BACK TO SCHOOL RASPBERRY GRANOLA BARS

This is another great recipe from "Craft of Baking," Karen Demasco's compendium of homey yet elegant desserts. I especially like this book b/c even with seemingly typical seeming desserts (shortbread cookies, scones, chocolate cake), she gets the proportions right so you don't see recipes calling for 2 c's of sugar. Rather, of the recipes tried and on my list, everything strikes the right balance of sweet, salty, crunchy, smooth.

This isn't what you'd typically call "granola bar." It's more like a shortbread cookie, packed with crunchy walnuts and oats, with a thin layer of blueberry jam. I subbed about 1 c whole wheat white flour for the ap flour which I think gave it a dense wheaty complexity.

Talk about familiar yet elevated. These are not by any means your typical kid's snack but a crunchy, crispy, wheaty, totally balanced snack that i wish i could always have on hand.

BACK TO SCHOOL RASPBERRY GRANOLA BARS
makes 16 bars

12 T butter, plus more for the pan
1 c pecans, roughly chopped
1 1/2 c ap flour (1 c whole wheat; 1/2 c ap flour)
1 1/4 c rolled oats
1/3 c granulated sugar (1/4 c)
1/3 c packed dark brown sugar
1 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1 c raspberry preserves

Preheat oven 350. Butter an 8" square baking pan.

in a small saucepan, melt the butter. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temp.

Spread the pecans on a baking sheet. Bake until lightly golden and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Cool the sheet completely on a wire rack.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, sugar, brown sugar, salt, bs, and pecans. Pour in the melted butter, and using a wooden spoon, mix together until well combined. Transfer about two thirds of the dough to the prepared baking pan. Press the dough evenly into the pan, forming a firmly packed layer.

Using an offset or rubber spatula, spread the preserves over the dough. Evenly sprinkle the remaining dough over the preserves (lightly tamp down). Bake, rotating the pan halfway through, until the top is golden brown and fragrant, about 40 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let it cool completely. Then cut into 2" square.

The bars can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Compost cookie

Never had the real ones at Momofuku Milk bar but no matter beacause these are amazing.

Peanut butter chips, chocolate chips, potato chips, pretzels....

a very sticky dough is mounded into largish rounds that need to be refrigerated a few hours...

truly delicious, almost toffee-flavored cookies. they were very sweet and i'm wondering if i reduce some of the sugar whether i'd be able to retain the chewyness. It was a tablespoon of corn syrup which i assume contributes to the chewy texture.

Christina Tosi's Compost Cookies

1 cup Butter
1 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Light Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp Corn Syrup
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 Large Eggs
1 3/4 cups AP Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
2 tsp Kosher Salt
1 1/2 cups Your favorite baking ingredients
(Kelly used mini chocolate chips, raisinettes, rollos & cocoa krispies)
1 1/2 cups Your favorite snack foods (chips, pretzels, etc)
(Kelly used goldfish, ritz, & fritos)

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream butter, sugars and corn syrup on medium high for 2-3 minutes until fluffy and pale yellow in color. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl with a spatula.

On a lower speed, add eggs and vanilla to incorporate. Increase mixing speed to medium-high and start a timer for 10 minutes. During this time the sugar granules will fully dissolve, the mixture will become an almost pale white color and your creamed mixture will double in size.

When time is up, on a lower speed, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix 45-60 sec just until your dough comes together and all remnants of dry ingredients have incorporated. Do not walk away from your mixer during this time or you will risk over mixing the dough. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl with a spatula.

On same low speed, add in the hodgepodge of your favorite baking ingredients and mix for 30-45 sec until they evenly mix into the dough. Add in your favorite snack foods last, paddling again on low speed until they are just incorporated.

Using a 6oz ice cream scoop, portion cookie dough onto a parchment lined sheetpan.

Wrap scooped cookie dough tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour or up to 1 week. DO NOT BAKE your cookies from room temperature or they will not hold their shape.

Heat the conventional oven to 400F. (350F in a convection oven)

When the oven reads 400F, arrange your chilled cookie dough balls on a parchment or silpat-lined sheetpan a minimum of 4" apart in any direction.

Bake 9-11 min. While in the oven, the cookies will puff, crackle and spread.

At 9 min the cookies should be browned on the edges and just beginning to brown towards the center. Leave the cookies in the oven for the additional minutes if these colors don't match up and your cookies stills seem pale and doughy on the surface.

Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pan before transferring to a plate or an airtight container or tin for storage. At room temp, cookies will keep fresh 5 days. In the freezer, cookies will keep fresh 1 month.

Yield: 15 6oz cookies

Hamantaschen

I've always been enamored with hamantaschen ever since my days of spending countless hours at the Hungarian Coffee House in Morningside Heights. it always seemed like the perfect foil to bitter, dark coffee. crumbly, rich, but not too sweet cookie combines perfectly with gooey apricot or raspberry fillings with crunchy seeds. Purim being around the corner, it was the perfect time to make my yearly batch.

This recipe is on the lean side. i was interested in trying it because it used oil instead of butter. I can't say it's my favorite, but it definitely has its place, more of a clean-tasting, neutral cookie, has the taste and consistency of animal crackers. i used raspberry jam for the filling.a very forgiving dough that rolls easily cold can be rerolled like a charm. remember to pinch the corners of the triangle because these guys rise.

I have no idea which is more traditional, these oil-based one or something like the Maida Hatter cookies i made last year. In any case, these were good, easy and simple.

Hamantaschen
adapted from LA Times

Servings: About 3 dozen
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar (i used 2/3 c)
1/2 cup oil
1 1/2 tablespoons Cognac or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 cups (13.8 ounces) unbleached flour, plus additional for rolling out
About 1/2 cup Nutella (about 1/2 c raspberry jam)

1. In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat eggs until lemon-colored. Beat in sugar, oil and Cognac. Gradually stir in the baking powder and flour, mixing on low speed until a soft dough is formed. Add an additional tablespoon or two of flour if necessary.

2. Using a rubber spatula, transfer the dough to a large piece of waxed or parchment paper and form it into a fat cylinder shape. Close up the corners and chill until firm, at least 2 to 3 hours (can be chilled overnight).

3. Heat the oven to 350 degrees, and line 2 to 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

4. Divide the dough into 3 pieces. Put 1 section on a lightly floured surface, and chill the others. Knead lightly just until the dough is smooth enough to roll out. Lightly flour a rolling pin and roll out the dough to a scant one-fourth-inch thick.

5. Using a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter or a glass with a thin rim, cut rounds, and place them on the prepared cookie sheets. Place a rounded half-teaspoon of Nutella in the center of each. Pinch the sides together to form a triangle, leaving the filling exposed in the center. Pick up scraps and form another ball. Repeat until all dough is used.

6. Transfer to the prepared cookie sheet, spacing the cookies about an inch apart on the sheet and bake until just lightly browned, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Each cookie: 106 calories; 2 grams protein; 15 grams carbohydrates; 0 fiber; 4 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 12 mg. cholesterol; 6 grams sugar; 33 mg. sodium.

Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies