Baking | Home Is Where The Haggis Is

Category: Baking
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
  
  Posted at 3:00 pm by Lisa Cavallari
  
  Jan 13th
  I have to admit that the winter doldrums are starting to set in just a little.
  
  Even my youngest one is getting antsy. I caught her in her bathroom the other day when things suddenly got too quiet. (All of you moms know exactly what I am talking about.) Imagine my surprise to see that she had covered her entire head in handsoap. My startled expression made her burst into tears and she apologized profusely while I started up the shower and snapped a few photos for posterity.
  
  Baking is always a great way to lift everyone’s moods around here so 0ver the weekend I scanned Pinterest, cookbooks and magazines for tips on how to make the chewiest, tastiest chocolate chip cookies. These will be perfect for game day.
  
  Chocolate Chip Cookies
  
  makes 16
  
  Note: for optimal flavor and to keep your cookies from becoming flat it is best to make these 1 day ahead and refrigerate.
  
  Ingredients
  
  2 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  
  1 tsp baking soda
  
  1 and 1/2 tsp cornstarch
  
  1/2 tsp salt
  
  3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
  
  3/4 cup brown sugar, loosely packed
  
  1/2 cup granulated sugar
  
  1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
  
  2 tsp vanilla
  
  1/2 bag chocolate chunks (I used Nestle semi-sweet)
  
  Directions:
  
  Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cornstarch into a bowl. Set aside.
  
  In a large bowl, whisk melted butter with both sugars until all lumps are gone. Whisk in egg and egg yolk one at a time. Lastly, add the vanilla. Slowly add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and stir using a wooden spoon to combine. Fold in chocolate chunks. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill overnight.
  
  Take dough out of refrigerator and allow to soften at room temperature for about 10 minutes.
  
  Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop 2 heaping tablespoons and gently roll into a ball. Place 8 cookies on sheet and bake for about 12 minutes.
  
  After removing cookies from oven allow them to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes. This will keep your cookies in tact when you remove them from the sheet using a spatula.
  
  Cookies will stay fresh in a sealed container for about a week.
  
  Enjoy with a big glass of milk.
  
  I love bringing that smile out when we bake together.
  
  Sydney was a little bummed when she first got off the bus today, but when I brought out the cookies, her and her bunny were all smiles for the camera.
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  Posted in Baking | Tagged chewy, chocolate chip cookie, chocolate chunk
- Brandy Ice
  
  Posted at 10:31 am by Lisa Cavallari
  
  Dec 17th
  I love Mad Men. I love how everyone on the show smokes and actually makes it look glamourous. I love the beautiful attention to detail with the set and wardrobe. And probably most of all, I love how everyone on the set drinks heavily, yet would never be condsidered an alcoholic. If Don Draper had a favorite dessert-because he is not exactly the dessert type-it would be a Brandy Ice. This recipe is dedicated to all of you who aren’t afraid of a good, stiff drink added to your dessert.
  
  Brandy Ice
  
  serves 8
  
  My husband’s family owned a restaurant for fifty two wonderful years until they closed it down -by their own free will and ready to retire- in 2000. Brandy ice was their most requested dessert that they served. This recipe is simple, fast and elegant. The key to success in this dessert is the stainless steel bowl in which you mix your ingredients. The steel bowl keeps the ice cream cold and prevents it from turnning soupy.
  
  I plan to serve this for our Christmas Eve dessert this year because you can also make it ahead of time and just pop it into the freezer until you need it. Warning-it tastes best made fresh, but when you need to save time it still works well.
  
  Ingredients:
  
  1/2 carton good vanilla ice cream like Homer’s (a local favorite among the North Shore crowd).
  
  I used E&J VSOP brandy. Add as much or as little brandy as you like. Sorry, no exact measurements here. It is really up to you, but you would be surprised at how much you can get away with and it won’t overpower your dessert.
  
  Directions:
  
  Scoop the ice cream into a stainless steel bowl of a standing mixer or you can mix it by hand in steel bowl. Add brandy and turn mixer on high for less than a minute until mixture is smooth and creamy. Spoon into bowls and enjoy.
  
  You could garnish it with a small peppermint stick or sprig of mint and a little more brandy on top if you like.
  
  Cheers.
  
  P.S. Thank you AMC for your beautiful images and for airing a brilliant show.
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  Posted in Baking | Tagged brandy, dessert, ice cream, Mad Men
- Baked Christmas Dog Treats
  
  Posted at 8:13 pm by Lisa Cavallari
  
  Dec 13th
  For the holidays, we can’t forget man’s best friend. Giada inspired me to try her recipe when I watched her latest Christmas episode on Food Network. You can find it here.
  
  I used white flour instead of wheat and Christmas-shaped cookie cutters instead of bones.
  
  Sprinkling a little parmesan on before I put these into the oven.
  
  Our cat, Harp, was offered a small piece of these baked treats, but she politely declined.
  
  Olivia helped me put these into an airtight container until we make our rounds tomorrow distributing them to some lucky neighbor dogs. They were fun and easy to make so make sure you show your four-legged friend some love and try this recipe out.
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  Posted in Baking | Tagged dog treats, oats, peanut butter
- Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice
  
  Posted at 9:47 am by Lisa Cavallari
  
  Dec 6th
  With just twenty days to go until Christmas, I feel like I am scrambling to get my shopping, baking, holiday cards, wrapping and everything else complete in time. Here is one recipe that takes less than 15 minutes to make with minimal ingredients and makes a great item to munch on for guests. Another bonus is that the house always smells like cinnamon when you are done.
  
  This recipe is for sugar coated pecans and also courtesy of my fantastic grandmother-in-law. (She lets me call her Grandma though.) I love that about her.
  
  Sugar Coated Pecans – can be served in a pretty candy dish or sprinkle some on top of a salad with crisp apples or pears and some goat cheese. They keep well in a tightly sealed container stored at room temperature for about two weeks…if they last that long.
  
  10 ounces whole pecans
  
  1 tsp cinnamon
  
  1 tsp vanilla
  
  1 cup sugar
  
  1/2 cup water
  
  dash of salt
  
  Place all ingredients except the pecans into a frying pan and mix well. Turn on heat to medium-high and add the nuts.
  
  Stir continually until all moisture is gone and the nuts have a sugary texture and coating.
  
  Take off heat and allow to cool on tinfoil.
  
  Good luck! More holiday ideas to come.
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  Posted in Baking | Tagged cinnamon, pecans, sugar, sugar coated pecans
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