Happy Friday!  It’s cocktail o’clock, and I want to share with you my recipe for the fun and ever-popular Cosmopolitan.  I have wowed many with this outstanding concoction that tastes not-too-sweet, not-too-strong, but packs a punch nonetheless.

Sadly, I have had more than my share of completely unsatisfactory Cosmos.  This one, however, is purely sublime.

Cosmopolitan

from Shortbread

serves 1

Ingredients

• ice cubes
• 2 ounces ounces lemon vodka
• 1 ounce Cointreau
• 1 1/2 ounce cranberry juice
• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice

Directions

1. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice.
2. Add the vodka, Cointreau, cranberry juice and lime juice.
3. Cover and shake vigorously to combine and chill.
4. Strain into a chilled martini glass and serve.

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You know you’re getting old(er) when trends start to reappear from your childhood.  Like skinny jeans, legwarmers, and (gasp) shoulder pads.  Some say you should only follow a trend once in your lifetime.  Sometimes, however, a trend returns with such popularity that eventually you just have to embrace it.  Like wide-leg jeans, leggings, and big sunglasses.  I remember thinking I would be glad when the capri trend passed – that’s what my mother wore when she was young – and now they are a fixture in fashion.

As far as the cookie world goes, I’d say chocolate chip cookies are one trend that never went out of style.  These are probably the most baked cookie by home bakers and bakeries, and everyone is looking for the perfect recipe for them.  Everyone has their own opinion about how they should taste, though.  Some like them thin and crunchy, some like them puffy and cakey, and some like them chewy.  My preference is crispy on the outside and soft in the center.

I’ve tried a lot of chocolate chip cookie recipes, starting with Toll House when I first began baking.  And until now, I just hadn’t found one that wowed me.  But when I tried this recipe for Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies from Cook’s Illustrated, I stopped looking.

These cookies turn out thick but not cakey, and slightly chewy in the middle but still soft.  I like to use dark brown sugar in mine, to give them a deeper flavor and color, but I have made them with light brown and they are just as good.  The technique for shaping these is just as important as the recipe to give them that ‘bakery look’.  It seems a little weird at first, but once you get the hang of it, it gets to be kind of fun.

And I say, if you really dig a trend, you can find a way to make it work for you no matter what your age (or cookie preference).

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

from Cooks Illustrated

To ensure a chewy texture, leave the cookies on the cookie sheet to cool. You can substitute white, milk chocolate, or peanut butter chips for the semi or bittersweet chips called for in the recipe. In addition to chips, you can flavor the dough with one cup of nuts, raisins, or shredded coconut.

makes 1 1/2 dozen 3-inch cookies

Ingredients

• 2 1/8 cups bleached all-purpose flour (about 10 1/2 ounces)
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), melted and cooled slightly
• 1 cup brown sugar, light or dark (7 ounces)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar (3 1/2 ounces)
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 – 2 cups chocolate chips or chunks (semi or bittersweet)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees.  Adjust oven racks to upper and lower middle positions.  Mix flour, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
2. Either by hand or with electric mixer, mix butter and sugars until thoroughly blended.  Mix in egg, yolk, and vanilla.  Add dry ingredients; mix until just combined.  Stir in chips.
3. Form scant 1/4 cup dough into ball.  Holding each side of dough using fingertips of both hands, pull into two equal halves. Rotate halves ninety degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, push halves back together at their base, again forming a single cookie, without smoothing the uneven top.  Place formed dough onto one of two parchment paper lined cookie sheets, about nine per sheet. (Dough can be refrigerated up to 2 days or frozen up to 1 month – shaped or not.)
4. Bake, reversing cookie sheets’ positions halfway through baking, until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy, 15-18 minutes (start checking at 13 minutes). (Frozen dough requires an extra 1 to 2 minutes baking time.) Cool cookies on cookie sheets. Serve or store in airtight container.

World Tour Day Six:  Great Britain.

The first time I had scones with real clotted cream and jam was in London at the hotel where we were staying.  I was very excited to sit for a proper afternoon tea and enjoy the formality of the tradition.  Even though I had eaten a nice lunch not long before, I was determined to have a pot of tea and scones while I was there, hungry or not!

I like a little tradition and I like a little formality now and then, too.  I have to say, I get a little frustrated with how casual and informal things have become.  I swear I was sitting beside a woman at the movies last night who was wearing her pajamas and bedroom slippers!  It just makes me a little uncomfortable.  I mean, if you want to watch a movie in your pj’s, get something from the movie store and stay home!  I’m really not interested in what you wear to bed.

You know I don’t think everyone should wear dresses and suits to the grocery store, but have we lost all respect for each other by showing up in our cleaning clothes?  To me, being neatly dressed is a show of respect for your neighbors, and that goes a long way in the world these days.  Here’s what I say – it takes the same amount of time to pull on a nice pair of pants or jeans, a top, and some flats as it does sweats and tennis shoes.

That being said, here is a delicious Cranberry Pecan Scones recipe for the final day of the World Tour, in honor of traditional English tea and its formality.  This version has some whole wheat flour and oats which give it a good texture and lots of flavor.  Enjoy them with butter or clotted cream if you have it, and some jam or preserves.

Cranberry Pecan Scones

from Shortbread

makes 16 scones

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour or whole wheat flour
  
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats or quick-cooking (not instant) oats
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cold, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup pecans, chopped
  
• 1 cup buttermilk, sour cream, or plain yogurt
• coarse sugar for topping, optional (I used Turbinado sugar)

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet, or line with parchment or a silicone mat.
2. Mix the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl with a whisk.
   
3. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter until it looks unevenly crumbly. Stir in the fruit and nuts until they’re evenly distributed.
4. Add the buttermilk, sour cream or yogurt, and mix until the dough comes together.
   
5. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and cut it into two pieces. (Keep sprinkling on flour if you need to.) Form each into a disk, and gently pat each disk into a round about 6″ in diameter. Transfer the disks to the baking sheets.
   
6. With a bench scraper or sharp knife, cut each round into 8 wedges by cutting straight down through the dough so you shear the edges. Separate the scones slightly and sprinkle with sugar.
   
7. Bake the scones for 20 minutes, or until they’re just beginning to brown. Remove them from the oven, and serve warm. Or reheat for 10 minutes, lightly tented with foil, in a preheated 350°F oven.

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