Chewy Gingersnap Cookies

It's been a while hasn't it?

I'm closing in on my last couple of days of class...and well...it's getting a little crazy.

So crazy in fact that I probably shouldn't even be writing this blog post.  But who is going to stop me?

Probably no one.  But I'll keep it short and sweet just in case.

First I must ask...have you signed up for the giveaway yet?  No??  Well that's silly.  Because you should.  Tonight at midnight I will choose a winner for my Plenty Cookbook giveaway.  Don't know what that is?  Click {here} to see the book.  All you have to do is click {here} and leave a comment telling me something about your Thanksgiving.  For extra chances to win you can share the giveaway on facebook or twitter.  So go go go!  You don't have much time!

Next...these cookies.

My kitchen has successfully transitioned into a full steam ahead holiday baking kitchen.  Has yours?  I've been cranking out cookies left and right and have plans for quite a few more festive holiday treats before we head back to Missouri.  Tis the season right?

If any of you have met me...you probably know how much I love ginger.  Like...really love it.  I want it in and on everything.  Cooking.  Baking.  Doesn't matter.   I like when it's involved.  And these cookies are no exception.  I played with the thought of adding crystallized ginger but didn't for fear that it would completely throw off the texture.  I also desperately wanted to add white chocolate chunks just to give them a little boost.  But of course not one of the four grocery stores in my neighborhood carries white chocolate.  Nor do they carry yeast...but that's a story for a different time.  These cookies are perfectly soft.  But perfectly chewy.  A balance that is 100% necessary for gingersnap cookies in my opinion.

Throw these babies into your baking arsenal.  Everyone involved will thank you.

gingersnap cookies

adapted from two peas & their pod


Makes: About 3 dozen cookies
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Bake Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes (for the first batch!)

{Printable Recipe}

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup molasses
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 large eggs
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chunks (optional)
1/2 cup granulated sugar for coating cookies

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl mix together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg.  Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar until light and smooth.  Beat in the molasses, canola oil, and vanilla.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until smooth.
5. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until fully incorporated.  Stir in white chocolate chunks (if using).
6. Scoop the dough into balls and roll in granulated sugar.  Place on the lined baking sheets about two inches apart and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cookies cool on the baking sheet for five minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

Pear Crostini + a thankful giveaway!

Oh.  My.  Goodness.

Is your belly still as full as my belly?

I sort of feel like a big roly-poly.

But a really happy one.  A full day in the kitchen with my mom, some unbelievable food, and a wonderful night with friends and family.  Everything that Thanksgiving is all about in my book.  How could I not be a big, fat, happy roly-poly?



Was your holiday just as wonderful?  I sure hope so.  And I definitely hope you ate as well as we did.  What all did you have?  What was your favorite?  Are you so excited for leftovers?  Because I am.



Alright let's get to the real point of this post.

I'm not one to get all mushy gushy.  Ask anyone.  It's just not my thing.  So this is going to be short and sweet.  Just the way it should be.



I'm super duper thankful for YOU.  I basically started this blog to log the recipes I was making and keep some Missouri friends and family updated on our Boston escapades.  But it's grown into something so much more.  This blog is so much a bigger part of my life than I ever expected it to be.  And there is a reason for that.  That reason is you.  It's almost mind blowing how supportive all of you have been.  Every time you visit, leave comments, or send me emails my heart sings.  Seriously.

So THANK YOU.  You don't know how much you mean to me.  And like I said...I'm not good with the cheesy stuff and don't usually whip it out so, I actually mean that one.



In spirit of the holiday, I decided there was no better way to truly say thank you than by doing a giveaway.  Well...the better way would probably be to give each and everyone of you a cookbook...but that seems a bit far fetched right?  Right.

Today I'm giving away a copy of Yotam Ottolenghi's Plenty.  Have you seen this beautiful thing?  Yes?  Then you know how fabulous it is.  No?  Click {here} now.  Swoon.  Drool.  Swoon.  Drool.  You need this cookbook.  I promise.  I've been ogling over it at Shake The Tree (my super fabulous somewhat new workplace) and knew I had to share it.

To make this baby yours do the following:

1. Follow this blog by email or Google Friend Connect
2. Leave me a comment to tell me something about your Thanksgiving.  Anything.
3. Receive extra entries by sharing the giveaway on Facebook or Twitter and then leave another comment telling me you've done so.
4. Cross your fingers and check back on November 30th to see if you've won yourself a cookbook!
5. And until then...please make these crostinis.  I whipped them up a few nights ago while no one was "that hungry" to find that they disappeared in minutes.  Scrumptious I tell you.  And they are only a small glimpse of what this fabulous cookbook has to offer!

pear crostini with goat cheese

from- Plenty: Vibrant Recipes from London's Ottolenghi

Makes: 4 generous servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes

{Printable Recipe}

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 5 tablespoons olive oil, plus more to finish
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• salt and pepper
• 4 large slices sourdough bread, cut 1 1/2 inches thick
• 3 semi-ripe pears (unpeeled)
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 4-5 ounces good-quality goat cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°.  Place the pine nuts, 4 tablespoons olive oil, the garlic, and a pinch of salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor and mix to a wet paste.  Use a brush to apply to one side of every sourdough slice.  Lay bread on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, or until lightly colored.  Remove and allow to cool slightly.
2. While the bread is in the oven, prepare the pears.  Stand each pear on a cutting board and trim off a very thin layer of skin from each side.  Then cut each pear lengthways into four thick slices.  Remove the core with the tip of a knife.  Place the slices in a bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil, the sugar, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt.  Toss gently.
3. Take a ridged griddle pan and place on a high heat until very hot.  Lay the pear slices gently in the pan and leave for about a minute on each side, just to make char marks.  Turn carefully and then remove with tongs, trying not to break the pears.
4. To assemble the crostini, slice the cheese thinly and arrange over the toasts, alongside the pears.  You want to see both clearly, so allow them to overlap and rest on each other to create height.  Place the crostini in the oven for 3-4 minutes, just to warm up and for the cheese to partly melt.  Remove from oven and garnish each slice with a drizzle of olive oil and some freshly ground black pepper.

Thanksgiving Meal Plan Monday

Who's excited for the second annual Thanksgiving themed Meal Plan Monday?

You are!  Right?  Better be.

Did you miss last year's Thanksgiving Meal Plan?  Are you upset about it?  Don't be!  You can read about it {here}.

Finally this year's big feast is upon us.

And I actually feel so well prepared for it.

I've already made the initial grocery store run.  The turkey is ready for it's brine bath.  The stuffing bread is ready to dry out.  The next grocery list is made.  This whole organization thing is blissfully disgusting sometimes.

Now all I'm missing is my parents.  But it won't be long.  Their plane arrives tonight and I couldn't be more excited.  For some reason the gap between seeing them in August this year to now seems far bigger than it did last year.  It's going to be a week full of feasting, shopping, sightseeing, card playing, and just a whole lot of fun.  Do any of you Bostonians have any hidden gem sightseeing spots up your sleeve?  You can only walk the freedom trail so many times you know.

So, now you know what I have going on for the week...but what are YOU doing for Thanksgiving?  Traveling to different family Thanksgivings?  Making your own feast?  Going out to dinner?  And for everyone not in the U.S., I still want to know what you are up to this week!  What's going on in your kitchen?

Just a heads up.  You might want to check back later in the week.  I might be....I don't know...doing a...giveaway...or uh...something like that.  Maybe to show you how thankful I am for you as a reader.  I mean...maybe. 

Have a great holiday!

The "J. Crew Cocktail" from Bookcooker

Thanksgiving Food and Wine Pairings from YumSugar

Vanilla Pear and Vodka Cocktail from Two Tarts

Slow Cooker Apple Butter Yeast Rolls from A Spicy Perspective

Sweet Potato and Honey Dinner Rolls from How Sweet It Is

Cheesy Winter Squash Muffins from Scarborough Food Fair

World's Best Dinner Rolls from Our Best Bites

Roasted Delicata Squash Salad from 101 Cookbooks

Sweet Potato Soup with Buttered Cashews from Scarborough Food Fair

Momofuku Brussels Sprouts from House to Haus

Spicy Parmesan Green Beans and Kale from Ezra Pound Cake

Roasted Broccoli with Raisin Vinaigrette from Scarborough Food Fair

Garlic and Mushroom Mashed Potatoes from Give Me Flour via A Clove of Garlic, A Pinch of Salt

Hasselback Sweet Potatoes from Babble

Kale and Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes from 101 Cookbooks

Wild Mushroom Gravy from Oh My Veggies

Rosemary Parmesan Sweet Potato from Cookie + Kate

Persimmon & Squaw Bread Stuffing from Spoon Fork Bacon

Dried Prunes and Chestnut Bulgur Stuffing from The Healthy Foodie

Sausage and Artichoke Stuffing from The Meaning of Pie

Skillet Stuffing from Georgia Pellegrini

Sourdough and Mushroom Stuffing from A Sweet Pea Chef

Glazed Ham with Guinness, Mustard, Marmalade and Pineapple Juice from Almost Bourdain

Sweet Potato Ravioli with Kale Pesto from The First Mess

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast from Heather's Dish

Vegetarian Pot Pie from The Curvy Carrot

Turkey Brine from Baked Bree

Vegetable Lasagna from Babble

Maple-Walnut Cranberry Tart from Hungry Rabbit

Bourbon Pumpkin Cheesecake from Scarborough Food Fair

Pumpkin Filled Cream Puffs with Maple Caramel Sauce from Full Fork Ahead

Pear Cardamom Upside Down Cake from Eat, Live, Run

Single Crust Plum and Apple Pie from Smitten Kitchen

Pumpkin Pie from Scarborough Food Fair