Baking Challenge: Double-Chocolate Brownie Cookies

Day 1 of the Baking Challenge

Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook is organized by different chapters according to what type of item you are baking. For example, cookies, cakes, bread etc.... I have decided to skip around the book to avoid monotany, I really just don't want to eat biscuits for 2 weeks in a row. Since my husband loves cookies, I decided to let him pick out what he wanted me to bake today. He chose the Double-Chocolate Brownie Cookies. I decided to omit the walnuts because my husband hates them.

• 9 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped into chunks


• 3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chunks


• 6 T unsalted butter


• 1 cup sugar


• 3 large eggs


• 1/2 t vanilla


• 1 cup sifted flour


• 1/4 t salt


• 3/4 cup walnuts (I omitted this)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. In a heatproof bowl, I used my handy double broiler, melt 5 oz of the semisweet chocolate, all of the bittersweet chocolate, and the butter, until smooth. Set mixture aside, and let cool slightly.

In your mixer, beat the melted chocolate and the sugar until combined. Add eggs and beat until very well combined. Beat in the vanilla, add the flour and salt and continue to beat until well combined. Then add the rest of the chocolate and the nuts.

Scoop 2 T of the dough and form a ball, placing each on the cookie sheet. Bake 9 to 11 minutes, just until set on the outside, but still has a soft middle. Let cool on a wire rack, and enjoy!

My rating: 2 out of 5 stars

These cookies just didn't really hit the spot for me. They tasted just like brownies, but in cookie form. I think I would definitely add the nuts next time. I will have some with my coffee tomorrow and I bet my rating will improve, check back to see!

Easter Wreath

I LOVE the holidays. It doesn't matter which holiday it is, I LOVE them all. I went shopping today for a new Easter wreath, and everywhere I went was so expensive. So, I decided to venture over to Hobby Lobby. This was quite dangerous, as I usually can stay in any craft store for hours. I was thrilled to find out that all of the Easter decorations were on sale. I couldn't resist! I made a fabulous wreath for under $25. It was very easy to make and only took about one hour. All I needed to complete my wreath were my Easter craft supplies, my hot glue gun, and my imagination...okay, and a snack or two. First, I made my own bow and wrapped the ribbon around the grapevine wreath. Then, I hot glued the other items. I was thrilled with the results. I hope you are inspired to make your own Easter wreath too!

Supplies

Adorable Chick

Supplies Hot Glued to Wreath

Chicks in their Nest

Baking Challenge

This baby must like cookies! I have been baking everyday, and can't seem to stop eating what I bake. YIKES! Luckily, my husband has also developed quite a sweet tooth. Call it sympathy eating, or sympathy weight gain, but he can't manage to keep his hands out of the cookie jar either!

I loved the movie, Julie & Julia, and I also love anything Martha Stewart. So, I've decided to challenge myself and bake every recipe in Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook. This may not seem like a daunting challenge, but this baby has been making me quite tired lately! I am going to bake one recipe from her book every other day, starting on Monday, March 8th. There are 171 recipes in the book, so this should be quite a challenge. I hope to learn some new techniques, and learn new recipes that I can serve at parties. Hopefully, I won't gain too much weight!

What do you think about my challenge?