Red Velvet Cookies

What a crazy week! If you live in the Seattle area, you would have experienced this sort of freak "Snow Storm" that occurred this past Wednesday. Sure it was cold and below freezing but I certainly didn't expect it to snow as much as it did, if at all. I mean, it's almost March!  The weather was extremely strange. At first it was raining. After, the rain died down the sun came out, deceiving all of us Seattle-ites. Soon enough the clouds rolled back in, the temperature dropped even more and that ever so classic, snow that you only see during the Holiday season in December, came falling down.

You may think that it's a good thing that there was snow. I mean Snow days?? Oh yeah! Oh wait, but UW doesn't exactly give out Snow Days as if they were free samples at Costco. Nope, the snow has to turn the hills of Seattle into Mountain Passes for them to give them out. Oh did I mention I had midterms on Thursday and Friday as well? Snow + Midterms = Bad News.

I went to bed thinking there would be school despite the snow and boy was I right. As I woke up, I took a peak out my window and the sidewalks were full of snow and the streets were icy. I took a look at the UW website only to find out that they still opened their doors for classes to start as usual. Did I make it to school? Of course! Thankfully in one piece. ha.  Now that was an adventure. Well, that pretty much sums up my week, what about you? ha.

Tips
-Instead of the Icings, I made a basic Cream Cheese Frosting.

Results
Taste: Almost exactly like a Red Velvet Cupcake. A slightly chocolate-ly cookie paired with the tang of the cream cheese frosting

Texture: Cake like cookie with crispier edges and moist center. Topped with the creamy Cream Cheese Frosting.

Red Velvet Black and White Cookies
Recipe via Rachael Ray

Ingredients
Cookie:
1-1/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature (5 tbsp for the cookie, 3 tbsp for the frosting)
 3/4 cup granulated sugar
 1 large egg
1 tablespoon red food coloring
 1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
 1/2 cup buttermilk

Icing:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
4 ounces semisweet chocolate

Downsize it:
Make mini cookies using 2-tablespoon scoops of batter

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

Using a mixer, beat 5 tablespoons butter with the granulated sugar until fluffy, 3 minutes. Beat in the egg, food coloring and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk until smooth.

Place 1/4-cup scoops of batter 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet; spread out. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, 12 to 15 minutes. Let the cookies sit for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.

In a bowl, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 1 tablespoon corn syrup and 2 tablespoons hot water until smooth. In another bowl, combine the chocolate, remaining 3 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon corn syrup; microwave until melted, about 1 minute.

Coat the cookies with the vanilla, then the chocolate icing. Refrigerate until set, about 20 minutes.

-Aaron John

Blueberry Scones Part Deux

This week, I had this extreme craving for a Blueberry Scone that I actually went and bought two Blueberry Scones this week. With one bite of the Blueberry Scones, time had stopped. Everything moved slowly and images of the past flowed through my mind. What images of my past flowed through my mind you ask? The Blueberry Scone disaster I had about 8 months ago.

Was that a disaster or what? I can remember it as if it were yesterday. The frustration, the despair, the feeling of failure. I couldn't just let that event be. It was time to tackle those Blueberry Scones once again and show them who's boss.

Did I finally triumph over this recipe? No. Were these scones a complete success? Not quite. Were these an improvement from the first time around? Absolutely!

Just like everything, practice makes perfect. I definitely need more practice in the Scone making department but I will get there soon enough! Until then, it's back to square one! These scones will eventually be conquered!

Tips
-Instead of heavy cream, I decided to use half and half because the first time I made them, it did not work well with cream.

-I used frozen blueberries in this recipe. It's important to NOT THAW the blueberries when mixing in.

Results
Taste: Buttery and slight sweet "scone bread" with the tang of the blueberries.

Texture: The scones came out to be more doughy than I would have liked. 

Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze (Makes 8 scones)
Recipe by Tyler Florence
Ingredients
Blueberry Scones:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut in chunks
1 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing the scones (1 cup half and half)
1 cup fresh blueberries

Lemon Glaze:
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 lemon, zest finely grated
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Sift together the dry ingredients; the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut in the butter to coat the pieces with the flour. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center and pour in the heavy cream. Fold everything together just to incorporate; do not overwork the dough. Fold the blueberries into the batter. Take care not to mash or bruise the blueberries because their strong color will bleed into the dough.

Press the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 12 by 3 by 1 1/4 inches. Cut the rectangle in 1/2 then cut the pieces in 1/2 again, giving you 4 (3-inch) squares. Cut the squares in 1/2 on a diagonal to give you the classic triangle shape. Place the scones on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush the tops with a little heavy cream. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until beautiful and brown. Let the scones cool a bit before you apply the glaze.

Technically you should make this simple lemon glaze in a double boiler (i.e. over a pot of simmering water with a heatproof bowl set on top) but it's even simpler to zap it in the microwave. Mix the lemon juice and confectioners' sugar together in a microwave-safe bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon zest and butter. Nuke it for 30 seconds on high. Whisk the glaze to smooth out any lumps, then drizzle the glaze over the top of the scones. Let it set a minute before serving.

-Aaron John

Decorated Sugar Cookies

Happy Valentine's Day! Valentine's Day sure came fast this year. Today is the day where we see heart shaped everything, people carrying flowers, some with candy, others with stuffed animals and people simply being all lovey-dovey.

When I was in elementary school, I remember the only thing I looked forward to on Valentine's day was the candy and sweets everyone passed out. ha. Didn't you? Now, everything is different, more serious is how I'd like to put it. In fact, Valentines Day can either be this lovey-dovey holiday or Single Awareness Day! The pressure is on today! So go out there and do a little somethin' somethin'.

Decorated Sugar Cookies
What you'll need:
Baked, "Cut-Out" Sugar cookies
Royal Icing
Toothpick

Directions
1. Make your Royal Icing and tint it in the color you want to use. In my case, a plain white and a reddish/pink

2. Start by outlining your Sugar Cookie with the Royal Icing. I used a squeeze bottle for this.

3.  Once outlined, take more Royal Icing (that is slightly thinner than what you used to outline) and begin to flood the whole cookie.

4. Once flooded, the fun can begin.

-For a design like the very first picture, put dots of a different colored Royal Icing along the edges of the flooded cookie. Then take a toothpick and drag it through the center of each dot which creates the heart shape

-For a design like the second picture, make lines of different colored Royal Icing that runs from edge to edge of the cookie. Then simply take your toothpick and run it through the icing, up and down.

5. Let the cookies dry for about 24 hrs.

-Aaron John

The Winner Is.....

You've waited long enough and the winning number is....

THREE!! That means Blake has won!! :D Congratulations Blake! I will e-mail you for your $25 Gift Certificate to CSN Stores. Thank you to everyone that entered and a special thanks to CSN Stores for allowing me to do this. Stay tuned. Who knows what I will be giving away! :)

-Aaron John

Giveaway Entrants And Your Numbers

Hey! So, I numbered all the giveaway entrants in the order you all entered just to make it easier and so you know what your actual number is when I use Random.org. The winner will be announced tomorrow!! Good Luck to everyone!!

xmadeintaiwan: 1

Domestic Diva: 2

Blake: 3, 4

Shala_Darkstone: 5, 6, 7

Aubrey Laine: 8, 9, 10

Liz: 11, 12, 13

-Aaron John