Another show that has garnered great praise in my family is America’s Test Kitchen.  It is fantastic.  (I also highly recommend their cookbook).  For those unfamiliar with ATK, they do more than just cook.  They test and they explain.  For example, in the following recipe, the butter is melted.  They explained this created a chewier cookie than creaming the butter and then showed the crispy creamed butter cookie.  The cook books also provide information such as the preferred brand of peanut butter to use in cookies.  It removes a lot of the guesswork and adds some science.  I love it.  I’m such a nerd.

I saw these cookies on the show and new I had to make them right away.  Less than 24 hours after the show right away.  The result?  They were delicious.  They were decadant.  They have become an instant favorite.

Then I had second thoughts about sharing the recipe.  I wanted to keep them all to myself.  Bake them as gifts and have others be jealous when they tasted the rich flavor.  I would smile to myself as I said, “oh no, I couldn’t possibly share my signature recipe.”

Then I got mischevious.  What if I posted the recipe but provided wrong measurements for the ingredients?  No one would ever be able to duplicate the recipe to the same level of awesome and the cookies would be mine.

Then I got really mischevious.  What if I posted the recipe, but then told people I thought about typing it incorrecly.  They would assume the right one was then posted for sure.  I could have my cookies and eat them too.

I am a cookie genius.  So with that, I leave you with the recipe and let you decide how accurate it is…..

Although I suppose you could just look it up online.  Darn you internets, my evil cookie domination plan has been foiled!

Brown Sugar Cookies
From America’s Test Kitchen

• 14 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/4 c granulated sugar
• 2 c packed dark brown sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour + 2 tbsp
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

1. Brown 10 tbsp of the butter in a skillet (~2-3 minutes) over medium-high heat.  Add the remaining 4 tbsp and set aside to let cool ~15 minutes
2. Preheat oven to 350 °F
3. In a shallow bowl, mix the granulated sugar and 1/4 cup of the db sugar in a bowl.  Set aside.
4. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.
5. Add the remaining db sugar to a bowl and add the salt.  Stir in the melted butter mixture.  Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and stir.  Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
6. Pull the dough out of the bowl and put on the counter.  Cut into 24 equal portions.  Shape the pieces into balls and roll them in the white/brown sugar mixture.
7. Bake 12-14 minutes.  Let sit on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.  Do not overcook or they shall not be chewy and delicious.

The other part of the experiment…I’m running low on some ingredients (please see above re: moving).  I had to move around some proportions of the recipe and I also (gasp!) didn’t measure a bunch of things either (which in hindsight might have not been the best idea).  The recipe was Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies, from Martha Stewart.  Ok, they’re actually from Sisha Ortuzar, co-owner and executive chef of ‘wichcraft, a great sandwich (get it?) place that I used to visit in NY.  The only major edit I made to the recipe was for the filling.  I added some cocoa powder to the mix to try and add some chocolate flavor.

The end result?  They’re gorgeous.  They remind me of heartier version of French macaroons.  Taste wise, I actually thought they were a bit too rich initially.  However, they taste much better the next day, so I recommend making them ahead of time.   My classmates liked them a lot (but of course they could just be too nice to tell me the truth).

Although, taking another look at them makes me think they look like tiny hamburgers…

My friends and I were on our way to the DeYoung Museum for the YSL exhibit (yay student discount) so we stopped by Tartine for lunch / snacks.  It was packed.  Standing room only, line out the door, packed.  Luckily, my friends managed to grab a standing spot near the window (excellent for people watching) while we waited for sandwiches.  Of course I couldn’t wait for lunch, I needed to try my gingerbread cookie.  Now let’s set one thing straight, I don’t even like gingerbread that much.  However, while waiting in line, I couldn’t help but look at how gorgeous this cookie was, an iced piece of artwork.  I just had to buy it, and eat it.  I wasn’t appalled either, it was a soft gingerbread and it was delicious.  Now, it didn’t convert me to a gingerbread fiend, but I don’t regret my decision either.

After a long wait (maybe 25 minutes, it was packed remember), our sandwich finally came out.  It was huge.  For $10, we got 3 portions of a “fancy” grilled cheese.  Humboldt Fog melted between walnut bread.  Glad I chose to share it, no way I could have finished it by myself.  In fact, my friend and I didn’t even finish it.

We did, however, finish the Banana Cream Pie.  It was just as good as when I had it back in April.  This is more than just a Banana Cream Pie.  It’s a chocolatecaramelpastrycreamwhippedcreammorechocolate Banana Cream Pie, it’s delicious and it’s no small feat to finish.

Now I just need to figure out when I can get back to California…or if they ship across the country

Ok, so the second oops.  I forgot the cord to connect my camera to my computer during my travels (ok, didn’t really forget as much as I didn’t think I would need it.)  Which means I can either go buy a cord, hunt around my parent’s house for something that can work, or I can post things without pictures.  Since I’m feeling rather lazy about the whole missing cord dilemma right now, we’re going with option number three.

I guess there is also a third oops to this post.  Over the weekend I stayed with one of my best friends in NYC, who conincidently is enrolled in pastry school at The French Culinary Institute (yea, my friends are kinda awesome).  Although when I showed up at her apartment on Friday, I was surrounded by cookies.  We’re not talking a batch of your regular toll house either.  There were at least 10 dozen of several different kinds.  So pretty much my final “oops” to this post was the fact that 2/3 meals each day consisted of cookies.  I would pretty much wake up in the morning and eat cookies for breakfast.  I would come home, “not hungry” and yet somehow ended up eating a couple of macaroons.  Oops.

So this is where I would add a couple of pictures of the cookies, which include (but not limited to) macaroons (french kind, not coconut), Russian tea balls, biscotti, chocolate mint thumbprints, gingerbread, chocolate shortbread….yea, I’m pretty sure I’m missing a couple too.

So [insert picture here]

[and here]

.

.

.

.

[here too].

Then you drool a little bit.  Then I totally plug her mad cookie skills and say she’s decided to start selling her baked goods.  Drop me a line if you’re interested and I’ll get you in contact.

The occasion?  My sister was hitched last weekend in an all-out affair.  To give you an idea of what it was like, my family is half-Italian, part Irish and lives on Long Island…in other words; we know how to throw a party.

I suppose the festivities started Friday night with the rehearsal dinner, but to be honest, we would be here for the next week if I had to discuss that menu as well, so here’s a picture and we’ll move on to the main event.

My sister’s actual wedding was beautiful and perfect in every way…but by the time we were ready to celebrate, we were famished.  So perhaps the best place to start would be the cocktail hour.
Living up to its name, we did in fact have cocktails.  In fact, there was a “Martini Slide,” or as I like to call it, “an ice luge for adults.”  Serving multiple types of martinis (a staple in my family), the alcoholic ice sculpture was magnificent.

There was also food at the cocktail hour I swear!  The hors d’oeuvres were plentiful and were served either at a station or by a waiter.  I didn’t get to take many pictures of these since there was lots of socializing, but here’s the breakdown:

Stations:
•    Raw bar with clams, oysters and shrimp cocktail
•    Asian: dumplings, Peking duck
•    Pasta: lobster ravioli, butternut squash ravioli and crepes filled with spinach and ricotta
•    Carving/Kebab Station – stuff roast loin of pork, beef, chicken, veggie & fish kebabs
•    Tuscan – All types of cheeses, breads, meats, olives, marinated vegetables
Passed:
•    Baby lamb chops
•    Baked stuffed clams
•    Tomato soup shots w/ mini sandwiches
•    Franks en croute
•    Thai Crab Cakes
•    Kobe-Beef Sliders
•    Tuna on wontons
•    Beef Negiyamki
•    Lobster spring rolls
•    Simosas
•    Bruscheta
•    Roasted yam tart w/ pecans
•    Coconut Shrimp

Phew!  Ok, the main courses were the best part in my opinion.  It started off with an artichoke and wild mushroom tartlet with herbed goat cheese served with baby green.  As my aunt said, “I could have had four of these and called it a day.”

There were three choices of entrees:
•    Filet Mignon served with sweet potato and Yukon gold fries with asparagus bundle, topped with a merlot demi-glaze
•    Roasted French-cut chicken breast stuffed with apples and cranberries served with a mélange of roasted vegetables and potato
•    Pan-seared panko-encrusted striped bass with herb risotto and sautéed spinach topped with a lemon caper sauce

I ordered the Filet Mignon, and it was cooked perfectly.  Additionally, the portion sizes were quite generous.  I had plenty to eat and was able to share it with both my sister and her fiancée husband.

And then there was the dessert!  Of course the wedding cake was beautiful….both untouched and eaten!  The family heirloom wedding topper of course made it look even better.

Just when I thought I couldn’t eat any more, the Viennese table showed up
Viennese Display…
•    Ice cream sundaes
•    Bananas foster
•    Mixed fruit crepes
•    Vanilla and Chocolate mousse
•    Candied apples
•    Cheese cake (NY & Italian styles)
•    Pecan pie
•    Maple Walnut cake
•    Tiramisu
•    Chocolate covered pretzels
•    Assorted cookies and pastries

And then there were Zeppole.  The chef was Italian and offered to make them.  My grandmother used to make them and it was a nice addition to the wedding.

Overall, the food was amazing, the day was perfect and after rolling myself home and then back to Boston, I got to enjoy some more of the leftover wedding cake. Yum!