Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Favorite Cookie [011-020]

Pecan Bars

So, here's what we're gonna do: I'm changing this whole thing up a bit. Instead of just posting my favorite cookie from the 10 most recent recipes, I'm going to organize them from the BEST to the NOT SO BEST (they're all good--no "worst"). Here we go, let's do this:

1st place: Pecan Bars
This was a no-brainer right? I mean, seriously, if you tasted these--or even just read my entry on them, you'd know from the get go that these were winners. Super-indulgent, nutty and sweet and sticky, they were fantastic. And fun to make, as well!

2nd place: Peanut Crisps
Okay, maybe not everyone who has tried all of the cookies I've baked so far would agree that these deserve to be the runner-up, but I was hardcore addicted to these cookies! Ugh, the combination of the salty peanuts and the sweet molasses of the brown sugar was to die for. My only complaint is that they didn't have the light texture that Martha said they would.

3rd place: Cakey Chocolate Chip Cookies
These were just winners. I'd like you to try and find someone who wouldn't like these cookies. They're texture is exactly as the name suggests, and the recipe gives room for interpretation (I added in some nuts to contrast the soft and cakey texture of the cookies). They are super easy to make, and the raw batter is pretty much the epitome of uncooked, potentially dangerous, yet undeniably divine cookie dough!

4th place: Lemon Squares
I would have given these a higher rating if I was solely judging them on flavor, but the recipe itself was a royal pain in the ass. Grating butter? Who's ever even heard of that? And you had to freeze the dough, then half-bake it, then bake again. Pretty time consuming, but produced a delicious dessert.

5th place: Chocolate Thumbprints
It's all about the quality of chocolate that you use in these cookies that makes them so delicious. The cookie/biscuit part is also quite yummy, especially because it has so much powdered sugar, thus giving it a melt-in-your-mouth quality. But they were tedious to make, and I burnt my thumb giving them said thumbprints. In the end, however, they are tasty and completely precious!

6th place: Cassis Crisps
These would win on originality, I believe. The Cassis (or in my case, the Chambord) liqueur gives the cookies a really subtle and unusal sweetness, and while baking gives off the greatest aroma (that sentence was really silly). However, they weren't crispy, and barring the liqueur, were a little on the boring side.

7th place: Classic Shortbread
To be fair, there really isn't anything wrong with this recipe. It makes a perfect little shortbread, but I'm just not that big of a shortbread fan. I guess that makes my rating system biased and flawed, but what can I do! I'm only one girl!

8th place: Fresh-Peach Drop Cookies
Okay, so I had very high hopes for these cookies, but I'm sorry Martha, you have to draw the line somewhere when it comes to cakeyness. These were essentially pancakes, or a pancake-cookie hybrid: A pancookie? Also, peeling, pitting, and dicing stone fruits is a drag. Flavor-wise they were good, though.

9th place: Earl Grey Tea Cookies
Oh boy. Yes. Well, if I were solely judging the most recent time I baked these cookies, I would have given them last place for sure, but I had made this recipe before, and produced quite yummy cookies. However, second time around, it was a true disaster. Does that warrent being placed second-to-last? I don't know; if you make them correctly, they are really good and very pretty!

10th place: Ne Plus Ultra Cookies
I really have to question the titling of these cookies. To suggest that they are the ultimate cookie, the be-all-end-all-top-o-the-line cookie, is, well, wrong. Sorry Martha, but these were just boring. Yes, they have everything in them (chocolate chips, raisins, nuts, you name it), but the results were rather uninspiring. Sorry!

****

Well that's that. Hope you enjoyed! Just remember, while I did rate some of these better than others, they were all good cookies. Don't be afraid to give any and all of the recipes a shot. If there was one that I wouldn't want you to make, I'd be sure to tell you explicitly!

Anyway, ready for round 3? I am. I'll go fire up the oven...in the meantime, you can check out the reviews from round 1 (cookies 001-010; the maiden voyage!).

2 comments:

Sweetie said...

congrats on making it to round 2! based on sight alone i'd agree with your first pick.

glad you got your steam back too bc your blog rocks! it's among the blogs that inspired me to jump start a similar project. hope you come visit: http://theredletterday.blogspot.com/! : )

Sweetie said...

hey again! i mentioned your blog on mine today:
http://theredletterday.blogspot.com/2009/06/cook-through-book.html