So about a month and a half ago, I came to the decision to stop blogging because juggling weekly blog posts with college, friends, and family became more of a challenge than a source of pleasure. Luckily for me, prior to making this decision I had signed up for the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap, and the amazing outpour of passion and thoughtfulness of this event has reinstilled my desire to keep writing, cooking, and photographing for ModernAlice. Thank you to the wonderful ladies whose love of baking and blogging has been such an inspiration to me.
The elegant packaging and sweet notes were just as motivating as the delectable cookies that I received and that’s really saying something!
Lauren of SizzleEats sent delicious Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies that reminded me that food blogging and fitness can go hand in hand. Healthy goodies that are not only delicious but good for you can be refreshing and exciting in a blogosphere so packed with sinful indulgences.
Hannah of FleurDelicious made my mouth water with her Pistachio-Cranberry Mexican Wedding Cakes. Until now, I thought a good cookie had to include chocolate, but these buttery, melt-in-your mouth cookies were so delicious that I couldn’t put them down. Thank you for introducing me to such a delicious new cookie to add to my to-make list.
Rachel Sally of Le Peche Fraiche made some of the prettiest cookies that I have EVER seen! My boyfriend swore that she must have bought them because her beautifully iced butter cookies were so professional looking. If you’re reading this Rachel, you truly should sell these wondrous holiday goodies!
For my cookies, I wanted to share one of my favorite indulgences that somehow hasn’t made its way onto my blog until now: Epicurious’s Chocolate Toffee Cookies.
These fudgey, chocolatey cookies taste almost brownie-like, but the toffee chunks provide a nice crunchy contrast. The recipe claims to make 18 giant cookies, but I made about 40 normal sized ones to keep the chocolate from becoming too overwhelming, but if you’re feeling adventurous, feel free to make 1/4 cup cookies, as originally recommended.
Giant Chocolate Toffee Cookies
yield: 32-40 cookies
Adapted from Epicurious
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 pound semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1 3/4 cups (packed) brown sugar
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 4 1.4-ounce chocolate-covered toffee bars (like Heath), coarsely chopped
Directions:
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
- Stir chocolate and butter in top of double boiler set over simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from over water. Cool mixture to lukewarm.
- Using electric mixer, beat sugar and eggs in bowl until thick, about 5 minutes. Beat in chocolate mixture and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture, then toffee.
- Chill batter until firm, about 45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Drop batter by rounded tablespoonfuls onto sheets, spacing 2 1/2 inches apart. You may have to return it to the refrigerator midway through the scooping process to let the cookie dough firm up again.
- Bake just until tops are dry and cracked but cookies are still soft to touch, 10-12 minutes. Top with sea salt if desired. Allow to cool on racks.
Modern Alice 