The list is endless.

So we are trying to have a lowkey Christmas this year.  And that involves homeade gifts.  I don't sew (you don't want to see anything I've sewn, let me tell ya,  it ain't pretty people)  My art skills are limited to the kitchen.  That's it.  You know you will get either baked goods, canned goods, candies or yeah that's about it.  That's my artist pallet.  I love the kitchen. 

I love creating an awesome jam with just sugar fruit and homeade pectin.  A muffin, so what if it's really just a donut in disguise - I can do that.  A cookie absolutely. 

But you see now I have a problem.  I still want to keep everything.. So I have to either part with my precious canned goods (and not just that weird nectarine chutney that has survived a few years and I don't like anymore) or make a few more things.  I think I'm going to can a few oranges to make some yummy blood orange marmelade. 

So my list, it is long.  Cookies - just a few kinds.  Canned, a few variaties and maybe a candy.. I have 10 days... Countdown is on. 

A cookie experiment ..

Cookies and baking are for me the lifeblood of this season.  I start to pull out all my cookie books and magazines about October and then the fun begins.  The selections, the choices.  The girls get into it too.. They start with their stack of magazines and you can hear "yum, those look good" to "ugh pine nuts no thank you" (I personally love a pine nut but whatever) all the while selecting and chosing their favorites. 

This year was no execption, however my diagnosis came before I actually started to bake.  And I'm not going to lie.  It made me sad.  I love the smell of chocolate and the sweet smells of ginger and molasses while baking.  Those are the smells of Christmas too me.  Then I came to the realization that darnit I was going to bake - this wasn't a diet that I'm undertaking but a complete life change.  So it was either me that wins or the allergy.  And guess what the allergy is NEVER going to beat me. Never, ever.  Period.  End of story.   I would bake some glutenous cookies for the girls and a few GFree ones for me.  And boy oh boy am I ever thankful I did. 

I've made some wicked good, raspberry coconut oat bars, some brownies (I'll post the recipe later) and then the fun began.  The real fun.  The part that I've been thinking about for years.  That essentially every cookie is about ratios.  Ratios, you know that thing that you did in high school and if you were like me kind of hated. But I knew that every drop cookie was a ratio of flour, sugar, butter and eggs.  You can't make a cookie without at least three of these.  I won't lie.  My realization that this might be the way of the future for me ie changing the AP flour to GF flour came by way of finding the Gspot Revolution and the GFRally.. And lucky for me it was cookie month. 

So I looked around my own cookbooks and thought well lets go easy.  Lets go big.  And I made a cookie I've been doing for a few years but changed it up.  Changed it all to grams.  Changed it to ratios.  And darnit this is what a cookie should be.  It's chewy, dense, chocolately and well a little coffee doesn't hurt either.  This is the new way to bake..

Dark Chocolate Espresso Cookies makes 36 cookies

8 ounces chocolate chips, divided
200gram flour (20 oat, 130 brown rice, 20 Soghrum, 30 tapioca)  I had left over oat flour so this is the blend I tried. Whisk together to make one flour..
40grams cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
100 g butter (about 1/2 cup), softened
300g sugar
2 eggs (100g)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp espresso powder

Preheat oven to 350F
Melt 4 ounces of the chocolate (I use the microwave 1/2 power for 2 minutes, checking frequently), set aside..
In a bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.
Beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, approx 3 minutes.  Add eggs, one at a time to butter.  Mix in vanilla.  Stir espresso into chocolate mixture and then beat into butter mixture.  Add flour, mix until just combined.  Fold in remaining chocolate..
Drop dough as big as you want -- I prefer small bites so mine were about 1.5tsps onto baking sheets.  Bake for 8-10 minutes. 
Enjoy!

My ratio was 2 eggs -4 sugar-3flour-2butter.

So yeah bring it on.  :) :)

I'm a nerd..

Is it weird that I got all excited when I saw this today at Walmart? I have Martha's cookie book and love it. It's like my cookie bible. And I'm so very excited that she's probably going to do a complete series.

The lady might be annoying as sin, she might have gotten herself into trouble, and created that annoying "knitted shawl" phase but man her bakers bake. And her/their creations are awesome.. I know what I'm getting for my birthday in 32 days.. 32 years old in 32 days.. I'm pretty excited. About it all. It's a good year, with smidges of shit pulled in. But I am supremely lucky to have such a great family, and some awesome friends. And in 32 days, the Cupcake Bible. :)