Linzer Cookies

It was Christmas Eve, my family just finished dinner, and the dogs were already fast asleep. I'm not sure why, but I was feeling extraordinarily guilty for not cooking anything special for my family on Christmas Eve. So rather than mope around and stuff myself with the bounty of chocolates and cakes that we already have in my house, I decided to add to our Christmas collection. 

Ta da! You have to admit that these are pretty impressive Christmas cookies. And if you participate in any holiday cookie exchanges, these Linzer cookies should definitely be a contender! Don't get me wrong, cookies are delicious all year round. So bookmark the tab now, eat some today, and then impress all your friends at your next party when you bring these bad boys to the table.

These cookies look much harder than they actually are to make. Cookie cutters will become your new best friend, dusted powdered sugar will cover up any flaws, and strawberry jam adds the perfect tartness to the sweet cookie. You know I'm not lying cause who wants to be on Santa's naughty list? 

Linzer Cookies

Serving Size: Makes 18 sandwich cookies

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla 
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 strawberry or raspberry jam
Powdered sugar for dusting


1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment mix together the butter, sugar, and vanilla until they are just combined. 

2. Add the flour,salt, and nutmeg to the electric mixer and mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. If the mixture is coarse and crumbly slowly add cold water or milk until a pliable dough forms. 

3. Turn the dough out onto a work surface lightly dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap the dough in plastic and put in a freezer for 15 minutes.

4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Remove the dough from the  freezer and roll out to 1/4 inch think on a lightly dusted work surface. Cut out 18 heart shaped cookies with the cookie cutter.

5, With half of the hearts. cut a smaller heart out of the center. Place the cookies on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes. 

6. Once the cookies are cooled, spread the jam on the bottom side of the cutout cookie and the top of the solid cookie. Press the sides with jam together to form a cookie sandwich, 

7. Dust the top of the cookie sandwich with powdered sugar and serve!

Tip:
I had to add some milk to my dough because I don't have a paddle attachment to work the dough. You can use the normal whisk attachment like I did, but you will definitely need the recommended water or milk to keep the dough together. This whisk attachment by its nature will break apart the dough, so once the ingredients are well incorporated, use your hands to bind the ingredients! 

To sprinkle the powdered sugar, I always pour the sugar into a little strainer and then lightly tap the side for an even coating. 

Streusel Blueberry Coffee Cake

Whenever I'm back home, the first thing I do is raid our pantry and fridge. There's some odd relief knowing that I have a fully functioning kitchen with all the spices/ tools I need to bake. It's about time that I update this baby and now that I have a whole 3 weeks in California you can count on me cooking up a storm. 

I stumbled upon frozen blueberries during the raid and immediately knew I wanted to make a streusel blueberry coffee cake. In France I didn't have an oven and definitely did not have my daily fruit intake. So why not shove some blueberries into a cake and pretend I've got the new diet bar?

This isn't your normal coffee cake because it's got that sinfully awesome crunch of the crumb mixture on top. For all you non-bakers (I will convert you soon enough), this cake is not made with coffee! It's called a coffee cake because it's a denser cake meant to be served with hot coffee, and is perfect for snacking on. 

My Mum has already asked for a second round of this cake, and once you've got Momma's approval, you know you have a winner. 

Streusel Blueberry Coffee Cake

Recipe Adapted from Taste of Home 

2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tsp ground nutmeg

Streusel Topping: 

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cold butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1. Preheat the oven to  375 degrees. 

2. In a large mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, vanilla, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk in milk, egg, and melted butter to the dry ingredients.

3. Dredge the frozen blueberries in additional flour to keep them from sinking to the bottom of the cake. Fold in the flour-coated blueberries into the cake batter. 

4. Spread the cake batter into a 9 inch circular baking pan. 

5. To make the streusel, combine the sugar and flour in a bowl. Cut in the butter until the butter is evenly distributed and forms coarse crumbs.

6. Sprinkle the streusel topping over the batter and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Dal Makhani

SO I might be going out on a limb here but this is my recipe for Dal Makhani. I've always loved Dal Makhani but never really ate it much because it's a North Indian dish that my Mom doesn't cook. And now I'm craving my Mom's food....

Anyways, I decided to give this recipe a go because it doesn't require a lot of ingredients and a lot of it came straight out of a can. (Hint: If you're in college this should be up your alley!) And boy am I glad. The dal was DELICIOUS and took less than 10 minutes to prepare!! It totally satisfied my Indian food craving, and I could not believe how easy yet flavorful it was. I also gave this to my roommate and another friend and both of them gave it a double thumbs up. So no need to take my word for it. Winner Winner, Dal for Dinner? :)

Dal Makhani

1 15-19 oz can lentils
1 15 oz kidney (rajma) beans
1 onion, diced
8 cloves garlic, minced
1 can tomato paste (6 oz)
4 tbsp butter
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons chilli powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coriander
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 1/2 tsp salt


1. In a skillet, heat 2 tbsp butter and cook garlic and onions until browned. 

2. Add milk and tomato puree to the onions and garlic. Mix together until it is smooth and no clumps remain. 

3. Strain and rinse the lentils and kidney beans thoroughly before adding to the pan. Once washed add the lentils, kidney beans, and spices and cook for 5 minutes on medium heat. 

4. Once the beans are fully heated through, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and let it melt into the curry. 

5. Serve when naan, rice, or paratha!

3/4 Cup Saltine Crunch Bars

You may be wondering what's up with the 3/4? Well in this recipe EVERYTHING is in a 3/4 cup proportion. Except for the saltines, cause you can't measure the crackers in a measuring cup without making them into crumbs. But you do need close to 3/4 a package of saltines, so I think the name is more than appropriate. I actually first made this recipe in 7th grade during my first cooking class in Middle School! #tb...Sunday? I don't have the original recipe so I'm not sure who to give credit to, but over the years I have made this easily 20+ times. 


I always have a hard time to explain what the crunch bars taste like and how SALTINES are actually the base of this delicious dessert. People say it resembles a heath bar? But I can't verify that because I've never tried one.

This recipe can be easily found on the internet BUT the proportions are always wrong. My dearly beloved cousin asked me how to make this after eating them at my house, but when I searched the recipe online, NO ONE had the right proportions or instructions!

It's time someone set the record straight to make this nut-lovers, chocolate-lovers, toffee-lovers dream recipe come true. 

3/4 Cup Saltine Crunch Bars

Serving size: 10 hungry people

3/4 cup light brown sugar

3/4 cup chocolate chips

3/4 cup butter

3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1 column of saltines (minus a handful)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Line a 9 x 13 pan with aluminum foil. Then line the bottom of the pan with saltines in a a single layer. If there are gaps along the sides, break the saltines in half and fill in the empty spaces. 

3.  To make the caramel, bring the butter and sugar to a boil. This is the first tricky part! Keep the heat on medium/medium-high because having the temperature too hot will cause the caramel to burn easily. I also like to stir the butter and sugar frequently to make sure that the consistency is right and that the ingredients are well incorporated. Once it comes to a boil, cook for another minute or so. A rich light-brown color is desired. 

4. Pour the caramel evenly on top of the saltines and bake until brown and bubbly. (5-7 minutes) Keep watch on the oven because this is usually where people will burn the caramel. You want a medium brown color, so if you need less time, pull out the pan early!

5. Take the pan out of the oven and immediately sprinkle the chocolate chips on top.  Place the pan back in the oven for another ~2.5 minutes. 

6. Remove the oven and test if the chocolate is warm and gooey. If so, spread the chocolate chips evenly across the saltines. 

7. Top with nuts, let cool, and then refrigerate until serving! 

TIPS:

If you are worried about the caramel, a little lighter than this COLOR is desired when you bring it to a boil in the pan. This is also the perfect COLOR for the caramel color in the oven. Any darker and you might have burned your caramel, so if you're worried, just pull it out early! It still tastes good. I promise. I've also noticed when I use an opened bag of chocolate chips, the chocolate is stubborn and does not want to spread. If this is the case, just let the whole chocolate chips remain and then sprinkle with the nuts.