Earl Grey Shortbread
Happy Monday, everyone. 
Did you all have a great holiday? Hubs had a nice day out in the city on Saturday. Our friends came to visit and they took us to one of the best submarine sandwich shops I’ve ever been to: Submarine Center in the West Portal district of SF. I’m not a big sandwich person and I still loved this place to pieces. The bread they use is delicious–just the right amount of crunch and softness. And the dressing that they slather onto the sandwich is so good. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
After lunch, we attempted to see the brand spankin’ new California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park, but tickets were completely sold out, so we visited the de Young museum of art instead. It was just ok. After Hubs and I visted the amazing museums in Europe this summer, it was hard to be impressed by our tiny museums in SF. Also, we weren’t willing to pay an extra $20 to see the special Yves Saint Laurent exhibit, although I’m sure it would’ve been interesting.
Today, I’m going to share the delicious recipe for the Earl Grey cookies that I made last week. When high quality tea is used to make these cookies, they are so fragrant, the whole kitchen smells like tea. But, when they are eaten, the tea flavor is mild and the shortbread is rich and buttery. I think these shortbread cookies are simply perfect with a cup of English breakfast tea. Just a warning: the recipe was given to me by my coworker who is a professional pastry chef, so everything is in grams. I don’t know what the conversions are, so it would be best to make these with a food scale. It’s good to have a food scale in the kitchen anyway, since I’ve found than many of the best recipes I find on the internet are all listed in grams.
First, I’ll share with you the mess that was supposed to be a batch of oatmeal cookies with dried cherries and apricots:
I baked two sad trays of these. The second tray dripped batter onto the bottom of our oven that is now charred and stuck. Now, every time I bake something, the smoke alarm goes off.
This is what a raw cookie is supposed to look like. Here are the Earl Grey shortbread cookies before they went into the oven.
Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients:
- 400g butter (a little less than 4 sticks), room temperature
- 160g powdered sugar, sifted
- 40g egg yolks (a little less than 2 large egg yolks)
- 10g salt
- 450g all purpose flour, sifted
- 2g Earl Grey tea, crushed
- Granulated sugar (for sprinkling)
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350.
- Sift together flour, salt, and Earl Grey tea and set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugar just until combined. Do not over cream or the cookies will not have a flakey, shortbread texture.
- Slowly add in egg yolks, being careful not to over cream.
- Add in dry ingredients, mixing lightly and only until dry ingredients have been combined. Dough should be a little sticky to the touch, but not super sticky.
- Take the dough and flatten it between two sheets of parchment paper. This will make rolling the dough out easier. Then, chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Roll out chilled dough into 1/4 inch thickness, being careful not to over handle. Cut shapes using cookie cutters and arrange on a metal sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 8-12 minutes, or until edges just turn golden brown.
- Remove cookies from oven and sprinkle with granulated sugar while hot. The sugar will melt a little bit and stick to the cookies. If available, vanilla infused sugar complements the cookies nicely.
- Cool cookies on sheet for 10 minutes. Then, remove and cool completely on a wire rack.
Jam Thumbprint Cookies
Yesterday at work, we had a cookie swap. Fun! Everyone on the team made different types of cookies, and we all went home with a an assortment of yummies. My goodie bag included chocolate chip cookies, cranberry biscotti, lemon bars, rocky road clumps, and peanut butter cookies, all made by my coworkers. I baked up a batch of jam thumbprints using the same recipe I tested with my girlfriend last week. It was from this year’s Cooks Illustrated holiday baking special. Deelish.
The recipe is so super easy, delicious, and fast. Everything was mixed and baked in an hour. If you ever need to make some fast and impressive cookies, these are sure to please.
Jam Thumbprints
From Cooks Illustrated
Ingredients:
1/2 cup raspberry jam (Cooks Illustrated recommends Smucker’s Red Raspberry Preserves)
2 1/4 cup (11 1/4 ounces) unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup (4 3/4 ounces) sugar
3 ounces (6 tablespoons) cream cheese, softened
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions:
- Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Fill small zipper-lock bag with jam. Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder in a medium bowl.
- Using hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 6 minutes. Beat in cream cheese, egg, and vanilla until combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down bowl and beaters as needed.
- Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds.
- Working with 1 1/2 teaspoons of dough at a time, roll dough into balls and lay them on prepared baking sheets, spaced about 1 1/2 inches apart. Use wet thumb to make indentation in center of each cookie.
- Bake until cookies are lightly browned around the edges and just beginning to set, about 10 minutes. Remove cookies from oven and, working quickly, gently reshape indentations with bottom of teaspoon. Snip small corner off bag of jam and carefully fill each indentation with about 1/2 teaspoon of jam. Rotate baking sheet and continue to bake until lightly golden, 12-14 minutes.
- Let cookies cool on baking sheets for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and let them cool completely, about 30 minutes, before serving.
Yummy!
French Toast, Oooh La La
I’m going to take a break from stamping today to share a recent recipe success I had. I was dying for a good French toast recipe for ages. My coworker gave me a tip to use cream and brioche instead of regular bread and plain eggs. Since the brioche loaf is full of buttery goodness, it tastes extra rich with the butter and egg mixture. Well, I tried it and I have only one thing to say: Best. French Toast. Ever. And it’s super easy to make. The whole process literally takes 10 minutes. Try it and impress your loved ones.
Ingredients: For four pieces of French toast, I used four slices of brioche one cup of milk (use cream if you have it. I didn’t), a splash of vanilla, three eggs, a dash of cinnamon, a tablespoon of brandy, and butter for cooking.
Whisk up all the wet ingredients in a shallow bowl.
Meanwhile, heat a nonstick pan on med/high. The butter should melt and sizzle, but not brown. If the butter browns immediately, the pan is too hot.
Dip the brioche in the egg mixture, wait five seconds, and flip.
Immediately transfer the egg covered bread onto the heated pan and fry.
Flip and cook the other side. Mmmmm. Soooo…. Gooood…
Add a touch of powdered sugar and serve with fruit, syrup, butter, or whatever you like. Yummy!
Lazy Eats for a Lazy Gal
I am all about simplicity. Well, more accurately, I am all about laziness. Take showering, for example. If being smelly wasn’t offensive to people, I probably wouldn’t shower as much. I only shower every day because Hubs makes me. If I were living on my own, I’m sure I’d only bathe half as much as I do now. Gross, I know. Hey, medieval people only bathed twice a year and they were just fine. Anyway, my point is, I’m lazy, and if there’s an easy way to do something, you can bet I’ll figure it out. That’s why I love the internet so darn much; it’s a lazy person’s paradise. Shopping, entertainment, and information, all within two square feet. Awesome! Poor Hubs. He married a very lazy woman.
Even a lazy wife has to feed her hungry husband once in a while. Because I’m lazy, I’m also resourceful. I like cooking, but I love eating even more. Hubs says I’m one of the pickiest eaters he knows. What does a picky, lazy girl do when she’s hungry? She makes quick and easy recipes that are satisfying to the taste buds. Below is my take on an ultimate gourmet chicken sandwich for the ultimate lazy cook. Hubs thinks I’m preparing him a meal fit for a king and I get to make the easiest recipe next to instant ramen. It’s a win-win!
Kel’s Lazy Chicken Sandwich
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman’s recipe for Marlboro Man’s 2nd Favorite Sandwich
Ingredients (for two sandwiches):
Two chicken breasts (or one large breast that can be split into two)
6-8 mushrooms
1/2 onion
Creole seasoning
2 wheat hamburger buns
2 pieces of lettuce
2 slices of cheese of your choice (I like provolone, but swiss or jack would also taste yummy)
Condiments
Wash and pat dry a chicken breast and remove the fat with a knife. Make sure you have your left pinky finger sticking up in the air just like I do. It makes the meat taste better. Then, using the flat side of a meat tenderizer, flatten the chicken to about 1/2 inch thickness. When I get really lazy, sometimes I just slice the chicken breast in half sideways to get a thin piece of chicken that cooks quickly.
Next season the chicken very well with creole seasoning. You should be able to find this stuff at your local grocery market. I use this in everything, from jambalaya to chicken marsala. Yup, you heard right—chicken marsala with creole seasoning. (I’ll post the recipe for that soon.) The creole stuff really adds a kick of flavor to your dishes. Once you’re done seasoning the chicken, set it aside to marinate for a bit.
Now, take about four slices of bacon and cut them in half (this is for two sandwiches, so double if you’re making more). Then, add the bacon to the unheated pan and turn your stove to medium low (about 4 on a scale of 10). Let your bacon cook all the way through.
While the bacon is heating, slice the mushrooms.
Slice up the onions. You can leave them in long slices. No need to chop them up into small pieces, unless you want too. I’ve already told you guys that I’m lazy, so the less chopping I need to do, the better.
Now, remove the cooked bacon from your pan and let the pieces drain on a paper towel. If there’s a lot of fat left in the pan, drain some of it off. Leave about a teaspoon or so in the pan and add the onions. Leave them to cook until they begin to caramelize.
Then, add the mushrooms and saute them until they are cooked through and the water has mostly evaporated. Remove the onion mushroom mixture and set it aside.
Take your hamburger buns and spread a small amount of softened butter on them.
Add the buns to a clean hot pan with the inside down. You can skip this part, but I like to have a nice yummy crust on the insides. If you want, you can flip them and heat the outside part of the buns too.
Now, heat one tablespoon of oil in the pan. When the pan is hot, add your marinated chicken breasts. Cook them for about 3-4 minutes per side. If you’re using a pan without a non stick coating, you’ll know your chicken breasts are finished when a crust forms on the bottom and they easily release when you try to turn them over.
When your chicken is almost done cooking on the second side, add the bacon strips on top.
Then, add your slices of provolone or jack or mozzarella (or whatever cheese you like) plus the mushroom, onion mixture. Heat until the chicken is cooked through and the cheese has melted. When everything has finished cooking, take your buns and add the condiments of your choice. Layer with the lettuce leaves to top off your yummy lazy chicken sandwich.
Yum-O. The ultimate definition of an easy, tasty chicken sandwich. And it only took about 20 minutes to make. Let’s name it a lazy-girl chicken-wich, shall we?
Hubs’ Favorite No Meat Pasta
For the record, any vegetarian dish that my husband eats without complaining must be a good dish. If he eats it and actually likes it, now that’s a recipe worth making, my friends.
Hubs tells me that I only like “fresh” tasting food, like cilantro, basil, and tomatoes. That’s his code word for, “fancy food.” I like to garnish my dishes with parsley. Hubs says parsley is pointless and complains that it scratches the top of his mouth. He thinks a dining establishment that serves parsley is a “fancy” restaurant.
Hubs likes things simple. Protein. Carbs. Salt. You see, the thing about Hubs is… well, he’s not exactly the pickiest of eaters. And when I say not picky, I mean he’ll take a container of old chicken out of our fridge, stick his nose in the Tupperware, and take a deep breath. If the food passes his sniff test (even with a C-), he’ll eat it. Say it’s a tad sour, but not quite gone bad yet, he’ll place it in his mouth to perform a chew test. As long as the questionable item once walked and breathed and had at least two legs, he’ll eat it. Needless to say, our toilet plunger is not pleased that Hubs grades our refrigerator contents on a bell curve.
Anyway, last night I made a “fresh” tasting pasta that Hubs actually enjoyed. He scarfed the dish down and declared as one of his favorites. I thought I’d share it with you guys in case you ever need to sneak healthy food into the stomachs of your loved ones. They just might love it too.
Ingredients: Good olive oil (make sure you use the good stuff), basil, 2 pints of cherry tomatoes, garlic, 2-3 oz of goat cheese, 12 oz of camapell— I mean, capanell— err, that box of pasta you see in the picture. Fusilli works well also.
Boil the pasta in salted water and cook the noodles until they are nice and al dente.
While the pasta is cooking, mince three large garlic cloves. I minced five or six. But that’s me. I looove my garlic.
Now, wash and chop your basil leaves. I like to cut them Rachael Ray style. I roll up the leaves into a long bundle and it makes the chopping very easy.
You’ll want about two or two and a half cups of chopped basil. Or whatever your preference. I like basil so I chopped enough to feed a small country with pesto sauce.
Heat about three tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. When the pan is hot, go ahead and dump the two pints of tomatoes into your pan. Oh wait! I forgot to mention, wash your tomatoes. Oh well. Adds to the flavor, right?
Anyway, the tomatoes are going to sizzle and pop, but just cover them up with the pan lid and let them saute until they begin to soften and some of them start to collapse.
About four minutes into the sauteeing, add the minced garlic into your pan. Make sure you don’t throw it in to early or you’ll have a one big mess of burnt garlic. Let the garlic, tomato mixture keep cooking until the tomatoes are nice and soft, but not totally falling apart. They should still look whole, with a few of them collapsed.
Once your pasta has cooked, drain it and toss it with some olive oil to prevent sticking. I like to use garlic flavored olive oil, but that’s just me. You know I love my garlic.
Now, throw the pasta back into your large pot while the noodle are still hot. Add the 2-3 oz of goat cheese into the pot also.
Add the entire tomato mixture, garlic and all, into the pasta and goat cheese pot. Now, this is the fun part. Take a spatula and toss away. Toss, toss, toss. Toss until all the cheese has melted and mixed into your pasta. Try not to break up the tomatoes too much if you can.
Last, but not least, add the yummy, “fresh” chopped basil. Toss lightly one more time.
Plate and serve! Add a touch of shredded Parmesan, if that’s your thing. It’s certainly my thing. Yum, yum, yum. Un-carnivorous goodness. Enjoy!
A Red Velvet Weekend
Darling readers, I have received the BEST EVER recipe for red velvet cake. My co-worker, who used to be a pastry chef at the Ritz Carlton, is starting her own cupcake business. I told her that I wanted to make a red velvet birthday cake for a girlfriend and she gave me her fool proof recipe. Since I know there are only a whopping two people who read this blog, I can share her secret with ya’ll.
But first, the scrumptious pictures:
Here’s red velvet, pre frosting. Two yummy layers separated by a whipped butter cream. MMMM.
And my first ever attempt at icing a cake. I know it looks funny, but it still makes me want to go NOM NOM NOM.
Yes, the handwriting could use a little work. I melted a few dark chocolate squares and squeezed the letters out through the tip of a pastry bag.
As a finishing touch, I added chocolate sprinkles around the side. Or, a more accurate depiction would be that I chucked chocolate sprinkles at the cake by the handful because I didn’t have a tilting cake turntable to help me out.
It’s not the prettiest red velvet cake, but I promise it was delicious. It was the perfect texture: moist, fluffy, and scrumdiddlyumptious. In fact, it was so good that I ate it three days in a row. *burp* Most importantly, Janet liked it, so I was very happy.
Now, for the yummy recipe! (It’s in grams because my co-worker is a pastry chef and she measures everything with a scale.)
RED VELVET CAKE
Ingredients:
328g All Purpose Flour
288g Sugar
4g Baking Soda
6g Salt
10g Cocoa Powder
286g Veg. Oil
252g Buttermilk
2ea Eggs
2 Tbsp Red Food Coloring
6g White Vinegar
6g Vanilla Extract
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 (measure your oven with an oven thermometer to ensure accurate temp).
- Combine all dry and sifted.
- Combine all wet (I combined the sugar with the wet ingredients).
- Add dry into wet and mix lightly.
- Bake for 20 minutes. Touch the top of the cake. If it springs back with slight resistance, it is done. Otherwise, bake for 5 minutes and check again. Or, insert a toothpick diagonally into the center of the cake. It should come out mostly clean with a few crumbs attached.
- Cool the cake to room temp before decorating.
BUTTER CREAM ICING
(I found this recipe on Chowhound and it worked perfectly with the cake)
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp Cornstarch
1 Cup Whole Milk
1 Cup Butter (softened to room temp)
1 Cup Superfine Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Directions:
- Mix cornstarch with milk. Cook on medium heat until thick, whisking the entire time. Set aside to cool.
- Cream butter until fluffy.
- Add vanilla and cooked cornstarch mixture slowly. Beat until it feels like whipped cream. The sugar should be dissolved and the frosting should not be grainy.
- Ice your cake!
Happy eating, folks!
