Holiday Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

I loved making these with my mom.  It was fun, especially since it's the holidays.  Personally, my favorite one was the Christmas Tree.  I especially liked decorating them.  My brothers helped and we each made five.  Merry Christmas!

 

Chocolate Cookie Cut-Outs

adapted from Sprinkle Bakes and What a Dish!

1 cup (two sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 scant cup cocoa powder
Pinch of salt

1. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugar together until just incorporated. Do not over-mix at this stage, or the cookies may spread while baking. Add the egg and vanilla extract. Mix again on low speed, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl intermittently as needed.

 

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder and salt. Add to the butter and egg mixture. Mix on low speed until a dough is formed and there are no longer any streaks of butter in the mixing bowl. The dough will often clump around the paddle attachment while being mixed. This is normal and a good sign that your dough is the right consistency.

3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. Turn the dough out onto a sheet of wax paper and top with a second sheet. Roll dough into an oblong disc between the paper with a rolling pin. Transfer dough - wax paper and all - to a large cookie sheet. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

5. Remove top sheet of wax paper and roll dough a little thinner (or you may roll dough between the sheets of wax paper.) It should not be sticky, though. You may dust the surface lightly with flour if it is sticky, but not too much! You don’t want streaks of white flour baked onto your dark chocolate cookies.

6. Roll dough to a ¼-inch to ½ -inch thickness. Cut out desired shapes from the dough and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Be careful not to stretch the cutout shapes or they will be distorted after baking. Refrigerate the cutouts for 30 minutes. This will help the cookies maintain a crisp shape during baking.

7. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the cookies for 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack. Decorate the cookies when completely cooled. To decorate, we used homemade white frosting, some Christmas sprinkles, and mini M&M's.

Orange Chocolate Macarons

These delightful macarons just melt in your mouth and are delicious.  My whole family loved them.  We brought them to a party.  I helped my mom make these. 

Orange Chocolate Macarons
adapted from What a Dish!

110 g almonds meal/flour

200 g powdered sugar
1 scant teaspoon powdered orange food coloring
50 g granulated sugar
100 g egg whites (about 3 egg whites), aged (left out) a day at room temperature

1. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.

2. Pulse almond flour, powdered sugar, and powdered food coloring in a food processor until evenly mixed. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, and scrape the seeds out using a paring knife. Add the seeds to the granulated sugar and whisk to combine.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the egg whites until foamy, then gradually add the granulated sugar and continue to whip until a shiny, stiff, glossy meringue forms (but not dry).

4. Remove the bowl from the stand mixer, and add the almond mixture. Using a rubber spatula, briskly and quickly fold the almond meal into the egg whites. After a few brisk strokes, slow down and then gently incorporate the rest into the batter.You want a batter that flows and "ribbons" for at least 5 seconds.

5. Pour the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip (I use Wilton 12). Pipe the batter into 1 1/2-inch rounds, spacing them about 1-inch apart. Whack the baking sheets on the counter a few times, then allow to sit at room temperature for about 1 hour, or until a hard shell forms. (While you wait, prepare ganache, below.)

6. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 280 degrees. Bake the macarons 10-12 minutes, depending on size. (Should be dry and lift away easily from parchment when done.) Allow to cool completely on the pan before using a small spatula to remove them. Match the cookies according to size and pipe filling on half, using the other half to form a sandwich.

Dark Chocolate Ganache

6 oz. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup heavy cream

1. Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, over medium heat, heat and stir the cream until it barely comes to a simmer. Immediately pour over chocolate in bowl and cover bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes.

2. Then, whisk until combined and smooth. It might take a little bit, but it should turn dark, smooth, and shiny. Set aside to cool until needed. I set it in the fridge, since it needs to be on the thick side for the filling.

Opa's Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are delicious cookies that make really good ice cream sandwiches.  That's what we made them for, and we had a hard time not eating them all before that.  This is my Opa's (Grandpa's) recipe.  We only made a half recipe because the whole one makes a lot. 

Opa's Chocolate Chip Cookies
from my Opa; this is a half-recipe

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups oatmeal (like quick oats)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 (10-12 oz) package chocolate chips
3/4 cups chopped walnuts or pecans, optional

1.  Preheat oven to 400 F.  Mix butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs.  Mix well until smooth.  Add flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and oatmeal.  Mix in.  Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  Shape into golf ball size balls and mash down slightly on lightly greased cookie sheet.  Bake 6-8 minutes.  Do not overbake.  Makes about 3 dozen. 

Egg Cream

This was a delicious treat for me and my smaller brother. 

Egg Cream
adapted from Do It Myself Kids' Cookbook

1/2 cup cold milk
1 cup cold seltzer water (sparkling water)
2 tablespoons chocolate syrup

1.  Pour the milk into a tall glass.  Pour the seltzer water on top.  Stir in the chocolate syrup with a long spoon.  Drink right away.

Brownies

My Mom and I made these together.  We all liked them and wanted more.  My mom used her own frosting instead of the recipe's frosting.

Brownies
adapted from Joythebaker.com

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
2 eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease an 8-inch baking dish with butter or shortening.

2. Prepare the brownies: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Melt the butter and chocolate together in a pan set on top of a pot of simmering water. Remove from heat. Whisk the sugars into the mixture. Then whisk in the eggs, yolk and vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture until well incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.

3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownie comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool completely before adding the frosting.

Chocolate Frosting

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
3-4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
milk

1.  Cream the butter and sugar together.  Add vanilla, and as much milk as you need to make it smooth.