Outrageous Triple Chocolate Cookies

When we have white chocolate chips in the house, I know it’s time to pull out this recipe. If it seems at all familiar, it has been stuck on the cupboard by the mixer for about a year and a half- I think I was making them for a football game once and it has been there ever since. I first found it in a Betty Crocker cookbook my first semester in Sherman (Fall 05!) That’s Ketti, the former maintenance manager, bowing to me, holding one of these very cookies. Yeah, they’re that good.

Ingredients

• 4 cups chocolate chips
• 2 sticks softened butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2 1/2 cups flour (whole wheat is fine- woo! slight amount of healthiness!)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup white chocolate chips
• 1 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts. Or substitute 1 cup dried cranberries.

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 trays with parchment paper.
• Melt 1 1/2 cups of the chocolate chips. Allow to cool, but not harden.
• Cream butter, brown sugar, vanilla in electric mixer until light and fluffy.
• Beat in eggs, melted chocolate until light and fluffy.
• Add flour, baking soda, salt.
• Mix in remaining 2 1/2 cups chocolate chips, 1 cup white chocolate chips, and nuts/cranberries.
• Drop onto baking sheet, bake for 12-14 minutes (or more, depending on size of cookie.) Centers will appear soft and moist. Cool for 2-3 minutes, remove to wire rack.

Walnut Orange Olive Oil Spice Cake

Phew! That’s a mouthful! I found this on “Luvin Spoonfuls” and made it a couple of days ago, and it turned out quite well. The olive oil disappears into the background; the spices have a more prominent role. Very coffee-cakey;  perfect for breakfast.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups olive oil
• 1 cup milk or plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup fresh orange juice (3 small oranges)
• zest of 2 oranges
• 1/4 cup cognac (optional)
• 2 cups flour (or 1 1/2 cups flour and 1/2 cup semolina, if we have it)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon salt

(for the cinnamon walnut topping)

• 1 cup finely chopped walnuts for topping (optional)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

• Pre-heat oven to 350 and lightly oil either the 12 inch round pan or 13x9 rectangular pan.
• Mix the dry ingredients and make a well in the center
• In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and sugar. Add remaining wet ingredients and the zest. Whisk together
• Add the wet into the dry ingredients and fold to combine. Pour into prepared pan.
• Pour the walnut, sugar, cinnamon mixture onto the cake batter.
• Bake for about 40 minutes to an hour, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is golden brown

Chocolate Ganache

Chocolate ganache may have a fancy name, but it’s really nothing fancy at all. It’s quite simple- a two ingredient affair, and more forgiving than melting chocolate on the stove, since there’s no risk of burning the chocolate. You can change these basic proportions if you want a thicker or thinner chocolate sauce. If you don’t like what you see, add a little more cream or some more chocolate. If the chocolate refuses to melt all the way, put the pan over low heat and stir for a minute. Ganache following these proportions will harden as it cools, making it an ideal middle layer for cakes. It’s also tasty poured on brownies!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup manufacturing or heavy cream
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

• Pour the cream into a small saucepan. Place over low flame, and heat until it almost boils.
• Remove from heat, and add chocolate chips. Stir until melted.

Angela’s Chocolate Cake

I can't take any credit for popularizing this cake; it is from the recipe files of one Angela Dixie Lynch, where it is entitled “Gayle's Chocolate Cake”. Since I don't know Gayle, it has now become known, at least around Sherman, as Angela's Chocolate Cake.

This is the recipe I usually make when people want chocolate cake for their birthdays. It's good. Really good. Very rich (anything with two sticks of butter tends to be pretty rich) but totally worth the calories. A buttercream (powdered sugar/ milk/ butter/ vanilla) frosting is good, but don't use too much- the cake itself is already quite sweet. Cream cheese frosting works well too. Or chocolate ganache. Mmmmm.... cake....

• 2 cups flour (all purpose, whole wheat, or a mix)

• 2 cups granulated sugar

• 1/3 cup cocoa powder

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1 cup butter (2 sticks)

• 1 cup water

• 2 eggs

• 3 tsp vanilla

• 1/2 cup buttermilk

Instructions:

• Mix dry ingredients together. Set aside.

• Place the butter in the water and melt (on stove or in microwave.)

• Add butter/water, eggs, vanilla to dry ingredients. Mix well.

• Grease pan(s.) Bake at 350 for 20-35 minutes (in the 12 inch round pan, the 13x9 glass pan, or two 9 inch round pans. It will probably take longer to cook if you use a big pan. You'll know it's done when a toothpick (or fork) comes out clean (a few tiny crumbs are okay.)

• Cool in pan for at least 15 minutes, then remove to rack. Cool completely before frosting. This is important, unless you want a cake that looks like a landslide.

Granola

Some granola recipes just don’t make sense to me. A healthy homemade breakfast cereal isn’t healthy anymore if it’s made with a stick of butter or cups of sugar. I found this recipe for granola that uses applesauce instead of oil or butter here, and adapted it slightly. Each batch makes 1 Sherman size tray. I usually double or triple it. It involves minimal extra effort, and if you’re lucky, some will still be left the next morning for you to have for breakfast!

Ingredients

• ¾ cup plain applesauce

• ¼ cup honey (or maple syrup)

• ¾ cup brown sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 1 ½ tsp cinnamon

• ½ tsp ginger

• pinch cardamom

• ¾ tsp salt

• 3 ½ cups rolled oats

• 2 cups Rice Krispies (or additional 2 cups oats)

• ½ cup shredded coconut

• Up to 1 ½ cups chopped nuts (almonds, cashews, sunflower seeds, etc.)

• Up to 1 cup dried fruit (add after baking!)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper. (Sherman: 1 large sheet per batch).

• Mix together sugar, applesauce, honey, vanilla, spices.

• Stir in oats, cereal nuts (NOT fruit.)

• Bake for 15 minutes, then move/turn pan(s). Bake for 15 more minutes.

• Remove from oven, use a large spatula to carefully turn over all the granola. Remove any pieces that are burnt/ already done (save aside the done bits, and compost the burnt ones. Sadly, making granola often involves casualties). Replace in oven for 15 more minutes (so 45 minutes total baking time.) DON'T abandon your granola! There's a fine line between perfectly toasted and burnt granola, so keep an eye on it for this final 15 minutes! Rotate pans as needed. When it's done, it should be lightly toasted. It's okay if some of the bigger clumps are kind of soft. They'll harden as the granola rests. Add fruit, and allow to cool. Store.

Sherman Bakes

I was inspired by Melody’s email about her baking blog today. With so many delicious treats being churned out in this house, we should have a place to record what worked and what didn’t - what was eaten within minutes, and what was left until morning (generally not a good sign around here.) A place to share our favorite recipes, so future Shermanites can enjoy them, even when we are gone. Any Sherman folks who want to contribute are encouraged to- shoot me an email with your gmail address and I will add you to the list. This will be a much more useful resource if it is a cooperative effort!