Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

An all time favourite any time of the year. Soft and chewy cookies just like the bakeries!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Ingredients:
160g Butter
200g Brown Sugar
85g Granulated Sugar
2 Eggs
1 teaspoon Vanilla
200g Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Salt
260g Quick Oats
140g Raisins




Directions:
1. Cream butter and sugars until creamy.


2. Add eggs and vanilla, mix until blended, scrape bowl.


3. Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.


4. Add dry ingredients to the above mix and mix well.


5. Using an ice cream scoop or spoon, scoop out the batter onto a parchement lined baking tray or Silpat approximately 1 inch apart.


6. Bake at 350℉ between 10-12 minutes until golden brown.




Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Butter Tart Squares

Butter Tart Squares, a pastry-free take on butter tarts.

These are sooo much easier than making tarts. It's a twist on a classic Canadian dessert. Be sure to make these, eh. They are delicious!!!


Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup cold. unsalted butter


Filling:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, cooled
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon dark rum (optional)
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups raisins (or 1 cup raisins plus 1/2 cup of toasted pecans chopped)


Directions:
In a medium mixing bowl, mix flour and sugar. Using a pastry blender or fingers, cut butter until crumbly.


Press into a 9 inch (2.5L) square cake pan (or a 8 inch/2L, pan for a thicker crust and filling layers).


Bake in a preheated 350℉ (180℃) oven for 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes.


For the filling, in a medium bowl, stir the butter and eggs. Stir in the sugar, flour, baking powder, vanilla, rum (optional) and salt.


Stir in the raisins (and pecans if using). Pour over base. Bake in preheated 350℉ (180℃) oven until top springs back when lightly touched, about 25 minutes.


Let cool in the pan on a rack. Cut into squares.

Nice and Gooey

Adapted recipe from Best Recipes Ever.

Classic Madeleines

These shell-shaped cookies are one of my favourite French sweets. They are light in texture with a subtle hint of lemon, vanilla and butter. The Classic  Madeleine recipe is an adaptation from the French Pastry Chef André Lerch. 
They are  always a crowd pleaser!

Madeleines Classiques

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (105 grams) all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon double-acting baking soda
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
5 tablespoons (2 1/2 ounces; 70 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Directions: 

Sift together the flour and baking powder and keep close at hand. Working in a mixer fit with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs and sugar together on medium-high speed until they thicken and lighten in color, 2 to 4 minutes. Beat in the lemon zest and vanilla. Switch to a large rubber spatula and gently fold in the dry ingredients, followed by the melted butter. Cover the batter with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap against the surface to create an airtight seal, and chill for at least 3 hours, perhaps longer–chilling helps the batter develop its characteristic crown, known as the hump or the bump. (The batter can be kept tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). If your Madeleine pan is not nonstick, generously butter it, dust the insides with flour and tap out the excess. If the pan is nonstick, you still might want to give it an insurance coating of butter and flour. If it is silicone, do nothing. No matter what kind of pan you have, place it on a baking sheet for easy transportability.

Divide the batter among the molds, filling them almost to the top. Don’t worry about smoothing the batter, it will even out as it bakes.

Bake large madeleines for 11 to 13 minutes, small ones for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies are puffed and golden and spring back when touched. Pull the pan from the oven and remove the cookies by either rapping the pan against the counter (the madeleines should drop out) or gently running a butter knife around the edges of the cookies. Allow the madeleines to cool on a cooling rack. They can be served ever so slightly warm or at room temperature. Great with tea or espresso!

The madeleines should be eaten soon after they are made. You can keep them overnight in a sealed container, but they really are better on the first day. If you must store them, wrap them airtight and freeze them; they will keep for up to 2 months.

Adapted recipe from Paris Sweets by Dorie Greenspan.

Lemon Curd

This classic lemon curd is smooth, creamy and a snap to make. All the ingredients are placed in one pot. Just remember to keep stirring and avoid a high temp. The curd is great on scones, muffins and toast. It is also a good substitute for cake fillings and tarts. I plan to use this lemon curd sandwiched between a blueberry cake! So, stay tuned!!!

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup sugar


3/4 stick or 6 tbsp) butter, cut into 6 pieces

1 large egg

6 large egg yolks

freshly squeezed juice of 4 lemons

1 sheet of gelatine *

Directions:

Put all the ingredients in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir with a heatproof spatula to moisten the sugar. Put the pan over medium-low heat and cook, stirring without stopping, until the butter melts and the mixture thickens like custard, 4 to 6 minutes. (It was more like 10 minutes for it to thicken).

Keep your eyes on the pan, because the curd can curdle quickly. It is cooked enough when you can run your finger along the spatula and the curd doesn’t run into the track you’ve created. Soak the gelatine sheet(s) in a bowl of cold water for about 5 minutes. Remove from bowl and squeeze out excess water using your hands. Add to lemon curd once it has thickened and remove the pan from the heat. Stir until gelatine has melted.

Scrape the curd into a heatproof jar or a bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the curd to create an airtight seal and cool to room temperature before storing in the refrigerator.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

Storing: Packed in a tightly covered jar, the curd will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 months

*I added the gelatine because I like a thicker lemon curd.

Adapted recipe from Dorie Greenspan: Baking: From My Home to Yours.