Here’s what I love most about my blog and its readers:

- I can sit at my lap top in awe of my split ends until I figure out something clever to say to you about cookies.

-You’ll indulge me if all I want to talk about is how I’m a smitten kitten.

-You’ll understand when I tell you that I made these peppermint cookies mostly so I could eat the cookie dough cold from the fridge.

- You, dear and darling reader, have made me a millionaire. Well, a millionaire in blog hits. I just realized that I’m well over a million hits on Joy the Baker. Rock and Roll, right? Thanks to you and all of your clicks, I’m feelin’ like a rock star. Bless you and Thanks.

- Here’s how it works- I made some cookie dough. I baked some cookies. I took pictures of them. I threw the dough in the fridge. I drank some whiskey. I pulled the dough out of the fridge. I made more cookies. I ate them. I had company. We ate them. Sorta. Then we forgot about them and remembered the whiskey. That’s how the whole thing works and you like me for it.

Q: How awesome are you? A: So totally awesome.

Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookies. In some words: chocolatey, chewy and bright with peppermint.

What I love about these cookies is that there loaded with all sorts of chocolate. There’s the cocoa powder which intensely flavors the whole cookie, then there’s the milk chocolate chips and semi sweet chocolate chips. How many different kinds of chocolate do you need in a cookie? As much as possible. You might even try throwing white chocolate chips in these beauties.

chocolate + peppermint = one fine holiday cookie

Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

adapted from Dorie Greenspan

Print this recipe!

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon salt (go for 1 1/4 teaspoons if you really like salt)

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar

1 teaspoons pure peppermint extract

2 large eggs

12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or 2 cups storebought chocolate chips or chunks (I used a mixture of milk chocolate and semi sweet chocolate chips)

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Whisk together the flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda and keep close at hand.

Working in a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed for about 1 minute, until smooth. Add the sugars and beat for another 2 minutes or so, until well blended. Beat in the peppermint. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat for 1 minute after each egg goes in. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients in 3 portions, mixing only until each addition is incorporated. On low speed, or by hand with a rubber spatula, mix in the chocolate pieces. (The dough can be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen. If you’d like, you can freeze rounded tablespoons of dough, ready for baking. There’s no need to defrost before baking – just add another minute or two to the baking time.)

Spoon the dough by slightly rounded tablespoonfuls onto the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between spoonfuls.

Bake the cookies – one sheet at a time and rotating the sheet at the midway point – for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they are set around the edges; they may still be a little soft in the middle, and that’s just fine. Pull the sheet from the oven and allow the cookies to rest for 1 minute, then carefully, using a wide metal spatula, transfer them to racks to cool to room temperature.

Repeat with the remainder of the dough, cooling the baking sheets between batches.

What is going on in the world?  Is Al Gore messing with the global temperature again?  We’re sneaking into mid October and here I am in Los Angeles trying to talk myself out of using my air conditioner.  It’s as hot here as it was in July.  We’re talking 90’s people.  90’s!  That’s just not normal.

All I want to do is get the cider going, maybe curl up with some pear upside down cake or anything filled with pumpkin flavor.  What’s stopping me?  All this blasted sunshine and heat.  I know… I know… I shouldn’t let a little sunshine get in the way of my dreams.  

Incidentially, just as I’m writing this, I have my neighbors glorious barbecue smells wafting through my window.  I suppose I can’t be all that grumpy about a little sunshine.  

Are you having more cozy, spice friendly  weather?  Here are some of the deliciously spiced recipes I’ve played with here on Joy the Baker.  No doubt this Fall (as soon as it kicks in)  I’ll share some new goodies with you.  

Now I’m going to go see if I can snatch some barbecue scraps from my neighbor….. 

Gingerbread Pancakes with Homemade Pancake Syrup Yes.  More pancakes.  Don’t act like you’re the least bit surprised.  

Zucchini Sweet Potato Bread This is one of my Dad’s favorite breads.  A grated raw sweet potato adds amazing moisture and flavor to this bread.  Also throw in nuts and dried fruit as you see fit.  It’s totally customizable.  

Super Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies These are easily one of my favorite cookies of all time.  They fall somewhere in between cake and cookie.  Perfect.  And the combination of pumpkin and chocolate is just so dear to my heart.  

Cranberry Orange Almond Oatmeal  This breakfast oatmeal is so good you might not mind dragging yourself out of bed ten minutes early to make it.  Between the oats, dried fruit and almonds, this is one delicious balanced breakfast that would keep any normal person full well into the lunch hour.  I’m a maniac though, so no matter what I eat for breakfast, by 10:30 in the morning I’m ready for second breakfast…. yes… second breakfast.  

What spiced goodies are you baking up for Fall (or Spring, if you’re on the other side of the planet) ?

What a week.  What a week.  Financial crisis. Bail out.  Katie Couric interviews.  Vice Presidential debates.  So much has gone on this week I literally feel exhausted by all of the news.  I do know one thing.  I need the phrase “Joe Six Pack” out of my life forever.  Seriously.  Out.  

I thought I’d treat you all to some blog love.  Why?  Because it’s free, and free is a long long way from 700 billion.  

Smoky Barbecue Sauce-  I know it’s not a dessert and I also know that summer is over but I could eat barbecue sauce by the spoonful.  Really?  Ok… maybe not.  But I love the idea of homemade barbecue sauce, especially if I get to use those darling flippy top jars.  Check out Cooking for Seven to figure out what they heck I’m talking about.  

Ginger and Chocolate Gingerbread-   Yes!  The perfect introduction into Fall.  I’m also thinking hard about pumpkin and chocolate combinations.  It’s not too early, right?

Double Chocolate Layer Cake-  Oh Amanda, you know just how to speak to my heart.  Yes.  My answer is Yes!  I’ll marry you.  Wait…. did you ask?

Sweet Cherry Pie-  Are there still cherries?  Is it not too late?  Maybe there’s something magical in Florida where Mike of Mike’s Table whipped up this pie.   Warm cherry pie with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream- I could die a happy happy girl.  

Banana Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies-  Abby, what have you done?  Would these be a proper breakfast food, because I’m seriously considering these with a glass of milky coffee in the morning.  Please and thank you.

Let’s turn the clocks back to the beginning of Joy the Baker. This extra dreamy lemon pound cake was one of my very first Joy the Baker posts. I nabbed a friend’s fancy camera and after a 15 minute crash course, started baking and shooting my favorite pound cake recipe. Those were the humble beginnings of Joy the Baker. Let’s face it, this is still a humble sight, but I’m dreaming big. Hopefully some of those dreams will bring some fun changes to this sight in the coming months.

I’m bringing you a repeat today because I’m still in the weeds with Joy the Baker life. Want to know what’s going on? Let’s just say it involves learning (and tasting) about 90 international cheeses and memorizing their flavor profiles. Don’t even get me started on the insane wine… that’s a whole other beast.

Sourdough starters? Have I let you down on the starters?

Here’s what I did with my starter- After 7 days of dumping and feeding at room temperature, I fed my starter one last time and put it in the fridge. I plan on using my starter for pancakes on Sunday morning, so I’m going to take my starter out of the fridge Saturday morning, feed it and leave it ajar at room temperature until Sunday morning when I’m ready for my pancakes. I sure hope you’re still playing along!

Want to know more about this incredible pound cake!? Lemon Pound Cake with Warm Blueberry Sauce.

Just the thought of cinnamon rolls-  warm, gooey, soft, sweet- makes me literally swoon.  I love them.  If I were a baking superhero (I’m working on it) my weakness would be cinnamon rolls.

As much as I love the little devils (and I hate to say this) I hate to bake them.  The problem is not the sweet yeast dough or the rolling or the slicing.  I simply have no patience for the waiting that is required of me during the proofing, rolling, slicing and proofing again process.  I realize this is totally unreasonable, but it’s just the truth.

Nicole at Baking Bites seems the understand my need for instant, yet stubbornly homemade cinnamon roll goodness.

I’d like to introduce you to Cinnamon Roll Muffins-  add the yeast, subtract the long rising.

Imagine my glee when I had cinnamon roll-esque goodness coming out of my oven in well under an hour.  These muffins rise for a short 15 minutes in the bowl and then are placed into a cold oven to cook as the oven preheats to 350 degrees.  After 20 minutes in the oven, they’re risen and golden and bubbling with cinnamon and brown sugar.

Easy Cinnamon Roll Muffins

Baking Bites

Print this recipe!

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 tsp active dry or rapid rise yeast
2/3 cup warm milk (100-110F; low fat is fine)
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg

Filling/Topping

2 tbsp butter, room temperature
2/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ground cardamom

Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tbsp milk or cream

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Dissolve the yeast in a measuring cup filled with the warmed milk, then stir milk mixture, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and egg into the flour mixture. Mix well, until very smooth. Pour into prepared pan and let rest for 15 minutes.
While the dough rests, mix together butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom in a small bowl using a fork until all the butter has been incorporated into the sugar and mixture is crumbly.  Divide the batter between 12 greased muffin cups. Sprinkle evenly on top of rested dough and press the mixture down into the dough with your fingertips (or swirl in with a spatula.)
Place pan into a cold oven, then set the oven temperature to 350F.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until bread is lightly browned at the edges and the center of the bread springs back when lightly pressed. Some of the sugar mixture on top may still be bubbling.
Cool for at least 30 minutes before whisking the powdered sugar and milk together to form an icing and drizzling it onto the bread.
Serve warm. Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave.

After a swift 24 hours of sitting on my counter with the lid ajar, here are the (less than exciting) photographic results of my sourdough starter.  

This is the starter just before it’s first feeding.  

I know this isn’t terribly exciting.  

I promise I’ve got some lovely recipes in store for you. I won’t make you suffer through watching bacteria grow for too much longer.

How are your starters coming?

I’m off on a baking adventure and I want you to come along.  

All you’ll need is a cup of flour and a cup of water.  

Want to play?

We’re making sourdough starters.  All they needs is a little attention and feeding and we’ve got starter enough for loaves, pancakes and rolls week after week.  

I already have dreams of Saturday morning Sourdough Pancakes trotting through my head.  While the endless possibilities of loaves and rolls is enticing, we all know that I’m really just doing this for the pancakes.  

Jump on over and we’ll get started!

But wait!

If you’re not interested in making a sourdough starter (gasp!) or you already happen to have one in your fridge (applause!), then check out my musings on Mocha Pots de Creme over at FoodProof.  What are these Pots de Creme I speak of?  Only like the most deliciously rich and flavorful chocolate pudding you’ll ever have.  Go on… I know you’re curious!  

There is an awful lot of information online about sourdough starters.  Ultimately, creating a starter is a very simple process, so I’m going to keep it simple here.  

Let’s go over the basics.  If you have anything to share, say it loud in the comment section.  I am, by no means, the authority on sourdough bread baking.  

Sourdough bread is usually made without the addition of store bought yeast.  Instead, a “starter” is used to flavor and leaven the bread.  The starter is a bubbly dough composed of flour and water that fills with live yeast and bacteria over time.  This starter is cultivated over a period of days at room temperature, then kept in the refrigerator to be used and fed on a weekly basis.  

I’ve seen several recipes for starters.  Some use a simple combination of flour and water, while others use pineapple juice and flour, or even milk and flour.  I’m sticking to the simple flour and water starter.   

After searching high and low, I found Sourdough Baking: The Basics by S. John Ross to be the most straight forward.  

Below is a picture of my starter just after I made it.  I’ll have equally exciting pictures as the process progresses.  

Here’s what  S.  John Ross has to say about throwing a starter together:

Creating Your Starter

The novel thing about sourdough baking is that it requires that you keep something alive in your fridge. I think of my starter as a pet, kept and fed so that I will have all the bread we need. Sourdough “starter” is a batter of flour and water, filled with living yeast and bacteria. The yeast and bacteria form a stable symbiotic relationship, and (as long as you keep the starter fed) can live for centuries, a thriving colony of microorganisms. To make sourdough bread, you blend the starter with some flour and make dough. The yeast propogates, and leavens your bread. This is how you make your starter:

• Select a container that your “pet” will live in. A wide-mouthed glass jar is best. I use a glass jar with a rubber and wireframe seal; you can find these for $2-$4 in any antique or junk shop. A small crock with a loose lid is also great; these can be bought in cheap sets for serving soup. You can also use a rubbermaid or tupperware container. I’ve begun starters using the plastic containers that take-out Chinese soup comes in, and then transferred them to jars later! A wide-mouthed mayonnaise or pickle jar will also do just fine. Metallic containers are a bad idea; some of them are reactive and can ruin your starter (for the same reason, avoid using metal utensils to stir your starter).
• Blend a cup of warm water and a cup of flour, and pour it into the jar. That’s the whole recipe! I use plain, unbleached bread flour most of the time, but I’ve had good results with all-purpose and whole-wheat flour, too. If you want, you can add a little commercial yeast to a starter to “boost” it. If you do this, sourdough snobs will look down their nose at you – but who cares about snobs? I personally find that (at least here where I live) no yeast “boost” is necessary, and I can make “real” sourdough with no trouble. But if you are having trouble, go ahead and cheat. I won’t tell. Note that starter made with commercial yeast often produces a bread with less distinctive sour flavor than the real thing.
• Every 24 Hours, Feed the Starter. You should keep the starter in a warm place; 70-80 degrees Farenheit is perfect. This allows the yeast already present in the flour (and in the air) to grow rapidly. Temperatures hotter than 100 degrees or so will kill it. You can take comfort from the fact that almost nothing else will do so. The way you feed the starter is to(A) throw away half of it and then (B) add a half-cup of flour and a half-cup of water. Do this every 24 hours. Within three or four days (it can take longer, a week or more, and it can happen more quickly) you should start getting lots of bubbles throughought, and a pleasant sour or beery smell. The starter may start to puff up, too. This is good. Here’s the gist: When your starter develops a bubbly froth, it is done. You have succeeded. If this sounds brain-dead simple, that’s because it is. People who didn’t believe the Earth was round did this for millenia.
• Refrigerate the Starter. Keep the starter in your fridge, with a lid on it. Allow a little breathing space in the lid. If you’re using a mayo or pickle jar, punch a hole in the lid with a nail, that kind of thing. Once the starter is chilled, it needs to be fed only once a week. Realistically, you can get away with less; it’s important to remember that your starter is a colony of life-forms that are almost impossible to kill (except with extreme heat). Even starving them is difficult.

I mentioned last week how dear my cast iron skillet is to me.

I’ll let you in on a little secret. When I’m not eating the ridiculous baked goods that come out of my oven, I’m eating eggs. Eggs inside of fried corn tortillas. I eat eggs because, as a baker, I always have eggs in the fridge and they’re super easy to fry up and call dinner. Eggs, always eggs, with salt, pepper and tortillas. There, now you know.

I cook my eggs and fry my tortillas in the same cast iron skillet day after day. This skillet is always riddled with the evidence of some sort of cooked egg. But with a little hot oil, some salt and a paper towel, it’s as good as clean.

If you have a cast iron skillet that could use some love, here’s how to season and care for that bad boy. Cast iron skillets are too bad ass to waste away in your cupboard. Get to it!

Cast iron, in all of its natural cast iron goodness is a not a nonstick pan. It becomes a nonstick delight through a process called seasoning. Seasoning is basically oiling and baking your cast iron skillet. I’ve seen some cast iron pans sold pre-seasoned in stores. These pans already have their shiny black seasoned finish and you can cook in them immediately. You still may need to re-season these beauties as they go. You may also need to re-season your cast iron if you burn something into the pan and have to scrub it out with soap and water. It’s certainly not the end of the world. A bit of oil and a hot oven will bring your cast iron right back to life.

How to Season Cast Iron

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Position one rack in the top third of the oven. Position another rack in the bottom third of the oven and place an empty foil lined backing sheet on the bottom rack. This sheet will catch any dripping from the cast iron.

2. Open your windows or turn on your stove hood fan. There may be some smoke, but I’ve never had this issue.

3. Over a medium flame, rub a thin layer (about 1 Tablespoon) of vegetable shortening, like Crisco, or oil—bacon grease works great, too—all over the inner bottom and sides of the pan with a paper towel and tongs.

4. Place the oiled pan upside down in the heated oven over the foil lined baking sheet.

5. Bake the cast iron for 1 hour. Turn the oven off and allow the cast iron to cool to room temperature in the oven. Repeat this process 3 or 4 times for best results.

When the pan is perfectly seasoned, the inside with be smooth and shiny. Sometimes after seasoning my pans come out a bit sticky. This usually clears up with a bit of cooking. I usually make sure that the first few things I cook in a newly seasoned cast iron are either fried or sauteed in a bit of oil.

Note: Never cook tomatoes in cast iron. The acid from the tomatoes will break down the seasoned pan.

Another Note: Hardcore cast iron people have different cast iron for different purposes. For example, they season their dessert cast iron with vegetable oil, but their savory cast iron with bacon grease. They have certain cast irons they use for cornbread and other they use for fish dishes. I stay safe and just season all of my cast iron with a tasteless oil so they can go either way.

How to Clean Cast Iron

1. When you’re finished cooking in cast iron, scrape out the pan, while still warm, with a wooden spoon. Wipe it down with a bit of oil on a paper towel. I usually use the canola oil I have on hand.

2. If scraping the pan with a spoon doesn’t get off all the grime, melt a tablespoon of vegetable shortening in the pan, turn off the flame and add a tablespoon of salt. Use a paper towel in tongs to scrub the pan. Wipe salt out with clean paper towel. Run under hot water, dry it well, and follow the re-seasoning directions above.

3. If the wooden spoon and the salt technique weren’t to your liking you can use a mild, diluted soap and a soft sponge to clean the pan. You just want to avoid strong soaps and super scrub pads. Dry the pan with a clean dry dish towel and set in a warm oven to dry completely. Follow the seasoning directions above to re-season cast iron.

Note: Never put your screamin’ hot cast iron skillet into water. It could crack.

Another Note: Yes, all this work to season and re-season your cast iron it totally worth it!

Delicious!  Delicious!  Delicious!

I was lucky enough to have a holiday weekend free from hurricane winds and rain.  My prayers go out to those of you who had to put up with that madness from Mother Nature.

I spent a lovely amount of time in a bathing suit and miraculously managed to make an absolutely stellar late summer dessert.

In making these gorgeous roasted plums I also developed a deep love for my cast iron skillets.  I realized this weekend that I use my cast iron skillets for everything, short of boiling pasta.  From pancakes to grits to scrambled eggs to sweet roasted plums.  It’s in and out of the oven.  It’s heavy enough to clobber any would be robbers.  It holds heat like a champion, and it’s just all around reassuring to have in the kitchen.  I have two.  I’m thinking about naming them… that’s how far my love goes.

These plums are absolutely amazing.  The thyme adds such a sultry, perfectly earthy flavor to the caramel like sauce.

I had to stop myself from eating the whole batch for dinner.  I’m already looking forward to morning because I think these sweet plums would be outta this world with yogurt and granola.

They take 10 minutes (tops!) to throw together and they’re so versatile.  Have them with Greek yogurt, fresh whipped cream, creme fraiche, vanilla bean ice cream, cookies, oatmeal…. if you can dream it up, you can pour these plums over it.   Dreamy.  The perfect way to celebrate the end of summer.

Honey Roasted Plums with Thyme and Greek Yogurt

adapted from Bon Appetit, August 205

Print this recipe!

1/2 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup fresh thyme sprigs
6 large assorted ripe but firm plums (about 2 pounds), halved, pitted

Greek Yogurt or Creme Fraiche or Whipped Cream

Preheat oven to 475°F. Stir first 4 ingredients in large ovenproof nonstick skillet over high heat until butter melts.  Leave the thyme leaves of the sprigs so they’re easier to remove once cooked. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly (mixture will bubble vigorously). Add plum halves, cut side down. Cook plums without stirring for 2 minutes. Turn plums over and transfer skillet to oven. Roast until caramel is deep brown, checking frequently to prevent burning, about 4 minutes.Divide plum halves among 6 plates. Spoon sauce from skillet over plums, leaving most of thyme sprigs behind. Drizzle plums with crème fraîche, garnish with additional thyme sprigs, and serve.

It’s about time that I introduce you to some of my friends.

Meet Jill. Jill is one fierce cookie, although me might try to fool you with her demure presence and coy smile.  Do not be fooled.  She’s a firecracker and she’s got your number.

I ventured into Jill’s kitchen one Sunday afternoon to make her famous vegan cookies.  I’m not a big vegan cookie baker, and I thought I reach out to an expert.

I met Jill when I hired her at a tiny Los Angeles coffee shop I managed.  We both learned very quickly that Jill is not a morning person and Joy is.  We also learned that Jill thinks Black Widow spiders are cool and Joy runs screaming for the hills at the mere mention of one.  But Joy and Jill share a deep love for, well… occasional boy talk and fast food tacos.  Joy and Jill are great friends.

So what’s the deal with vegan cookies?  No eggs, no butter, no milk.  None of the regulars that you’ll usually see on my blog.  Instead, I let Jill introduce me to tofu and vegan margarine in my baking.  I have to say, Jill knows her way around some tofu and I was so pleased with these cookies.  We ate them warm out of the oven with soy milk.  What a good vegan I was for those few hours!

Thanks for opening up your kitchen to me Jill!  You rock my socks.

Vegan Cookies with Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Cinnamon

Print this recipe!

1/2 cup vegan margarine (can be found at most grocery stores in the States)

1 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup soft tofu, drained

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1/2 cup cocoa powder ( Ghirardelli is vegan)

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

scant 1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a bowl combine margarine, brown sugar and tofu until well blended.  Stir until virtually no chunks of tofu remain.  Add the peanut butter and vanilla and stir to combine.

In a separate bowl sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir to combine.

On a parchment or foil lined backing sheet, heap cookie dough by the Tablespoon.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.  Remove from oven, let sit for 5 minutes then enjoy with soy milk!

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