House of Annie

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Recipe for Dirt Cookies

These chewy cookies are so addictive, people will be begging for more.

I first tried these dirt cookies when my friend Nana made them for a party. They are seriously addictive! And why not when you consider what is in them. In order to make these cookies, you need to first buy some Oreo cookies and crush them up. Then the Oreos are incorporated into the batter and baked. That’s a cookie within a cookie!
I regretted not posting them for Halloween because these cookies are great for Halloween since they look like dirt (hence the name) and fits the Halloween theme. However, they are so good that they deserve to be baked any time at all and especially now during the Christmas baking season. Be a rebel and bake these instead of the usual pretty, fancied up Christmas cookies. ^_^

You Like Me, You Really Like Me

I just recently made a batch here in Malaysia and when they came out, Nate and I had a little discussion about how Malaysians might not like them as they are a chewy cookie (remember in my chocolate chip cookie post I mentioned that most Asian cookies, or biscuits as they are known, are crisp, seldom soft and chewy?). We decided to share them anyway. Nate brought a container-full to work and I brought a container-full to a ladies’ gathering.

Container-Full of Dirt Cookies

Guess what? Nate’s container came home empty and mine came home almost empty. AND a few of the ladies came home with me and helped me bake up another half batch because they loved the cookies so much that they wanted to learn how to make it. Guess there are people here who like chewy cookies after all.
I have not yet met anyone who does not like these cookies. I think it’s the Oreos in them. You know how you can never just eat one Oreo cookie? Well, I think that is why it’s really hard to only eat one of these dirt cookies. If you are going to bake them, make sure you have lots of people to share them with lest you end up eating the whole batch yourself.
You’ve been warned!

Tips on Getting Dirty

Some notes on making these cookies. If you crush the Oreos just a little and leave them in bigger chunks, they will look “cleaner” and less “dirt-like” but if you crush the Oreos fine, you’ll end up with a more uniform cookie that looks “dirty” so depending on what effect you want to achieve, crush them accordingly.
The refrigeration time is pretty important. Even though the recipe says to chill for 1/2 hour before using, I find that if you can chill it for an hour, the cookie will not flatten as much and will be prettier and chewier.
Also, I always cut the sugar in my cookies and this one even more so because Oreos are already sweet. I will list the recipe in its original form but please feel free to hold back on the white sugar (I normally lessen it by 1/3). And never forget to include the salt—salt in cookies accentuates them and give them that extra addictive hit.

Dirt Cookies Recipe

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups (about 11 oz) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup white sugar (or less, I use about 2/3 cup)
1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 cup (8 oz) butter, softened at room temperature
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups Oreo cookies, crushed up (into pea sized pieces or smaller), you can put it in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin or put into food processor and pulse until they are crumbly, about 20 cookies total

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt (I find that this isn’t really necessary, mixing them together with a whisk or spoon is fine). Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, cream butter with white and brown sugar.
4. Mix in eggs and vanilla.
5. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
6. Stir in cookies. Chill for 1/2 hour (I find that 1 hour or more is better).

Crushed Oreos Mixed into Dirt Cookie Batter

mixing crushed oreos into dirt cookie batter

7. Grease cookie sheets. Drop cookie batter on sheet and bake for 10-11 mins or until edges begin to brown. They will still be quite soft when you take them out of the oven.

Baked and Unbaked Dirt Cookies

8. Transfer to wire rack and cool.
Start eating them and try to stop! Really yummy with a cup of coffee or tea.
Enjoy!
Cheers, Annie

Continue Reading: "Recipe for Dirt Cookies"...

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe

These Chinese almond cookies are way better than any restaurant cookie. Flaky-crumbly, yummy, and impossible to resist.

Chinese Almond Cookies

Updated 20 Dec 2009
Originally posted 14 March 2007
The first time I ever had these almond cookies was when I received them as a favor for my bridal shower. They were so delicious I literally inhaled those cookies! Aunty Charlene (sister to Aunty Marlene, who gave me that wonderful banana muffin recipe) told me that she got the recipe from her dad a long time ago. Thankfully, she was willing to share her recipe with me and since that time, I’ve made it for countless occasions. I even use them as favors at my kids’ birthday parties now (talk about coming full circle!).

Catching Up

It was through one of these birthday parties that our good friend J and her kids got to try my almond cookies. She has been asking me for the recipe for a long while and I kept meaning to put it up but somehow just never got around to it. The good news is we actually got to bake these almond cookies with J’s kids before we left San Jose. So even though that was a few months’ back and I still had not posted the recipe, at least she got a hard copy of it. (Sorry J for taking so long!)
This almond cookie recipe is very kid-friendly! You basically dump all the ingredients into your mixer, mix till you get a dough, roll them into balls and press down the center with some food coloring. Bake, and tadah! Beautiful cookies.

Beautiful, Chinese Almond Cookies

What I love about this almond cookie is how flaky and yummy they are. The other almond cookie recipe we posted recently is also wonderful but they are chewy and quite sweet. This one is a Chinese Almond Cookie so if you have Asian tastebuds like me and like to have your sweets, well…less sweet, this is the cookie for you. Also, if you’re Chinese (read: pake) like me, this one is the cheaper cookie to bake up. Tee hee! ^_^
And here is the most amazing thing—even though this is an Almond cookie, you don’t actually need to put any almonds in it at all. If you use imitation almond essence (I can’t believe I’m saying this), for all the nut-allergy people in your midst, this could be totally friendly for them. I have a friend who is deathly allergic to nuts and I’ve served him this cookie with no problems (when I use that “fake” almond flavoring).
Of course, if you don’t have any allergy issues, I’d say go with the real almond extract and substitute some of the flour with almond meal. That would kick up the almond flavor big time.

Pure Almond Extract

Either ways, you can’t really go wrong. The cookie is super delicious and crumbly in texture. It reminds me of another Chinese cookie known as Hup Toh Soh (maybe it’s even the same one and this is just the name it’s known as here in Malaysia).
Try this Chinese almond cookie recipe and let me know if you can stop at just one. I’ve never been able to eat just one at a go. It’s that good.

Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe

makes about 5 dozen cookies
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Crisco shortening (Crisco really is the best brand for this but if you cannot find it, just any shortening will do, and don’t substitute with butter or you will not get the texture right)
1 cup vegetable oil (I use canola but any vegetable oil will do)
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 Tbsp almond extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C).
2. Sift flour, salt and baking soda (sometimes I get lazy and don’t do this step but it does help the cookie bake up better).
3. Combine all the ingredients and mix till it forms a dough.
4. Roll the dough into balls about the size of large marbles
5. Place them on cookie sheets about one and a half inches apart.
6. Indent the center of the cookie using the back of a chopstick that has been dipped into red food coloring. Press down about halfway through the thickness of the cookie. Alternately, you can put a half slice of almond in the center in place of the red food coloring.

Chinese Almond Cookies Ready to Bake

7. Bake 10-15 minutes till the cookies are just lightly golden brown around the edges.
8. Transfer to wire rack and cool.

Chinese Almond Cookies Ready to Eat

Enjoy!
Cheers, Annie
What cookies are you baking up this holiday season? Leave a comment and tell us about it!

Continue Reading: "Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe"...

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Ultimate Italian Almond Macaroons

WARNING: this is NOT a cheap cookie!

Ultimate Italian Almond Macaroons

So I had checked out FoodGal Carolyn Jung's blog right before Christmas last year, when she had posted a recipe for this cookie. She said it was the one cookie that she did every year and she always got requests for the cookie. Her post was so compelling that I went out that week and got myself all I needed to make this cookie.
It was such a simple recipe! It is a little bit messy and gooey when rolling the cookie dough in the slivered almonds but the resulting cookie is a delight—a really yummy, chewy, almond delight. And the smell of the almonds when it’s baking will get you in the holiday mood like nothing else. The fragrance is so amazing!

Tips and Techniques

These cookies may be simple to make, but they aren’t cheap. It takes 2 1/2 tubes of almond paste to make one batch of these cookies. We paid $8 at Safeway for one 7 ounce tube of almond paste. (Does anybody know where you can get it cheaper?)

7 oz Tube of Almond Paste: $8

The recipe calls for you to combine the almond paste and sugar in a food processor—I just used my mini prep and that worked fine but if you don’t have either, don’t let that hinder you. Try chopping it up with a knife or even using a mortar and pestle—the main key is to get it crumbly and then whisking in the sugar. You could also use your mixer to do the job.
The one thing I had problems with was rolling the cookies out. After mixing the egg whites into the almond paste mix, the resulting mixture was pretty sticky and gooey. So I used a spoon to scoop out the mix and dropped it into a plate that had the slivered almonds. I gently rolled the mix around the almonds and then picked it up and put it on my baking tray. I was a little worried that the cookie wouldn’t bake up well but it was really pretty once baked.
If you don’t know what to do with all those egg yolks after baking this recipe, may I recommend you try making either my banana cream pie or my lemon curd which calls for egg yolks. The lemon curd would make a wonderful gift for friends for the season as well. A bag of Italian macaroons and a jar of lemon curd—your friends will love you for the homemade goodness you bring!

Italian Almond Macaroon

makes about 5 dozen) taken from FoodGal’s blog which she adapted from “Classic Home Desserts”
Ingredients
1 lb almond paste
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 large egg whites
About 1 lb slivered almonds
Method
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line 2 or 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Be sure to measure the almond paste accurately, as too little almond paste will create a super sticky dough that will be harder to work with (I got a sticky dough anyway, but don’t let that deter you!).
3. Break almond paste into pieces. Place in bowl of a food processor with the sugar. Pulse into almond paste is crumbled finely, and evenly combined with sugar.

4. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites to soft peaks (I actually beat them till they were fairly stiff). Stir a little of the egg whites into the almond mixture; it will be fairly dry. Fold in remaining whites.

Folding egg whites into almond paste and sugar

5. Place slivered almonds in a shallow bowl. Roll almond paste mixture into 1-inch balls, keeping them as round as possible. If mixture is too sticky, alternately drop heaping teaspoonfuls into the bowl of almonds; use your fingers to roll the dough ball around until coated evenly with slivered almonds.

rolling cookie dough in slivered almonds

6. Place on prepared baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart.

7. Bake cookies until evenly pale gold, 15 to 17 minutes.
8. Cool cookies in pans on a wire rack for about 5 minutes. With a spatula, very carefully transfer cookies to the rack to cool completely. I could tell you that they store well but I suspect they will be gone in no time at all.

Ultimate Italian Almond Macaroons

I brought these cookies to a Christmas party and they were gone very quickly and I got lots of compliments for them. Personally, I thought they were a little too sweet (for my Asian tastebuds) but it was pretty addictive and I *managed* to munch on several before getting to the party!
Enjoy!
Cheers, Annie

Hungry for more festive baking recipes? Click below:

Pavlova Recipe
Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Pandan Chiffon Cake
Homemade Pineapple Tarts
Almond Cookies

Continue Reading: "Ultimate Italian Almond Macaroons"...

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Digital Kitchen Scale

Recently, someone asked me why I post so many of my recipes in Metric measures (you know who you are!) instead of cups and Imperial measures. I said, "Well, I'm from Malaysia and we measured all our cooking and baking in grams." To which she responded, "You're in the US now, so get with it!" Ok, well, there are other reasons I do so.

Firstly, instead of cups, weighing your ingredients provides the best, most accurate measurement (more so when you're baking). Secondly, a lot of my recipes were handed to me from family and friends or cookbooks from Malaysia so the measurements are already written out that way (and if you really need to do the conversion, just Google it). And finally, even Alton Brown says it's much better to weigh your ingredients (especially flour) and metric measures are much more accurate (smaller units) so you get a more precise amount.

No Metric Measures (This Time!)

Okay fine, for those of you who've been turned off from trying my recipes because of the metric, here's one for you. (But seriously folks, get thee that kitchen scale I keep trying to convince you to buy and your life will be so much easier!)

This chocolate chip cookie recipe comes from my friend Gina. She is a wonderful baker and comes from a family of good bakers. I know this after having tried all the yummy baked goods her mom sent to her in Hawaii.

Chocolate chip cookies must be about as American as you can get. I think I've always identified this cookie as the American cookie (Famous Amos did that to us Malaysians). And I just love the chewy, soft texture of this chocolate chip cookie.

In Malaysia, most of our cookies are crispy or crumbly (yes, even the Famous Amos ones were crisp). I don't think I had tried a chewy cookie until I got to the US. I loved it so much that when I went home to Malaysia for a visit, I baked them this cookie. Sad to say, my family thought my cookies had "lau hong" (become stale) because they were chewy. Sigh....

Delicious Cookie Dough

Oh well, their loss, my gain. I absolutely love the taste of this cookie dough. The cookie dough is so delicious that I almost love it more than the chocolate chips. Sacrilege I know. But this last time I made it, I used Scharffen Berger chocolate chunks and they really took this cookie to another level. Both together created the best of both worlds cookie!

I also love nuts in my chocolate chip cookies. I normally use walnuts (and always end up adding more than the recipe calls for) but I have also tried it with other nuts like macadamia nuts and pecans.

I have also added Heath bar chunks to it before. I got this idea from a friend who sent me chocolate chip cookies last Christmas. But when I tried it, I got overzealous in chopping up the bar and they ended up being too small to really get a nice crunch to the cookie. So, if you do add Heath bar chunks, better make sure they remain in pretty large chunks.

Texture and Time

Now, because this recipe is in cup measure, your flour might be too little or too much. It does make a difference because it will be the difference between really nice shaped cookies that look very inviting or flat cookies that are more crispy and not as chewy.

How I tell is the texture of the cookie dough. If it's too sticky, you will need to add a bit more flour. I don't really know how to describe the perfect feel of the cookie dough but if you practice enough, you will understand after a few batches (and c'mon, choc chip cookies are something you should make at least once a month if not more often so you should be able to easily get enough practice!).

As for baking, let me just tell you that you should pretty much stick to the time suggested. When I first baked this cookie (remember in Malaysia we only did crispy, crunchy, crumbly cookies), after the timer buzzed, I took it out and it was so soft that I thought, "it's not done!" and stuck it in again for five more minutes. Took it out, and it was still soft, so I stuck it in again.

Yeah, when I finally took it out and let it cool, I could've put someone's eye out with it. So, a word from the real novice, it should be golden brown around the edges and still soft when you take it out. But you guys knew that right? I'm the only idiot without a clue! But just in case there's another idiot out there like me...

Alright, on to the recipe!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter (but I've used salted butter with no problems)
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar (by the way, I always cut the sugars by 1/4-1/3, it's just me so it's up to you on that one)
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
6 oz chocolate chips/chunks
1/2 cup chopped nuts (or more if you're like me)
1 bar Heath toffee, cut into large chunks (optional)

Method
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Place parchment paper over cookie sheets.
2. Cream brown sugar and white sugar with butter. Don't overmix to the point of becoming fluffy.

3. Add eggs and vanilla extract and mix well.
4. Stir in dry ingredients. At this point, the dough will get pretty stiff. I just use the lowest speed setting on the Kitchen Aid to help me but it does help to mix by hand at the end.
5. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts and Heath bar chunks.

6. Pinch off golf ball sized chunk of dough and place on cookie sheet. They don't have to be rolled up neatly. Just getting a rough round shape is good enough (I like the funky odd dents and mounds in choc chip cookies, don't you?). Make sure to space the cookies about an inch apart.

7. Bake in preheated oven for about 9-12 minutes until the edges are golden brown.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

By the way, notice how the cookies on the left are taller than the ones on the right. Why the difference? The one on the left was baked on a pan covered by a Silpat silicone baking mat, while the one on the right was baked on a pan covered by just non-stick aluminum foil. The foil heated up faster and caused the dough to spread out faster before setting. Better to use parchment paper, but it's still not too bad.

Enjoy!

Cheers, Annie

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Hungry for more baked goods? Click Below:

Pandan Chiffon Cake

Homemade Pineapple Tarts, Part 2

Red Velvet Cupcakes

The Best Cream Scones Recipe Ever

Third Aunt's Butter Cake

Continue Reading: "Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe"...

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Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Recipe for Dirt Cookies

You Like Me, You Really Like Me

Container-Full of Dirt Cookies

Tips on Getting Dirty

Dirt Cookies Recipe

Crushed Oreos Mixed into Dirt Cookie Batter

Baked and Unbaked Dirt Cookies

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe

Chinese Almond Cookies

Catching Up

Beautiful, Chinese Almond Cookies

Pure Almond Extract

Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe

Chinese Almond Cookies Ready to Bake

Chinese Almond Cookies Ready to Eat

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Ultimate Italian Almond Macaroons

Ultimate Italian Almond Macaroons

Tips and Techniques

7 oz Tube of Almond Paste: $8

Italian Almond Macaroon

Ultimate Italian Almond Macaroons

Hungry for more festive baking recipes? Click below:

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Digital Kitchen Scale

No Metric Measures (This Time!)

Delicious Cookie Dough

Texture and Time

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hungry for more baked goods? Click Below:

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