Dark Chocolate~Chocolate Mint Cookies & April's Give-Away Apron

I'm sure we've all heard and/or read about the benefits of dark chocolate; something I'm quite pleased with and lead to creating this cookies. 

1. Good for your heart~eating dark chocolate two or three times a day can lower blood pressure by improving blood flow and preventing the formation of blood clots.  It also helps prevent arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries.)

2. Good for your brain~not only improves blood flow to your heart, but to your brain which can have a positive effect on your mood and cognitive health.  I know you've heard the fact that it encourages your brain to release endorphins, which will make you feel happier.  Also, it contains phenylethylamine which is the same chemical your brain creates when you feel like you're falling in love.

3. Helps control blood sugar~keeps blood vessels healthy and thus your circulation unimpaired; protects against Type 2 Diabetes.  However, it may be the flavonoids in dark chocolate that benefits your cells and helps reduce insulin resistance and function normally.  It's a fact that dark chocolate has a low glycemic index, which means it won't cause huge spikes in blood sugar levels.

4. Full of Antioxidants~which help free your body of free radicals that cause damage to your cells.  Free radicals have been linked to the aging process and may be a cause of cancer, so eating dark chocolate may protect you from many types of cancer and slow the signs of aging.

5. Dental decay prevention~contains theobromine, which has been shown to harden tooth enamel and lowers your risk of cavities if you practice proper dental hygiene.

6. High in Vitamins and Minerals~Potassium, Copper, Magnesium and Iron which supports our health.  Copper and potassium help prevent against stroke and cardiovascular ailments; iron protects against iron deficiency anemia; and, the magnesium helps prevent type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

Of course, like anything this good, they is a drawback. Keep in mind that dark chocolate is high in fat, so keeping tract of your calories is beneficial  to a healthy goal of weight.

Dark Chocolate~Chocolate Mint Cookies
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter) at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
11 oz. dark chocolate, melted
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract
1 tsp. espresso powder
2 1/2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cups Andes Creme de Menthe baking chips

Weigh the bittersweet dark chocolate in a bowl and place over a double boiler to melt on low.  Remove the bowl and allow the chocolate mixture to cool slightly before adding it to the sugar/egg mixture.

 
In a bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, or a large bowl and a hand-held mixer, cream the sugars and butter together until fluffy.  Add the lightly beaten eggs and vanilla and mix on low to combine; don't worry if the mixture looks curdled that will change with the addition of the melted chocolate.

Remove the bowl from the stand and add the melted chocolate, stir to incorporate.  Add the dry ingredients and chips and stir until all the flour is incorporated.  At this point the batter is the consistency of "frosting" so place it in the refrigerator for 25 to 30 minutes to chill.

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.  When the dough is chilled and easily handled, use a 2-tablespoon size scoop to measure out the cookies.  Bake in the preheated oven for 12 minutes.  Remove and allow them to cool slightly before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

The cookies have a familiar taste of those GS cookies we know and love oh so well.  The best thing is how moist they are on the inside.  Well worth the calories from the dark chocolate that is good for your body. Enjoy!

Now, this month's apron symbolizes the showers that April brings and the umbrellas that protect us from them.  I'm sure we've all heard the joke..."April showers bring May flowers...what do May flowers bring...!"

 Just comment on any of the posts and you could be the lucky winner of this month's beauty!
  

Emerald City Brownies

As many of you know, my other persona is that of a paper artist and I've written two books on creating 3-dimensional flowers, using craft punches, that can be used to adorn cards, boxes, frames, etc.  Definitely the best thing about this "job" is the wonderful, creative people in the craft world that I meet and collaborate with on projects.  One of those special people is Eileen Hull, whom I met at the 2011 Winter CHA (Craft & Hobby Association) trade show.  She is a designer and artist and is licensed by Ellison/Sizzix with her own line of die cuts.  In September, she sent me one of her newest die cuts--a suitcase and I was immediately inspired to create a project that exemplifies the last year and a half of my life after Kelly's passing and the friends who have helped me through it.

I've entitled this project "The Journey" and just like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, it epitomizes the friends we meet along the way in life to help us through the good, but also the bad times we may encounter.  I know, without doubt, my friends have shown me courage to look forward again,  knowledge that memories of our loved ones will sustain us, and most of all, love that has truly warmed my heart where the void of loss once was.

In addition to Eileen's unique suitcase, I used a paper collection called The Magic of Oz by Graphic 45--their perfect gingham paper for Dorothy's suitcase and the colorful character cards that surround the sides of the box adds to the story.  However, I bet, like me, your eye is drawn to the most perfect ruby slipper at the very top that acts as a vessel to hold my paper poppies.  Another dear friend I've met in this business and who happens to also live here in the Pacific Northwest is Ellen Hutson.  She has an online craft store, but is also a designer and when I showed her my drawing of what I wanted to do, she painstakingly came up with a ruby slipper done in a canvas self-adhesive paper and glitz up with an ultra fine red glitter.  I wish you could see this in person because after viewing The Wizard of Oz last Saturday evening on TBS, I can tell you this miniature version is very accurate...but then, Ellen wouldn't have done anything less!

The brownies, I've come up with to accompany this project, have a bright green center to symbolize The Emerald City, where Dorothy and her friends go to seek the help of The Wizard and happens to be the nickname of Seattle, where I live.  I've added a little bit of peppermint oil that makes you think you're eating either a Thin Mint Girl Scout cookie or an Andes Mint, then, topped it off with a bittersweet glaze to seal this scrumptious dessert that makes any rainy day bearable!

Emerald City Brownies
Cake Brownies:
3/4 cup (12T) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (divided)
6 large eggs, separate the yolks and whites
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate
1 T Vanilla extract
1/2 cup + 1T Queen Guinevere cake flour
1/2 cup +1T Dutch-processed 
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
Preheat oven to 325F-degrees.  13" x 9" baking pan--line with aluminum foil, brushed with melted butter.  If you happen to have a springform 13" x 9" baking pan, like me, I brushed it with melted butter, lined the bottom with parchment paper, then, buttered again.

In a medium sauce pan, on med/low heat, melt the unsalted butter.  Remove from the heat and add the 6 oz of bittersweet chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted.  Separate the eggs--place whites in a bowl of a stand mixer and use a whisk attachment to beat.  Lightly whisk the yolks, then add to the chocolate/butter mixture.  Add 3/4 cup sugar and the vanilla extract, beat to combine.

In a medium bowl, measure the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt.  Stir to combine.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until completely combined.

Beat the egg whites until soft peaks forms.  Gradually add the remaining 3/4 cup of sugar.  Continue to beat until stiff and glossy.

Stir in one-third of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture to "lighten" it.  Scrape the lightened chocolate mixture into the remaining egg whites and fold to completely combine.  Try not to stir and deflate the egg whites.

I know this seems strange to separate the eggs, but here's my reasoning.  I prefer fudgy brownies, but sometimes, when I want a brownie that I'm going to top with other layers, I need a good foundation that a cake brownie provides.  However, I still want a moist, light brownie, and this step gives me that!
Pour batter into the prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes...mine took 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool while you make the peppermint white chocolate ganache.

Peppermint White Chocolate Ganache
2 (8.82 oz) bars Valrhona Blanc, chopped
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/2 tsp. peppermint oil
2 drops of blue and yellow food color
3 drops of green
3 T unsalted butter, soften to room temperature

In a "make-shift" double boiler, mix the white chocolate and heavy cream.  Heat over med/low heat, whisking to combine completely.  Remove from the heat and add the peppermint oil.  Stir to combine.
Using the whisk, add the unsalted butter, one-tablespoon at a time. 

Pour the ganache over the brownies and refrigerate one hour or overnight.

Bittersweet Chocolate Glaze:
2 cups of bittersweet chocolate chips
2 T Light Karo syrup

In a double boiler, mix the chocolate chips and Karo syrup.  Once the chocolate melts completely, remove brownies from the refrigerator and pour the glaze on top.  Use an off-set spatula to spread over the ganache.  Return to the refrigerator for 30 minutes before cutting.

The brownies are scrumptious and are the perfect finish to my project.

Count your life by smiles,

not tears.

Count your age by friends,

not years.

Tomorrow is my birthday and This Journey has made me realize how blessed I am to have friends.  Love to all.  Enjoy!

M & C's

One of my fondest childhood memories was stopping in to visit with my grandparents, before starting down the path to our home after school, and having gingersnaps and milk.  It was a time to see what they had been up to during the day--tending the garden, a woodworking project my grandfather was beginning, or just hearing some stories of my mother growing up.  It didn't matter so much that the once home baked cookies Grandma made had been replaced with store bought, it was the precious time I spent with them...a ritual, so to speak, that I looked forward to when I stepped off the bus.

I also remember hearing from my daughters, when they went off to Mount Holyoke College, how they looked forward to M & C's at night, after a day of classes and homework.  To them this time was sure to bring engaging conversations, not just of school, but getting to know their friends and classmates and sharing experiences.  Kelly wrote an essay, that was published in the Mount Holyoke Alumnae magazine, telling of the sharing of stories that occur around the table and the importance that this memory carried with her in raising her son. 

Today, for M & C's, I made up a bittersweet chocolate~pistachio~mint chip cookie.  There was something about seeing the bright green chips in the dark chocolate dough that made me think of Spring--new shoots of plants popping up in the rich soil!  Also, I made them BIG with my one-third measured scoop because Kelly and I always said, "if you can only have one cookie--make it a BIG one."

Bittersweet Chocolate~Pistachio~Mint Chip Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips, melted
1 large egg
1 T Vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups King Arthur All-purpose Flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 T milk
1 cup pistachio nuts, chopped (measure after chopping)
2 cup (1 12 oz bag) Mint Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter, then add the sugars and beat until fluffy.  Add the egg and mix thoroughly, scrapping down the sides of the bowl afterward.  Add the melted bittersweet chocolate and the vanilla and beat on medium speed to combine.
Add the dry ingredients and milk and beat to combine.  Add the nuts and beat well.  Stir in the mint chips.

Use a one-third measure scoop for large cookies. (If you make the cookies smaller, adjust baking time to 10-12 minutes)

Place six scoops onto a large baking tray, lined with parchment.

Bake BIG cookies 12-14 minutes.  Let cool on the baking sheet 5 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Once they're cooled, pour a glass of milk for you and your children, or friends and enjoy sharing your experiences of the day.  I'm thinking about the pot of basil I will plant, thanks to a wonderful friend.

It's these memories, around the table, that last a life time...I know this to be true. Enjoy!
 

Mint Stracciatella Pound Cake

Today I decided to bake a pound cake capturing the flavor of one of my favorite cold confections--gelato.  Stracciatella is an Italian term with gelato describing the process of slowly pouring melted chcolate into the ice cream maker while it's spinning, creating striations of chocolate through it.  These ribbons of bittersweet chocolate enhance the subtle mint flavor of the pound cake, much like they do in the gelato I make.

My Mom made great pound cakes, especially in the summer when sweet strawberries were in season.  What I learned from her was that a pound cake was the perfect basic cake and allows your imagination to change it into whatever the occasion presents.

I guess I was imagining strolling through Faneuil Hall Marketplace, in the summer heat, savoring a gelato from one of the vendors.  We lived in Massachusetts in the early 90s and along with our daughters, we loved to go into Boston for the day on the train.  Memories inspire me; memories and a good lesson from my mother.

Mint Stracciatella Pound Cake
1 1/2 cups (3 Sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1-8oz. pkg. cream cheese
3 cups granulated sugar
6 large eggs
1/4 tsp. peppermint oil
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped (or 2 tsp. vanilla extract)
3 1/2 cups + 2 T all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/3 cup whole or 2% milk
5 oz. bittersweet chocolate


Preheat oven to 350F-degree.  Melt the bittersweet chocolate in a heat-proof bowl in the microwave (30 seconds at a time for 1 minute).  Pour the melted chocolate onto a parchment lined baking sheet and use a spatula to spread.

Place the chocolate into the freezer for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile start the pound cake batter.  In the KitchenAid, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time until fully incorporated.  Beat in the peppermint oil and vanilla.  Add the dry ingredients and the milk and beat until fully mixed.  


Remove chocolate from the freeze and lifting the parchment, break into pieces.

Add these broken "shards" of chocolate to the batter and then spoon into a 12-cup bundt pan that has been sprayed with a baking spray.

 Bake pound cake for 55 minutes, then, lower temperature to 325F-degrees for another 15-20 minutes (until top is firm to the touch).  Let cool for 15 minutes before inverting cake onto a serving plate.

The stria's of bittersweet chocolate make this pound cake very classy.  Serve it with just a sprinkle of confectioners' sugar or maybe a scoop of gelato.  Enjoy!