla

Icing Sugar for dusting

sprinkling of nutmeg

Organic berries (optional)

 

the pastry:

In a food processor, pulse together the flour and the salt.

Add the butter and churn until the mixture resembles crumbs

Add the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough comes together as a ball.

Press the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

 

the custard

Warm the milk (microwave or stovetop)

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar

Whisk in the flour

Then add the warm milk and vanilla.

 

creating the tart

Preheat the oven to 180C

Remove dough from the fridge and roll until ~ 3mm thick

Place in 10″ tart pan or using a martini glass create circles that fit into greased muffin cups. 

Prick each base with a fork

Return to fridge for another 30 minutes

Line each tart with a paddy pans or grease-proof paper. Cover with pie weights (I used dry lentils) and bake for 10-15 minutes or until just golden. 

Remove the weights and paper. 

Fill each tart with custard, do not over fill

Sprinkle each with a dash of nutmeg and icing sugar

bake in oven at 180C for 10 minutes, (add optional berries now ) and reduce heat to 165 and bake for another 15 minutes.** 

Remove the tarts when they are still jelly in the middle – they’ll solidify upon resting

 

Serve cold (although I was impatient and ate some warm and they were still yum) 

 

(** The ten inch tart will need15 minutes at 180C and 30-45 minutes at 165C)

 

The cheating frozen puff pastry alternative:

Preheat oven to 180C

Remove puff pastry from oven and allow for it to defrost. 

Cut into desired pastry sizes, mine are usually the size of the palm of my hand.

Prick each pastry sheet

Bake in oven for 8 minutes until slightly golden

Remove and add custard and berries

Bake for 10 minutes or until custard is still slightly jelly like in the centre.

Allow to cool and serve…

 

 

The Ultimate Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies that make you go mmmm

It is Tuesday morning and I wake to the early calls of the australian birds and the white light piercing through the curtain gaps… this would ordinarily be a beautiful waking except the bopping of the frogs had kept me up all night. Transitioning from city sea life to country style is not as easy as it seems.

 

As I craddled my coffee and looked out over the Sydney basin. It was raining, early and cold…

I immediately cheered up when I thought of the potential and possibility of a day indoors could bring. Card-making, sewing, crafts, DIY, reading, research, jewellery making, blogging, photo editing… limitless. However all of these activities are great but they definitely require delicious snacking material.

Today I would bake the ultimate chocolate chip cookies.

The Ultimate Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Adapted from NYtimes chocolate chip cookie and mrs larkin

225 grams butter, softened
215 grams granulated sugar
230 grams dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon molasses (I used treacle)
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 organic eggs
509 grams plain flour
2.75 teaspoons pink salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups belgium chocolate chips (optional: add 1 cup nuts like macadamias)
scoop of vanilla bean ice-cream (check there is a max of 5 ingredients)

Line trays with parchment paper
Cream together butter, both sugars and molasses with paddle mixer
Add vanilla, beat for one more minute
Add eggs, one at a time and beat until combine
Mix together flour, salt, baking soda.
Add dry ingredients into wet ingredients, pulsing until flour is combined.
Add chocolate chips (and nuts), mix.
Roll large scoops of cookie dough into balls and place on lined-baking trays. Press down slightly. Leave 5cm between each cookie.
Now, you have the option to freeze the cookies overnight or a couple of hours. This results in a chewier cookie. I do this and then only bake half the batter, this way I have tasty morsels on demand when the afternoon sugar slump hits.

After freezing for a few hours (if you can wait that long), preheat oven to 180C.
Remove the cookies from the cooler and bake for 13 minutes. When they look as if they need ‘one more minute’ take them out!
Cool on trays for five minutes.

Serve warm with scoop of icecream.
Store cookies in airtight container or sealed plastic bag.

These definitely hit the spot and cheered up my rainy day. Later that evening my sister arrived for dinner and fell in love with the cookies. I definitely recommend using star ingredients when baking with simple flavours. Spend that extra $3 and taste the difference.

The next morning I went to have a cheeky mid-morning cookie; there were only three left. My sister has a very sweet tooth.

Let me know what you think…