Chewy Toffee Blondies

Can I just say how touched I am? You all left the sweetest congratulatory messages on the last post, and I'm really just tickled. We're told this is a pretty exciting time in our lives, and if the last two weeks are any indication, exciting is quite an understatement. We're floating.

But I digress: this is a food blog, not a get-all-mushy-about-my-engagement blog, and I think it's about time I passed along some recipes! I was in Chicago on business for the past few days, and in New York with friends to celebrate before that, so the kitchen's been dark lately, but in the past few weeks, I've made some pretty tasty things, including one thing I probably haven't made in years...

When it's mid-July and summer's taken up residence here in Washington, the fruit are at their peak. With ripe peaches and juicy plums in abundance, there's no good reason to make anything but fruit desserts. That's why, for the past 10 years, I seem to have forgotten about blondies. They just fell of my radar entirely; when I think of dessert, I think of crostadas and pies and fruit crisps galore. Chocolate? Chocolate who?

The other day, I was moments away from making Dorie Greenspan's Brown Sugar Bundt Cake (from her book Baking From My Home to Yours). I had the bundt pan out and ready to go, the stand mixer fitted with the paddle, and then, suddenly, had a second thought. Didn't the recipe say that the bundt was better the next day? I wanted something sweet now. Maybe I should stick to something I know, something comfortingly chewy and chocolatey and altogether delicious, that'd be delicious in under 30 minutes. I flipped a couple of pages and there, staring back at me, were some thick, unctuous-looking blondies. I was sold.

Now, some of the things I've made from Baking have been less than stellar. Dorie's chocolate chip cookies really didn't hit the spot for me, and I was a little worried about her blondies, since they're so similar in flavor to chocolate chip cookies. But the worrying was for nothing. These blondies were, without a doubt, the best I've ever had. They were perfectly chewy without being undercooked; the balance of salty to sweet and the undercurrent of vanilla running throughout were just right, and the generous addition of heath bar chips pushed them over the top. And no, they definitely weren't too sweet: the bitterness of the walnuts balanced out the sugar. I wish I'd made a double batch!

Chewy Toffee Blondie adapted from Dorie Greenspan

2 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature 1 1/2 cups (packed) light brown sugar 1/2 cup sugar 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or 1 cup store-bought chocolate chips 1 cup butterscotch chips or Heath Toffee Bits (I used Heath) 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut (I omitted these)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9×13-inch baking pan and put it on a baking sheet.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle or using a hand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add both sugars and beat for another 3 minutes, until well incorporated. Add the eggs one by one, beating for 1 minute after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. Turn the mixer to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing just until they disappear into the batter. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chips, nuts and coconut, if using. Scrape the batter into the buttered pan and use the spatula to even the top as best you can.

Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the blondies comes out clean. The blondies should pull away from the sides of the pan a little and the top should be a nice honey brown. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for about 15 minutes before turning the blondies out onto another rack. Invert onto a rack and cool the blondies to room temperature right side up.

Cut into 32 bars.

The Best Tea Cookies on the Planet

I've always loved the idea of having a local baker -- someone whose shop was within a short walk of my apartment, where I could drop by in the morning for a baguette or a scone, pick up a loaf or two of fresh bread, and pop in on a lazy Sunday afternoon for tea and cookies. Sadly, I don't live in Paris. I do, however, read an excellent blog of someone who does -- that's David Lebovitz, my friends -- and his many posts about local bakers regularly elicit pavlovian responses from my growling tummy. The one that most recently got my attention was about Flo Braker, one of his all-time favorite bakers. (Don't you just love that she's Flo Braker, the Baker? Hardy har.) Among the many recipes in her arsenal is one for thin,, crispy, buttery almond cookies called "pain d'amande" (almond bread). While I'd never heard of Braker before reading David's post, after tasting these cookies, I can assure you that now she's one of my favorite bakers, too.

These aren't just any almond cookies; they benefit from having become an obsession of Braker's -- she's literally made the recipe countless times, each time adjusting the proportions of raw sugar and flour by slight amounts until she achieved the perfect ratio of each. As I said, we benefit from her rigor and perfectionism: these cookies are absolutely flawless, and I wouldn't change a darn thing.

As if the perfect flavor isn't enough to get you running kitchenward, these cookies are among the most practical ones I've made. You form the dough into a loaf, chill it, and slice slivers off the loaf to bake. The loaf of dough keeps its shape wonderfully once formed and can be stored in the fridge for a couple of weeks, allowing you to slice and bake just a few of these whenever you get the craving. I err on the side of caution and bake up about 10 at a time -- you know, just in case.

Flo Braker's Pain D'amande

Pain d'amande 80-90 cookies

Adapted from Sweet Miniatures by Flo Braker

David recommends to use parchment instead of silpat, because otherwise they won't get as crispy. He also suggests that you not let the sugar melt all the way, because the raw crystals add serious crunch to the cookies. I dutifully obeyed his orders and can attest to this: love the raw sugar, it really adds.

8 tablespoons (115g) butter, salted or unsalted, cubed 1 1/3 cups (300g) coarse crystal golden sugar (see Note) 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/3 cup (80ml) water 2 1/3 cups (325g) flour 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1 cup (85g) sliced almonds, blanched or unblanched

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat with the sugar, cinnamon, and water. Stir until the butter just melts but don't allow to boil: most of the sugar should not be dissolved.

2. Remove from heat and stir in the flour, baking soda, and almonds until well mixed.

3. Line a 9-inch (23cm) loaf pan with plastic wrap and press the dough into the pan so the top is smooth. Chill until firm.

4. To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 325º (160ºC.)

5. Using a very sharp chef's knife, slice the dough crosswise, as thin as possible, into rectangles. If you can get them as thin as a coin, all the better. The thinner they are, the more delicate and crisp they'll be.

6. Space the cookies on parchment lined baking sheets and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the cookies feel slightly firm and the undersides are golden brown. Flip the cookies over and bake an additional 10-15 minutes, until the cookies are crisp and deep golden-brown on top. The baking times depend on how thin you cut the cookies.

Cool completely, then store in an airtight bin until ready to serve.

Storage: Once baked, the cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to three days. The dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to four days, or frozen for up to two months, if well-wrapped.

Note: Large-crystal golden sugar, as shown, is available in specialty food stores, natural food stores, or online.

Depending on where you live, Hawaiian Washed Sugar from C & H, is available in grocery stores.

Cherry Almond Biscotti

Two wrist-slaps for me: I made these so long ago, I can't even remember when at this point. And I was oh-so-sure I blogged about them. But you know what? I didn't. I realized this yesterday, when I was poking around a great blog I recently discovered (which, in coincidence of coincidences, belongs to an acquaintance of mine from college), and came across a post about biscotti that's so good, it begs not to be dipped in chocolate. "I make those, too!" I thought, at which point I started poking around my own little blog for any mention of what are, without a doubt, my favorite biscotti ever. Nothing.

My goldfish-memory aside, I'll now remedy that situation. These biscotti are truly the best I've ever made. They've got a healthy handful of dried cherries, chopped home-toasted almonds, and just the right amounts of cinnamon and sugar to make them subtly sweet and spicy, not overly so. You know what else? They're mighty good for you, in the not-bad-for-you kind of way.

I developed my ideal recipe by starting with some basic recipes from a go-to cookbook on my shelf, The New Best Recipe, and consulting the cookbook's advice on how different proportions of egg yolk and butter affect the final product. I like my biscotti dry, crisp, and so crunchy they could (almost) crack a tooth, so I use only egg whites and no butter. If you prefer them less crunchy, more cakey, or more cookie-like, see the note at the beginning of my recipe.

As far as flavorings and add-ins, almost anything goes. TNBR offers orange-almond, lemon-anise, and cinnamon-spice as options, but any dried fruit, nut, seed, spice, or extract would be lovely.

Cherry Almond Biscotti adapted from The New Best Recipe

As I mentioned above, I used 3 egg whites and no butter to produce a very crunchy cookie. For slightly less crunchy biscotti, use 2 eggs instead. For a more cookie-like texture, use 2 eggs and 4 Tbsp. butter. For cakier biscotti, use 2 eggs and 2 egg yolks, an extra 1/4 cup of flour, and 1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda.

2 cups flour 1 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. salt 1 cup sugar 3 large egg whites 1/2 tsp. vanilla 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 1 Tbsp. zest from an orange or lemon 3/4 cup whole almonds with skins, toasted, cooled, and coarsely chopped 3/4 cup cherries, raisins, or currants

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder (and soda if using), and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside.

Whisk the sugar, zest and eggs (whatever part of them you're using) in a large bowl until light yellow. Add in vanilla. Sprinkle dry ingredients over egg mixture and fold until just combined. Add in almonds and cherries, and fold until just incorporated.

Halve the dough and turn both portions onto the baking sheet. Using floured hands, quickly stretch each portion of the dough into a rough 13 by 2-inch loaf. Place the loaves about 3 inches apart on baking sheet and bake until golden and just beginning to crack, about 35 minutes, turning sheet halfway through baking. Remove from oven, transfer loaves to cutting board using large spatula, and turn oven down to 325. Cut loaves on a diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Place about 1/2 an inch apart on baking sheet and return to the oven. Bake until golden all over, about 10 minutes, turning cookies over halfway through. Cool on a wire rack. Biscotti will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Meringues (Finally)

For all those anticipating Passover, these meringues are the perfect Passover dessert. They require no flour or leavening, but actually taste good. I simply can't go the week without them.

I was looking through my archived photos today and discovered something utterly shocking: I've had a website for...how long now? a year and a half?...and somehow escaped until today without posting a recipe for one of my most reliable, fool-proof, standby, can't-live-without desserts. I make them all all all the time, especially when I have leftover egg whites. On top of being nearly effortless to make, they achieve one of the rare feat of being both non-dairy and delicious. Like I said, rare.

Meringues, my friends, meringues. They are a fundamental part of my dessert repertoire, and the basis for many other desserts (including, among others, this crazy buche de noel, and the ultimate meringue-based dessert, Macarons.

Before I get knee-deep in apologizing, I'll be out with the recipe. As I said, they're great on their own, or with any number of additions, including extracts (vanilla, almond if that's your thing), spices (cinnamon, cocoa, etc) and other add-ins (nuts or chocolate chips, pictured).

A few tips on making good meringue:

• Make sure your mixing bowl is bone-dry: any liquid will kill your meringue's ability to foam up. Along these lines, add any extracts only after the meringue is made.
• Egg whites will whip up much more easily if at room temperature. Leave them out for a couple hours before beating, if possible.
• The standard egg:sugar ratio for meringue is 1 egg white per quarter-cup of sugar. I usually double this for a batch of meringues.
• Cream of tartar is an acid that helps increase the volume of, and stabilize, whipped egg whites. You only need a teeny bit -- about 1/4 tsp. for 6 egg whites, so a scant pinch for my recipe.
• Traditionally, the egg whites are whipped until soft peaks form, and only then is sugar added. There's nothing wrong with adding sugar earlier in the process -- promise, I've done it by accident many times -- but your eggs will take longer to foam up if there's sugar in them.
• There are two methods for baking meringues: some bake them for a couple hours in a low oven. Others bake them overnight in an oven that was preheated and then turned off. Either works; I prefer the former.

Keep these things in mind, and meringue will be your friend. Have any great uses for meringue? I'm already thinking of making a pavlova (big pillow of meringue topped with fruit and whipped cream) this weekend -- leave other great ideas in the comments.

2 large egg whites, at room temperature a scant pinch teaspoon cream of tartar a pinch kosher salt 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1/2 cup high-quality chocolate chips, optional

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk, beat the egg whites, cream of tartar, and a pinch of salt on medium speed until very soft peaks develop. Add 1/4 cup sugar and increase the speed to high until the egg whites form very stiff peaks. Whisk in the vanilla. Carefully fold the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar into the meringue. Either pipe the meringues onto the baking sheets using a pastry bag (or plastic bag with a bit cut off the end), or spoon them onto the sheets, au natural.

Bake for 2 hours, or until the meringues are dry and crisp but not browned. Turn off the heat and allow the meringues to sit in the oven for about half an hour**, then set on the counter to dry out completely.

**Meringues do not keep very well; they're best within a day of when they're made. However, if you do want to keep them, and it's not terribly humid outside, let them dry out in the oven overnight, or until the oven is completely cool and the meringues are really dry. They'll keep better this way. I stack them in tupperware between layers of parchment paper, and hope for the best.