big hope

So, like many of you I'm home again for the last of 2009's winter holidays. A shocking on-time departure out of snow-covered JFK yesterday landed me in Pittsburgh where they're already having a White Christmas - and it's lovely and perfect and I've been warm and fuzzy since I got here. Christmas vacation always begins with my birthday on the 20th, and even though I've alluded to it here and here, I didn't feel there was much to celebrate this year. 28 is pretty low key - not even any rental car perks or privileges to make it special. So, since year 27 had its share of tough times, I was pretty much just looking forward to the clean slate that comes with any birthday.

And then... my Mom scored Steelers tickets for the game on my birthday! It's ridiculous that I hadn't been to Heinz Field and even though we've lost the last 5 games (don't.get.me.started.) I was thrilled to go. My Mom even lent me her treasured Hines Ward #86 jersey to wear over my 6 layers of down and fleece, and I got my face painted at the stadium before we took our nose-bleed, you-need-a-mountain-goat-to-get-there seats. But, I was really excited to be at the stadium, with my Mom, cheering on our team, on my birthday.

And then... it was the 4th quarter with 2 minutes left in the game, and Green Bay was up by 6pts. Now, I don't pretend to be a sports-fanatic. In fact, I don't even understand all of the downs, per se. But I did grow up in the Steel City and I do love my team. So despite the fact that I was there, at the stadium, watching the game in real time, with my Mom, on my birthday, I started getting real grouchy. Like, I wanted to kick those Green Bay fans in our section back to Wisconsin where they came from. Or, maybe I wanted to punch the girl who yelled "that's right, show 'em how to play football!" right in her green and yellow painted face.

But I didn't (cause I was raised to be a lady) and as the clock counted down, the more miserable I became. Why did our Superbowl-winning team have to suck so much this year? Why couldn't Big Ben just throw the ball instead of getting sacked all the time? Why was it so freaking cold that I was losing feeling in my fingers and toes? And why did all this happen on my birthday?

And then... Big Ben found Mike Wallace in the end zone with no time left on the clock, and Jeff Reed kicked the extra point for the win. And you know what? That's what hope is all about, my friends. It's about putting positive energy towards something that might not have the best outcome. It's about believing in yourself and not giving up on your dreams. And tonight it was about winning a game for a city that needed it.

So I'm taking a hint from my black and gold friends (and potential lovers, Heath Miller will you marry me?) and getting psyched for 28. Because there's no reason not to be hopeful that this could be the best year yet - and I think a pulled-out-at-the-last-second win is a good way to start.

Another good way to start is with some insanely delicious chocolate chip cookies. I never thought I'd be able to re-create the perfection from Levain Bakery on the UWS in NYC but... these are pretty darn close. A friend's husband even went so far as to say the batch I gave them were "the best chocolate chip cookies he's ever had." But I can most certainly not take the credit - it all goes to Emily from Sugar Plum Visions of Sweets. Thank you so much for the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I've ever tried. It's a little "involved" to be a standard whip-it-together-in-10-minutes go-to, but they're definitely the best. You can find the recipe and mouth-watering photos here.

Oh, and this is just the beginning. There are 4 days until Christmas and that means 4 days of holiday cookies, a belated birthday cake, and Christmas Eve dinner on tap to share. Hope you had a Merry Merry weekend :)

upgrade

Hooray! Baking Therapy has a new look! And I am super grateful for the team effort it took to create the fabulous new header. Cause I freakin' love it :)

Many thanks to my friend Ben who is brilliant behind the lens and captured exactly what I had pictured in my head. You can find more of his work here.

And thank you to my friend Julie for her lovely design work. You can find her on Twitter @JulieGeer.

winter wishes

I've always looked forward to winter. Because my birthday is in December and two of the biggest holidays of the year fall within the coldest season, I've always welcomed the chill while friends cursed at fallen leaves and pulled scarves from storage bins.

But even though winter has always meant family and home and presents (lots of presents!), there are a few things I hate about it. Like, really hate.

The short list, so far this year:
1. Socks of any kind
2. Chapped lips in the morning because the steam heat in my apartment is so dry
3. That the sun goes down at, like, 4pm
4. Fewer evening runs in the park because it's empty and dark
5. The bone-chilling cold that's gonna be here awhile

But like any list, there's a counterpart. There are lots of reasons to love New York and all things winter, and here are some of my favorites:
1. Puffy down coats and infinity scarves
2. Bobbi Brown Hydrating Face Cream and Kiehl's lip balm #1
3. Snowy ski trips to Vermont with hot cocoa and chili bowls
4. Snuggling deep into my duvet on chilly mornings
5. Brussels sprouts on restaurant menus and holiday sweets in every bakery window

If you haven't caught on yet, I'm kinda really into #5 on the love-list. I love winter veggies but my favorite get-in-my-mouth treat this month is chocolate bark. Sea-salted, espresso-flavored, nut-flecked. The only thing that tops it on my must-make list are this month's Christmas cookies. So when I opened the December issue of Bon Appetit and saw Chocolate Peppermint Bark COOKIES, omg I had to have them. Right. Now.

They won't keep you warm or your skin hydrated, but they are delicious and were a hit at my book club tonight. Because they're embarrassingly easy to make, here's a great holiday gift recipe that's festive and will satisfy even the most die-hard cookie fanatic (like me).

Chocolate Peppermint Bark Cookies
Bon Appetit

2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup (two sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 large egg yolk
6 oz bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped (I used a little over 1 cup of semisweet chocolate chips)
1/2 cup finely chopped red-and-white-striped hard peppermint candies or candy canes
2 oz high-quality white chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan with nonstick spray. Line bottom of pan with long strip of parchment paper, leaving overhang on both short sides of pan. Whisk flour and salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until creamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat in sugar. Continue beating until mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in vanilla, then egg yolk. Gradually add flour mixture, beating on low speed just to blend.

Drop dough by tablespoonfuls into prepared baking pan, spacing evenly. Using moistened fingertips, press dough to form an even layer over bottom of pan. Pierce dough all over with fork.

Bake cookie base until light golden brown and slightly puffed and edges begin to come away from sides of pan, about 30 minutes. Place pan on rack; immediately sprinkle bittersweet chocolate over. Let stand until chocolate softens, about 3 minutes. Using small spatula, spread bittersweet chocolate over top of cookie in thin even layer. Immediately sprinkle chopped peppermint over.

Stir white chocolate in medium metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from over water. Using fork, drizzle white chocolate all over cookies. Chill until white chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.

Using paper overhang as aid, lift cookie from pan and transfer to work surface. Using large knife, cut cookie into irregular pieces and serve.

tiny tots with their eyes all aglow

First I have to apologize for being so MIA the past week. The regular excuses for this time of year apply: holiday parties, cookie baking, Christmas shopping, and more holiday parties. Somehow after Thanksgiving the days rush by and suddenly there are three weeks until Christmas to pack in parties, work events, end-of-year birthdays, ice skatings, gift wrappings, tree trimmings, cookie exchanges and everything else holiday you can think of. Oh, and still work a full day. But it's the holidays, and that's what you do during the holidays. You push and push until you fly home, collapse into the arms of family and friends, sit by a fire, and forget about your Blackberry for a few days. And you live for it all year.

In my last post I mentioned having a tough time getting into the spirit (and thanks for all of the supportive comments!), but after this past weekend not even Scrooge himself could deny that Christmas is all around. Yesterday, myself and a few hundred friends dressed as Santa Claus descended on NYC with the force of Kriss Kringle and Saint Nicholas combined. It was Santacon NYC 2009 and for those of you who don't know, what ensued was a Santa convention/parade/bar crawl through the outer boroughs and into Manhattan that involved copious amounts of... merry-making. It was a full day, but the absolute highlight came while fueling up at Starbucks on West 86th Street before trekking to the Park Slope meeting point. Dressed in full Santa suits and appropriate gender-defining accessories (Lady Gaga-esque fake eyelashes for me and a full white beard for my friend Matt), we were approached by a 4-year girl as we waited in line for our caffeine fix. She tugged on my Santa coat and asked in the sweetest Cindy Lou Who voice, "Do you know Santa?"

I think my heart almost exploded a la the Grinch as Matt and I answered that yes, we knew Santa and that we were his New York City helpers since he was at the North Pole getting ready for the big day. I bent down as her Mom pointed out my elf-eyelashes and the little girl was so adorable that I literally wanted to scoop her up and put her in my pocket. Instead, we put the Amber Alert on hold, wished her a Merry Christmas and headed out to Brooklyn to get freak nasty with the other Santa's. And. It. Was. Awesome. Santa at the Brooklyn Museum. Santa kick ball in Prospect Park. Santa Christmas carols on the subway. Santa's on Wall Street. Jews for Santa. It was the most fun I've had in a long time (and you bet I felt the after-effects of the fun this morning).

So in celebration of Santa's magic, here's a great Christmas cookie recipe my friend Emily and I made as part of our bake-fest last week. I've always called them "Russian Tea Cakes" (no clue why) and my brother and I used to leave them out for Santa with a glass of cold milk before bed on Christmas Eve. I've also heard "Mexican Wedding Cakes" and "Snowballs," so take your pick. But whatever you call them, they're a delicious version of shortbread that's light, delicate and melt-in-your-mouth good.

These turned out perfectly per the recipe, but I'd love to try them with different "add-ins" like sliced almonds and dried apricots or dark chocolate and cherries (the possibilities are endless). Oh, and the dough is REALLY YUMMY. Not that I tried it. Or ate half of it while waiting for the other half to bake.

Pistachio and Cherry Mexican Wedding Cakes

Bon Appetit

2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar, plus more for coating

2 tbsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. salt

1 cup shelled unsalted natural pistachios (about 4 oz.), chopped

1 cup dried tart cherries

3 1/3 cup sifted cake flour (I used all purpose)

1 2/3 cups sifted all purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter 3 large heavy baking sheets (we just used parchment paper). Using electric mixer, beat 2 cups butter and 1 cup powdered sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and salt, then pistachios and cherries. Using spatula, stir in all flour (do not overmix dough).

Shape dough by generous tablespoonfuls into football shaped ovals (Emily used two spoons to shape them into footballs and it worked beautifully). Place on prepared sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Bake cookies until bottoms just begin to color, about 16 minutes. Cool cookies on sheets 10 minutes before coating.

Pour generous amounts of powdered sugar into medium bowl. Working with 5 or 6 warm cookies at a time, add cookies to bowl of sugar; gently turning to coat thickly. Transfer cookies to sheet of waxed paper. Repeat to coat cookies with sugar again; cool completely. Can be made 4 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.