Chocolate Ginger Molasses Cookie

As I’ve mentioned before in this blog, some recipes give you doubt from the get-go. I recently discovered the world of Baked a New York City institution that is creating new frontiers in the world of baking. Their products are innovative, creative, and most importantly mouth watering. Yet as I delved deeper into the world of Baked I came to a puzzling realization: most of their episodes are kind of… Well, odd. I wanted to try their Cinnamon icing recipe on Valentine’s Day. I was in a limited time frame and after seeing all the steps it entailed: I winged my own Cinnamon butter cream on the spot. To clarify, there are a ton of ingredients and steps in Baked recipes that just make you question ‘Why?’ On the other hand, and in defense of the recipe, the cinnamon icing is obviously a stove top icing which is usually more time intensive then a classic buttercream.

So this time I decided to try the Baked Chocolate Ginger Molasses cookie. They sounded delicious: I like chocolate, ginger, and… Well you follow the thought process. Yet as I scanned the recipe I felt the familiar sense of puzzlement wash over me. A full tablespoon of baking soda? I don’t think I’ve ever put that much baking soda in anything. More examples: bittersweet chocolate AND cocoa, why? Butter AND shortening? Their cinnamon icing recipe was a lot of the same. Plus all of the temperature rules which I’m consistently pushing to the limits. I am a ‘spur of the moment baker’ which means that leaving eggs and butter out to reach room temperature rarely happens. This recipe calls for the bittersweet chocolate to be cooled to room temperature, which as you correctly assumed: I didn’t do. As long as you incorporate the chocolate slowly: separation won’t be an issue. And then finally, the classic molasses cookie step, of refrigerating the dough, rolling it out, and cutting each cookie individually. I NEVER do this step. Besides being time intensive, there is a loop hole that will help you get the same crisp cookie. My Mom always made molasses cookies this way and I’m sure some recipes do exist with these instructions. First I roll the dough into small balls, take a glass with a smooth bottom, dip the glass into a small bowl of flour, and press each ball flat (See the picture below). You get the same crunchy texture without the whole time commitment.

So after all of that criticism: the cookies turned out really well! I love how they crinkled in the oven. The texture is that of a classic molasses cookie with a snappy outside and soft interior. You can really taste each aspect of the cookie and they all work really well together. So even after all the steps I skipped and doubt for weird ingredient choices everything came together!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentines Day from Courtney bakes! Hope you got to spend some time with your special someone or if there is no one in the picture: atleast enjoyed some good chocolate!

I got a very special order this year for a cake that was a little bit different then the normal Valentine requests.

As you can see, a lack of red, but looks can be deceiving! This cake is actually a red velvet cake under its black shell with the traditional pairing of cream cheese icing. I really like the way the hand painted tile mosaic came out on top and the way it stands out on the black background. I’m sure it was quite stunning when the cake was cut open and you could see the contrast between the red and black.

I love tackling new designs and was definitely pleased with the final result. What did you do for Valentine’s Day?

Inspiration: Baking Blogs

There are a multitude of great resources on the net available to the amateur baker such as: Youtube, blogs, websites, etc. How did anyone ever bake before? Ok, ok, I exaggerate. But you have to admit that in this ‘age of information’ so much in the kitchen has been simplified. I know that whenever I’m attempting something difficult for the first time I often read up on it or watch demos first. It helps avoid (some) botched kitchen disasters and provides a much clearer idea of what to expect in a recipe then print alone.

So for this inspiration post, I decided to touch on some of the blogs that I frequent for ideas or recipes. There are many others that I sporadically check out, but I figured I would stick to my top three for now.

Annie’s Eats, I love this blog so much that it’s actually my home page whenever I log onto the internet. Firstly: the design is beautiful. The photography and layout definitely give me something to aspire to one day once I master this whole blog thing (And update my apparently ‘archaic’ camera). Annie does a mix of cooking and baking fare and will have you drooling in no time.

Bakerella, the author of this blog is credited with starting the Cake Pop craze which is no small feat! She is an amazing photographer whose blog is always filled with creative ideas.

Brown Eyed Baker, also offers a mix of cooking and baking recipes. As with the previous blogs: beautiful photography. Reliable recipes, which are always important to me, and very drool worthy.

I must be honest and admit that the first thing that comes to mind when seeing these exemplary blogs: where do they find the time?? Please don’t take that as an overly critical comment, it’s just honestly the first thought that pops into my head. From the stunning photography, frequency of posts, design of the blogs themselves, range of ideas, and presentations of products. I guess these are some of the defining features of the amateur blogs versus professional!

Do you have any baking blogs that you enjoy following?