who wants cookies?

Posted on annePosted in book reviews/events

as you read this, i am most likely flagging a cab into the city from la guardia, to start my weekend NYC/NJ teaching gig. i won’t be home until monday.  erica will fill in with another post on sunday, but i thought that for today, it would be fun to leave you with something to dream on—weekends are, after all, full of possibility.

and what possibility could be more alluring than that of cookies??

it might be a little too warm already where you live to be firing up the oven, but if it is one of the last temperate weekends, it could also be a good time to bake several batches and freeze them to eat over the summer when it’s really just too hot to even consider baking.

just a thought.

but if you find that thought really, REALLY appealing, you might be interested in this book—cookies, another volume in the at home series produced by the culinary institute of america.

as with the other at home books, this one includes a well-rounded combination of both instructional content and recipes.

a quick lesson at the start in appropriate equipment and ingredients to have on hand with an explanation of why they are right for cookie baking will get you off on the right track.

this is all really good stuff to know and if you haven’t heard it before, worth exploring before you go shopping.

why spend money on stuff you don’t need, only to end up trying to store it in space you don’t have? better to spend that money on good ingredients.

i also love the illustrated explanation of techniques—if you didn’t learn to cook at home or in school, these basics can really help pull together the concepts of baking—the bonus for reading this stuff is that many of these techniques apply in other areas of cooking and you’ll be adding to a growing stock of knowledge.

you can read these parts of the book at a separate time, well before baking day—no need to plod through them when you are ready to get your hands in flour.

once you get past the science, the book just gets more and more fun. first, a chapter about packaging and decorating—who doesn’t love that?

handmade baked good can be the loveliest of gifts, but if you plan to go this route, presentation makes a difference.

this chapter is full of great ideas for preparing gift packages that are a cut above for holidays or for any time.

included as well are some baking projects that can be tackled alone or in a small group, to learn a new technique and/or create something out of the ordinary.

after this, we get into the recipes; as with many other books, these are divided into sections according to cookie type—drop, bar, rolled, pressed, shaped, etc

included are many, many recipes for old-fashioned favorites, the every day cookies favored by many bakers for their ease of preparation and universal appeal.

most of my own favorites fall into this category; i’m not as attracted to fancier cookies as i am to good old drop cookies and bars.

what’s nice is seeing a few variations on these recipes that elevate easy-to-bake favorites into fussy-looking results, with a minimum of actual fuss. for instance, these cream filled sandwiches made with drop cookies.

of course, if you enjoy fussing, you will not be left out—there is plenty here to choose from.

get a  load of these

or these.
and if that’s not fussy enough for you, i can put you to work sorting out my yarn room—that should keep you busy for a while.

the last chapter is very interesting and one that you don’t normally see in a cookie book—savory cookies.

from what i can tell, this mostly means crackers and other unsweet thins that act as vehicles for cheeses and toppings.

irresistible, yes?
i especially like the inclusion of this chapter in the book.

throughout the book a nice layout style is used that will help keep your eyes on the important material as you move from book to task and back again. clean, bright graphics accent the chapter changes and gorgeous photography supports the instructional segments as well as the recipes. the large, wide format allows the book to lay open in a relaxed way to the page of choice.

so what do you think? are you now the hopeless hostage of thoughts that circle back to cookies every five minutes or so? maybe you need to succumb and bake yourself up a batch or two. just a thought . . .

if this book has you all lathered up  to shop for flour, butter, and nuts on the way home, then this next port is for you—leave a comment at the end of this post by 9pm EDST on monday night, for a chance to win your very own copy of cookies, generously provided by the culinary institute.

we will draw a name and let you know who the winner is in my next post, probably tuesday morning. happy baking!

 

289 thoughts on “who wants cookies?”

  1. I did not know I wanted cookies until I read every crumb of your excellent post. With all the yummy pictures. I would love to be included in the drawing. What can I say, the flesh is weak…

  8. Thanks for the lovely book recommendation! I was just thinking about what kind of cookies to make to mail to my dad for his birthday. Very inspiring!

  10. Hooray for cookies!! (it’s a good thing I just ate, or I’d be drooling on my screen right now.)

  11. Me! I want cookies. That book looks so comprehensive. Thanks for sharing.

    rav id: laureni526

  14. My 14 year old daughter loves baking and would love this book. I love that I have a daughter who loves baking a I don’t like it at all. She does all the birthday cakes now (even her own). She’s a star.

  15. Wow, delicious looking cookies. My grown daughters love baking cookies with me. I would love to win the book, thanks.

  18. That book looks delicious! I bet the cookies are even better. Hardy har har. 🙂

  19. Wow! What a mouth watering book! Everything looks so yummy. I will definitely be doing some major baking if I win this book.

  20. I love COOKIES!!! Knitting away while fresh cookies are baking in the oven. Yum!

  22. Oh wow! Fabulously tempting pictures Anne! Love the whoopee pies, and the macaroons!!

  23. The cookie photos are fabulous! I’ll be making cookies starting this fall for my new college freshman and would greatly benefit from some instruction.

  24. Oooh, great opportunity to try some American cookies! Says she who is still very full after todays rhubarb crumble with lots of vanilla custard… all home made of course!

  25. OH YUM! Cookies are both my DH’s and my favorites. I often bake a batch VERY (think 4am!) early in summer to get the heat out of the kitchen before the sun rises. Those pics are making me drool.

  27. Oh, my, this looks like just the thing for my daughter the cookie baker. Especially the savory recipes, which are hard to come by.
    Thanks for the review.

  28. Those cookies look delicious! I would love to try some of the fussier recipes.

  30. What a beautiful book! Makes me really hungry for cookies, thanks for the chance to win. Have a great weekend!

  36. Oooohhh, YUUUUMMMM!!!!!! How simply wicked of you to post so many images of such incredibly delicious-looking baking! This book sounds excellent!

  37. What an excellent idea you have to bake cookies now for the freezer to enjoy later — and even better with ice cream!

  41. What a great looking book! Those carrot cake cookies would be at the very top of my list. YUM!

  42. I am currently living with two Uni students who are in extreme procrasti-baking mode(Procrasiti-baking = baking to avoid studying). This book would come in handy to fuel the all night study sessions to follow.

  45. I am not much of a cookie baker, mostly because mine never seem to turn out. Perhaps this book could change my cookie baking. . .

  49. Captured by the premier picture: whoopie pies. Ed’s all time favorite cookie. Called Gobs by his mom and grandmother, it was the first recipe his mom gave me when we started dating.

    Such a mouthwatering, tempting book!

  50. Cookies are always, always a good choice. Gift, cure from summer boredom, little experiments, just the thing around 3:00 when a little something would be good…

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