Spicy Chocolate Cardamon Cookies

And cookie number 3! I wanted a spicy chocolate cookie but wanted a little extra taste to it, so going thru my spice rack, i found a bottle of cardamon which i love, and decided on using that and pink himalayan salt for extra flavor. It was a hit, spicy and chewy! I ran out of room in my cookie sheets and baked some in mini muffin cups, and they were a hit with the family!

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon pink himalayan salt
2 stick(1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar + 1/4 cup for rolling cookie
2 eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons cardamon
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.
Sift together flour, cocoa, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, cardamon, cinnamon and cayenne. In the bowl of a electric mixer cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and beat to combine. Scrape down sides of bowl and beat for another minute. Turn mixer to low, and gradually add the dry ingredients until combined. Dough will be a little soft. Set a plate with 1/4 cup sugar. Scoop out a teaspoon of cookie dough and drop in sugar, roll it out with your hands and place on 2 parchment covered cookie sheet. Flatten with your hands.

Bake for 10 minutes, until cookies are starting to crack. Remove from oven and let them rest in cookie sheets for 2 minutes. Transfer to cooling racks and cool completely.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffles

These are the best things I've ever made. I have made them in every different flavor cheesecake, but the plain and the pumpkin are the winners. The secrets are: Bake your cheesecake from scratch and cover them with high quality belgium dark chocolate!

Ingredients for about 65 truffles:

3-8 ounce packages of cream cheese, room temperature
1 can pureed pumpkin (15 ounce) or the same amount with fresh pumpkin puree
3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
24 ounces good quality belgium dark chocolate, i use the pound plus from Trader Joe's
1/2 cup candy melts of preferred color for drizzling

Preheat oven to 350F.
In the bowl of a electric mixer beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, sugar and spices. Beat until combined. Add vanilla and flour and beat for another 2 minutes until well combined. Pour into a 13X9 baking pan. Bake it for 1 hour. Remove from oven and cool down completely on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
WIth a small scooper make small balls. You will need to finish rolling each ball with your hands so they stick together all the way. Place the cheesecake balls in a cookie sheet and place in freezer for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat up water in a small saucepan. Place an aluminum bowl that fits in pan but doesn't touch the water on top of simmering water and melt the chocolate slowly. Don't let any water get into bowl with chocolate.

Remove half the balls from freezer and start dropping them in the chocolate one by one. with the help of a small spoon remove balls from chocolate and slowly drop them on a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Let them dry about 5 minutes. Melt candy melts in microwave according to package instructions. Sink a fork into melted candy and with fast hand movements drizzle the colored melt on top of truffle. This will get everywhere, so make sure you are doing this on a clean and uncluttered surface. Do the same with the other half the cheesecake balls. Let it sit for about 1 hour until completely dried. Cut the leftover chocolate around truffles with a pairing knife. At this point the truffles need to be refrigerated or placed in freezer. It will keep in fridge for 1 week and freezer for 2 months.

Maple Crystalized Ginger Cookies

This was cookie number 2 from my day of baking! Such a great combination of flavors, and i love biting into the little pieces of crystalized ginger.

Ingredients for 16 cookies:
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 egg, room temperature
1 cup crystalized ginger, chopped

White sugar to roll cookies

Preheat oven to 350F

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt in a large bowl.

In the bowl of a electric mixer with a paddle attachment, beat brown sugar, oil and maple syrup for 3 minutes. Lower speed and add egg. Scrape down sides of the bowl and beat for about a minute. Slowly add dry ingredients and beat for another 2 minutes. Fold in crystalized ginger until well combined. Scoop out dough with small a ice cream scoop or a tablespoon. Roll each cookie with your hands into a ball and then roll in sugar. Place in cookie sheet and flatten lightly with the bottom of a glass. Bake for 12-13 minutes. Cookies should be slightly chewy inside. Cool on a wire rack.

Butter Pecan Cookies

Woke up today and decided to bake for friends! Thanksgiving is tomorrow and I'm very thankful for friends. Made 3 different cookies, bread and pumpkin cheesecake truffles. I used chinese take out containers lined with tissue paper to gift the cookies!

Ingredients for 24 cookies:
1 cup of unsalted butter plus 2 tablespoons, room temperature
1 1/2 cup chopped pecans
2/3 cup sugar + 1/4 cup for coating
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350F.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and toss with pecans. Toast buttered pecans on a cookie sheet for about 5 minutes. remove from oven and cool completely on a rack.
In the bowl of a electric mixer, beat the butter until creamed. Add sugar and pulse for another minute. Add vanilla, salt and flour, scraping down sides of the bowl, until it all comes together, about 1 minute. Add pecans and fold them in with a spatula. Make 24 balls and roll them in sugar. Place them on 2 parchment lined cookie sheets and flatten them down with the bottom of a glass. bake them for 13-15 minutes, until sides are golden brown. Cool cookies on a wire rack.