Chocolate Coconut Pecan Cookies

I’ve been meaning to post these for a few weeks now, but other activities have gotten in the way of me sitting down at the computer.  I made these cookies both as a thank you gift and for Scott to share with a group of people that he was training.  I’m glad that everyone liked them because I was a bit late picking up Scott from the metro the night that I made them.  He was staying in town for dinner and that meant that I could read a book while I ate my dinner.  I don’t remember exactly what I was reading since that was a few books ago, but let’s just say it was Skeletons on the Zahara: A True Story of Survival since I know that I read that book around the time I made these cookies and it is the kind of book that could get between me and baking since it is so captivating.  Regardless, I started baking later than I intended and still had two trays of cookies to put in the oven when Scott called to say he was going into the station to catch the train.  When it came to leave to get him, I had a difficult decision to make: pick him up on time and have two trays of half-baked cookies, or finish baking the cookies and pick him up late.  This time, the cookies won.  The good news is that I ended up being only 10 minutes late, and Scott was very understanding, especially once he tried one of the cookies.  If you like dense chocolaty cookies, then these are for you!

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Peanut Butter Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

There is a little bunny that lives between our house and our neighbor’s house.  Well, technically, it lives in the neighbor’s woodpile, but it seems to spend most of its free time in our yard.  Luckily it is only eating weeds and plants I’m not really particular about.  Whenever somethings scares it, it dives into the woodpile through the chain-link fence.  I don’t know what it is going to do once it is too big to fit through the fence.  Maybe it will wait at one of the gates looking up at us until we come out and open both of them so it can pass through and get to the woodpile?  Regardless, it is quite cute.  Sometimes it will just sit contentedly next to the tree and the hole into the woodpile; other times it hops all over the place.  We’re quite fascinated by it, and when we haven’t seen it for a while, I start to worry that the neighborhood fox has gotten it, but then it magically appears again.  Ahh, the wildlife dramas of suburbia.

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Nutmeg Tea Cakes

 

I’m so glad that it is finally warming up here!  I’ve already made iced tea twice and spent a large portion of this weekend outside in the yard taking care of things that should have been done ages ago.  Like finally cutting back the dead mums, (carefully) yanking out the dead iris leaves from last year, and planting a few (albeit small) bushes.  Would you believe that this year’s irises are already a few inches tall?  I should have cleaned those dead leaves up earlier.  I’m really excited about those bushes though.  Now our house/yard doesn’t look as naked.  I also found a little volunteer cilantro plant in the garden so my vegetable garden is already off to a good start!
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Cardamom Pistachio Brownies

I’ve been meaning to share this recipe with you for at least a week now, but things got busy.  We went to Portland, OR for the long weekend and I decided it would be more fun if I avoided the computer for a few days.  We got to see some friends, eat maple-bacon waffles and donuts, complete a 12-mile in and out hike to a waterfall, and visit Cannon Beach.  I was particularly excited to go to the beach since we used to pile into the car, put on the Sleepless in Seattle soundtrack, and drive there for long weekends when I was a kid.  It was on those drives that I perfected the art of sleeping in the car. 
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Raspberry Almond Thumbprints

I will be quick about this because there are still things I’d like to get done this evening before the next episode of Downton Abbey starts.  Yes, I am planning my evening around a TV show.  I’d bet a batch of these cookies that I’m not alone in my evening plans.  Of the cookies that I made for the holidays, these were my favorite.  I’m a real sucker for almond and raspberry combinations, and these cookies definitely hit the mark.  As an added bonus, they are light, fluffy, and beautiful.  You won’t be disappointed if you make them!  So, now that you have the details on these awesome cookies, I am going to return to my exciting task of cleaning out my closet.  Enjoy (the cookies and Downton Abbey)!
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Peanut Butter Crunch Bars

The hardest part about making these bars is waiting for the chocolate to set.  I put together a batch yesterday morning while I was still half asleep.  The chocolate didn’t have time to fully set by the time we left for my brother’s house for brunch, but luckily he and my sister-in-law never seem to mind if I need to borrow their knife and cutting board, especially when peanut butter and chocolate are involved. 
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Mounds Bar Cookies

Have you made your list and checked it twice?  Your cookie list, that is!  I hope your baking season is off to an excellent start!  All of this commercialization is taking away from the real focus of the holidays: baked goods!  I’ve been tinkering with my holiday cookie list since we first turned on our heat.  I think I finally have it squared away.  It is a carefully honed list of 14 super secret items.  Some are cookies.  Some are candies.  Some are just flavor ideas right now.  To get all 14 made, I’m going to have to make a plan and stick to it.  Luckily making the plan is half of the fun of holiday baking!  Raise your hand if you love making baking lists and timelines!  Ahem, I hope I am not the only one wildly waving my arm in the air.  Regardless, this is a great time of year because you get to bake so many great things and share them with so many wonderful people.  The world would be a better place if we had more baking-focused holidays!
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Cranberry Orange Pistachio Thumbprints

Whoot!  I am super excited to share these cookies with you!  They are amazing!  If you had walked past the front of our house this afternoon and looked in the window when I tried one, you might have thought I was a touch crazy.  That's because with my first bite, I had to let out my inner dance.  [Full disclosure:  I was listening to the Mariachi El Bronx (II) album, and how can you not dance when it is on?]  Even though I took my share of modern and ballroom dance classes in college (admittedly, this was a while ago now...), my inner dance still scares the crap out of Scott.  I'd like to believe that is because my dancing is so amazing that it intimidates him, but honestly, it's because I look like a crazy person.  Generally, I try to keep my inner dance harnessed until the curtains are drawn to minimize his embarrassment (and mine), but with all rules, there are exceptions, like this afternoon when I ate my first cranberry orange pistachio thumbprint.

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Caramel Apple Sour Cream Crumble

A few weeks ago, we bought some beautiful apples on our way home from my parents' house.  At the time, I was certain the apples were destined for a perfectly cooked pie.  I had told a friend that we would bring a dessert over the following weekend for a get together, and I hoped that my apple pie, paired with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, would make everyone swoon.  All week long, I thought about making the pie.  Its crust would be flaky and golden brown, and the apples, mounded impossibly high, would retain their structure so the filling wouldn't collapse into apple-cinnamon mush. 
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7 Layer Bars

The only redeeming quality of jet lag is that it can turn even the most stalwart of morning sleepers (i.e., me) into early morning risers.  Don't get me wrong; I am no longer a sleep-until-noon kind of person, but I can still manage to sleep in until 8 (or occasionally 9 am!) on a weekend and historically have been known to require 3 alarms to get up.  Yesterday morning, jet lag got the better of me and I had my feet on the floor at 4:57 am, was sending emails by 5:20 am, and Scott and I were traipsing about in the wet grass of the backyard to measure the distance for our new clothesline before the first rays of the sun sent their silvery fingers of light over the horizon .

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Lemon Poppy Seed Squares

Lemon and poppy seeds are so perfect together.  These bars are easy to make and are buttery and refreshing.  I think you’ll like them.  Enjoy your holiday weekend!

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Fudgy Coconut Brownies

Hi, there!  It's been a while.  Even though I haven't been posting, I've been thinking about you and the perfect recipe to share with you!  First, I'll list off my excuses for not posting: 1) an incredibly relaxing vacation on the beach in Maine with no cell service, no TV, and no Internet; 2) a 4-day power outage; and 3) general laziness.  Yes, I am admitting to succumbing to laziness.  Now that we're done talking about why I didn't post anything, we can move on to the exciting topic of these brownies. 
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Candied Pecan Sandies

Because you can never have enough sandies in your lunchbox!  These are a variation of the lemon coconut sandies I shared a few weeks ago.  You're going to love them!
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Lemon Coconut Sandies

If you're looking for a lemon cookie that is light and delicate and looks relatively fancy, but is easy to make, then look no further than this recipe.  I whipped up a batch of these for an awesome surprise party I went to a few weeks ago.  In preparation for the party, I scoured my cookbooks looking for the perfect lemon cookie recipe.  In my search, I stumbled across a pecan sandie recipe.  I lingered over the recipe, because I love how cookies rolled in powdered sugar seem to melt away with the first bite. 
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Walnut Rolls

I am super excited to share this recipe with you!  I've been working on it on and off again since the beginning of February, so it is great to finally have a product that is blog-worthy and relatively fool-proof!  I made this recipe over the weekend at my parents' house.  Lots of people were coming for the weekend (18 to be exact!) so I got there Thursday night to secure a bed and bake this bread.  Just kidding!  I really got there early so I could spend the day with my mom. 
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Toasted Oat, Plum, and Pecan Cookies

I made a variation of these cookies for an awesome wedding that we recently went to.  I had a special request for a diabetic-friendly cookie, and my mom sent me a few potential recipes to try out.  I'm going to share something with you now that I never thought I would:  I actually like dried plums.  I imagine that some of the food purists out there are saying, rightly so, "Did she just call a prune a dried plum?"  Yes, I am completely guilty of trying to make one of the ingredients in these cookies sound more appealing. 
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Homemade Samoas

Home. Made. Samoas.  Yes, you read that correctly!  I'm so excited to share this recipe with you!  If you have been waiting for a reason to add a candy thermometer to your kitchen collection, grab one of those prolific Bed Bath & Beyond coupons and head to the store and get one today!  These cookies are quite possibly the best cookies I have ever made. 

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Crispy Walnut Puddles

Stop whatever you are doing right now.  There are more important things to do in life, like making these cookies.  I swear you will forget all about the work you are doing or the important New York Times article or random Wikipedia entry you were reading once you eat just one of these cookies.  I know the world disappeared for a few minutes when I first tried them. 

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Million Dollar Pie

When I think about Million Dollar Pie, it seems like I have been eating it my whole life.  In truth, we only started eating it a few years ago when my mom got the recipe from a co-worker. 

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Crispy Chocolate Chip Coconut Macadamia Nut Cookies

A few weekends ago we brought these cookies over to a friend's house as a housewarming gift.  Our friend really likes Hawaii, and since I bought the macadamia nuts for these cookies in Hawaii this past fall, making these for his housewarming seemed like the right fit. 

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