The Chocolate Chip Cookies

I feel pretty sure that these just may be the best ever chocolate chip cookies ever in the whole wide world.  They have completely allowed me to get my Chocolate Chip Cookie Confidence back, which had been deeply damaged for years.  Since I have only slightly adapted this from a Cooks Illustrated recipe in the May/June 2009 issue, I can say this without any ego involved.  You will have to try them to confirm, but I look forward to the feedback.  They are absolutely full of all things gluten, dairy, sugar, egg and you-name-it, and should never be stripped of their very necessity in creating this harmony of sweet success. 

The need for me to find this recipe had been deep and long-lasting.  Many lifetimes ago, I actually used to be a good baker- even baked for a few different restaurants - but I went a desperately long decade+ with rock-bottom Chocolate Chip Cookie Confidence.  Year after year of crispy, hard, nasty attempts had left me but a puddle of pathetic memories and almost pure fear-avoidance behaviours when the thought of trying again came along.  If I hadn't been able to make Oatmeal or Snickerdoodles, I may not have made it at all. 

The relevance of this is very profound, since I married a man who loves cookies as much as baseball or family.  He is powerless against even the most modestly tasty cookie- so one can only imagine how I must have felt when four years ago, after a fresh batch of nasties came out of the oven, he replied "no thank  you" without even looking me in the eyes.  NO THANK YOU? .....NO THANK YOU???? Naturally, I was furious.  I proceeded to chip the rest of the cookies off of the cookie sheet and let them shatter into the compost bin.  Then I waited..... and then these appeared.  They are perfect- chewy, but with a bit of a crispness to the edge and they stay soft until the very last cookie is gone.  They are rich and toffee-like, but not so much that you can't eat the whole batch if you are so inclined.

The Cookies (makes 22-24 cookies: serves 1)

Ingredients:

• 1-3/4C unbleached all-purpose flour*
• 1/2t baking soda
• 14T (1-3/4sticks) unsalted butter**
• 1/2C granulated sugar
• 3/4C packed dark brown sugar
• 1t table salt
• 2t vanilla
• 1 large egg (umbilical cords removed, obviously)
• 1 large egg  yolk (remove these, too)
• 1 to1-1/4C semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 C chopped pecans or walnuts (totally optional- These don't fly in our household)

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 375 and adjust oven rack to middle position.
2.  Line large baking sheet with parchment paper.
3.  Whisk flour(s) and baking soda together in small/medium bowl and set aside.
4.  Heat 10T of the butter in a small/medium skilled over medium heat until melted, about 2 minutes.  Then continue cooking with heat on med-high swirling pan continuously until butter is dark golden brown and has a nutty aroma- 1-3 minutes longer.  Remove the skillet front the heat and, using large heatproof spatula, transfer the browned butter to a large heatproof bowl.  Stir the remaining 4T butter into the hot butter until completely melted.
5.  Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla to the bowl with the butter and whisk until incorporated.  Add the egg and yolk and whisk until mixture is smooth with no sugar lumps left, about 30 sec.  Let the mix stand and rest for 3 minutes, then whisk for 30 sec.  Repeat the process of resting and whisking 2 more times- it will become thick, shiny and smooth. 
6.  Using spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture until just combined, then stir in chips (and nuts) until just completely combined.
7.  Scoop in 2T heaps (I use a cookie/ice cream scooper) onto prepared sheets, leaving ample space for the cookie to spread out.  I put ~8 per sheet.
8.  Bake cookies one tray at a time until cookies are golden brown and still puffy and edges have begun to set, but centers are still soft- about 9-12 minutes.  If you are quite particular, you can rotate the pan half way through for complete perfection.  Transfer to wire rack to cool if you think they will last that long.

*I often mix white and whole wheat with no flavor or texture sacrifice- that makes them healthy, right?
**If you don't have unsalted butter in your pantry, reduce the salt in the recipe by maybe 1/2 or so

NOTE:  Important final note here.... Do not be put off by the apparent extra steps of melting the butter and such.  First of all, they are so flipping good, you will never go back once you have tried them.  Second of all, it is actually quite a time saving measure given that you no longer need to go through the arm aching steps of creaming the butter and sugars together.  Plus, while you are letting it all rest for 3 minutes, you can get all of the cleaning done and it is all a wrap when the cookies are out of the oven.  For me, it is much easier than typical recipes.  Try it!


Bubblin' butter in the pan- keep swirling...



Get all those browned bits!





We all need some space



Perfect?

Valenintes greetings to all!





Chicken Marsala Quinoa Casserole (Gluten-Free/Dairy Adaptable)



It ain't pretty, but it's tasty!

This was adapted from this recipe that I found in the Seattle Times.  It happened to come out on the exact day that all of the necessary ingredients arrived in my CSA box. Quinoa? Crimini mushrooms? Sweet potatoes? Booze?  Sign me up!  Only one snag here...... I find Marsala wine most distasteful.  Gratefully, this was easily remedied with a mix n' match with some goodies from the liquor cupboard- and even better that I made it during nap time, thereby making it totally acceptable to be sampling the sweet boozey nectar before 5:00pm PST.  For those of you who like Marsala wine, this will be even easier, but you may have to forgo the sampling.

Anyway, collectively our family thought this was a delicious wintry meal with rich, hearty, stick-to-your-ribsedness.  It will certainly be a seasonal player here.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sweet potato, cooked*
• 2 T olive oil
• 12 oz crimini mushrooms, thickly sliced or quartered
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 T fresh thyme leaves, chopped (or 1t dry)
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 11/2t salt, divided
• 1/2t ground black pepper
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed (about 1-1.5lbs)
• 3/4 Marsala wine (or about 1:1 mixed of Dry Vermouth & Sherry wine or Tawny Port)
• 1T cornstarch
• 1/2 heavy cream (I used soy creamer here)
• 4c cooked quinoa, cooled (about 1c dry: 2c water)
• 2 eggs
• pinch nutmeg
• 1/2c Parmesan or Pecorino cheese

*for cooking the sweet potato, pierce the skin and either roast it in the oven for about 40 minutes or so, or microwave it on high for 6-7 minutes.  I barely know how to reheat Chinese food in the microwave, so please feel free to let me know how this goes, I hear it is a snap.

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. In large skillet over medium-high heat, add the oil, then mushrooms, garlic, thyme, pepper onion plus 1t of the salt and cook until mushrooms have released all of their liquid and onions are very soft and translucent.  (about 8-9 minutes for most folks, I have a need to kill my onions and make them barely recognizable as their former selves, so this step took me about 20 min)
3. While these are cooking, mix together cornstarch, wine and cream in small bowl.
4. Add the chicken to the mushroom/onion skillet and cook until the chicken is browned and almost fully cooked through, then add the wine/cream mixture and bring to simmer. Let simmer 2 minutes.
5. Arrange the chicken and mushroom goodness in and even layer over the bottom of a 2-qt casserole dish.
6. In separate bowl, smash up the peeled sweet potato, then add the cooked quinoa, eggs, remaining 1/2t salt and pinch o' nutmeg and mix it up.
7. Spread the quinoa and such over the top of the chicken and mushroom mixture.  Sprinkle with parm or pecorino an bake for about 25 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbling.



One should never cut onions without the proper equipment

just in the pan



cooked to perfection!





Oatmeal Everyday Cookies (Wheat-free/Adaptable, Dairy-Free/Adaptable)

It has recently come to my attention that bacon is not an everyday food.  Therefore, it seems only fair to have a delightful treat that is.  Hence, the everyday cookie.  This has not been created in this house as Gluten-free, but the incidental wheat free version (since I ran out of whole wheat flour) was great!  My first wheat-free trial was with rye flour and was delicious, but the spelt flour was even better!  I imagine a combination of brown rice flour and maybe buckwheat with 1/2-1tsp xanthan gum would work well for the flour listed below, too.  As with all things Fawnalicious, this is most definitely adaptable to whatever you decide to substitute in it where you see fit for your taste and what you are trying to use up in your fridge!  Don't have a banana around?  Use more yam or maybe applesauce.  No yam?  Use butternut squash....  The real issue here is how to still maintain the mystique of a cookie being a treat, while letting your wee ones eat as much as they like since it is packed with goodness.

Ingredients:

• 1C Flour (whole wheat, rye, spelt or GF flours as noted above)
• 1C Old fashion rolled oats
• 1tsp Baking soda
• 1/2tsp Salt
• 1/2tsp Cinnamon
• 1/3C firmly packed brown sugar (Or 2/3c if skipping agave)
• 3T Agave nectar
• 6T butter or non-dairy choice
• 1/2C Banana puree or mashed banana (about one banana is enough without making the flavor too dominant)
• 1/2 C Yam or Sweet potato puree/mash (can sub applesauce...)
• 1tsp Vanilla
• 1lg egg (OK egg white only)
• 1/2 C raisins, currents or cranberries...
• 1/2 C chopped pecans or walnuts if you play that game

Directions: Preheat oven to 350.
1.  In small bowl, thoroughly mix all dry ingredients except sugar together
2.  Cream together butter and sugar in medium bowl til just mixed
3.  Add the pureed veg/banana, egg, agave and vanilla to the butter mixture and combine, then add the dry ingredients and combine til just mixed.
4.  Mix in your currents or raisins and nuts if using.
5.  Scoop heaping tablespoon size  dollops onto greased cookie sheet or parchment lined cookie sheet
6.  Cook 12-15 minutes, then cool on sheet ~2 minutes before transferring to your tummy, I mean cooling rack.

Smushed up banana and roasted yams here

I like currents the best for a non-dominating raisin option

Adapted from a recipe in Deceptively Delicious, by Jessica Seinfeld.

Cilantro Pesto

I am what you may call a Cilantrophobe.  While I do think it is beautiful in its leafy green state in the ground, I find the smell, taste and flavor most unpleasant.  I don't totally mind it if a little is in with my salsa, but when I bite into one of those big leafs, it is like having a big bite of soap on my chip or something.  Anyway, when cilantro showed up in my CSA box this week, I was seriously not sure what to do.  I couldn't think of any single thing that I would want to eat that I could make to use it.  However, I very much dislike wasting anything, so I decided to do what I do with parsley (only slightly less offensive than cilantro), which is make a pesto with it.  This way, when I get that recipe that calls for cilantro, I don't have to either skip it and wonder if it really made a difference- or worse yet, go buy some just to get one tablespoon for a recipe or something.  I have to admit, having parsley pesto in my freezer has made for a very handy addition to pasta salads and quinoa salads and fish and .......Anyway, I figured salt and garlic could only help the flavor and wouldn't likely conflict with any recipe I may stumble upon that would ask for the dreaded herb.  Much to my amazement and a mix of delight and shame, I found myself actually eating this out of the food processor with a spoon.  It is delicious!  This recipe is adapted from one out of my favorite cookbook by Mark Bittman called How to Cook Everything.

PS: Here is a link to the usual house fav around here: Spinach Basil Pesto

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch cilantro leaves (top stems ok), rinsed and patted dry
• 1 clove garlic
• 3T olive oil
• 1-2T freshly squeezed lime juice
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions
Pulse/blend all ingredients together in blender or food processor until it is the consistency you are looking for.  I prefer it to be fairly coarsely chopped up, so I probably pulsed mine 10x at 1-2s pulses.

Optional next step to freeze in 1-2T amounts in ice cube tray for a few hours.  You can either store them in the tray, or transfer them to a different container to keep frozen.

If freezing, simply take a cube out of the freezer 10 minutes or so before use to thaw!

This will be delicious in salads, pasta salads, dressings, on fish or maybe even a marinade for pork, not to mention in salsas.....

Chicken Pot Pie (Gluten-Free/Adaptable, Dairy-Free/Adaptable)

I am delighted about this recipe!!  It is really fun to have good comfort food made on deep winter nights.  It is even more fun for me to be able to lighten them up and deglutinify them without losing flavor for a GF option.  In fact, in the batch I just made, I didn't have enough chicken, so I substituted extra-firm tofu for half of the meat and I think it was great.  If you don't do meat (of course you probably wouldn't be reading this, now would you?) or if you have a vegetarian friend you are making dinner for, you could easily substitute tofu for the chicken and maybe mushroom stock for the chicken stock and be in business.  Furthermore, I decided to freeze half of this so I could try it with pie crust and biscuits while seeing how well it held up to the freezing process and it held up beautifully!
Ingredients
Serves 6-8

• 6 carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/4inch dice
• 2-4 ribs celery, cut into 1/4 inch dice
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 2 garlic cloves, minced or finely grated
• 2t fresh thyme, minced (or 1/2t dried)
• 1t vegetable oil
• salt
• 1/4 cup dry sherry*
• 3c low sodium chicken broth
• 2 bay leaves
• 2lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1/4c cornstarch or flour (I used Gluten-Free flour)
• 1/4c half & half (I used MimicCream, I bet plain almond milk would work)
• 1c frozen green peas
• 2T minced fresh parsley
• 1 recipe of Cream or Buttermilk Biscuits or 1 double Pie Crust recipe

*I didn't have any dry sherry, so I used a 3:1 mix of a delicious Tawny Port and Dry Vermouth from my bar.  Worked great!

Directions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 425.
2. Combine carrots, celery, onion, garlic, thyme, oil and 1/2t salt in large pot or Dutch oven.  Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until veggies have softened, about 10-12 minutes.
3. Stir in the sherry, broth, bay leaves and chicken and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally until chicken is no longer pink inside, about 8 minutes or so. 
4. While chicken is cooking, whisk cornstarch or flour in with the half & half or substitute of your choice.  When chicken is cooked through, add the cornstarch or flour mixture into the sauce and continue to simmer until sauce has thickened, about 1 minute or so.
5. Take filling off of heat.  Discard bay leaves and stir in the peas and parsley and salt and pepper to taste, then pour into 9x13inch pan.

***Two options to assemble and bake depending on your choice of pie crust or biscuit topping***

For Pot Pie with Biscuits:

With filling in oven safe pan, top with biscuits as shown below, then bake until biscuits are golden brown and filling is bubbly, about 20 minutes.  Let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

For Pot Pie with Pie Crust:
Roll crust into 11x15inch size rectangle and place over the top of the filled pan, then tuck over the edges and pinch gently to make it pretty!

Pretty pie crusts clearly aren't my thing, but this gluten-free beauty was delish!

Since I dislike fresh parsley (or worse, cilantro), during the summer, I grow a bunch of it and make various pestos and freeze them in cubes.  This way, I have something tasty and nearly fresh in a pinch year-round

This meal, like all others, is best served with the Kale salad!

Cream Biscuits & Buttermilk Biscuits (Gluten-Free/Adaptable & Dairy-Free Adaptable)

I have been making lots of biscuits lately.  I have been craving Chicken Pot Pie and wanting to get the biscuits right before pulling it off.  Also, they are super fun to make with Mia.  She loves to pat them down and smush them and mix them and fling them around.  Somehow she also discovered that the dough is delicious and now I have to restrain her from eating them all raw.

Anyway, these are easy to make, reduced in fat from the typical biscuit, fast, tasty and easily modified for the Gluten-Free or Dairy-Free eater.  So many reasons to make delicious biscuits tonight!  I'd say start-to-finish-in-my-mouth 30-40 minutes depending on how much help I get.

They are great plain or with butter and jam, honey or agave- or maybe make a breakfast sandwich with eggs and ham? yes!

Buttermilk* Biscuits: (Adapted from The America's Test Kitchen Family Edition)

Ingredients:

• 2C All Purpose Flour (I used Tom Sawyer's GF flour)
• 2t Baking Powder
• 1/2t Baking Soda
• 3/4t Salt
• 4T Unsalted Butter, melted and cooled (can use Earth Balance Spread as a pretty good sub)
• 2/3c Buttermilk*

*A great way to sub for buttermilk is to use 1c milk mixed with 1t white vinegar and let stand for 5 minutes until thickened.  In my case, to avoid the dairy, I have used soy milk, 'whole grain drink', MimicCream and others.  All work great!

 Directions:

1.  Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat to 450.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in large bowl.
3. In separate bowl, whisk melted butter and buttermilk* together
4. Gently stir the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with spatula until just combined (do not over mix or biqs will get tough and the absolute opposite of flaky)
5. Gently roll out or pat out on floured surface until about 3/4" thick
6. With 2-1/2"biscuit cutter or upside-down cup, cut out biscuits and place on parchment lined baking sheet for 11-13 minutes, until golden brown.

Cream* Biscuits(Adapted from The America's Test Kitchen Family Edition)
Now, these are even faster and equally tasty!

Ingredients:

• 2C All Purpose Flour (I used Tom Sawyer's GF flour)
• 2t Sugar
• 2t Baking powder
• 3/4t Salt
• 1-1/2c Heavy Cream or MimicCream

  Directions:

1.  Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat to 450.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together in large bowl.
3. Stir in cream until dough forms, about 30s.
4. Gently roll out or pat out on floured surface until about 3/4" thick
5. With 2-1/2"biscuit cutter or upside-down cup, cut out biscuits and place on parchment lined baking sheet for 11-13 minutes, until golden brown.

MimicCream

A great Dairy/Cream substitute for baking, cooking coffee!  Made with nuts and other Delicious goodness, this is a great allergen-free kitchen booster.