Dark Chocolate White Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Sea Salt....#improv

It's the third Thursday of the month...this can only mean that it's an Improv day! Improv is a monthly blogger challenge put forth by the lovely Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker. Each month Kristen gives us two seasonal ingredients with which we are to create something wonderful. This month our theme is Ebony and Ivory!

Of course I went for the chocolate....why wouldn't I? Actually, a few months ago I had created a Sea Salted Dark Chocolate Cookie. I loved them, but I forgot to write the recipe down and I couldn't remember where I got the inspiration. So, I Googled. What I found was a pretty good sounding cookie from a certain Martha Stewart. You can find her recipe here ------ >  XXX  Of course I had to put my spin on things (not to mention make it an Ebony and Ivory themed cookie), so I changed it up. Here's what I made:

Dark Chocolate White Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Sea Salt

Printable Recipe

1 cup flour

1/2 cup dark cocoa (I used Hershey's Special Dark)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt, plus more for sprinkling

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup coconut oil

2 eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup dark chocolate chips (60% Cacao), melted

2 teaspoons espresso powder or instant coffee

1/2 cup good quality white chocolate chips

2 oz good quality white chocolate, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F; line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the sugar and the coconut oil for several minutes or until light. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Stir the espresso powder into the melted chocolate and add to the sugar mixture. Fold in the flour/cocoa mixture just until completely blended; stir in the white chocolate chips and chopped white chocolate. 

The coconut oil can make the cookies spread, so be sure to chill the dough for a few minutes after you've dropped them on the cookie sheet. 

Drop the dough by tablespoons (I use a cookie scoop) onto the prepared pan. Sprinkle each mound of cookie dough with a little sea salt. Chill the dough for a few minutes before baking (so the cookies don't spread too much), then bake for 10-12 minutes. Let them cool on the pan for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.

It might be worth your while to pour a glass of milk before you dig in....

Perfectly fudge-y in the middle.

Okay--wipe the crumbs off and let's take a look at what everyone else is making---

An InLinkz Link-up

Orange-White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cinnamon Rolls

I hope you'll forgive me for being just a little slow in posting this recipe. It's not that it's not a good one...in fact this is probably the yummiest cinnamon roll I've made. For sure, it's my favorite so far. So, why the hesitation? Frankly, it's because I'm on a diet going through a lifestyle change. Not to worry--I haven't completely abandoned the "good stuff". After all, my motto is "everything in moderation". It's just that I'm still in the beginning stages and, while most of this batch is resting in the freezer, it's a little painful looking at the picture. Please bear with me as I learn the moderation process.

I think orange zest may be one of my favorite flavor additions...this roll is full of it!

Orange-White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cinnamon Rolls

Printable Recipe

Dough:

1 cup milk

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon grated orange zest

2 ¼ teaspoons yeast
1 egg, slightly beaten

3-3 ½ cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

Filling:

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon grated orange peel

1/4 cup cold butter, cut into 4-5 pieces
1 (3.5-4 oz) bar premium white chocolate
1/2 cup diced macadamia nuts

Frosting:

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon grated orange peel

2-3 tablespoons orange juice

Preheat oven to 375 ° F.

 Heat the milk, 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup sugar, and orange peel in a small saucepan until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. Let cool until temperature is about 110 degrees F (like bathwater warm).

I started early on with the orange flavor by putting some in the warmed milk.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 3 cups of the flour and the salt.

In a large mixing bowl, combine milk mixture with yeast, egg, and 2 cups of the flour mixture; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has just pulled together, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. (Alternately, just use the dough hook on your mixer and let the mixer knead the dough for about five minutes).

Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a clean damp towel. Allow dough to rise until double, about 1 hour.  In the mean time, process the brown sugar, cinnamon, orange peel, and white chocolate in a food processor. Add the cold butter and pulse until incorporated.

Roll out the dough into a 12 X 9 inch rectangle (I like to do this on my Silpat). Sprinkle the brown sugar mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch edge. Sprinkle the diced macadamia nuts evenly over the the filling. Roll up the dough from the long side and pinch seam to seal. Cut into 12 equal sized pieces and place into a greased 9 X 13 inch pan. Cover and let rise until doubled (or refrigerate overnight).

Bake at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until browned. Remove from oven and frost while warm.

For frosting, beat the cream cheese and the butter in a medium bowl. Add the orange peel and vanilla. Slowly add the powdered sugar and orange juice, beating to desired consistency.

I've said it before--the frosting is the best part.

Hint: to avoid over-consumption, wrap each cinnamon roll in plastic wrap and freeze. To serve, simply nuke the frozen roll for 30 seconds.

Cherry-White Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Welcome to Christmas Week, a multi-blogger event co-hosted by Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina. Each day we will be celebrating a new holiday baking theme where each blogger makes a dish they love. We hope you enjoy this fabulous event. Tune in each day starting Monday December 3nd and ending Friday December 7th.

Wow--this is the very first time I have committed to writing five (count 'em--five!) blog posts on consecutive days, but isn't holiday food worth it? Not only will you see five days worth of Christmas goodies coming from me, but the sweets will be flowing from eleven other bloggers. Isn't this fun? Now, let's talk about the cookies.....

A few years ago, my friend DeeDee posted one of the prettiest cookies I had ever seen. Full of maraschino cherries, white chocolate, and macadamia nuts, it really stood out as a stellar Christmas cookie. As luck would have it, DeeDee has allowed me to post her recipe to kick off Christmas Week. So, without further ado, let me share with you this spectacular cookie....

Cherry-White Chocolate Chunk Cookies (adapted from DeeDee Pierce)

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

½ cup chopped macadamia nuts

6 oz good quality white chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 (10 oz) jar maraschino cherries, well drained and chopped

I found a package of macadamia nuts all nicely chopped up for me. If you prefer larger pieces, feel free to chop your own.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F; line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment*, cream the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla and the almond extracts.

Add the flour, half at a time, to the creamed mixture, stirring just until well-incorporated. The dough will be stiff. Stir in the nuts and the white chocolate, then gently stir in the cherries. 

Since my jar of cherries was larger than I needed, I measured out one cup.

Drop the cookie dough by rounded tablespoons on to the lined cookie sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until they are firmly set, but not browned. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool completely, before removing from the sheets (if you need to reuse the pan, simply slide off the parchment paper with the cookies, and reline).

*Using a stand mixer is recommended, as the cookie dough is rather stiff.

It's important to cool the cookies on the parchment paper...if you try removing them while they are still warm, they may fall apart. Trust me on this....

There you have it---beautiful cherry cookies! While you can certainly make these year-round (wouldn't that cherry-red color be great for Valentine's day?), I hear that this particular recipe is Santa's favorite. Please leave a few out for the jolly old guy.

Today’s theme for Christmas Week is “Cookies and Bars”. Make sure you visit all the participating bloggers today to see what special dish they whipped up for you.

• Mice Cookies from Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic
• Biscoff Blossoms from Jen of Juanita’s Cocina
• Double Chocolate Thumbprints from Liz of That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Cookie Sticks from Anuradha of Baker Street
• Snickerdoodles Snowballs from Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker
• Cranberry Pistachio Christmas Biscotti from Isabelle of Crumb
• Mint Chocolate Pudding Cookies from Erin of Dinners, Dishes and Desserts
• Hot Cocoa Blossoms from Erin of Spiffy Cookie
• Jam Thumbprints from Ramona of Curry and Comfort
• Fudgy Cathedral Cookies from Heather of Girlichef
• Cherry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies from Cathy of The Dutch Baker’s Daughter
• Cranberry Sauce Brownies from Chung-Ah of Damn Delicious

Cranberry-White Chocolate Muffins

One of the best parts of the holiday season is the resurgence of all of my favorite foods, and as with anything holiday related, these foods are popping up earlier and earlier. Granted, cranberries are eaten year round, but the bags-piled-on-bags of fresh cranberries in the produce department really mark the beginning of the season. So, to properly jump-start the holidays, how about a nice muffin?

Cranberry-White Chocolate Muffins

Printable Recipe

2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon fresh orange zest (or 1 teaspoon dried)

1 (3.5-4 oz) bar of good quality white chocolate, chopped

1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

1 egg, slightly beaten

6 tablespoons melted butter or coconut oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.; line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, orange peel, and salt. Stir in the white chocolate and the cranberries. In another bowl, stir together the buttermilk, egg, butter or coconut oil and vanilla. Combine the wet ingredients with the dry, stirring until just mixed, being careful to not over beat. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins. Sprinkle the remaining sugar evenly over the muffin tops.

Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool on a wire rack.

I've been saving a bar of white chocolate to pair up with something good and cranberries seem to be the perfect accompaniment...sweet and smooth with tart and tangy. 

I'll admit I used the dried orange peel this time. This stuff from Penzey's is terrific. 

Whisk all the dry ingredients first--you don't want to over-mix once you add the liquid.

A little sprinkle of sugar on top is a nice touch, no?

I love that the cranberries pop and give the muffin so much color.

How are you kicking off the holiday season?