death by chocolate

Yes...I realize that this is the third consecutive chocolate-related post in the past month...Given my incessant craving for chocolate, I should probably be diagnosed with addiction. I can't go a day without a dose of some form of chocolate. It's just...so good. 

(me on Valentine's day...yeah, it was bad...)

But ANYWAY, back to my intended subject...

In light of the recent NY Times article deeming Durham (surprisingly) as one of the top 41 places to go in 2011, I decided it was time to actually venture outside of campus and discover the mysterious unknown. Okay, not that dramatic. But in all seriousness, I knew of a few unique and worthwhile places in Durham and I'd occasionally go to the farmer's market but I had never really explored the "revitalized" Durham that supposedly has a bunch of outstanding restaurants and cafes scattered around downtown. Partly because I'm lazy and partly because...no, yeah that was my only excuse. Pathetic, I know. When I actually did get over my laziness, I thought I'd start out with one of the places mentioned in the article. Scratch bakery is this cute little bakery/dessert shop on some random, hard to find street (probably because I suck at directions) in downtown. Everything looked SO GOOD. How good? That sea salt sprinkled dark chocolate croustade good (see above pictures). It was half gone before I could take a picture of it. My friend also had their molten chocolate cake, which was also to-die-for. literally. almost. It was fudgy and molten-y on the inside and the edges had a slight crisp to it...basically the perfect combination. 

okay...must find some chocolate now...

the bakery: part two

learning how to make bo luo nai su bread (my absolute favorite taiwanese bread)!!!
they didn't turn out perfectly but they still tasted unbelievably yummmyyyyyy

cookie monster

i forgot how good simple chocolate chip and oatmeal cookies are. 

i made these for a graduation party that was being hosted at my house last saturday and they are absolutely irresistible. i probably had about five before they made it to the serving plate. there's something so comforting about taking a bite out of a freshly-baked, home-made cookie. yumm.

oatmeal cookies

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup applesauce

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 cups oats

1/2 cup chopped pecans

chill dough, then bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes

[derived from the pioneer woman's recipe]

chocolate chip cookies

2 1/4 cups all purpose flours

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup applesauce

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 cup sugar

3/4 cups brown sugar

1 egg

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons of milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

chill dough, then bake at 375 degrees for 12 minutes

[derived from alton brown's recipe]

dissecting the cookie

now that exams are over and done with, i've been able to spend more time indulging myself in the sweet world of baking. making birthday cupcakes and brownies for special occasions have become insufficient in satiating my desire to bake. i am literally baking something every other day now. 

anyway, the recipes that i've found online tend to be sweeter and unhealthier than i'd like (of course..sigh) so i usually cut down on the sugar and substitute the oil with applesauce but then sometimes it ends up having a strange texture. so that got me thinking about the effects of changing up the amount of ingredients so of course i googled it and this is what it found for me..

fats

margarine and shortening helps keep the cookies' pre-baked shape

since butter melts at body temperature, addition of butter causes the cookies to become flatter

sugar

sugar generates flatter cookies because it liquefies under high temperatures

white sugar creates crispier cookies

brown sugar absorbs moisture from the air after baking, allowing the cookies to remain chewy

flour

flour gives the cookie more substance but allows it to spread more in the oven

 the more flour is added, the more the cookie crumbles

baking powder/soda

both baking powder and baking soda help leaven the cookie by producing carbon dioxide

baking soda is sodium bicarbonate, which produces bubbles of carbon dioxide when mixed with an acidic substance, causing the dough to rise and expand in the oven. baking soda promotes the browning of cookies.

baking powder includes sodium bicarbonate, cream of tartar, and starch. since there is already an acidic agent in the powder (cream of tartar), it will not neutralize the dough and the cookie will be puffier and the color will be lighter.

eggs

addition of eggs will create a puffier cookie. 

egg yolks bind the dough and produce crisper and richer cookies

egg whites produce puffier and drier cookies

• Flat If you want your cookies on the flat side, you can do some or all of the following things: Use all butter, use all-purpose flour or bread flour, increase the sugar content slightly, add a bit of liquid to your dough, and bring the dough to room temperature before baking.
• Puffy For light, puffy cookies, use shortening or margarine and cut back on the amount of fat; add an egg, cut back on the sugar, use cake flour or pastry flour, use baking powder instead of baking soda and refrigerate your dough before baking.
• Chewy Try melting the butter before adding it to the sugars when mixing. Remove cookies from the oven a few minutes before they are done, while their centers are still soft but are just cooked through. The edges should be golden. Use brown sugar, honey or molasses as a sweetener. Let cookies cool on the pan for several minutes after baking before transferring to cooling rack.
• Crispy For crisp, crunchy cookies, use all butter and a proportion of white sugar. Use egg yolks in place of a whole egg. Cookies should be baked completely. Let cool on the baking sheet for one minute before transferring to a cooling rack.
[allrecipes, eater's digest, about]

next mission: make the perfect cookie

peach cobbler

the lovely summer weather inspired me to make something fruity yesterday. we happened to have a surplus of peaches and grapefruit stocked up in the back of the refrigerator begging to be eaten. so, peach cobbler it is. um.. yum. yum yum yum yum yum. since it's not that noticeable, there is some sweet cream sauce drizzled (except more like drenched) over the cobbler. i really like cobbler.