Cranberry Bliss Bars

These were called White Chocolate Cranberry Blondies when I found them, but they looked like Cranberry Bliss Bars to me!

I added the white chocolate drizzle and then the cranberries, which does not look as pretty as if you do it the right way--cranberries first, THEN white chocolate drizzle...Oops.

Normally blondies would have me responding, "Why blondie when you can brownie?!" But, I mean cranberry bliss bars are obviously in a category of their own.

These are super sweet and decadent, but the tangy cream cheese and cranberries help balance out the the white chocolate.

As I'm sure you know, these are the perfect holiday treat!

Cranberry Bliss Bars

~Print Recipe~

• 6 Tablespoons butter, melted.
• 3/4 cups packed light brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• Dash of ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 3 oz. chopped white chocolate (or chips)

• 5 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 3 oz. chopped white chocolate (or chips), melted.
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped

1. For bars: Grease a 8 in. square baking dish and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. In a large bowl, mix melted butter with brown sugar. When it has cooled to room temperature, mix in egg and vanilla. 
3. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Gradually stir dry ingredients to butter mixture. Mix in 1/4 cup cranberries and 3 oz. white chocolate. The batter will be very thick.
4. Spread batter into prepared baking dish. Bake for 18-21 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted
   
   near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
5. For frosting: beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until blended. Gradually add half of the melted white chocolate and beat until blended. Frost the bars. Sprinkle with chopped cranberries and drizzle with remaining white chocolate. Cut into wedges and store in the refrigerator.

Note: This recipe easily doubles to fit a 13"x 9" pan. In that case, 1 package cream cheese (8 oz) will do. 

Chocolate Covered Pretzels, Wedding Edition

There is something about this combination that gets me every time. White chocolate is my favorite, because the chocolate is so sweet next to the salty crunch of the pretzel. Semi-sweet and milk chocolate work great, too, though.

Of course, the sprinkles are not essential, but they do make things a lot more festive with just a few easy shakes. Worth it, I'd say.

We made probably 130 or so chocolate covered pretzels to serve with the other desserts at my wedding. It seemed like an easy enough task--I mean you just dip the pretzels in chocolate and cool. But, 130 pretzels is really quite a few. We had three people working on this and had to call in reinforcements, because we weren't moving quickly enough.

It all came together, though, and these were really a hit!

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

~Print Recipe~

• 1 bag of chocolate chips--either white, milk or semi-sweet depending on your preference
• 2 bags pretzel rods
• Sprinkles, optional

1. Line a baking sheet with wax paper or parchment paper. Pour as many chocolate chips as will fit into a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for about a minute, stirring as needed. Continue to microwave in 10-15 second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate  is completely melted. 
2. Hold pretzel rod vertically over the bowl and spoon melted chocolate evenly over the entire pretzel, leaving just enough uncovered to serve as a handle. Let the excess chocolate drip off.
3. Hold the chocolate covered pretzel over a plate and cover evenly with sprinkles. Set on the prepared baking sheet to cool. Place the full baking sheet in the refrigerator for a few minutes to harden, making them easier to store. (Serve at room temperature.)
4. If the chocolate in your bowl gets to hard, microwave it for a few seconds until it is melted again. Add more chocolate chips to your bowl and repeat step one as necessary.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with White Chocolate Mascarpone Filling

As I first flipped through my copy of Martha Stewart's Cookies and came across a recipe for whoopie pies, my first thought was, "huh?" I'd never heard of such a thing. Apparently they are more of an East Coast cookie. (Rumor has it they started when left over cake batter was baked into cookie size snacks and filled with the extra frosting.) They sure looked good, but I figured that sandwich cookies took too long to make. Amber, on the other hand, gave them a try early on. She seemed to be easily converted to the whoopie pie camp, and she soon posted her experience here.
Ok, I knew I should try them, but it still took me almost a year to bake some myself. I stumbled upon a pumpkin whoopie pie recipe on allrecipes.com that had me at "pumpkin*." I added nutmeg to the spice combination, because freshly grated nutmeg is my new favorite thing. I happened to have some mascarpone cheese on hand and decided to pair it with white chocolate for the filling. The filling ended up being very rich and delicious, but it was a little too subtle for my taste when compared to the spices in the pumpkin cookies. Next time I will try these cookies with a cream cheese filling--I think would stand up to the cookies better. (And because, well, you know how I feel about cream cheese frosting.)

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

~Print Recipe~

• 2 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups solid pack pumpkin puree
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (preferably freshly grated)
• White chocolate mascarpone filling (recipe below) or cream cheese frosting
• Cinnamon powdered sugar (powdered sugar with a little cinnamon stirred in)

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment (or lightly grease them).
2. Combine the oil, brown sugar and vanilla extract. Mix in the pumpkin puree and eggs, beating until combined. 
3. Sift or whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and spices. Stir flour mixture into pumpkin mixture until just combined.
4. Pour batter into a large Ziplock bag. Cut off one corner, so you have a small tip. Swirl batter into desired size onto prepared baking sheets. (Cookies will puff up, but do not spread much at all.) OR, you can drop cookies by heaping tablespoons if you prefer that. 
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are set and golden. Do not under-bake or the final sandwiches will be too sticky. Cool completely on wire racks before filling cookies.
6. Frost the flat side of a cookie and set another cookie on top. Dust serving plate and tops of cookies with cinnamon powdered sugar. (This looks cool and tastes delicious, but it also helps the cookies not stick to each other or the serving plate.)

White Chocolate Mascarpone Filling

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 4 oz. finely chopped white chocolate (or more to taste)
• 8 oz. mascarpone 

1. In a small pan, warm the cream over medium heat. Stir occasionally until cream is hot, but not simmering. 
2. Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Pour heated cream over the chocolate. Whisk until the chocolate melts. 
3. Place in an ice bath until chilled, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 4 hours, or up to overnight. 
4. With an electric mixer, combine the mascarpone with half of the white chocolate mixture and whip for 2 minutes. Add remaining chocolate mixture and mix on high until frosting holds a peak.

*In my world, pumpkin never goes out of style or out of season. Don't let pumpkin get relegated to just October and November!

Browned Butter White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies

Let us talk about decadence. Let us talk about Christmas cookies. Let us talk about butter. Lots and lots of butter--browned butter to be exact.

These browned butter chocolate chip cookies have that caramelized, butterscotch-y taste that makes the most memorable chocolate chip cookies so memorable. They also have those crispy-delicious crunchy edges juxtaposed with a soft center. It is impossible to choose my favorite part of these cookies--it is the overall experience that makes them so grand.

These cookies, when made with white chocolate chips and dried cranberries, are not messing around. This is one rich, sweet cookie. But I contend that the holidays are a perfect time for this cookie. We all indulge a little this time of year, right? These cookies also involve two extra steps. When you are baking a lot for the holidays, maybe you are not inclined to make cookies that have two extra steps. Maybe you just want to get the cookies over with. Those regular cookies will taste good, I don't doubt it for a second.

BUT, I assure you these cookies will taste better. Like many things that take a little extra effort, it is worth it! First, there is the browning of the butter, which imparts a lovely depth and adds extra complexity. I actually really like this step because when I want to make cookies, I rarely remember to get butter out so it can warm to room temperature. Here you melt the butter, so it eliminates that problem altogether.

The second extra step doesn't take much effort, just a little extra time. You whisk the butter and sugars and then let them rest. Over an interval of about ten minutes, you repeat that process a few times. During this step, the sugars dissolve. To be honest, I don't know exactly how dissolved sugar helps these cookies. You'll have to ask Cook's Illustrated about that. Maybe it's a textural thing. All I know is that it works.

So bake a batch or two. Share some. Save plenty for you and yours. Curl up on the couch near the Christmas tree. Have your friends and family gather 'round and give everyone a cookie. To me, this is what the holidays are all about.

Browned Butter White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies

~Print Recipe~

• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 28 tablespoons (yes, 3 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
• 1 1/2 cups dried cranberries

1. Put an oven rack in the middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. 
2. Whisk the flour and baking soda together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
3. In a large heatproof bowl, cut 8 tablespoons (1 stick) of butter into a few pieces. Set aside. Heat 20 tablespoons (2 1/2 sticks) of butter in a light colored skillet over medium-high heat. (Do not use a non-stick pan if you can avoid it. You need to see the color of the melted butter to know when it has browned.) Once the butter is melted, continue cooking and stirring until the butter is a dark golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 2-3 minutes. (This will seem to take awhile, but change will happen quickly so pay close attention.) Remove the skillet from heat and our into the large bowl. Stir until all of the butter has melted.
4. Add both sugars, salt and vanilla to the butter and whisk until fully incorporated. Add the eggs and the egg yolks. Whisk until smooth. Let the mixture stand for 3 minutes, then whisk for 30 seconds. Repeat process of resting and whisking 2 more times. The mixture should be thick, smooth and shiny.
5. Stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in white chocolate chips and cranberries, making sure no flour pockets remain.
6. Spoon dough in 3 tablespoon portions spaced 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. (These cookies will spread, so I recommend 8 to a sheet for perfect cookies. 10 to a sheet if you don't mind the edges sometimes touching.) Bake cookies 1 tray at a time, rotating halfway through, until the cookies are golden brown and still puffy; the edges will have begun to set, but the centers will still be soft--10 to 14 minutes. 
7. Cool cookies on the baking sheet placed on a wire rack until the cookies can be transferred to the rack itself to cool completely. (If you can wait that long.)

Makes 3 dozen cookies