easy orange and nut squares

• 1 package store bought sugar cookie dough
• 1 cup orange marmalade

• 1 1/2 cups assorted nuts, toasted and chopped (try hazelnuts, almonds, and walnuts)
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or chopped chocolate

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the cookie dough out on a cookie sheet to 1/4-inch thickness (about 9 inches by 12 inches) using your fingertips. Bake for 25 minutes. Let cool.

Spread the marmalade over the cookie. Sprinkle with nuts.

In a double boiler over very lightly simmering water, melt the chocolate. Dip a spoon in the melted chocolate and drizzle on top of the cookie. Let cool. Cut the cookie into 12 bars or squares. Serve or store in an airtight container.

Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 12 ounces bacon, cut into 1/4-inch dice*
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup reserved bacon fat, chilled

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons bourbon liquor
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 8 ounces dark chocolate 65-percent or higher cocoa content, chopped into small pieces**

Directions

In a large saute pan, cook out the diced bacon until the bacon pieces are golden and crisp. Remove the bacon pieces from the fat and drain on a paper towel. Strain the fat through a fine sieve and measure out a 1/2 cup bacon fat and chill the bacon fat until it congeals and is set.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a small bowl. Beat the butter, chilled bacon fat, granulated sugar, light sugar, dark brown sugar, bourbon, and vanilla, in a large mixer bowl, until it is well combined.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; gradually beat in the flour mixture. Stir in the cooked bacon pieces and chopped chocolate bits. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto parchment-lined baking sheets at least 3-inches apart.

Bake in the oven for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Keep in a dry, airtight container for up to 5 days.

Notes

*Cook's Note: A fattier sliced bacon is preferred, as lean bacon and turkey bacon will not work for this recipe.

** Cook's Note: Use a dark chocolate with 65-percent cocoa or higher. Anything from a 65 to 85-percent chocolate will work well.

Thin and Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies

• I love thin and crispy cookies...moravian cookies, walnut lace cookies...now chocolate chip.
• 2 cups packed light brown sugar
• 1 3/4 cups (3 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 3 whole eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups white flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 pound dark chocolate or chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a stand mixer, cream the brown sugar, butter and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time until well incorporated. Mix in 1/3 cup of water and the vanilla.

In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, salt and baking soda and add to the butter mixture. Mix on low until the flour mixture is incorporated, and then mix in the chocolate pieces.

Scoop out the dough onto the prepared cookie sheet and freeze for an hour. The cookies will spread, so limit 4 cookies for each cookie sheet to give ample room.

Bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating the trays halfway through. Remove from the oven and cool. Remove the cookies with a flat spatula to prevent breaking.

Cook's Note: The recipe does yield a lot of dough, but it's a great freeze and bake cookie. Once you have scooped all the dough and placed them into the freezer, you can pop them into a zip top bag and just bake off as many as you want when you need to!

Brownie Thins

These thin chocolate cookies taste just like the very top layer of a brownie. Made these for cookie swap. Could sprinkle crushed peppermint candy on top.  Also you could use Kahlua instead of vanilla flavoring.


Yield: Makes 24
Time: Make these in 30 minutes

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Pinch of coarse kosher salt
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1/4 cup chopped pistachios (I used pecans and toffee bits)

Position rack in lowest third of oven; preheat to 350°F. Butter (i sprayed with butter spray) 2 baking sheets. Place butter and chocolate in medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on medium-high power until almost completely melted, about 1 minute. Whisk until smooth. Add sugar and egg; whisk until smooth, about 1 minute. Add flour, both extracts, and salt; stir just to blend. Let batter stand 10 minutes.

Scoop rounded teaspoonfuls batter onto prepared baking sheets, spacing apart (12 per sheet). Spray the back of a spoon with cooking spray  and use to spread and flatten each mound into 21/2- to 2 3/4-inch round. They are really, really thin.  Sprinkle pistachios over rounds. Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until  firm in center, about 7 minutes. Cool on sheet 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to rack; cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 5 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

Chunky Chocolate Toffee Cookies

I love chocolate chip cookies and these additions are some of my favorites. I always under cook cookies the first time to make them a little chewy-er.

1 cup unsalted butter , softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
5 bars (1.4 ounces each) English toffee candy , chopped
1 package (10 ounces) semisweet chocolate chunks
1 package (10 ounces) white chocolate chunks
1 cup toasted, chopped pecans
1 cup toasted, chopped almonds

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add both sugars, beating well. Add eggs and vanilla, then beat well.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, stirring well. Add to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in toffee candy, both chocolate chunks and both nuts.

Drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls 1 1/2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 9 minutes or until lightly browned. Let cool slightly on baking sheets; remove wire racks to cool completely.