Delicious Cookies from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

Cookies are to my husband as cupcakes are to me.

Adam has been baking his way through the cookie recipes in Baked: New Frontiers in Baking by the owners of Baked a Brooklyn, New York bakery. It's a great cookbook and we've had some great experiences with these recipes...even considering the obvious altitude issues. Here's the cookies recipes we've tried so far.



Peanut Butter Cookies with Milk Chocolate Chunks
Baked's Description: This is not your ordinary peanut butter cookie. It is, in our humble opinion, the only peanut butter cookie. Our cookie is neither too dry and crumbly, nor too moist and characterless; rather, it is the perfect balance of crispy and chewy. But the burst of old-school peanut butter flavor and huge milk chocolate chunks is what really puts this cookie in its own league. It is the type of cookie you will have to hide or lock down if you want it to remain in your cookie jar for more than a few hours.

I'm finding Baked's cookie recipes have a high yield, even if you make the cookies large. These were yummy, soft and chocolaty. It was a traditional peanut butter cookie, but the nuggets of milk chocolate made a nice addition.




Monster Cookies
Baked's Description: This cookie is the Frankenstein's monster of the cookie world. One part oatmeal cookie, one part peanut butter cookie, and one part chocolate chip cookie, it is many things to many people. We re-created this rather large, chewy cookie as an homage to the Monster Cookie we remember eating in grade school, only our version is slightly less sweet and a whole lot better. Don't leave out the corn syrup--it's an integral for the cookie.

We thought these cookies were rather good. We made them huge...like with a cookie scoop! I'm normally not a friend of M&M cookies but these were so yummy. My husband was even cute enough to go out and buy all brown and orange M&Ms from Zurchers.



I saved the best for last. At least our favorite. We've made it a few times.

Black Forest Chocolate Cookies
Baked's Description: Black Forest Cake is a classic German dessert, often poorly translated in America into a lumpy mess of dry chocolate cake, super-sweet cherry preserves, and canned whipped cream. A proper version of the cake includes chocolate cake layers, soaked in kirsch (cherry liqueur), lightly sweetened cherries, and freshly whipped cream. We interpreted the classic but kitschy cake with the utmost respect. our Black Forest cookie is a very rich chocolate cookie tempered with a smattering of dried cherries and white chocolate chips. They are best served warm, with a slightly gooey center.


There are so many elements to this cookie. It really has been so much different than any other cookie recipe we've tried. Make these...and make sure you really do chill the dough. Everyone we've shared it with has loved them. It's over the top chocolaty and the cherries are a total surprise. Since these Black Forest Chocolate Cookies were our favorites I'll share the recipe.

Really though, you ought to go buy the book. It's a winner.



Black Forest Chocolate Cookies
Baked: Frontiers in Baking

Yield 24 Cookies

Ingredients:
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
16 oz. dark chocolate (60-72% cacao), coarsely chopped
10 T. unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
6 large eggs
1 1/4 c. granulated sugar
1 c. firmly packed light brown sugar
1 T. pure vanilla extract
1 c. (6 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 c. (6 oz.) white chocolate chips
1 c. (6 oz.) dried cherries

Directions:
Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a medium bowl and set aside.

In a large nonreactive metal bowl, combine the dark chocolate and butter. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and cook, stirring with a rubber spatula, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Set aside to cool.

In the bowl of an electric mixture fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs and sugars on high speed until the mixture is pale and thick, about 5 minutes.

Add the cooled chocolate mixture and the vanilla and beat until just combined. Scrape down the bowl and beat again for 10 seconds.

Add the flour mixture and mix on low until just combined, about 10 seconds. Do not overmix.

Using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in the chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, and dried cherries. The dough will look very loose, but it will harden in the refrigerator. Refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Drop the dough by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time, until the tops of the cookies are set and begin to show a few cracks. remove from the oven and let cool slightly before removing from the pans and serving.

The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.




You may be interested in these other posts:
BAKED: Millionaire's Shortbread
German Chocolate Birthday Cake (recipe from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking)
My new cookbooks
The cake I'm dying to make {Sweet & Salty Cake}
3 Kitchen Items I Can't Live Without