ariel's making ... love cookies

happy love day, sweeties. it's been forevs! sorry. been way busy getting this whole photo biz started .... but today's special ... so i decided to make something extra tasty.

how about cookies with choco-mint for sam love? yum!

for these buttery delights ... you'll need:

1 stick organic butter
1 cup organic sugar or sucanat

mix these together. this may be difficult -- if you live in a cold house -- i put my stick of butter on my table this morning to let it thaw.

then i went and did my laundry.

when i came back it was still hard-as-a-rock ... so i used a potato masher to mix the butter and sugar. that worked great!

next i opened a bar of fair-trade mint-chocolate -- then i ate a bunch of it.

with what was left -- i chopped it up into chunks and added it to the butter sugar mixture, along with an organic egg.

then i mixed in 1 1/2 c. of organic flour, a pinch a sea salt, 1 t. of baking powder and a dash of milk.

once it was all mixed, i put in plastic and threw it in the freezer to chill.

while it chilled, i got way productive by putting away the laundry.

about 30 minutes later -- i rolled the dough out -- cut into cute heart shapes -- and baked at 350* for about 15 minutes ... give or take.

i hope sam love likes them. i bet he will.

now -- give someone a kiss! and tell at least two people you love, that you love them -- today and everyday!

kisses,

ariel

p.s. the valentine's are by two amazing girls ... siren suzy and countess karin. i love you both so much!

ariel's making ... coconut chocolate cookies

cookie consumption is on the rise at my house due to large amounts of studying for thee bar exam ;) but we try to keep it healthy ... well sort of. here's a batch that worked out well, made late one night.


chef sam has been making homemade vanilla extract -- so easy! bottle of cheap booze and some vanilla beans. the hardest part is waiting for it to be ready ...

for these scrumptious cookies, you'll need:

1 stick organic butter
1/2 c. organic brown sugar
1/2 c. organic molasses
1 T. homemade vanilla (if ya got it!)
1 organic egg

mix those together!


then add ...

1 c. organic whole wheat flour
1/2 c. organic shredded coconut
1/2 c. organic fair-trade coco powder
1/2 c. organic sunflower seeds
1/2 c. organic milk
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda

whatever else sounds good -- throw that in too!




bake at 350* for about 5-10 minutes ... you'll know when they're done.

study sweet tooth -- conquered!

happy saturday sweeties!

kisses,

ariel

chef sam's making ... basen ladoos

Ladoos are classic Indian cookies, peculiar because unlike Western cookies, these are not baked. The dough is cooked on the stovetop. I was compelled to make these after watching the Indian film, Water, where an impoverished old woman endlessly reminisces about the wondrous, fabled, sweet ladoos from her childhood, until one day, she finds one, eats it, and dies of a tummy ache.

I served these at a cookie party, and indeed, they were to die for.

You'll need:

1 c. graham flour aka basen (whole wheat flour is an acceptable substitute)

1/2 c. melted butter

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

A few tablespoons semolina flour

small handful of finely chopped almonds

around 10 pistachios, chopped small for garnish.

pinch of salt (optional)

Mix the pre- melted butter and flour in a hot pan. Stir continuously until light brown. Remove from heat and mix in almonds, cardamom, and sugar. Let the hot mixture cool until warm. Form into golf ball sized balls in the palm of your hands. Add more butter, or olive oil, if the dough does not stick together. Dip each ball into a little butter, and roll it over the chopped pistachios, for an attractive finish. Lightly salt the ladoos, if you wish, for an element of savory surprise.