White Chocolate Peppermint Mocha Cookies

Just like every tweens' order during the holidays at Starbucks, this cookie has a little bit of everything.  Couple pumps of peppermint mocha in the espresso, a bit of white chocolate, and a pretty garnish - this cookie is all those things and more! Aaron is saying these are his new favorite Christmas cookie - they are a little sweet, but not too much, soft but with a sugary crust, pretty but not too time-consuming to decorate.  These cookies come together easily and make a festive impression!

White Chocolate Peppermint Mocha Cookies

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

For the Cookies:

• 12 tbs. butter, softened
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 tbs. molasses
• 1 tbs. instant espresso (or coffee) powder/granules
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for rolling
• 1/2 dark brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract (this stuff is strong, so a little goes a long way, but if you really love peppermint, go for it - do not use Mint extract or it will taste like toothpaste, make sure its Peppermint)
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 tsp. salt

For the drizzle:

• 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
• 2-3 tbs. vegetable shortening
• 1/4 tsp. peppermint extract (optional)
• Crushed peppermint candies/candy canes, for garnish (optional)

Preheat your oven to 375° and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicon baking mats. Set aside.

Melt 4 tbs. of the butter in a small bowl.  Whisk in the cocoa, molasses, and espresso.  Mix until smooth and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the other 8 tbs (1 stick) of butter with the sugars. Beat until light and fluffy.  One at a time, beating after each addition, add the chocolate mixture, egg, and extracts.  Mix well and scrape the bowl.

Slowly mix in the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until combined.

Roll one tablespoon of dough into a ball and then roll in granulated sugar.  Place it on the cookie sheet and pat the top just slightly to flatten it.  Repeat with remaining dough, placing each cookie an inch and a half apart on the cookie sheets.

Bake for 9-12 minutes, until the tops crack and the middles are set.  Do not over bake! If you like a soft cookie make sure you take them out just as they are cooked, the long they are in the crunchier they will be.

Cool the cookies on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then move them to a cooling rack, placed over paper towels.

While the cookies are baking, prepare the drizzle.  In 5 - 10 second increments, in a microwave safe bowl, melt the white chocolate chips and shortening. It will burn VERY easily so seriously, go ten seconds or less at a time and stir it super well between heating. Once it is melted, stir in the peppermint extract. Using a spoon, lift some of the chocolate out of the bowl and drizzle it back in.  If it is too think, melt more shortening into it, in five second intervals, until it is thin enough to drizzle well.

Once the cookies are cooled to the touch, drizzle the white chocolate over the cookies and then sprinkle the crushed candy canes on top. Let the drizzle set at room temperature until no longer soft.  Store cookies at room temp, in a sealed container.

Grinch Cookies

There are a few things that just scream "Christmas" to me from my childhood - and without a doubt How the Grinch Stole Christmas is on that list.  I read the book as a kid, I watched the movie laying on my Noni's floor in her den at Christmastime, and I could probably recite the whole thing to you now if I tried.  I love to pass on these memories I have a kid, to my own kids, so Townes and I have watched The Grinch more than a couple of times already since Thanksgiving and the book is in our bedtime rotation.  So when he asked me to bake something today - these seemed like the perfect idea.

Aside from being festive, fun and creative, they are also really, really easy to make and don't require much skill or many ingredients!  They are a version of my shortbread cookies (a recipe from my Noni) that I used on Valentine's Day last year - these are almond flavored instead and obviously these are green!

Grinch Cookies

Makes 2 dozen (depending on cookie size)

For the Cookies:

• 1 cup butter, softened to room temp (very important)
• 3/4 cup sugar (I used granulated, but powdered is okay too)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 tsp. almond extract
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• Green food dye (or yellow and blue)
• 1-3 tbs. shortening
• Powdered sugar, for rolling
• Red decorators icing

Preheat your oven to 350° and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicon baking mats.  Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar.  Really beat it until its super smooth and creamy - its basically the whole cookie.  Beat in the vanilla and almond.  Add the flour a half cup at a time and beat until combined after each addition.  If the dough is too crumbly (it will need to hold together like playdough when squeezed in your hands, but should NOT be sticky) add 1 tbs. of shortening at a time.  After each addition make sure you have given it a solid few minutes to beat in and see if its come together enough.

Once the dough is the right consistency, beat in the food dye.  Once the dough is your desired shade of green, scoop out a small tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball with your hands.  Roll in powdered sugar, then place the ball on your cookie sheet and flatten with your hand to about 1/2 inch or thinner. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 12-18 minutes, until the edges are JUST starting to brown (the time will vary depending on the thickness of your dough and the size of your cookie so just watch carefully).  Let the cookies cool completely on the cookie sheet.

Once the cookies are completely cooled, apply the hearts. I used a "leaf" tip on my tube of red frosting and made the heart in two halves.  You can also just use a small round piping tip and draw a heart with the icing.

Date-Nut Scones

Every year around Thanksgiving, my mom makes loaf after loaf of her Date-Nut bread.  Its a wonderfully unique bread that seems to perfectly span Thanksgiving and Christmas flavors - its full of autumn's cinnamon and chewy dates, paired with Christmasey ginger and walnuts.  She wraps these loaves in simple white paper and delivers them to everyone - family, friends, neighbors, coworkers...everyone.  Just her way of saying, thanks.  No matter where I was living, she always made sure I got one too.

I finally asked her for the recipe because I wanted to bake something with Townes and start getting in the Thanksgiving spirit.  With planning the school fundraiser the last few months, I'm a little behind on my seasonal spirit.  I was just going to ask my mom for the Date Nut Bread recipe and make that with Townes, but then I felt like shaking things up a little.  I knew we would be getting our own loaves, so why not borrow the flavors, but make them in scone form. 

It took a decent amount of tweaking, and was perfected with a Maple Glaze that just compliments the flavors perfectly.  I'm trying to convince my mom to start adding the Maple Glaze to the loaves too, that would send them over the edge!

Date-Nut Scones

for the scones:

• 8 oz pitted dates
• 1/2 cup boiling (not just hot) water
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

for the maple glaze:

• 4 tbs. butter
• 4 tbs. maple syrup (the real stuff)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1-2 cups of powdered sugar

Preheat your oven to 400° and position a rack in the middle of the oven.  Put your butter in the freezer.

Prepare your dates by chopping them into small pieces.  My mom and I have both found it is easiest to use a pair of kitchen shears, cut them in quarters lengthwise and then cut the resulting strips into small pieces.  The scissors will get sticky but they will wash easily.  Once they are all cut, put them in a small bowl and sprinkle the 1/2 tsp. baking SODA over them.  Bring your water to a boil and pour over the dates, stir to coat them all in water and mix the baking soda in.  Let them sit for 15 minutes while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, brown sugar, walnuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, salt and baking POWDER. Set aside.

Prepare two baking sheets with either a silicon baking mat or parchment paper, sprinkle with flour. Set aside.

Using a plane grater or box grater (on the finest side) grate your frozen stick of butter over the dry ingredients and then mix it together with a rubber spatula. Do NOT use your hands - the warmth from your hands will soften the butter and you want it to be as cold as possible. Mix together just enough that it looks like gravel - it doesn't need to blend.

In a small bowl, whisk together your egg and cream.  Pour in the cooled dates and stir together. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and work together with a spatula. Stir until just holding together.

Flour your work surface and your hands, turn out the dough and work into a large ball with your hands.  The dough will be sticky and won't always blend well together, don't force it too much, remember your hands will soften the butter.

Using a sharp knife, divide the dough in two and place each half on its own baking sheet.  Place one of the baking sheets and dough in the fridge while you work with the other.  Form the piece of dough into a ball and then flatten into a disk no more than an inch thick.  Using a sharp knife, cut your disk into 8 equal wedges. Separate the wedges so there is at least an inch in between each one, they will puff up when they bake.

Bake the prepared scones for 5 minutes, then rotate the tray and bake for another 5 minutes.  Keep an eye on them while they bake, they go from done to burnt quickly.

While the first tray is baking, prepare the second set of scones, repeating the whole process. Let the scones cool on their trays while you prepare the glaze.

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter over low heat, whisking in the syrup and vanilla until well blended and completely melted. Add the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, whisking all the lumps out after each addition. Add sugar to desired thickness.  If it becomes too thick, add a teaspoon of water at a time to thin it out.

Drizzle the glaze over the cooled scones and allow to set before serving.  Scones are best fresh, but will keep in an airtight container for 3 days.  They also freeze well (but before they are glazed).

Uchiko Brussel Sprouts

I'm baaaacckkk!!!

I have to sincerely apologize for being MIA for like actually an entire year.  But I come bearing gifts for y'all - a gift specifically in the form of the perfect replica recipe for Uchiko's amazing brussel sprouts.

If you live in Austin (and now maybe Dallas I think too), you have probably heard of Uchi and/or Uchiko and how "you totally have to get sushi there" - which you do - but the real draw is the brussel sprouts, trust me.  They are like crack.  I have gone to dinner with my girlfriends and ordered bowl after bowl after bowl of these babies.

So it's no wonder that while I was pregnant, and the rare times I felt like eating, I wanted these delicious nuggets of heaven.  However, Uchiko can be a bit...uppity? and denied me my lifeline through Favor and I was woefully unable to have them whenever I wanted. 

Now that I am post-partum and climbing back to my old self, I got in the kitchen and got to work.  I wanted these sprouts and I made it happen!  These are insanely easy and outrageously good - even my kids chow down. 

Uchiko Brussel Sprouts

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

• 1 lb. fresh brussel sprouts
• Vegetable oil
• Kosher Salt
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup maple syrup (the real stuff)
• Juice of one small lemon
• 1 tbs. minced garlic
• 1 tbs. Sriracha sauce (or more to taste)

Preheat your oven to 400°.

Trim the stems off the sprouts and halve them, top to bottom.  If the sprouts are large, cut them into quarters.  You want them to be bite sized pieces.  Rinse the sprouts with water in a colander and turn out onto paper towels to dry while the oven heats.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with a silicon baking mat (or foil).  Spread the sprouts out on your prepared baking sheet and drizzle with oil and season well with kosher salt.  Toss with tongs to coat the sprouts evenly.  Bake on the top rack for 45-60 minutes, tossing the sprouts every 15 minutes.   Bake until browned and crispy.

While the sprouts cook, prepare the sauce.  Combine the soy sauce, maple syrup, lemon juice, garlic and Sriarcha sauce in a small sauce pan and season with salt and pepper.  Cook over medium heat, bring to a boil and reduce the mixture to half, stirring constantly.

Remove the sprouts from the oven.  In a bowl, toss the sprouts in half the sauce.  Taste and add more sauce to taste.

Traditional Shepherd's Pie

Once a month at our amazing preschool, which I could rave and rave about, each class "hosts" a luncheon for the teachers as their monthly staff meeting.  What that entails is that all the parents from each class plan a short lunch party (food, dessert, decor, drinks and a little gift) for the entire staff to enjoy at the end of the school day.  Last week, it was the Young Two's turn to host the luncheon and we decided to go with a St. Patrick's Day theme.  It seriously turned out SO cute and the teachers had a ball.  I think the group of moms in this class are some of the most talented women - I got these pictures from one of the moms, Amy, who did the GORGEOUS flowers and adorable balloons.  Another mom brought the theme-perfect cake, another purchased on-point table settings, and class mom, Kyndall, put together the adorable teacher gifts on each plate. 

In any case, I got asked to make the entree and I was more than happy to oblige, but at first we were stumped with what would make a good, Irish-themed entree for 15 people.  Of course, the second I mentioned it to Aaron, he said, make Shepherd's Pie.  I don't know how traditionally Irish it is to be honest, I haven't researched the food-etymology of it, but it worked perfectly!  Since I made it in such a huge quantity - think six pounds beef! - I wasn't initially going to write up the recipe for the blog and make it another time, but I got asked a whole bunch of times how I made it today and so I thought I would go ahead and write it out. 

The photos show a small, square dish of pie, because that day I made two large casseroles and one small one for us, the recipe below will yield enough for one rectangular casserole.

Traditional Shepherd's Pie

Serves 6

For the Filling:

• 1/2 medium white onion, diced
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1-2 cups chopped carrots, to your liking
• 2 tbs. butter
• 2 lbs. ground beef (I used a 75% lean for this recipe, it will have more flavor)
• Salt and Pepper
• Ground sage
• Dried Basil
• Dried Thyme
• 1-2 cups frozen or fresh peas, to your liking
• 1 Knorr beef stock base or 2 beef bullion cubes
• Flour

For the Potato Topping:

• 4-5 medium russet potatoes (3-4 lbs)
• 2 tbs. butter
• Salt, pepper
• Freeze dried or fresh chives, minced
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• Heavy cream or half-and-half

In a large dutch oven, over medium-high heat, melt the butter.  Add the onion and minced garlic. Saute for a few minutes, until fragrant.  Add the carrots and saute for a few minutes more, until carrots are just tender, but not smushy.

Using a spatula, push your veggies to the side and add the ground beef.  Brown the beef, breaking it up with your spatula.  As you go, season the meat liberally with salt and pepper, and then season with sage, thyme and basil to taste (I just give each a good shake over the mix, probably 1 tsp or so). Then mix the beef into the veggies and continue to cook until all the beef is broken up and cooked through.

Add the beef base to the pot and stir until its dissolved.  Turn the heat down to medium and add the peas. Mix evenly until the peas have heated through.  One spoonful at a time, sprinkle flour over the beef and mix until the flour has absorbed the loose liquid in the pot.  How much flour you use will depend on how much "gravy" you will like in your beef.  I prefer the base to be rather thick so it doesn't bubble through the potatoes on top, so I continue to add flour until the juice has turned to a thin paste or thick gravy and is no longer runny. 

Remove from heat and spoon the beef mixture into a rectangular baking dish.  Set aside to cool while you make the topping.

Peel and quarter the potatoes and boil in a pot of salted water. When the potatoes are tender enough to easily pierce with fork, turn off the heat.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the potatoes to the bowl of a stand mixer.

Add the butter to the potatoes and mix with a paddle attachment on low.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add 1 tbs. of chives.  Stir in a small handful of cheese, reserving the rest.  Slowly add cream, just a little at a time, beating until smooth.  You want the potatoes to be THICK, not watery, so go slow with the cream, really whipping them up on high between additions. You want them to be the consistency of a thick buttercream icing, but smooth.  Taste and re-season to preference.

Top the cooled beef mixture with the remaining shredded cheese.  Then top with the potatoes, spreading evenly.  I like to add texture to the potatoes, swirling them up with a fork, so they brown attractively in the oven.  You can get really fancy, and apply the potatoes with a pastry bag and a large cupcake tip - extra points for presentation on that one!

If making ahead, you can cover the casserole and refrigerate until you want to use it, up two two days or freeze it even!  If doing either of those, when you are ready to bake it, set the casserole out on the counter while the oven pre-heats so its not super cold going into the oven.

You can kick it up one more notch and brush the top of the potatoes with just a tiny bit of melted butter before it goes in the oven.  It will brown and form almost a butter crust on top and is kind of amazing.

If making right away, bake in the top third of your oven at 400° for 15 minutes, then turn the casserole and cook for 10-15 minutes more until bubbly and browned on top.  Serve immediately.