O.K. I know I’m late with this one, but I swear it’s for a good reason, which I’ll get to at the end of the intro…

This round of the 12 Days of Cookies takes us back to 1977.  The radio and 8 tracks all over the country were playing Barracuda by Heart and Back in the Saddle by Aerosmith.  The top draw in theaters was Close Encounters, Disney’s The Rescuers and a movie that broke all the rules without breaking any at all, a little number called Star Wars.  We all crowded around the Television at night to watch such wondrous entertainment as Laverne and Shirly, Happy Days and M*A*S*H. Gourmet Magazine proclaims the Irish Coffee Crunchie it’s top pick cookie from all the recipes printed that year, they have good reason to do so.

These little bites are absolutely fabulous.  They are über crunchy, slightly sweet and have just the slightest hint of the whiskey that went into their making.  They’re sure to satisfy both young and old, but I think an adult palate will appreciate them more.

(Yes I said young and old.  With a total of 4 tsp. whiskey used in the recipe and 1/2 of that baked, you aren’t looking at enough in the way of content in 18 cookies to bother with.  Worry about the sugar, not alcohol.)

Will I make them again.  Oh, yes!  Often.

Now, as for why this post is a day out of sync…  Last night as I was waiting for the icing to dry I got word from my wife.  We’ve got orders.  She’s going on a 15 month tour in Turkey by August of next year.  The kiddo and I will be heading for California for at least the time she’s gone. (Hopefully we’ll have a follow-on there so that we only have to do the move once, but we’ll see.)  It’s bittersweet news, but it’s definitely time for us to leave this place, so even with the imminent separtation, we’re both very happy.

I promise that I’ll get caught up this weekend.

Now go make these cookies… And don’t nip on the Jameson until you’re done with the bakin’!

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Day three of the Twelve days of cookies finds us in the 80′s again, but this time in the late 80′s. The charts were rockin’ to The Escape Club singing Wild Wild West, Bobby McFerrin released Don’t Worry, Be Happy, and Bon Jovi (Who rocks, occasionally) released Bad Medicine. The Big Hair Craze was fading into the mullet, and The car of choice for most people ws beginning to look something like the modern SUV.

According to Gourmet magazine, the best cookie of the year was the pistachio tuile.  They had this to say…  But they were wrong:

What petits fours were to the well-heeled in the 1950s, tuiles were in the 80s, garnishing every dessert plate in the land. Still, the potato-chip-thin cookie studded with pistachios is a combination that will never go out of style. Drop level tablespoons of batter, then spread into a thin 3-inch round and bake at 350° F for 6 to 9 minutes.

Umm, that was supposed to be teaspoons, not tablespoons, people… Geez.  Of course, that’s not the only thing they got wrong.  Like “not everyone loves Amaretto.”  I’m one of those people, and these things taste like Amaretto, so not my favorite thing ever…  Not by a long shot.

My wife loves them however, so they have redeeming qualities.  In all they’re pretty simple to make, taste like half a tiramisu (add a little cream and you’re there).  For me, any other extract in the world would probably make these things good, but the almond extract flavor is just too much.  Perhaps with hazlenut extract I’d love them, but that wasn’t the recipe.

So if you like amaretto I’d say give them a 9.  On my personal scale they rate a solid 4.

But they are pretty, aren’t they?

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Day two of the Twelve days of Cookies finds this home paying homage to the Pecan.  (Honestly, you can’t be a Texan if you aren’t making something with pecans.) The cookie of the day?  The Pecan Tassie, from the era of big hair, heavy metal, Depeche Mode and Cindy Lauper.  Gourmet Magazine’s top cookie pick for 1985, and with good reason!

Gourmet stated that these little gems reminded them of pecan pie.  I don’t get that when I taste them, but what I do get is a mouthful of wonderful.  The texture and flavor of these cookies is a bit surprising.  The dough is a bit cake-like, but the topping is very crunchy.  The contrast between the two is wonderful.

The downside?  These cookies don’t hit their stride until they’ve had a chance to sit overnight and cool completely.  I tried them last night when still warm and honestly, I didn’t like them much.  But this morning… Ah, I’m singing a different tune altogether now..  How bout “Just can’t Get Enough” by Depeche Mode.  It’s fitting for the time, and I like the song!

So, my thoughts on these…  A definite thumbs up for us. We’ll be making these again, I guarantee it.

Now go make some.  Do it now so that you can enjoy them with your coffee in the morning!  Resist the urge to try them warm!  They’re soooo much better the next day it’s just unbeleivable.  Trust me on this.

And don’t forget to check out the other members of our crazy little group.  We’re all making the twelve cookies we thought we’d like most, so you can be sure that there are other great recipes out there for your cookie indulgence.  The list is at the bottom of the post!

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It’s Christmas time again, and what would the season be without mountains of cookies?  The weather here in North Texas has finally begun to show the season, with temperatures in the 40′s and of course, gusty winds that make it feel like the 30′s, so the weather is perfect for baking, so when I was asked if I wanted to get together with a few fellow food bloggers and try out 12 recipes from Gourmet Magazine’s list of all time favorite cookies, I jumped at the chance!

I don’t know about you, but when I think of Christmas cookies I think of gingerbread men. They just scream Christmas cookie, so for the first of my 12 batches, these little guys were the obvious choice.  I’m glad I chose them, too.  This is by far the best gingerbread recipe I think I’ve ever come across.  Which is as it should be.  They really knew their gingerbread in 1959, though the way recipes are written has (very thankfully!) changed a lot.

I’m not alone in making 12 different cookie recipes this month. Joining me in the fray for the 12 days of cookies are a list of very talented bloggers and cooks in their own right.  So please take the time to visit my partners in crime for this event. (Once you’ve read and printed out this recipe, of course!)  I have no idea what they’ve chosen to make today, so don’t be surprised if several of us have the same recipe posted.

The insane bunch that decided to taste test Gourmet’s top picks:

• Kelly of Sass & Veracity
• Ben of What’s Cooking
• Judy of No Fear Entertaining
• Claire of the Barefoot Kitchen
• Sandy of At the Baker’s Bench
• Courtney of CoCo Cooks
• And Andrea of Andrea’s Recipes, who first thought of inviting us in on this little blog party.

I’ve got to say, these are the best example of a perfect gingerbread I’ve ever had, but the dough is a little difficult to work with.  Instead of rolling them out and then moving them to a cookie sheet, we ended up rolling the dough out directly on a half sheet pan with a smooth sided glass and simply pulling the excess away from the cut shapes, thus preventing gingerbread men with serious and crippling deformities.  The dough is rather like glue as well, so copious amounts of butter flavored cooking spray should be employed wherever possible.

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This is the second in a series of three white chocolate mousse tartlets for the holiday season, look to the end of the article for other recipes.

This version of white chocolate mousse tartlet bears the same humble base of white chocolate mousse and mini fillo pastry shell as the others in this series, but the flavor combinations are most decidedly more refined.  Topped with toasted macadamias, macerated golden raisins and white chocolate chips, this tartlet is awash with subtle yet intensely different flavors and textures that will tantilize even the most fearsome food snob in your group of friends.

The silky mousse is contrasted wonderfully by the crunch of the white chocolate chip, fillo dough and macadamias, while the raisin packs a small but very potent burst of flavor that is beyond heavenly.

Note: this is an adult treat.  There’s too much alcohol in this particular version for the kiddies!

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If you’re looking for a bit of “wow” factor at your next dinner or dessert party, give these little guys a go.  They’re number one in a series of three white chocolate tartlets that will have anyone you serve them to thinking you are a pastry chef extraordinaire, even though they are quite simple to make.

Not only are these little tartlets simple, elegant and, of course extremely tasty, they’re the perfect dessert for a larger gathering, since prep can be done on sheet pans or directly on serving platters.  Just lay them out and let your guests, friends or family dive in.  The taste is something like vanilla bean ice cream drizzled with caramel, but a bit subtler, so these should appeal to just about anyone!

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This mousse was originally made to be a part of a different article, nothing more than a part of a larger recipe, but once it was made I had to put the mousse itself in the place it deserves to be.  Firmly in the spotlight.

Let me start by saying this:  I am not a huge white chocolate fan.  Generally speaking I’d rather be going for dark chocolate, or better, chocolate toffee. This recipe may have changed my mind.

This mousse is light, delicate, fluffy, airy, silky, velvety and other adjectives I just can’t come up with at the moment.  Basically it’s like eating a slightly whipped-cream flavored cloud, but with the flavor intensified by a factor of 100.  I could sit and just spoon down a cup of this mousse without ever trying hard, though a full cup might be a little much for anyone.

The mousse is simplicity in itself to make and could be used for any number of absolutely decadent desserts.  Drop a dollop on a pie the next time you were craving whipped cream, use it as a substitute for butter cream in a cake recipe, the filling for a pie or tart, or as a classic mousse.  My personal favorite way to eat it is drizzled with a bit of fruit compote and a spoon ;-)

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Popularity: 4% [?]

I can usually avoid desserts, but cheesecake is my weakness.  I can’t be in the same room with a cheesecake and not just have to have some.  It was love at first bite for me, and it’s a love affair I’m happy to say is still alive and well. That’s why when I saw a recipe for Turtle Pumpkin Cheesecake on the cover of a store circular, I knew I just had to make it.

I’m glad I did.  The result was an intensely mousse-like custard with the subtle flavor of a pumpkin pie covered in melting vanilla ice cream.  And you don’t need any ice cream!  This really is one for the “go to” list of recipes, especially if you’re looking for an alternative to pumpkin pie for the holidays.

A word of warning though.  This is a massive cheesecake.  You probably won’t want to make this unless you’ve either  got help polishing it off, or you’re addicted to the gym.  It’s good enough that you won’t be able to stop eating it, and according to the information on the unmodified version, each slice is going to cost you about a quarter of a recommended daily caloric intake. (My version is most definitely higher in calories.)

This thing is like pumpkin flavored crack.  It’s addictive.  You have been warned.

Now where’s my dessert plate?

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Popularity: 8% [?]

Is there really an more perfectly simple topping or dipping sauce than caramel?  In its purest incarnation caramel is nothing more than sugar that has been heated until deeply browned, but the transformation is enough to bring out deep flavors and subtle overtones that simply can’t be found in any other form of sugar. With the addition of a few simple flavorings this humble mix of melted sugar and water can take on sweet, savory or succulent flavors and it plays with each very well.

In this instance we were looking for a sweet caramel sauce for a few desserts.  My wife found this recipe at Martha Stewart’s website and we both thought it would be a perfect fit to some of the other flavors we were going into the mix, so we gave it a shot.

It’s fabulous.  Really.  I can’t say how fabulous. I’ll admit that I upped the butter content over the version at Martha’s site, but I prefer a very rich caramel. (I may have added a bit more bourbon than listed as well.  OK, A tablespoon more… But this has a tendancy to cause the sauce to thicken a bit overmuch, so I don’t reccomend it.)

If you’re going to take the leap and try just once in your life and attempt to make your own caramel sauce, this is the one you should try!  No really, go make this right now.  I’ll wait….

Good, isn’t it?

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Holiday dessert season has begun.  It’s a fact of life.  You’ve just got to have sweets around for the Holidays, even if for the rest of the year you generally don’t bother with them.  We’re no exception here and we’re kicking off the sweetest season of the year with something that’s not only sinfully delicious, but amazingly simple to make. One of my wife’s personal favorites, Peppermint Bark, but with a little twist.

Peppermint bark is usually made in bars, or simply shattered off of a large sheet like a brittle.  This version is a bit more… Structured.  The bark is poured between a pair of tiny candy canes shaped into a heart.  Cute, yes?  We thought so too.  Unfortunately I can’t claim the idea as my own, we saw it in the Pillsbury circular.  It just looked like a really fun thing to do.

These take nearly no time to put together, but they definitely don’t suffer in appeal.  The kids can help put them together, though I’d leave the chocolate depositing to either an older child or an adult, but as far as decorating goes, let the little ones at it.  They’ll have a blast, and you get help with the candy making.

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Popularity: 4% [?]