Raisin Cookies

This morning I had a conversation with a girlfriend and she said she cannot have any raisins in her baked goods, she doesn't like them at all. And I'm thinking who doesn't like raisins? I use to run around as a lil kid with a mini box of Sunsweet golden raisins and it's almost like a no-brainer kinda activity, you don't pay attention to what you're doing, you just keep popping those raisins into your mouth!

So I decided to look for a recipe for raisin cookies since I have a bag of raisins and what a great combination - 2 things I love, cookies and raisins! This recipe is no fuss at all. You only need one mixing bowl, you dump all ingredients in there and you...MIX! And it's done! The result - cookies that are crisp on the edges but soft and chewy in the middle. Uber yummy! I do wish that my girlfriend is here to try these cookies, she might change her mind about raisins...

Here's what you'll need:

- 2 cups flour

- 2 teaspoons baking powder

- 1/4 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

- 1 cup brown sugar

- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter (softened)

- 1 large egg

- 1/4 cup milk

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 1 cup dark raisins

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and ground cinnamon.

3. Throw in the brown sugar, butter, egg, milk and vanilla extract, beat all ingredients together for about 2 mins.

4. Fold in the raisins.

5. Drop balls of batter (approx. 1 tablespoon each) onto the baking sheet and have them about 2 inches apart.

6. Bake for 13-15 mins.

Now this got me thinking about wanting to prance around with a box of golden raisins like a lil girl. Hmmm...probably not such a good idea since I am in my mid twenties now. Hahaha!

Classic Brownies

For the longest time, I wanted a copy of Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home To Yours. So a couple of weeks ago, and thanks to Amazon, I managed to purchase a copy that was much much cheaper than usual. The photos in the book are amazing...everything was yummylicious-looking! Some of the recipes were surprisingly easy to understand and follow and some recipes were definitely a lil more complicated. But I am determined to bake my way through at least 70% of the book! And the first successful baked good from this book is the Classic Brownie!

Dorie Greenspan described the brownie to be "fudgy but not gooey, intensely chocolaty, dry on top and melty in the middle". And I am quite sure my brownies turned out exactly like that! It's definitely a very very chocolaty brownie that's fudgy. It's not too sweet as well and I love the walnuts, super yummy!

I was surprised by how easy the recipe is. Brownies aren't that complicated to bake! Here's what you'll need:

- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter

- 2 oz unsweetened chocolate

- 4 oz bittersweet chocolate

- 3/4 cup granulated white sugar

- 2 large eggs

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 1/3 cup flour

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line an 8 inch square baking pan with aluminium foil and butter the foil.

2. Place the butter, chopped unsweetened and bittersweet chocolates in a bowl and melt them over a pot of simmering water. Stir it occasionally until the ingredients are all melted.

3. Transfer the chocolate to a mixing bowl then use a whisk to stir in the sugar. The mixture will become grainy but it is fine.

4. Then whisk in the eggs, one at a time.

5. Add in the vanilla extract and whisk it vigorously.

6. Then incorporate the flour and salt.

7. Use a rubber spatula to mix in the chopped walnuts.

8. Spread the batter into the cake pan and smooth the top.

9. Bake for 30-33 mins until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

10. Once the brownie is cooled completely, turn it out onto a cutting board and cut into 16 squares.

Brownies with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream...Thursday just got better!

Why no gooey-ness?

I hate to say this or even admit it but there's this particular recipe that I've attempted twice and both times, I failed. BOO.

It's a gooey chocolate cake where the center of the cake should be gooey, almost like a molten chocolate cake. And both times I tried, there was nothing gooey at all. The first time I admit that I misread the recipe, so with the wrong amount of chocolate and 2 mins extra in the oven, I understand why it was not gooey with burnt edges. But the second time round, I did everything right, still not gooey and the taste was bitter. It was inedible.

And today I finally realise what went wrong. While shopping for chocolate I realised that I had bought dark bittersweet chocolate that had 71% cocoa instead of bittersweet chocolate that has 60% cocoa. Maybe that's why it was so bitter. But still, I don't know if that explains why I am not getting any gooey from the cake.

Now I don't know if I dare try it again for the third time. My poor lil baking heart can't take another round of non-gooey-ness. BOO.

Cherry Jam Cookies

It's Sunday afternoon home-alone baking! I don't have much in the fridge...no chocolate, no chocolate chips, 2 eggs, some butter. BUT - I have a jar of really pretty looking cherry preserves. It's basically a very thick cherry jam. Super yummily sweet! So I am off to bake cherry jam cookies!

It's best to use preserves instead of normal jam for this recipe cos you wanna have chunks of the fruit in the cookie. You can use any flava - apricot, raspberry, etc. So since there's sorta some kinda fruit in this cookie, I am telling myself it is not that sinful. *big grin*

It's not much, but here's what you'll need:

- 2 cups flour

- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (or ground cinnamon)

- 1/4 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (at room temperature)

- 2/3 cup white granulated sugar

- 1 egg

- 2 tablespoons milk

- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 1/3 cup cherry preserves

- 4-5 tablespoons white granulated sugar (for coating)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 baking trays with parchment paper.

2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, ground ginger and salt.

3. Beat the butter until smooth.

4. Add sugar and beat until light.

5. Add the egg and beat for 2 mins.

6. Add the milk and vanilla extract, beat to combine.

7. Add the cherry preserves.

8. Then add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until it forms a dough.

9. Spoon 1-2 teaspoons ball of dough and coat it with sugar. Then place it on the baking sheet and flatten it a little.

10. Bake for 10-12 mins until the edges brown.

If you prefer your cookies super jam-my, pls feel free to mix in more jam. Yummy yummy sweet cookies!