The Cookiepedia

A few weeks ago, Quirk Books contacted me about the possibility of reviewing a recently published cookbook.  As soon as I saw the title of the cookbook, I knew this would be a wonderful opportunity.  When I received a copy of The Cookiepedia by Stacy Adimando my heart fluttered. The book is extremely cute with a cardboard like exterior that has colorful text. The interior is bright with a wonderful blue color on the front and back interior.  The introduction is great and offers some useful definition in the form of “cookie speak” that were helpful and I wish I had know them before.  Although the book is well written, as with all cookbooks, what really matters is whether the recipes work.  I decided to test two recipes. One cookie I’ve made before and one that was brand new. 

First up, Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

1½ cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ cup unsalted butter, at room temp

1/3 cup sugar

½ cup light brown sugar

1 large egg

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

First sift the flour, baking soda and salt into a big bowl and stir.  Set the bowl aside. Cream the butter and sugars for several minutes. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until just combined.  Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Mix on low speed until incorporated.  Stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop tablespoon sized balls of dough onto parchment-paper-lined cookie sheets.  Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through baking. The cookies came out really good.  She is accurate in describing them as having a different texture, which she says is due to the use of brown sugar. They were amazing and I’ve made them twice already.

My next adventure was the shortbread recipe.

Ingredients:

1½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup rice flour

1 cup unsalted butter

½ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

Whisk both flours together in a bowl and set aside. Cream together the butter, sugar, salt and vanilla on medium speed for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the flours by hand with a wooden spoon. Turn out the dough onto a clean surface. Working quickly, use the heat of your hands to make a solid ball. Pull out a large piece of plastic wrap, and flatten the dough on top of it into a ¾ inch thick rectangle.

Double wrap it and refrigerate for 2 hours (and up to 2 weeks) to firm. Grease several cookie sheets with butter or line them with parchment paper. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and dust the top of it and your rolling pin with a little flour, too. Gently roll it to ¾ inch thick for bars. Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut the dough into 2-inch-by-1-inch rectangles. 

Place the cookies on sheets about 1 inch apart. Prick the centers with a fork.

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes (add an additional 2 to 3 minutes for thicker bars), until the edges are lightly golden. Cool sheets on wire racks. The shortbread was recognizable and the taste was there but it was a little softer than it should have been. 

I already know The Cookiepedia is going to be a great kitchen resource. I have already made the chocolate chip cookies twice and could see them turning into a weekly habit. I look forward to trying more of the recipes soon!

Hungry yet?