Hooray for the Internet!

It's been ages since I've put together a mish-mash of links!  Here are some of the things I've come across recently.  Enjoy!

-Colleen

Fried Gravy on Whimsical Cookery
The middle patty is actually gravy which has been fried.  This sounds horrifically delicious.

Sylvia Plath on 365 Lucky Days via Kireei
This stitch artist is creating one project a day for a year.  Some are literary, all are lovely!
There are also some great Wes Anderson themed pieces.

Art Journal on Bare Feet and a Free Spirit
I love watercolor painting for fun and I adore the idea of keeping a watercolor journal.

reCAP Mason Jar Pour Top
Now that I am home and surrounded by mason jars, I want one of these! 

Inkodye on The Purl Bee
I've posted about Inkodye before. I can't wait to get my hands on the stuff!

Maps on Kayla Danelle
I want to do this for every place I've lived.

Cookie Dough Brownies

Cookie Dough Brownies

A Mix of Recipes

This recipe for cookie dough-topped brownies had been on my mind since Amy posted about it a few weeks ago.  However, when I looked at the recipe, I thought there were a few things I would change about it.  I thought the best way to start would be to go to my favorite brownie and chocolate chip cookie recipes and go from there to combine them.  

Brownie Layer:

For the brownies, I modified this Martha Stewart recipe for Double-Chocolate Brownies.  It is my go-to recipe.  For the purposes of making Cookie Dough Brownies, I cut the recipe to two-thirds, figuring I wanted a thin brownie layer.

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons of butter, cubed

100 grams of semi-sweet chocolate (~ 3.5 oz), broken into pieces

1/3 cup of sugar*

2 eggs

3 tablespoons of cocoa powder

1/4  teaspoon of salt

5 tablespoons of flour

*I usually cut the amount of sugar in any recipe in half.  I really dislike things so sweet that you cannot taste anything else.  For sweeter brownies, use up to 2/3 cup of sugar.

Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C).  Line a 9x11 inch pan (or something of similar size) with parchment paper so that the paper goes all the way up the sides.  Trim off excess and put aside.  

In a double boiler, melt butter and chocolate, stir until smooth.  Remove from heat.

Pour sugar into a medium sized mixing bowl, pour chocolate mixture on top and whisk until well-combined.  Add eggs, one at a time.  Add salt.  Gradually whisk in cocoa.  Fold in flour until just combined.  Pour into pan, using a spatula or rubber scraper to evenly distribute.  The batter will be quite viscous and will form only a thin layer in the pan.  Bake 15-20 minutes.  Test the center with a toothpick; if it comes out with only a few crumbs, the brownies are fully cooked.  

Set aside and make cookie dough.

Cookie Dough Layer:

The obvious choice for a cookie dough recipe seemed to me the old standard: Toll House.

These cookies have an important ingredient missing from the original Cookie Dough Brownie Recipe...

SALT!  You cannot have all of that sugar without some salt to balance it out!  

Here is my recipe, cut in half to make a reasonably-sized layer, and altered to remove the eggs but not the moisture.

Baking is Messy

But Totally Worth It!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of brown sugar (or turbinado here in Europe, which is the closest I can find)

1 package of vanilla sugar (here in Europe, or 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla and 1 tablespoon of sugar)

2 tablespoons of milk

1 cup of flour

100 grams of semi-sweet chocolate (~3.5 oz), finely chopped*

*You could obviously use chocolate chips, we just do not have them here.

Using an electric mixer, cream butter, salt, sugars.  If using, add vanilla extract.  Add milk and mix until combined.  Gradually add flour and mix.  Mix in chocolate.  

Combine:

Using a spatula or rubber scraper, spread cookie dough over brownies.  You may even want to warm the dough a bit to make it more pliable.  DO NOT MELT!  Once the dough is spread evenly, place in refrigerator for about an hour to set.  Remove and cut into reasonably-sized pieces--whatever that means for you!  Serve with a glass of milk, you will need it.

I hope this recipe inspires you to go out and make some delicious treats!  

Turbinado Sugar Lemon Squares

Recipe for Turbinado Sugar Lemon Squares

Preface: We have been watching a lot of Queer As Folk.  The Liberty Diner, where the gang is wont to while away the pre-clubbing, evening hours, is famous for its lemon squares which Deb offers up as a cure-all.  Every time these come across the screen, I find myself desperately craving them, washed down with the obligatory Jones Soda with its label strategically hidden.

This recipe is based on Lemon Bars on Smitten Kitchen.  I halved the recipe because there are only two of us to eat them.  They are very brown because we use mostly turbinado sugar in our household.

A quick note on cooking with a lemon: Lick it.  That's right.  Before you do anything with your lemon, cut it in half and lick it.  Some lemons are stronger than others, some are surprisingly bitter (which you would do well to just toss and grab another).  Adjust the measurements for juice based on how strong your lemon tastes.

A note on small batch pan size: Unless you have a very small baking sheet or pan (about 9x7.5 inches) you will have to make do by lining a larger pan with parchment paper and creating an extra wall.  You could also use heavy duty aluminum foil for this purpose, though I'm always afraid of it sticking to my food.

Turbinado Sugar Lemon Squares

For the Shortbread Crust:

1/2 cup butter (room temp.)

1/4 cup icing sugar

1 cup flour

Pinch of salt

For the Lemon Curd Layer:

3 eggs

zest of two lemon

3/4 cup turbinado sugar

1/3 cup juice (about the juice of one and a half lemons)

1/3 cup flour

Additional icing sugar for dusting

Make the shortbread crust as follows:

Using an electric mixer, cream butter and icing sugar on high until pale and fluffy.

In a separate bowl, mix flour and salt.  Gradually add to butter mixture while mixing on low, until just combined.  The dough may be very crumbly.  Using hands, gather together into a ball.  Do not overwork or dough will become too soft.  

Place ball in the middle of prepared pan and squash down.  Press dough into corners and flatten with hands.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 F (170 C).

Remove from refrigerator and bake 15-20 minutes, until just barely browned.  Remove but do not turn off oven.

While the crust bakes, prepare lemon curd layer.  In a large bowl, combine eggs, zest, and lemon juice.  Whisk with a fork.  Gradually add flour and whisk until no clumps remain.

Pour lemon curd over crust and bake 25-30 minutes.  Check to make sure that the curd layer has set and return to over for about 5 more minutes.  Let cool completely.  Cut into squares.

Before serving, dust with icing sugar.