Triple Chocolate Caramel Cookie Bars

Etta and Preethi are coming over tomorrow and I’m SUPER excited!!! Yay! Two days isn’t enough :( But, what the hell! I can’t wait to see them again. Sigh!

Preethi is MY kinda person - an unapologetic foodie and fellow chocolate freak. So I made this for her because I know she’s one person who’ll fully appreciate and fully do justice to your cooking no matter what.

Anyway, this is one of the simplest cookies ever. Don’t be scared by the seemingly long process. It’s not so difficult (as long as you remember to stir the caramel continuously till it’s done) and your taste buds will implode with joy with the very first bite :D

Lol!

So, You Will Need

For The Base:

250g all purpose four

½ cup castor sugar

3/4^th cup unsalted butter, softened

For The Caramel Filling:

7 tbsp unsalted butter

½ cup light brown sugar (muscovado)

2 * 14oz cans condensed milk

For The Chocolate Topping:

90g semisweet/bitter cooking chocolate

90 g milk chocolate

50g white cooking chocolate

Method Of Preparation

For The Cookie Base:

- Preheat the oven to 350 F

- Line and grease a 13*9 inch baking dish

- Combine the flour and castor sugar in a bowl and work in the butter with your hand, until it looks like fine breadcrumbs

- Put the dough into the tray and press it out with your hand to cover the base

- Smoothen the surface with a spoon and prick holes al over with a fork

- Bake for about 20 minutes and set aside to cool

For The Caramel Filling:

- Combine all the ingredients in a pan and heat on a medium-low flame, stirring all the while until the sugar has dissolved

- Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer on a low flame for 10 minute

- Stir constantly and make sure it does not burn

- Remove from the heat and pour the mixture over the cookie base

- Leave it aside until cold

For The Chocolate Topping:

- Melt each chocolate separately in the microwave for 40 seconds (or in a double boiler)

- Spoon lines of plain chocolate alternating with milk chocolate and cover the surface of the caramel filling completely

- Add dollops of white chocolate and use a skewer to form a marbled effect

- Leave it to cool and cut bars once the chocolate has set (if it’s still gooey, refrigerate it till it sets and then cut bars)

*Excuse me for the ridiculous picture :D I was trying to do too many things with one hand*

Chunky Butter Cookies

I love cookies! Especially home made ones. Though my weighing machine groans in silent agony each time I gobble a cookie in front of it, I cannot but give in to some devilish inner urging… every time.

Sigh!

Anyway, this is an extremely simple recipe which comes in handy when my sweet tooth’s a-calling and I’m too bored to drive to the nearest Mapco or Publix. Minimum mess, zero fuss and great taste, makes this one of my most favored ‘to go’ cookies.

You will need:
180g unsalted butter (softened at room temperature)
90g castor sugar
250g all purpose flour (maida)
Cashew nuts according to your taste
1tsp vanilla essence
Raw sugar for coating


Method:
- Beat the butter and sugar together in a bowl until its well blended and fluffy
- Add the nuts and vanilla essence
- Add the flour a little at a time and, using your hands, work the mixture to form a smooth dough
- Roll into small sausage shapes
- Sprinkle a thick layer of raw sugar on greaseproof paper/aluminum foil
- Press-roll each piece into the sugar to coat it
- Wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes
- Meanwhile preheat the oven to 325 degrees F
- Remove the dough from the refridgerator
- Cut into thick slices and place slightly apart on greased baking trays
- Bake for 20 minutes
- Cool and store

These easily last for 3 weeks… that is, if you don’t hog them before then.

Tiramisu Cookies

You will need:
Unsalted butter – 50g (at room temperature and diced)
Caster sugar – 90g
Egg – 1, beaten
Plain all purpose flour – 50g

For the filling
Mascarpone cheese – 150g (check here for substitutes in case you don’t find it http://www.heavenlytiramisu.com/mascarpo.htm)
Dark rum – 15ml
Instant coffee powder – ½ tsp
Molasses – 15 ml (or use light muscovado sugar)

For the topping:
White chocolate: 75g
Milk – 15ml
Crushed chocolate flakes – 2 tbsp


Preparation method:

For the filling:
1. Mix the rum and coffee powder well, stirring till the powder is completely dissolved

2. To this, add the cheese and muscovado sugar

3. Combine well

4. Cover with a plastic wrap and chill until required

For the cookie:
5. Now pre-heat the over too 400 degree Fahrenheit

6. Line two or three baking sheets with baking parchment

7. Cream together butter and sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy

8. Add the beaten egg and mix

9. Stir in the flour slowly

10. Combine well

11. Put the mixture in a piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm nozzle.

12. Pipe small blobs on the baking sheet (remember to space them well as the dough expands)

13. Bake for 6-8 minutes until the centers are firm and the edges are just beginning to brown

14. Remove from oven and set aside to cool

To assemble:
15. Spread a little filling on half of the cookies and places the other halves on top to create cookie sandwiches

16. Combine the chocolate and milk in a heatproof bowl and melt over a pan of hot water

17. When the chocolate is completey melted, stir to make a smooth paste of spreadable consistency

18. Spread the topping evenly over the cookies

19. Sprinkle with the chocolate flakes