The Art of Deconstruction

Although Supper Club was all about cookies, we were healthy in that we gathered and ate salads! Years past had been cookie gorging, but lessons learned via tummyaches led to the women deciding that eating salads and then sampling a few cookies afterwards with some egg nog was the best way to feel good after meeting and eating.

I decided to wing it and make a salad that I consider a deconstruction of hummus. Instead of blending all the ingredients together, I left the chick peas whole and added the seasonings to make a delicious salad that I could not stop eating.

I admit that the aroma of cumin made me miss being in his mother's kitchen, talking to her as she made the most amazing roti and chick peas and dal and saag. Her pantry smelled like my grandmother's, and she reminded me of my grandmother who was strong and tough on the exterior but warm and loving on the interior. I had hoped to learn cooking Indian dishes from her, but it seems that I am going to have to teach myself in the end.

Next month's supper club theme is citrus, and I am already thinking about what to make. So far my list includes Greek lemon potatoes, orange beef, and key lime cookies.

Amy's Deconstructed Hummus Salad

3 15.5 oz cans of chick peas, drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons dried parsley flakes

1 small onion, finely diced

1 1/2 teaspoons cumin

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and enjoy!

The Candyland Peppermint Forest

I loved the game Candyland as a child, and last month I played the game with my nephew, Jack, for the first time together (he had his own rules, which was rather cute). My favorite spot on the board is the Peppermint Forest.

Right now, my apartment smells like one!

The second cookie I chose to make for supper club is Chocolate Peppermint Snaps, courtesy of a recipe by one of my favorite bloggers, The Cookbook Junkie. http://cookbookjunkie.blogspot.com/

I knew I would love this cookie the moment I smelled them baking in the oven. I may have to add these as a third cookie to bake on Christmas Day - I know my family would love them, especially my mom. She and I share a deep love for the combination of chocolate and peppermint flavors infused. I remember being very little during Christmas and baking peppermint brownies with her one holiday using peppermint patties. I still remember them, that is how good they were.

My mom has been a great source of love and comfort during the time. I came home to a card the other day she mailed me, and it meant so much. She did not need to tell me she was hurting, too, because she is the most empathetic person I know. I get my deep empathy from her. Most times it is a blessing, but sometimes, such as this, it can be a curse. I know she knows what I feel, and how deep the wound is.

I look forward to Christmas Day when she and I can forget our cares for a little while and enjoy some of these cookies together. They are a panacea, to say the least!

Chocolate-Peppermint Snaps
(Courtesty of The Cookbook Junkie and The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion)

Ingredients:
1 ½ cups unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons peppermint extract or 1/8 to ¼ teaspoon peppermint oil, to taste (I used extract)
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1)Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2) Lightly grease two baking sheets (I used parchment)

3) In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars.

4) Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

5) Mix in the vanilla and peppermint extract.
6) Add the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt, beating to combine.

7) Stir in the chocolate chips.
8) Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto the prepared baking sheets.

9) Bake the cookies for 12 to 15 minutes, until they’re slightly darker around the edges. 10) Remove them from the oven and transfer to a rack to cool.

Sugar, Pumpkin Spice, and Everything Nice

This weekend is the annual Supper Club Holiday Cookie Swap, and the first cookie in the mix I baked is a Pumpkin Cranberry cookie. I had been on the search for a pumpkin cookie since pumpkin is one of my favorite foods to eat around this time of year. I changed my cookie course from my two original choices - PB & J cookies and Chocolate Malt - and will make those for Christmas Day dessert.

I admit I am not fond of baking. There is something about the flour and sugar and spices getting all over my kitchen in crevices that I do not enjoy cleaning. It is also an exact science...once that batter is done, you cannot tweak it. Still, I enjoyed making these cookies, and my apartment smells so good that you should be very, very, very jealous.

I took a chance on this recipe since it was from Recipezaar and only had one review that said to add more salt (and I did). The batter was very sticky and I had trouble sizing it correctly in rounded tablespoonfuls onto the cookie sheets. The cookies came out cakey, which I liked, and the tartness of the cranberries added to each bite. I was happy to use my Penzey's cinnamon that I picked up recently.

I am so thankful to have the club meeting this weekend to keep my busy. I have another cookie to make and a salad to keep me busy today. Each week that gets closer to Christmas becomes harder, and I found out the other day an ex that I loved is engaged...adding fuel to the fire, or rather heat to the cookie sheet.

Pass the milk, because I am dunking my sorrows in cookie eating this weekend.

Pumpkin Cranberry Cookies (courtesy of Recipezaar)

Makes approximately 30 cookies)

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter (softened)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup dark brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2/3 cup pumpkin puree

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1 3/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt (I used more - tripled and it still could have used a little more)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground clove

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

2) Cream together butter and sugars with handheld mixer

3) Beat in egg, pumpkin, and vanilla

4) Mix dry ingredients together and add to the wet ingredients and blend well

5) Stir in dried cranberries

6) Drop batter by rounded tablespoons onto greased cookie sheets (I used parchment paper)

7) Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown

Cook's Country Comfort!

Last year I started watching Cook's Country on PBS and fell in love with the show and recipes. I then received the cookbook as a gift last Christmas, and it is now by far in my top five favorite cookbooks ever. It came with a dvd collection of the episodes as well, and I admit that I can watch them over and over and never tire of Chris Kimball's food snob commentary!

Two months ago, Supper Club did a brunch theme and I made this recipe from the cookbook. It is a perfect bread to make in the wintertime. There are two variations in the cookbook, and this is the one I did. The cheese oozed out of the top of the bread (see above) as it came out of my oven, looking perfectly gooey and tasting even better!

Beer-Batter Cheese Bread (courtesy of The Cook's Country Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1 cup shredded smoked gouda

8 slices of bacon, cooked until crisp and then crumbled

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 1/4 cup light bodied beer (I used Budweiser - worked perfectly)

4 tablespoons melted butter, plus 1 more tablespoon for brushing the top

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 375 and place rack in the middle. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch loaf pan.

- Combine the cheese, flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Stir in the beer and melted butter and mix until well combined. Fold in the bacon. Pour into the loaf pan, spreading the batter evenly into the corners. Brush with the melted butter.

- Bake until deep golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean from the center (about 40-45 minutes). Rotate the pan halfway through the baking process. Cool on the pan for five minute and then turn it out onto a wire rack. Cool completely and then slice and enjoy! Once the bread is leftover after the first day, it is best to toast it!

The Christmas Cookie Conundrum

Thankfully, I now belong to a supper club, thanks to an invite from my best friend, with an amazing circle of women who are phenomenal people and phenomenal cooks.

Each December is the annual cookie exchange. This will be my first one, and although when we actually meet that day we will make salads and taste one or two cookies, we all get to go home with bags and bags of cookies we swap! Each member usually makes at least two types of cookies. I already know one cookie I will definitely make are the peanut butter and jelly thumbprint cookies I make each year (pictured in the photo above from last season). I would hardly call them light, too. I make sure I use grape jelly so that they are almost as good, if not better, than an actual peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

It is the second cookie that is now a conundrum. I cannot decide on the kind of cookie (I have less than a month to decide) or bar I want to make. My Everyday Food magazine arrived the other day and I wasn't that impressed with the cookies or bars there this year for some reason. I am leaning towards a kind of peppermint chocolate bar, but I am not one hundred percent certain yet. I look forward to taking an hour or so in the next week or two and sitting down to browse recipes.

I suppose more emphasis is being placed on this one cookie or bar than usual, but these Christmas cookies will just about be the extent of Christmas in my apartment this year. I cannot and and will not put up my Christmas tree. It is the first time in my 31 years, but the pain is really not worth going through all the motions for. I decorated my tree last year with him - I even got him his own ornament and we received one that said "First Christmas" together. I never would have believed the first was the last. I am making a decision to give my heart ache a break this holiday season and keep it simple. I am sure I will go to Pottery Barn for a few accents here and there that are new and place them around the apartment (maybe even a nice cranberry centerpiece and new hurricane lantern for the table). But that tree is staying in the box, the ornaments are staying wrapped up, and the lights are to remain as tangled up as my heart feels these days.

Still, there will be Christmas cookies baking away in my oven and filling up my apartment with a different kind of holiday joy. The beauty of it all is that I get to share it with friends and family that I love.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies - (Courtesy of Cooking Light Magazine)

Yield: 3 dozen (serving size: 1 cookie)

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour (about 9 ounces)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup chunky peanut butter
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Cooking spray
• 7 tablespoons seedless raspberry preserves (*I USE GRAPE JELLY!*)
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Preparation

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and salt, stirring well with a whisk; set aside.

Place sugars, peanut butter, and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well combined. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture to sugar mixture, beating on low speed just until combined.

Lightly coat hands with cooking spray. Shape dough into 36 balls (about 2 1/2 teaspoons each). Place balls 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Press thumb into center of each dough ball, leaving an indentation. Cover and chill 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Uncover dough. Bake at 350° for 14 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove cookies from pans, and cool on a wire rack.

Place preserves in a small microwave-safe bowl, and microwave at HIGH 20 seconds, stirring once. Add juice, stirring until smooth. Spoon about 1/2 teaspoon preserves mixture into the center of each cookie.