This wasn’t the exact photo obviously, but it was of this recipe for a simple shortbread cookie that morphs the flavors of coffee and whiskey…and lots of butter.

I never realized making shortbread was so easy. I am one who usually is in awe of beautiful desserts featured in magazines and blogs, but that’s pretty much as far as it goes. Awe. I don’t bake. I mean, I bake, but it’s a huge effort for me because I really really don’t like working with flour, and measuring, and tons of butter and sugar. It’s just not my thing. But yesterday, while making this unbelievably simple recipe that included only a few ingredients (butter, sugar, flour, coffee, more butter, Irish whiskey) I couldn’t help but think maybe I actually do like to bake, I just have to change my attitude about it. I baked these up in no time, and it actually brought me a little joy too. I’m starting to get it. I cut them up, packaged them up and sent them off with my husband to work this morning. We sampled a couple of cookies last night (these are grown up cookies I should tell you..unless you want your children to sleep really really well, kidding kidding) and they were so good…crumbly, buttery and with a distinct flavor of coffee and subtle taste of whiskey.

So if you have a few minutes to spare and need a quick dessert to share with friends, try these out.

Happy baking and Happy St. Patrick’s Day.

Espresso Shortbread Cookies with Irish Whiskey Glaze

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks unsalted Irish butter, room temperature (I used non-Irish Land O Lakes, its all I had)
• 3/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon course salt
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon ground espresso or coffee

Glaze:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup Irish whiskey (I used Jameson, if you don't want to buy a big bottle, look for a nip at your liquor store)
• 2 tablespoons butter

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Stir together butter, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Mix in about half the flour; stir in the ground coffee. Stir in remaining flour; combine thoroughly. Using damp fingers, press into two buttered 8 inch round cake pans.
2. Bake in center of the oven until golden brown, 30-35 minutes. Remove from the oven. Immediately cut each pan into 8 wedges but leave in pan. Cool completely.
3. For glaze, pour sugar and half of whiskey into a small saucepan. Heat to a boil over high heat; boil rapidly 1 minute. Remove from heat, whisk in butter. Whisk in remaining whiskey. Let set to thicken slightly, about 1 minute. Spoon over shortbread, using the back of your spoon to cover evenly. When glaze is set, carefully remove cookies from pan.
4. Would be delicious served with small scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

Recipe from Orlando Sentinel, adapted from a recipe by cooking teacher Janine MacLachlan

PS…I added a Fitness tab to my menu bar above. In addition to food, I have a passion for keeping fit and feeling good. I really try to do some form of exercise everyday, not only to keep my weight in check but really because it helps keep my whole world in check. Happy Mom Happy Life, right?

I am a huge follower of many healthy living blogs (Carrots ‘N Cake, Kath Eats Real Food, Healthy Tipping Point, Healthy Ashley & Meals and Miles) and over the last few years reading these blogs and keeping up with how active these girls are has really motivated me. I’m spending a lot of time running these days so here I will share with you running programs I’m using, as well as races I’m participating in or have done in the past. I also love to swim and practice yoga so I plan to update include links on them as well…the page is still a work in progress and if there is something you’d like to see on there, please send me a note!

I am no expert, but just like the rest of this blog, my goal is to inspire.

The post Espresso Shortbread Cookies with Irish Whiskey Glaze appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

Right?

Actually, it’s always the season for sweet potatoes…but it seems more people like to enjoy them around this time of year.  I am a huge lover of sweet potatoes, in mostly any form.  I tend to eat them pretty often…whether roasted as wedges or rounds, grilled in a salad, tucked inside a burrito or even in latkes. Yea, I like my sweet potatoes.

Now, I will say, these biscotti were a first for me as far as ways to enjoy sweet potatoes.  The nice people at the North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission recently sent me a batch of Sweet Potato Biscotti and I will tell you, two dozen of these cookies lasted just a little over 2 days in this house.  I got the package just as I was leaving to pick up the kids from school so I opened it in the car to try them out.  The kids (my two and their friend) ate half a dozen just on the way home.  More for dessert that night and snack again the next day.  Daddy, a neighbor, and I even got to try some.

These cookies are just sweet enough thanks to the natural sweetness of the spuds.  What I love is that the recipe for Sweet Potato Biscotti only calls for 2/3 cup of sugar for 4 dozen biscotti!  Crazy huh?  That’s a treat I don’t feel terrible about giving my kids (or myself).  Now if you are looking for something ooey-gooey sweet then this is probably not your cookie.  These are light and perfect with a cup of tea…and they won’t kill your “diet”.

Not only do sweet potatoes taste good, they are super good for you.  They are diabetic friendly due to their low glycemic index (really, good for everyone) and are full of fiber, beta carotene, vitamin C, potassium and magnesium….all good stuff!  Try these out next time you are in the mood to bake.  Thank you to NCSPC for sending them my way!  We enjoyed them and I will definitely be sharing them again soon with my fam.

Sweet Potato Biscotti

Recipe from NC Sweet Potato Commission

(printable recipe)

2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups unpeeled coarsely grated North Carolina sweet potatoes (about 8 ounces)
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease large baking sheet. In medium bowl, beat together sugar and butter; add eggs; beat well. Add flour, baking powder, orange zest and salt; beat on low speed until combined. Fold in sweet potato, walnuts and coconut. Divide dough into two equal pieces; with oiled hands, shape each piece into a log about 2 inches by 11 inches; place on baking sheet. Bake until firm and golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack; cool 15 minutes. Trim thin slice from ends of logs; cut logs into 1/2 inch thick slices. Place slices on 2 ungreased baking sheets with cut side down. Bake 12 minutes; turn and bake until crisp and golden, 10-12 minutes longer. Cool completely. Store in tightly covered container.

Yield: about 4 dozen biscotti

Per 2 biscotti: 116 calories, 1 g fiber, 7 g sugar, 5 g total fat

Disclaimer:  Although I was treated to these delicious cookies by the NC Sweet Potato Commission, all thoughts and opinions about them are my own.  Thank you.

The post ‘Tis the Season… appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

I wish I could tell you I made these beauties myself…instead I was the lucky recipient of them Friday night when my friend Heidi brought them over for dessert.  She found them on The Gourmand Mom via Foodbuzz.  They were amazing…like pumpkin pie in a cup!  I love everything pumpkin so these honestly made me a very happy girl.  Heidi thought they were a bit too much pumpkiny…so be warned if you aren’t a big pumpkin fan like myself, Larry and Sammy (who also enjoyed them!).  Thank you to The Gourmand Mom (and Heidi!) for sharing such an awesome treat!

I wanted to leave you with this little treat because I will be away for a few days…I’m heading back to Napa to hang out with my Bush’s Beans peeps!  How lucky am I?  Seriously, I just want to pinch myself…I am so grateful.  This time though, not only will I be spending time with the original group from previous trips, but I will be meeting and cooking alongside four other food bloggers and chefs!  I am seriously over the moon with excitement about this trip…I loved being in the CIA kitchens and “playing chef”…not to mention taking in the gorgeous scenery and tasting the local wines.

Wine country = total bliss…in my book.  🙂

(Disclosure:  Bush’s Beans invited me on this trip and is covering my costs to attend.)

I’ll share with you what we cooked up when I get back…in the meantime, go make yourself some dessert.

Pumpkin Gingersnap Parfaits

Yield: makes 4 parfaits

Ingredients:

• 1 15-ounce can Pure Pumpkin
• 4 ounces Cream Cheese, softened
• 2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp Ginger
• 1/8 tsp Nutmeg
• 1 cup Heavy Cream
• 2 Tbsp Sugar
• 12 Gingersnap Cookies

Directions:

1. Crush 8 of the gingersnap cookies. Beat together the pumpkin, cream cheese, brown sugar, and spices until evenly combined. In a separate bowl, beat together the heavy cream and sugar until thickened.
2. To assemble the parfaits, divide half of the pumpkin mixture into four cups. Sprinkle half of the gingersnap crumbs over the pumpkin. Spoon about half of the whipped cream over the gingersnaps in the four cups. Sprinkle with the remaining gingersnap crumbs. Spoon the remaining pumpkin over the gingersnap crumbs. Top with the remaining whipped cream. Garnish each parfait with a gingersnap cookie.

 

Recipe Courtesy of The Gourmand Mom

Enjoy the rest of your week!!

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Hi everyone, it’s Jenny over at Picky Palate guest posting for Aggie today while she is on vacation!  I thought I’d bring over one of my favorite desserts to share with you today….my Ice Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies!  This is one of my favorite creations and I can’t wait to share it with you.  Hope you all enjoy!

Ice Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield: 3-4 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks softened butter
• 1 Cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 Cup packed brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons pure vanilla
• Heaping 1/2 Cup vanilla ice cream (frozen from container)
• 4 Cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 bag chocolate chips

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a stand or electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars until fluffy.  Add in eggs and vanilla until well combined.  Add in ice cream until combined.

2.  Place flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl; mix.  Add to wet ingredients along with the chocolate chips; mix until just combined.  With a medium cookie scoop, scoop dough onto a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake for 9-11 minutes or until cookies are cooked through.  Let cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.  Serve with a maraschino cherry on top .

Thanks for having me Aggie!

The post Picky Palate is here…with Ice Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies! appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

I love discovering new food blogs.  I must come across a dozen some days (especially since I started “channel surfing” with Stumble)…but it’s only once in a while that a new one really catches your interest and sucks you in.  You don’t realize it until you have clicked on numerous recipes or are reading each post in entirety.  And it’s usually at least 25 minutes later.  Are you following me?

I came across a new blog just the other day from reading the comments that were left on my cookbook giveaway post (which by the way is still going on until Thursday at 10pm!).  I like to visit any new reader who is nice enough to leave a comment…but I also admit, her name drew me in too.  Wonder Woman.  I have always loved Wonder Woman.

So happy I visited “Wonder Woman” because I instantly fell in love with this cookie.  For one, it’s a drop cookie and that is a HUGE plus.  But also, the combination of everything in it was just perfect.  Dried cranberries, white chocolate, oatmeal AND pecans.  Um, yea, my kind of cookie for sure.  AND she mentioned it was her newest favorite cookie.  I was sold.  Lucky for me I had everything I needed in my pantry, so I baked a batch of these babies this afternoon.  The kids loved them and so did I.  And with my new found spirit of baking and getting the sweets out of the house as soon as possible, I packed up a few cookies and will be leaving them with some friends tomorrow.

And don’t worry…I stashed a few aside for my cookie lovin’ kids..

Cranberry White Chocolate Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups oatmeal
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 2/3 cup white chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine butter and brown sugar in a mixer on medium speed until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then add vanilla. Add the dry ingredients, beating until just barely combined. Then stir in the cranberries, white chocolate chips, and chopped pecans.
2. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto the parchment paper lined cookie sheet and sprinkle the tops with a few leftover cranberries or white chocolate chips if you want.
3. Bake for exactly 10 minutes. Remove from the oven - cookies will be slightly golden brown around the edges and the middles will look underdone. But trust me on this one - it will give you soft, chewy cookies once they cool. Or just slightly gooey cookies if you can't wait. Like me. Makes 2 dozen cookies.

Recipe from Confessions of a Wannabe Wonder Woman

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That’s what happens this time of year right?  Every where you turn….there’s a festive cookie recipe you want to try…cookbooks, magazines, blogs.  I’ve never been huge into cookie baking, but I can see where it can become a bit of a “sport”…I think this year I will be baking a few more than I normally do.

Our Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club is having a Cookie Exchange for this month’s theme.  The girls and I each picked a Cooking Light cookie recipe to bake, taste and feature…and here’s what made it to the plate:

Jamie: Raspberry Strippers
Shelby: Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprints
Val: Orange Walnut Tassies
Hélène: Maple Date Bars
Aggie: Peppermint Patties

Check out each member’s blog to see their cookies and recipes!

It was hard to choose just one cookie…but when I saw the Peppermint Patties I thought they were a perfect treat.  They aren’t just a cookie…they are actually an ice cream cookie sandwich and who’s not a fan of ice cream cookie sandwiches?  The cookies are crisp and chocolaty, and the crushed peppermint candy coating just makes this cookie sandwich that much better.  My little guy was quoted saying “That was awesome!” after eating his.

If you are in the mood for trying these yummy treats out for yourself visit MyRecipes.com for a printable copy of Peppermint Patties.

I highly recommend following the directions in the recipe that suggests you put back in the freezer for 4 hours before serving.  I was impatient and started photographing my yummy cookies immediately after making them and ended up with melty ice cream mess…so we had to hurry and eat them and then start filling a new batch.  No worries…we got it under control! 🙂

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