december cookie: peanut butter nutella cookie

peanut butter + nutella are like the best combination ever. I was skeptical about this recipe, because I've baked with nutella before & then felt like it was a waste of the precious condiment. it tasted better just sitting on the couch eating it out of the jar with a spoon (err, not that I've ever done that... recently). but these cookies are definitely an exception. they were very easy to make & turned out perfectly. you can find the recipe here.

november cookie: lemon snowdrop cookies

our neighbor brought us the most beautiful meyer lemons from her tree in november. not sure what to do with all of them, I juiced some & then decided to make some lemon cookies with the rest. bad idea. this recipe looked great & I'm really not sure what I did wrong, but these cookies totally sucked. they finally got crispy around the outsides but were still too wet on the inside. in reading the comments on the blog, they turned out fine for other people, so don't let me hinder you from attempting them. maybe I should dedicate 2013 to re-making all the recipes that I screwed up along the way. 

october cookie: flourless rocky road chocolate chip cookies

we had a cool day in october so I was looking for a meringue-like cookie that would go well with hot chocolate. I adapted this recipe slightly from here & added marshmallows, which was a great addition. 

flourless rocky road chocolate chip cookies

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (dutch if you have it)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups mini marshmallows 
• 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (or heck, just dump the whole bag in if you're feeling crazy)

1. preheat oven to 350.
2. in a large bowl, mix together powdered sugar, cocoa powder and sea salt. add in vanilla. whisk in egg whites until just moistened. add in marshmallows & chocolate chips. pop in the fridge for about 20 minute so that the dough becomes cool (this will keep them from spreading when they bake). 
3. spoon batter onto cookie sheets in small mounds.
4. bake for 12 minutes or until tops are glossy and lightly cracked.

september cookie: chocolate-drizzled coconut macaroons

I actually did make these in september, but for the life of me, could not find the recipe to post until now. I'm not a huge coconut person, but these were pretty tasty (and super easy to make!). 

{chocolate-drizzled coconut macaroon recipe}

august cookie: french crullers

today would have been my pop's 84th birthday. in his honor, I decided to dedicate my august cookie to him. we always gave pop a hard time for not liking chocolate. he was, however, a huge fan of the donut (he used to stop by our old house on the weekends when I was just a tot & tap on the backdoor while everyone else was still asleep & I'd let him in & he'd leave a dozen hot donuts for us for breakfast). I saw this delicious recipe for french crullers on pinterest & knew it would be right up pop's alley (even thought it's technically not a cookie). they didn't turn out as beautiful as the recipe photo, but they were pretty tasty with a cup of tea. cheers to pop, who's probably eating vanilla birthday cake up in heaven right at this moment. 

{recipe from here}

july cookie: ice cream sandwiches

what cookie could possibly be more appropriate to make for summer than an ice cream sandwich? this is actually the first time I have ever attempted to make them. they sound a bit intimidating, but in reality they are so easy. and the best part is that you can make them ahead of time & wrap them in pretty parchment paper with some bakers twine & store in your freeze until you're ready to serve. I used this recipe and sandwiched the cookies between mint chocolate chip ice cream & coffee ice cream (I also addd some chocolate shavings to the sides for a little crunch). I couldn't make up my mind which flavor I liked best, so I just kept eating more of each. I still can't decide.... might need to make another batch this weekend! 

may cookie: ginger snaps

I'm a couple weeks behind on the may cookie, so please excuse the delay. now I love cookies, but a cookie without chocolate? not my fave. but my friend at work had a birthday and her favorite cookie happens to be a ginger snap, so I thought I'd give 'em a whirl. they were very simple to make. the dough came together nicely & they developed these cute crinkles while cooking. oh, and the house smelled amazing. and best of all, kate loved them & said they tasted as good as her mom's (which is the greatest compliment of all). 

{recipe}

april cookie: carrot cake whoopie pies

every year I make the easter dessert & the request this year was for carrot cake. I wanted to put a little spin on it & since I obviously love whoopie pies (seen here & here), I decided to make carrot cake whoopie pies. I used this recipe but adapted it just a bit. they were really good (especially the orange cream cheese filling!), with only one to spare at the end of the day. hope you guys had a wonderful easter weekend!

march cookie: brown sugar cookie

just in the nick of time, I baked up a batch of the "march" brown sugar cookie on the last day of the month. it was dark & stormy all day on saturday, which for me is the perfect baking weather. these cookies are really soft & chewy, with a hint of spice & brown sugar flavor. you probably have all the ingredients in your pantry right now - go make them. :)

{recipe}

february "cookie": brown butter & sea salt rice krispie treats

okay, okay. so this technically isn't a cookie. but I'm counting it anyway. because it is the most addictive thing you'll ever eat- right up there with pringles or kettle corn. they might sound like a super fancy version of your favorite elementary-school treat, but they really aren't at all. basically, it's just the original rice krispie recipe, but you just brown the butter first & then add a little sea salt (recipe from smitten kitchen). try it. you'll be hooked! 

{recipe from here}

january cookie: chocolate toffee cookies

chewy chocolate. rich ganache. toffee crunch. that pretty much sums up these chocolate toffee cookies I made as my january cookie (in case you're wondering,  2011 was a year of cakes so 2012 is going to be a year of cookies). a good start to the year so far.

{recipe from here}