montcarte

I love these cookies! I LOVE THESE COOKIES! If you’re going to make any cookies any time soon, make it these ones.

They have an amazing bite of ginger, coming from both the ground and fresh ginger that’s grated into them. They’re bright with cinnamon, have a delicate touch of cocoa, and the occasional chunk of milk chocolate. Ginger and chocolate, it’s a stunning combo in these cookies. They are the softest, chewiest cookies and just fall apart in your mouth. The granulated sugar they’re rolled in give a slight crisp to the outside, but the inside, especially when warm, is a gooey, tender, sweet cookie that is as delicious as any gingerbread cookie I’ve had.

These can be considered the perfect cookie. They’re definitely ideal for the holiday season, great to have during any cold, winter month and would probably be just as great in the summer.

I wanted to make sure I captured their photogenic nature, so ended up taking two sets of photos on different days. I found it interesting how different they looked with a different background and light, so even though this post probably doesn’t look very consistent, I’m going to include both anyway. I like how one shows the nice, gingerbreadesque colours, and how the others really demonstrate the texture of the cookies. Like Brownies for Dinner did, I upped the molasses from 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup and though it was the right choice.

Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
adapted from Martha Stewart

7 ounces best-quality semisweet chocolate (I used milk chocolate and loved its sweetness in this cookie)
1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1/2 cup dark-brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup granulated sugar

1. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Chop chocolate into 1/4-inch chunks; set aside. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and cocoa.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and grated ginger until whitened, about 4 minutes. Add brown sugar; beat until combined. Add molasses; beat until combined.

3. In a small bowl, dissolve baking soda in 1 1/2 teaspoons boiling water. Beat half of flour mixture into butter mixture. Beat in baking-soda mixture, then remaining half of flour mixture. Mix in chocolate; turn out onto a piece of plastic wrap. Pat dough out to about 1 inch thick; seal with wrap; refrigerate until firm, 2 hours or more.

4. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Roll dough into 1 1/2- inch balls; place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Refrigerate 20 minutes. Roll in granulated sugar. Bake until the surfaces crack slightly, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

This fudge, while some people may call it cheating, is a fast and easy way to get your chocolate fix. Using condensed milk to make fudge? Blasphemy! It’s probably not the best fudge out there, the most chocolatey, the creamiest, the most creative, etc., but it’s good and gets the job done.

I made this to for the dessert portion of our Christmas meal, but haven’t gotten around to posting it yet. It certainly is a festive fudge, with big chunks of glossy, red candied cherries and little white puffs of marshmallows. It’s a sweet, dense fudge – very chocolatey and the cherry flavour isn’t very strong, but does add a nice little oomph. I enjoyed the chew of the marshmallows.

There’s not much more I can say about this fudge. It comes together in a flash, would probably be fun to try making with kids, and makes a nice addition to any dessert table.

Since I should be expanding my fudge repertoire. I’d love to know what recipes you all enjoy using. Send them my way please?

Cherry Polka Dot Fudge
adapted from Eagle Brand
Makes about 2lb

3 cups (750 mL) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 can (300 mL) Regular Eagle Brand® sweetened condensed milk
2 tsp (10 mL) vanilla extract
1/2 cup (125 mL) chopped glacé cherries
1/2 cup (125 mL) mini marshmallows

1. Melt chocolate chips with Eagle Brand. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla, cherries and marshmallows.

2. Spread evenly in parchment paper-lined 8” (20 cm) square pan. Chill 4 hours or until firm.

3. Remove from pan and peel off paper. Cut into squares.

Happy New Year! I hope everyone gets to enjoy 2010 just the way they want it.

Here are some perfect brownies. They are moist enough, not too dry, not too moist, perfectly rich and chocolately. Need I say more?

If you’re looking for a quick and easy brownie, or a quick and easy dessert, then this is for you. I loved it and will make this recipe again and again.

Tribute to Katharine Hepburn Brownies
adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons finely ground instant coffee
2 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup broken or chopped walnuts or pecans
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan and line the bottom with parchment or wax paper. Butter the paper, dust the inside of the pan with flour and tap out the excess. Place the pan on a baking sheet.

3. Whisk the flour, cinnamon, if you’re using it, and salt together.

4. Put the butter in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan and place the pan over low heat. When the butter starts to melt, sift the cocoa over it and add the instant coffee. Continue to cook, stirring, until the butter is melted and the cocoa and coffee are blended into it. Remove from the heat and cool for about 3 minutes.

5. Using a whisk or a rubber spatula, beat the eggs into the saucepan one at a time. Next, stir in the sugar and vanilla (don’t beat anything too vigorously — you don’t want to add air to the batter), followed by the dry ingredients, nuts and chopped chocolate. Scrape the batter into the pan.

6. Bake for 30 minutes, at which point the brownies will still be gooey but the top will have a dry papery crust. Transfer the pan to a rack and let the brownies cool for at least 30 minutes. (You can wait longer, if you’d like.) Turn the brownies out onto a rack, peel away the paper and invert onto a cutting board. Cool completely before cutting into 16 squares, each roughly 2 inches on a side.

SERVING: These are happy being served in all the typical ways — with whipped cream, ice cream or Hot Fudge Sauce or paired with a glass of milk to allow for dunking. I think they are best at room temperature, when they are at their moistest, but they are also very good chilled.

STORING: Wrapped well, the brownies will keep for 3 days at room temperature or frozen for up to 2 months.

Okay, this will be the last pumpkin post for the next little while (though I still have something pumpkiny on the backburner!), and it’s probably something everyone has a favourite recipe for: pumpkin spice loaf.

However, I have yet to find my favourite version, so I keep trying ones that sound perfectly spiced and full of pumpkin flavour. This one, from Chowtimes, comes pretty close. I knew I wanted to have fresh cranberries in there, and I thought all the cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves in this recipe would stand up to all the cranberry. They certainly did, though next time I would increase the spice amounts just a bit.

I made two different types of loaf. In one I added chocolate chips and in the other, chopped walnuts. I definitely preferred the chocolate chip one, as the dark chocolate was perfect against the cranberry and meshed nicely with the cinnamon and pumpkin. The walnut was good, but would’ve been even better with a drizzle of cinnamon frosting or something to sweeten it up a little.

Both loaved baked up wonderfully, making the kitchen smell nice and spicy! They were moist and the pumpkin flavour wasn’t overpowering. All in all, this is a great go-to recipe whenever you’ve got some pumpkin puree on hand and an itch for a pumpkin spice bread.

Pumpkin Spice Cranberry Bread with Walnuts and/or Chocolate Chips
adapted from Chowtimes
makes 2 loaves

1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (or 1/2 cup vegetable oil and 1/2 cup apple sauce)
3 large eggs
2 cups pumpkin puree
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1 cup chopped walnuts
and/or
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour two 9×5×3 inch loaf pans.

2. Beat sugar and oil in a large bowl to blend. Mix in eggs and pumpkin.

3. Sift flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt and baking powder into another large bowl. Stir into pumpkin mixture in 2 additions.

4. Mix in cranberries, walnuts and /or chocolate chips.

5. Divide batter equally between prepared pans. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool 10 minutes. Using a spatula, loosen the edge around the loaves. Turn the loaves out onto racks and cool completely.

If you like this, you might also like:

Lemon-Drenched Lemon Cake
Blueberry Lemon Loaf with Lemon Glaze
Orange-Spice Pumpkin Bars with Browned Butter Frosting

When my mother brought me back some Ghirardelli chocolate from the US, I knew I wanted to save it and bake something fantastic with it. At first I thought brownies, but I wanted the chocolate chips to really stand out and thought they might just get lost in too much chocolate. I’ve been hanging on to this cookie for a “Mexican” chocolate chip cookie.

I didn’t use any Mexican chocolate in the cookie, though that is a good idea…suggestions seemed to use 4oz Ibarra chocolate chunks an 8oz dark chocolate chunks. I decided to stick with just my Ghirardelli chips.

These cookies are quite interesting. They have a real depth of flavour and have many notes.They start off like any chocolate chip cookie, but with a oomph of cinnamon. Then there’s a distinct saltiness that plays well with the bitterness of the chocolate and the sweetness of the cookie. As you swallow the cookie, you finally get a hint of the heat of the cayenne pepper – it doesn’t taste spicy, it just feels spicy. All in all, these make for some pretty interesting and unique chocolate chip cookies. I loved the dark chocolate chunks, the sweet cinnamon and the overall flavour depth if them and would enjoy making them again. Their texture was nice too – not very cakey, but nice and dense, like chocolate chip cookies should be!

The only changes I made from the original recipe was to increase the salt and the cayenne pepper amount. I definitely approve of these changes!

Spicy Mexican Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Epicurious

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 scant teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
12 oz dark chocolate chunks or chips

1. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then vanilla.

2. Sift next 6 ingredients over butter mixture; beat just until blended. Mix in chocolate chips. Refrigerate dough until cold, at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter 2 large baking sheets. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto sheets, spacing 1 1/2 inches apart.

4. Bake cookies until golden brown but still soft to touch, about 10 minutes (for crisper cookies, bake 12 minutes). Let stand on sheets 3 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks and cool.

If you like this, you might also like:

Real Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
The Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies
Mayan Chocolate Sparklers

It’s raspberry season here in Quebec! While strawberries tend to be my favourite berry, for the two-week period that is raspberry season, raspberries do take top place. Full of juicy sweetness, I can easily eat a whole crate of them (sometimes with a bit of vanilla ice cream, sometimes with a splash of cream, sometimes with nothing at all).

I had frozen a few cups of these in-season fruits, and was looking for a fun and easy dessert to make with them. I finally settled on this recipe, which does call for raspberries and strawberries, but given the success of these cookies, I decided to use just raspberries.

My muffins did not turn out quite like the original. Perhaps because I threw in a few more berries. Perhaps because they had been frozen. Or perhaps because I didn’t use self-raising flour, and instead added some baking powder and salt to my regular flour. But even if they didn’t turn out the same, I’m pretty positive they were just as delicious.

Mine muffins were quite dense, and almost rich in their texture. Definitely not something I’m complaining about, though! They’re not a spongy, cakey muffin, but more like a super-moist and thick muffin, packed with the creamy sweetness of white chocolate and the tartness of raspberries. I really enjoyed both the texture and the flavours…I’m a fan of dense, heavy cakes, and these did not disappoint. Raspberries and white chocolate are a perfect combination, and these can be served as a dessert or as a special breakfast treat.

Raspberry & White Chocolate Muffins
adapted from Exclusively Food
Printable Recipe

2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 cups self-raising flour (I didn’t have this, so I used two cups flour and 3 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt)
2/3 cups sugar
1 cup white chocolate chips or chunks
1 1/4 cups raspberries (you can use fresh or frozen, but if they’re frozen, don’t thaw them before mixing them in.

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with paper cups.

2. Whisk lemon juice, milk, oil and egg in a medium bowl until well combined.

3. Mix together flour, sugar and white chocolate (and baking powder and salt, if you’re not using self-raising flour) in a large bowl.

4. Add the berries to the dry ingredients and stir gently to combine.

5. Gently stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Stop stirring once the ingredients are combined. (The original recipe claims the batter should be quite wet. However, mine was not wet, and looked like normal muffin batter).

6. Divide the mixture evenly between the muffins cups. Bake for about 22 minutes, or until the muffin springs back after being lightly touched. No batter should stick to a knife inserted in the middle of the muffin.

Oh, and a new element has been added to montcarte…now you can get yourself a printable recipe version! The link will appear right before the recipe.

If you like this, you might also like:

White Chocolate & Raspberry Cookies
Lemon Raspberry Muffins
Raspberry Chocolate Layer Cake

I have always liked the idea of using fresh herbs in baking. While lemon-rosemary cookies are on my shortlist of things to bake, I figured I’ve done used enough lemon in recent times. Now that we have a nice balcony herb garden growing, I searched for something I can make with basil, cilantro, chives (okay, that might be a bit tricky) or mint.

Our mint plant has been growing with fervor, so I thought it best to try and prune it back by making these tasty-sounding chocolate chip cookies with real mint.

Mint and chocolate is an awesome combination I’ve always loved, so I knew these had to be good, which they were! I find mint extract leaves a sharp, minty taste in baked goods, so I was curious about how the fresh mint leaves would taste. It definitely does not have that minty bite of extract. Rather, the fresh mint is much mellower and perhaps sweeter, but still with all the flavour of mint. The cookie recipe itself is also a very good one, not cakey at all, and packed with dark chocolate chips.

If you have a mint plant that’s growing a bit too impatiently, I really recommend these cookies. It’s an excellent twist on the typical chocolate chip cookie!

Real Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Eatpress
Printable Recipe

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup dark chocolate chips (or any kind you prefer)
1/4 c coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves (I chopped mine rather finely)

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC (375ºF). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Cream the butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla slowly.

3. Sift together flour, salt and baking soda and then add to the egg mix and beat until just combined.

4. Add the chocolate chips and chopped mint and mix together.

5. Form the dough into 5cm (2 inch) balls. Place on prepared baking sheet and bake until golden, about 9 minutes for chewy and 12 for crunchy. Cool on rack. Store in airtight container. This recipe makes about 15 cookies, so not very many…I recommend doubling the recipe!

If you like this, you might also like:

The Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookie
Mayan Chocolate Sparklers
White Chocolate Raspberry Cookies

So it’s been a while, been though I had claimed it wouldn’t be. We just haven’t been cooking or baking as much these days…combine this with the fact that there are numerous keys no longer working on our keyboard and you get very little inclination to write.

I did do some kitchen-stuff this past weekend though, so I’ll suffer through non-functioning letters to write about the birthday cake I prepared for my sister’s birthday (the meal, a wild mushroom lasagna, will follow shortly, but dessert always takes precedence!): Dorie Greenspan’s Low and Lush Chocolate Cheesecake with Cappuccino Swirl.

This cake is one good cheeseake – an exellent go-to recipe whenever you’re looking for an utterly decadent, rich cheesecake. Even the simple graham cracker rust is fantastic! The whole thing is amazingly smooth, feeling like velvet on the tongue. It’s verrrry chocolately, and tastes even better the net day, so I recommend you make it a day in advance.

I took Dorie’s “Playing Around” tip and added a cappuccino (well, coffee, since I didn’t have any instant cappuccino powder) swirl to it. Visually, it didn’t add much, but taste-wise, it added what I consider to be a necessary dimension to the cake. It definitely cut the sweetness of the cake as well.

The cake says it serves 8, but those would be some big pieces! It would easily serve 12, if not more.

It’s a perfect cheesecake, and a breeze to prepare. If chocolate and coffee is a dream combination for you, you’ll love this cake.

Low and Lush Chocolate Cheesecake with Cappuccino Swirl
adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours
Makes 8 servings (more like 16!)
Printable Recipe

CRUST
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

FILLING
1 1/2 pounds (three 8-ounce packages) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and slightly cooled

CAPPUCCINO SWIRL
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder (I used instant coffee)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons boiling water.

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 1/2- or 9-inch springform pan and put the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

CRUST
1. Stir the crumbs, sugar and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist. (I do this with my fingers.) Turn the crumbs into the pan and, with your fingers, press the crumbs evenly over the bottom of the pan and as far up the sides as they’ll go. Freeze the crust for about 10 minutes.

2. Bake for 10 minutes, only until the crust is lightly set and just tinged with color. Cool on a rack or refrigerate while you make the filling. Keep the oven at 350 degrees F.

FILLING
1. Cut each bar of cream cheese into quarters and toss the pieces into a food processor, along with the sugar. Process, scraping down the bowl 2 or 3 times, for a full 2 minutes. You’ll see how dramatically the cream cheese changes; it will look like white velvet at the end of its beating. Add the eggs, vanilla and salt and give the batter 4 longish pulses, the scrape down the bowl and pulse 2 more times. Pour in the chocolate and pulse and scrape a few times to blend the batter well.

2. Remove the bowl from the processor and rap it hard on the counter a couple of times to de-bubble the batter. Scrape the batter into the cooled crust.

3. Bake the cheesecake for 35 to 40 minutes if you are using a 9-inch pan or 45 to 50 minutes if you are using an 8 1/2-inch pan. The top should be puffed and set, but if you tap the pan gently, the center of the cake will still be a little shaky–that’s just fine. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and allow the cheesecake to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 8 hours or for up to 3 days.
Run a blunt knife between the crust and sides of the pan, then open and remove the sides of the springform.

CAPPUCCINO SWIRL
1. Make a cinnamon-espresso syrup by whisking together 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon and mixing in 2 tablespoons boiling water. Cool to tepid or room temperature.

2. Spoon about 1/3 of the cheesecake batter (I did this prior to adding the chocolate to it) into a measuring cup with a spout and stir in the syrup. Pour the remaining batter into the crust, then pour over the cappuccino batter, pouring so that it creates a swirl pattern in the chocolate. For good measure, take a tableknife and give the 2 batters a few extra swirls.

STORING
Wrapped well, the cheesecake will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. It can be frozen for up to 2 months; defrost, still wrapped, overnight in the refrigerator.

If you like this, you might also like:

Cheesecake Pops
Super Layer Chocolate Cake
Cinnamon Squares

I love bundt cake, and I especially love this one! Bundts are so easy to make, they end up being able to feed a large amount of people, and they always look impressive. What makes this one more special? The fact that it combines dark chocolate and orange (my favourite sweet flavour combo), that it’s topped with a luscious, thick ganache, and the moist, buttery cake itself. And not only does it look amazing, it tastes just as spectacular.

When I saw The Food Librarian’s blood orange version of it, I knew I had to try it. My father’s birthday seemed like the perfect occasion, given his inclination towards anything chocolately. I made some minor changes along the way, such as substituting the buttermilk with plain yogurt (which worked perfectly, and was perhaps a bit less fattening too), and doubling the syrup recipe, as I wanted a very strong orange flavour.

My god, this is a good cake. The chunks of chocolate lend to a more interesting texture, and give you nice chocolately bites throughout. The orange glaze is soaked right up and gives the cake some softness (and a vibrant orange zing!). The cake is moist, and extremely buttery – don’t try this one if you’re dieting. And the ganache? The instant coffee adds a bit of a bitter dimension, perfect for such a sweet cake.

While Soli wasn’t fond of the cake (he’s not a orange-chocolate lover, crazy man), the rest of my family enjoyed it. I found it tasted it even better the next day; the orange flavour carried much further. This is definitely one of my favourite cakes now.

Orange Chocolate Chunk Bundt Cake
adapted from Ina Garten
Printable Recipe

CAKE
1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 extra-large eggs at room temperature (I used 5 large eggs)
1/4 cup grated orange zest (4 large oranges)
3 cups all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
3/4 cup buttermilk at room temperature (I substituted the buttermilk with the same amount of plain yogurt)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups good semisweet chocolate chunks

SYRUP (I doubled this for the cake)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

GANACHE
8 ounces good semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan.

2. Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the orange zest.

3. Sift together 3 cups flour, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl, combine the orange juice, buttermilk, and vanilla. Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately in thirds to the creamed butter, beginning and ending with the flour. Toss the chocolate chunks with 2 tablespoons flour and add to the batter. Pour into the pan, smooth the top, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, make the syrup. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, cook the sugar with the orange juice until the sugar dissolves. Remove the cake from the pan, set it on a rack over a tray, and spoon the orange syrup over the cake. Allow the cake to cool completely.

5. For the ganache, melt the chocolate, heavy cream, and coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally. Drizzle over the top of the cake.

This is my go-to recipe. Need some fantastically sweet, rich blondies? These will do the job. Need a fast dessert, whipped up at the last minute with just a few ingredients? These will do the job. Need a sweet baked good that Soli will devour in just a few hours? These will do the job.

Blondies (or at least, these blondies) are not a gourmet dessert, but they are a great one. They will satisfy the greatest sweet-tooth, and will please anyone who loves dessert, especially when topped with ice cream. And blondies are always a nice variation from brownies…and just as versatile.

This recipe always turns out. The edges are crunchy and crispy, the middle chewy and most – you’ll please the entire table! Any nuts you have on hand can get tossed in. And if you don’t like nuts, leave them out! Wanna add some semi-sweet chocolate chips? Go ahead? How about some dried cranberries, or coconut, or dried apricots? Go crazy! That’s what I love about this recipe…you can toss in anything you like, and they are insanely sweet, and crispy, and dense, and moist, and sweet….well, you get the point.

Oh, and how can you go wrong with white chocolate? Mmmmm.

Blondies with White Chocolate & Hazelnuts
adapted from Robin Hood: Home Baking

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped hazelnuts (I’ve used pecans and walnuts as well)

1. Cream butter and brown sugar in a medium bowl until smooth and creamy. Add egg and vanilla, beating until smooth.

2. Combine flour and baking powder. Add to creamed mixture. Mix well. Stir in chips and nuts. Spread in a 8″ square, greased pan.

3. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes or until just set and golden. Cool completely in pan on rack, then cut into squares.