Chocolate Bliss Cookies...

This Christmas...

Chocolate Bliss Cookies
Makes 22 Cookies

2-2/3 cups (250 g) semisweet chocolate chips, divided 
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 large cold egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 325F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Put 2/3 cup of chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl or the top of a double boiler and place it over a saucepan, and not touching, barely simmering water. Stir in the chocolate chips until melted and smooth. Remove from water; set aside.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and sugars until smoothly blended, about one minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix in the melted chocolate until blended. Add the egg and vanilla, mixing until blended, about one minute. Add the flour mixture, mixing just until it is incorporated. Mix in the remaining 1-1/2 to 2 cups chocolate chips.

Place heaping tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing cookies two-inches apart. Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until they crack slightly on the top and a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cookie, not a chocolate chip, comes out with moist crumbs and not wet batter, about 15 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Store cookies in an airtight covered container at room temperature for up to four days.

Loads of chocolate chips for the chocolate lover in you!

Here is a round up of my holiday treats: No-Bake White Chocolate Cranberry Pecan Clusters and Fruit and Nut "Fudge", S'Mores Cookie Crisps, Make-Ahead Ice Box Sugar Cookies, Big-Batch Kris Kringle Cookies, and Milk Chocolate Scones.

Milk Chocolate Scones...

What can be better than waking up to the wonderful smell of baked goodness wafting out of the oven? That was my kids' morning.. as soon as their feet touched the ground, they were racing out to the top of the stairs, singing in unison, "mmmmm..." Who can blame them?... milk chocolate scones for an indulgent breakfast that is not-too-sweet and not too big. Adapted from a Canadian Living recipe, these minis are half the size of scones I usually make yielding just the right amount for putting together a plate for my son's school and for us to enjoy! 

Last day of school everyone... Happy Friday and Happy Holidays All!

Milk Chocolate Scones
Makes 18 small scones

3/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp. whipping cream, divided
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
4 tsp.  baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed (freeze for 10 minutes- extra cold butter creates tender scones)
1 cup milk chocolate chips or 2  bars (100 g) good-quality milk chocolate, chopped

icing sugar for dusting if desired

Whisk together 3/4 cup cream, eggs and vanilla; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Use you fingers to work the butter into the flour mixture, until coarsely crumbled with a few that are pea-sized (this way will create tender and flaky scones). Stir in chocolate. With fork, stir in cream mixture until dough forms (do not over-mix or it will toughen the dough).

Turn out onto lightly floured surface; knead once or twice until dough comes together. Pat into 9-inch square; cut into 9 squares. Halve each square diagonally. Place, 1 inch apart, on parchment paper–lined baking sheet. Make-ahead TIP: Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.

A baking scraper is an indispensable tool for a baker to slice and scrape dough.

Brush remaining 1 Tbsp. whipping cream over scones. Bake in 450ºF oven until tops are golden, 11 to 12 minutes. Dust with icing sugar. Serve warm or cool before packing. 

Tender and flaky scones dotted with milk chocolate goodness greeted teachers this morning!

Tomorrow, we have Chocolate Bliss Cookies... If you love chocolate, as the name accurately implies, this one's for you....

Big-Batch Kris Kringle Cookies...

White chocolate-cranberries-and-pecan nut combo fans can rejoice in this tasty festive-looking cookie!  This recipe makes a big batch perfect for lots of company munching over Kris Kringle activities and for gifting too of course. Adapted from Kraft, these bake up soft and thick in the centre, and crispy and chewy on the edges with just the right bite of sweetness. This is certainly one cookie that is guaranteed to be a hit!

Big-Batch Kris Kringle Cookies

Makes 40 cookies

1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 pkg. (170 g each) Baker's White Chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 cup milk chocolate chips (or substitute with another package of Baker's white chocolate)
1-1/2 cups dried cranberries
1-1/2 cups chopped pecans

Position racks in top and bottom thirds of oven. Heat oven to 375°F. Beat butter and sugars in large bowl with mixer until creamy. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Mix flour and baking soda. Gradually add to butter mixture, beating after each addition until blended. Stir in chocolates, cranberries and nuts. 

Drop heaping tablespoons of dough, two inches apart, onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake, switching sheets halfway through, until cookies are golden, about 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on baking sheets three minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Store in airtight sealed container for up to three days.

Do-It-Easy TIP: Use one tablespoon to scoop dough and another to push it off.

Gorgeous!

My cookie bake-off is complete in time for wrapping up the various kinds into teachers' gifts.

And for my dear neighbours... a sweet cookie tray ensemble. 

The second row are Chocolate Bliss Cookies and the rest are four flavours of Icebox Cookies.

Next up.... Milk Chocolate Scones. Baking them first thing in the morning as a breakfast treat for Matias' Montessori school staff and principal of close to a dozen. Some have been my twins' past teachers and my festive baking has been a welcomed tradition there for four years. Can't wait!!  

Make-Ahead Icebox Sugar Cookies...

The beauty of Icebox cookies (called as such because you refrigerate the dough before baking it) is that they are ideal for the hectic holidays because you can make the dough up to a month ahead, shape them into logs, freeze then thaw them when you're ready to slice and bake. I really love this basic butter-and-sugar dough by Chatelaine. You can add in whatever your heart desires, and for a little variety on something nice and sweet as teacher gifts, I am going to offer four flavours: candy cane, maple walnut, citrus fruitcake and mocha. These are also perfect as presents for busy friends- just wrap and freeze logs of homemade cookie dough and include slice-and-bake instructions.

Make-Ahead Icebox Sugar Cookies
Makes 55 to 60 cookies

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup granulated sugar

From left to right: candy cane, maple walnut, mocha and citrus fruitcake 

Bag candy canes, seal and smack with side of chef's knife.

Stir flour with baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside. Beat butter with sugar in a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture, just until combined. 

For the variations I chose to make, here are the recipe adaptations:

Candy Cane: Omit vanilla. Add 1/2 cup finely chopped candy canes to flour mixture.

Maple Walnut: Omit vanilla. Add 1/2 cup finely chopped toasted walnuts to flour mixture. Add 1/4 cup maple syrup with egg.

Citrus Fruitcake: Omit vanilla. Add 3 Tbsp. each finely chopped red and green glacé cherries, and candied lemon peel, 1 tsp. cinnamon to flour mixture. Add 1 tsp. lemon extract or 1/4 tsp. lemon oil with egg.

Mocha: Add 1/3 cup cocoa powder and 1 Tbsp. instant-coffee granules to flour mixture.

Four bowls for four flavours. NOTE: I made the base recipe twice, halved to make four flavours. 
Just follow recipe to make 55-60 cookies each or/ divided to make two flavours 30 cookies each.

Gather into a ball. Divide dough in half, then roll each portion into a 2-inch wide log. Wrap logs in wax/parchment paper and twist ends. Chill until firm, 1 to 1-1/2 hours.

I like to gather my dough into logs right in their bowls.

Lightly squeeze entire log to mold an even cylindrical shape.

To roll, wrap one end of the paper over the log and use your fingers to
pull in the log while your thumbs hold it in place. Roll up and twist ends.

Chill prepared logs on a tray.

Position racks in top and bottom thirds of oven. Preheat to 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Slice cookies into 1/4-inch rounds and arrange 1-inch apart on prepared sheets. Bake, switching sheets halfway through, until cookies are golden, about 12 to 15 minutes. 

Use the upper and lower thirds of your oven to bake two sheets at a time, rotating halfway.

Let cookies cool on sheets for one minute, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough. Cookies will keep well, stored in an airtight container at room temperature, up to five days. Make-Ahead TIP: Keep dough in freezer up to one month. Thaw overnight in refrigerator before using.

Piling on the cooled cookies to make room for the hot-out-of-the-oven ones!

Makes for a lovely sweet treat tray to serve guests with coffee or tea.

Betcha' can't eat just one?

Matias is my cookie monster! GRRR...

If you enjoy the lovely combo of white chocolate, dried cranberries and pecans as much as I do, come back tomorrow for some delicious big-batch cookies fabulous for a large gathering such as Kris Kringle... 

S'mores Cookie Crisps...

The spirit of festive baking begins today with a decadent chewy childhood favourite we never outgrow... S'mores as a cookie! This is a recipe I make all year-round but it seems particularly scrumptious for winter... sweet graham cracker crumbs serve as the base, milk chocolate chips and snowy marshmallows dancing throughout with an avalanche of chocolate drizzle. The fun continues when during baking, the marshmallows automatically melt into caramelized crispy bits all over creating a sublime chewy and crispy texture. And surprisingly not overly sweet. If heaven can be encased in a cookie, this one is it...

S'mores Cookie Crisps

Makes two dozen cookies

3/4 cup (1-½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups graham-cracker crumbs
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1-½ cups (about 240 g) milk chocolate chips, divided
1-½ cups miniature marshmallows

1/2 Tbsp. canola oil

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until smoothly blended, about 1 minute. Stop mixer and scrape sides of bowl with a spatula. Add egg and vanilla, mixing until blended, about one minute. On low speed, mix in graham cracker crumbs, flour and salt until a soft dough forms that comes away from the sides of the bowl. Mix in one cup chocolate chips and marshmallows.

Divide the dough into 24 balls and drop onto prepared baking sheets. Flatten slightly to about ¾-inch thickness. Bake sheets side by side in the centre of oven or if they don't fit on the same rack, one sheet at a time until tops feel firm and marshmallows near edges of cookies have melted and become clear and caramelized, about 15 minutes. (Some of the marshmallows in the centre will remain white, and the cookies will be slightly misshapen) Cool cookies on sheets five minutes before transferring to cooling racks. 

To Make The Chocolate Drizzle: Place remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and oil in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until melted and smooth. Remove from the water and let cool to thicken slightly about ten minutes. Scoop into a sandwich bag and cut a small hole at one corner; carefully press the chocolate to that end, and squeeze to drizzle cookies. You will have more control of the drizzle this way. Otherwise, use a small spoon to drizzle. Leave the cookies to firm for one hour or refrigerate for about 15 minutes.

Store in an airtight container for up to three days.

Melted marshmallows create crispy bits especially around the edges and also craters in the cookie.

My kids love rolling cookie dough and helping out with the baking!

Our floors are clean! :)

Pair it with a mug of hot chocolate on snowy days and melt into chocolate bliss!

Next up is Make-Ahead Icebox Sugar Cookies... a chameleon of a cookie that takes on many charming mix-ins to appease to every taste. Get as creative as you like or go completely classic for the holidays...

White Chocolate Cranberry Pecan Clusters and Fruit and Nut "Fudge"...

To kick-start a series of holiday treats, sharing two of my favourite go-to no-bake delights that are easy to whip up fast with no hot oven involved! :) These are beautiful and perfect to entertain with as an after dinner finger dessert or for gifting in pretty packages for your friends, colleagues and kids' teachers.

I've been making white chocolate clusters year after year. The taste and texture of this three ingredient combination is divine. Easily an inviting treat to bring cheer on your holiday sweets table!

White Chocolate Cranberry Pecan Clusters
Makes about two dozen two-bite sized clusters

1/2 lb. (225 g) white chocolate, chopped into small pieces
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

Cook's NOTE: Toasting nuts adds crunch and intensifies their flavour. To toast nuts in the oven, spread on shallow baking pan. Bake at 350°F for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. To toast nuts on the stove top, cook nuts in ungreased pan/skillet on medium heat until golden brown, stirring frequently.

Buy chocolate discs at a bulk foods store.

Line a large baking sheet with wax or parchment paper. In top of a double boiler over hot water, melt white chocolate; stir until melted and smooth. TIP: Create a double boiler by filling a sauce pot with two inches of water and bringing it to a simmer. Turn the heat off and place a stainless steel bowl on top of the hot water; the bowl should not touch the water.

Remove bowl from heat. Add cranberries and toasted pecans, stirring with a wooden spoon until cranberries and nuts are completely coated with chocolate. Using a tablespoon, drop spoonfuls onto waxed/parchment paper. Let set until chocolate is cool and hardened. Placing it in the fridge to firm up quicker. Store in an airtight container for up to five days.

This is a Kraft Kitchens' recipe. I remember recipe testing this submission by my colleague's mother. It used three of our products and the flavour combo was out of this world! Melted chocolate and marshmallows married harmoniously to create a "fudge-like" texture and the crunchy, fruity and nutty goodness made it the ultimate taste bomb! 

Fruit and Nut "Fudge" (A MUST TRY!)

Makes 32 bite-size pieces

1 package (250 g) Jet-Puffed Miniature Marshmallows
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1 pkg. (225 g) Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate, chopped
20 Honey Maid Graham Wafers, broken into small pieces
1/2 cup halved glacé cherries (use both green and red to make it really festive)
1/2 cup toasted almonds
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Microwave marshmallows and butter in large microwaveable bowl on MEDIUM for two minutes or until marshmallows are puffed; stir until marshmallows are completely melted and mixture is well blended. Add chocolate; stir until melted. Stir in remaining ingredients. (Mixture will be super thick.)

Spread evenly into greased 9 X 5-inch loaf pan. Refrigerate one hour or until firm before cutting into bite-size pieces. NOTE: Best eaten within two days otherwise the graham wafers will lose it's crispiness.

Photo credit: Kraftcanada.com

A yearly tradition of bringing a sweet tray pairing both recipes for my twins' school one year.

Dolling up jars with treats for the teachers and principal!

If you like chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers, you'll love my S'Mores Cookie Crisps... Join me back here tomorrow as I begin my week long holiday cheer bake-off...

Blueberry Oatmeal and Lentil Scones...

I came across this fabulous scones recipe in a Parents Canada magazine. I've always made mine with whipping cream, but when I saw this lighter version using buttermilk and the addition of healthy oats and red lentils, it piqued my curiosity. The texture of cooked lentils takes on the texture of cooked oat flakes great for substituting in baked goods. Here is my slightly adapted version with blueberries, the addition of lemon oil and my process of using fingers to work the cold butter to create super tender and flaky scones. The combination of lemon and blueberry flavours is exquisite. Nice healthier baked goods before I begin tomorrow on a week long baking fest with my favourite more decadent holiday baked and no baked treats for sharing and gifting! Come back everyday and join me....

Blueberry Oatmeal and Lentil Scones
Makes 8 scones

1/4 cup dry red lentils (unlike most beans, lentils do not have to be soaked first)
2 cups flour
1/2 cup oats
1/4 cup golden or brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 cup cold butter, cut into chunks (freeze your butter for 10 minutes; this makes ultra-tender scones)
1/2 cup still frozen blueberries
1/2 cup buttermilk or make your own: 1/2 cup milk and 3/4 Tbsp. white vinegar
1 large egg

1/4 tsp. lemon oil (optional)
coarse sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

In a small saucepan, cover red lentils with water by an inch or two and bring to a simmer; cook for 15-20 minutes, until soft. Drain well and set aside. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

In a bowl or the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Use your fingers to work the cold butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. TIP: This way creates a batch of tender and flaky scones over using a food processor that can over mix. Add the blueberries and drained lentils and toss slightly.

In a small bowl stir the buttermilk, egg and lemon oil together with a fork. Add to the flour mixture, leaving 1 Tbsp. behind for brushing tops, and stir just until combined (Do not over work or the scones will become too firm). Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface and pat into a 6-inch circle. Cut into eight wedges and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet leaving 1-inch space in between. 

Brush tops with remaining buttermilk and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake for 20 minutes, rotating sheet halfway or until golden. Transfer to wire rack and let cool slightly before serving. 

Perfect breakfast treat to start our busy Sunday!

"Mom, I love blueberries and the lemon. I like the sweet crunchy crust too!"

If you like scones, try our all-time family favourite, Lemon Cream Scones with Currants.

Tomorrow, I will share my best of no bake holiday treats- White Chocolate Cranberry Clusters and Fruit and Nut "Fudge"... See you back here!