Bourbon-soaked Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies with Rye Flour

::BOURBON-SOAKED CHERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES with RYE FLOUR::

These are my very favorite cookies. Dried Montmorency cherries plumped up by a good soak in some bourbon. Just enough rye flour to add a touch of texture and the ability to feign wholesomeness. Chewy center. Crispy edges. Toffee vibes packed with a combo of milk and bittersweet chocolate chips. Expect any more from a cookie and I'll call you a greedy maniac.

Boulevardier :: You're Only 3 Ingredients and 60 Seconds Away From this Classic Cocktail

:: Boulevardier :: Bourbon + Campari + Sweet Vermouth

The basics  - I love an evening cocktail, but I'm often short on time, short on ingredients, or need to keep it quick and quiet so I don't wake my sleeping toddler. Queue - stirred cocktails. Silky, strong, and delicious. [This article from Serious Eats is a great primer on how to stir cocktails and how to do it well.]

Boulevardiers are one of my favorites. Bourbon! Campari! Sweet Vermouth! You'll find a dozen flowery posts rejoicing the comeback they've made in recent years  - see: LA Weekly and Serious Eats. Part Manhattan, part Negroni. I love both, but Manhattans can be heavy and cloying and Negronis are bitter as hell and can feel out of place in winter. Even if you don't love either, you might be amazed by what the amalgamation of the two yields.

Spiced Molasses Cake [with whipped cream, candied orange peels, citrus glaze]

I had my doubts about this one. The pervasive scent of dark molasses as the batter dripped into the bundt pan, the full tablespoon of ginger - plus dry mustard, plus fresh-ground black pepper? This was either going to be amazing or a waste of my time, flour, and sugar. Fortunately, it was the former.

This richly aromatic spiced cake is a new favorite. The cake itself is dense and decadent without being cloying or heavy and the whipped cream cuts through the bite of ginger while the candied orange peels and citrus glaze keeps the cake bright and fresh. Without the citrus the cake is good, but only a touch away from deep, dark, singing "Pictures of You" 87 times a day territory. We need a little brightness in our lives, in our cake, and especially in the middle of our winters. If you aren't up to candying your own citrus peels, a sprinkle of chopped candied ginger and pour of ginger simple syrup over the cake would be nice too. And feel free to play with the spices, as is the mustard and pepper didn't shine through on their own, but complimented the molasses and espresso - next time I make it I plan to double them just to see what happens.

Spiced Molasses Cake w/ whipped cream, candied orange peel, and citrus glaze
slightly adapted from Renee Erickson's A Boat, A Whale & A Walrus

Ingredients

Cake:
2 1/2 cups [~230 grams] all-purpose flour, sifted, plus extra for pan
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon ginger
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
10 tablespoons butter, plus extra for pan, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup unsulphured molasses
4 shots espresso or 2/3 cup strong-brewed coffee, plus whole milk to equal 1 cup

Candied Orange Peel:
2 organic oranges - Erickson recommended Sevilles for their sour bite, I used 2 small blood oranges and 1 cara cara
1 cup sugar

Whipped Cream:
2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Preheat over to 325°F Thoroughly butter a bundt pan, making sure to cover all crevices. Dust well with flour and tap pan to be rid of excess flour.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, mustard, and black pepper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light, about 1 minute.

In a liquid measuring cup, combine the espresso, milk, molasses, and eggs.

Add the molasses mixture to the butter/sugar mixture and mix on low until blended, taking care to scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula. [The mixture may have a few lumps or a curdled appearance.] Add the flour mixture and mix on low until nearly combined & only a few streaks of flour remain. Finish mixing until just incorporating by folding with a rubber spatula by hand.

Pour the batter into prepared bundt pan and bake for 50-60 minutes [50 was perfect for mine.] Cake should have a puffed appearance and a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean or with very few moist crumbs clinging to it. While cake is baking, prepare candied orange peel.

Allow cake to cool in pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack placed over a rimmed baking sheet or a sheet of aluminum foil with the edges turned up to prevent glaze from running.

Candied orange peels & citrus glaze:
Halve and juice the oranges over a strainer set over a liquid measuring cup. Add water to make 1 cup of liquid. Cut pith [the bitter white part of the orange] away from the peel taking care to leave just the bright orange peel behind and slice peel into 1/4" strips. [I need practice with this and found it easier to cut the pith away after slicing the peel into strips, but this took longer. Do whatever method you find easiest to leave as little pith behind as possible.] Add peel strips to a 2qt saucepan, cover with water, boil for 5 minutes, and drain the water. Return orange peels to saucepan and add the water/orange juice mixture and sugar. Bring to a low-boil and cook until peels are shiny and nearly translucent. Remove candied peels to a sheet of parchment paper to dry, reserving syrup for glazing the cake.

Once cake has cooled for 10 minutes begin brushing all over with the citrus glaze, allowing glaze to soak in for a few moments before brushing on another coat. Continue until all glaze has been used. [If glaze has become too thick, returning to heat for a few minutes should loosen the consistency.]

Whipped cream:
Whip the cream with powdered sugar to your desired consistency just before serving. [My husband and I take a few days to go through a cake this size, so I whip half the cream the day I bake it and then do a fresh batch later in the week.]

It's good after dinner. It's good with coffee. It's good. ♥

Gooey Honey Blondies

I love these blondies. Like, made "three batches within the first month I tasted them" love. They're simple enough that you can make them with a baby on your hip without screwing them up terribly and the honey lends a complexity that's often absent in your pale, run-of-the-mill blondie recipe. They freeze well individually wrapped, but don't kid yourself - if you're anything like I am, that freezer stash will be gone within the week.

Bonus points if you rap every verse to Rapture while making/eating them. [See what I did there? Blondies... Blondie... crickets or Debbie Harry fans? We're just getting to know each other ♥]

Gooey Honey Blondies 
[recipe adapted from Ovenly]

Ingredients
10 tablespoons unsalted butter,  plus extra for prepping pan
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup honey
1 lg egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2/3 cup chocolate chips, 60% cacao or higher
1/2 cup chopped raw pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease an 8x8 inch baking pan and line with sling made from two lengths of greased and floured parchment paper.

2. Melt butter in a small saucepan or in microwave in microwave-safe container. Set aside to cool.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, honey, egg, salt, and vanilla extract until smooth. Fold in the flour and chocolate chips with a spatula or wooden spoon.

4. Spread batter into prepared baking pan, smoothing the top and edges. Top with pecans.

5. Bake for 25 minutes or until center is just set and edges are just beginning to become golden. [They may seem underdone, but they will fully set once cool.]

6. Allow to cool completely before cutting into 16 2x2" squares. [I find that chilling in the refrigerator makes this step even easier. If you're as eager to try them as I was my first go, pictured above, and cut them while warm you may fear them underbaked and you won't crisp, clean slices.]