Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies

I'm (coco)nuts for chocolate. I wouldn't say I'm new to this whole coconut chocolate combination, but I am definitely new to toasted coconut in chocolate chip cookies. MIND. BLOWN.I've seriously been hooked on coconut lately -  I've been adding it to oatmeal, granola, cookies, cakes and even dhal (an Indian lentil stew/curry)! But toasting it and adding to cookies, that was a stroke of genius, I must admit. And trust me, even when I was stirring it in, I was not convinced, not in the slightest bit.

But the coconut, when toasted, gets all fragrant, crunchy, golden brown and straight-up delicious! It lends the most nutty, aromatic and wonderfully-textured feel to these cookies. Cookies are secretly my favorite typed of baked good as they're the easiest to sneak a bite of, are completely no-mess (crumbs don't count!) and don't need any bowl or spoon to eat from. 
I'm a die hard dark chocolate fan, so all my cookies tend to use dark chocolate chips. However, I think white chocolate chips, maybe with the addition of chopped macadamia nuts, would be an outstanding substitution. Milk chocolate works too!

Ingredients
Makes 14 medium-sized cookies
3/4 cup desiccated coconut
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup unrefined sugar

1 egg
3 tbsp coconut oil, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4-1/3 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 175 C. Line a cookie sheet with baking paper.

Once the oven has heated, spread the desiccated coconut on the cookie sheet and place in the oven for 5-7 minutes, or until toasted and fragrant. Stir once or twice while toasting to ensure even cooking. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.

In a separate, larger bowl, beat together the coconut oil and sugar until creamy. Add in the egg and beat again until light and fluffy. Then add in the vanilla and beat one last time. Into the same mixture, stir in the cooled toasted coconut.

Add in the dry ingredients into the wet and beat gently. If the dough is too thick to beat at this point, just use a spoon to combine.

Finally, add the chocolate chips and stir one last time.

Time permitting, refrigerate the dough for about an hour. I didn't have the time to do so, so I baked the cookies directly and they still turned out great! Before baking, reduce the oven temperature to 160 C, or turn it on again and preheat to 160 C.

Using a cookie scoop or your hands (I prefer this!) roll the dough into balls of your preferred size and flatten slightly before setting to bake on the cookie sheet. Leave some, not too much, space between the dough to allow for spreading. 

Bake the cookies for 12 minutes, then increase the oven temperature to 200 C and bake for another 2-3 minutes or until the cookies look a gorgeous golden brown. 

Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

When you take classic (sorta) chocolate chip cookies and replace the traditional butter aspect with peanut butter, what do you get? Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies! Surprising, right?

In all seriousness, these peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are your traditional chocolate chip cookie kicked up a notch (or couple) and made slightly healthier with the addition of whole wheat flour and oats, reduced sugar, and just a small amount of coconut oil in addition to the peanut butter.

I had to convince my family that these were worth baking. We had a few other baked goods lying around (hey - there's only so much four of us can eat!), and we're going on vacation this weekend, so baking really wasn't the most practical idea. But the baking pangs hit, and they hit hard, so there was no stopping me! My family wasn't too disappointed either. These cookies were an absolute hit!

They're ultra crunchy on the outside, but almost soft and crumbly on the inside. The chocolate chips get all melty and delicious, and the oats just add that wonderful extra bite. They're mucho perfecto dunked in a chilled glass of milk, steaming cup of coffee or sneakily pulled out of the cookie jar as a mid-morning (or anytime) treat!

The best thing about cookies is that they last long - not that this should really ever be a problem. These cookies, especially, lend the most amazing aroma when they're baking: warming, sweet and peanut butter-y. Yum.

Ingredients
Makes 12 medium cookies
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup baby oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup coconut oil, softened but not melted
1/2 cup unrefined sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 tbsp milk
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180 C and line a cookie sheet with baking paper. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift together the plain flour, whole wheat flour, salt and baking soda. Stir in the baby oats.

In a separate, larger bowl, beat together the peanut butter, coconut oil, sugar and vanilla.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet. The mixture is likely to be extremely thick and dry at this point. Add milk tablespoons at a time until the dough reaches a typical cookie dough consistency (i.e. you could make a ball and roll it up without it falling apart).

Finally, gently stir in the chocolate chips.

Form balls out of the dough, flatten slightly and place on the cookie sheet. Use a fork to create the peanut butter criss cross patter on top (I tried, but pretty much failed at this).

Bake for 15 minutes at 180 C, then increase the temperature to 200 C and bake for another 2-3 minutes, or until a deep golden brown.

Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!

Classic Scones

What in the world has taken me so long? That is a question I'll never have the answer to. I finally got around to making classic, British style scones. I mean, I've made scones before (see here and here), but never these true classic scones.

For some reason, I always thought they require much more effort - yeast, rising time, chilling time. But nope, none of the above is true. Dare I may say it, these were actually the simplest and quickest scones I've made. And they turned out just perfect. Rich and buttery with just the right level of denseness and crumb (not flaky like a croissant nor overly dense like a cake), these scones are best served warm, sliced in half, with hearty lashings of cream and jam (strawberry is my favorite here). 

I made these one morning for a great breakfast accompanied by lots and lots of summer fruit, and cups of tea/chilled glasses of milk! I used cranberries instead of the classic black raisins for a couple of reasons: 1) I wanted to switch it up a bit, 2) I'm not the biggest raisin fan and 3) We didn't actually have any black raisins on hand. I personally loved this change, but feel free to use raisins, or nothing at all.

On another note, I'm going on a dinner date with my sister tonight and I can't wait. I love spending quality time with her, and what better than over oodles of good food?

Ingredients
Makes 6 large(ish) scones
2 cups self-raising flour
pinch of salt
45-50g butter, chilled
1/4 cup caster sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
3-4 tbsp buttermilk, plus a little extra for brushing
1/3 cup chopped dried cranberries

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200 C and line a large baking tray with baking paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, sift together flour and salt. Add the butter in small pea-sized chunks and use a fork/your fingers/a pastry cutter to mix the butter into the flour until it looks like breadcrumbs. Add sugar and cranberries to the dry mixture.

In a cup, beat together the egg with 2 tbsp of the buttermilk and add this mixture to the dry ingredients. Mix gently.

Add more buttermilk a teaspoon at a time, until the dough starts to come together. Definitely use your hands because it will be ready before you think if you continue using a utensil! The dough should be soft, but not the slightest bit sticky. If it is, add in a dash more flour.

Form the dough into a ball and dump it onto a lightly floured surface. Using your fingers, gently pat it into a circle at least 1 inch thick.

Using a cookie cutter, cut out the scones. Try not to twist the cookie cutter as you pull it out as this will prevent the scones from rising well. Repeat until you are left with the trimmings. Bring these together to form the last scone.

Place the scones on the baking sheet and very lightly brush them with buttermilk. Bake for 13-17 minutes, or until well risen and golden brown.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Serve warm with clotted cream and jam. Enjoy!

Honey Almond Pear Cake

Pears are so underrated. I won't lie and pretend I'm not guilty. I too, often overlook the power and punch that a simple (or not) pear can punch. They're almost always available (like bananas and apples) and are at their peak during fall. Yet, they're one of the last fruits I tend to pick up at the grocery store.

I don't necessarily love eating them as is, but in baked treats, they are so good. Depending on the method, they get all caramelized and crispy, gooey and sweet or tart and crunchy. They're always my fallback if we don't have much fruit at home and unripe bananas off the shelves just won't cut it. MY favorite variety of pears to use is English conference pears, as they're generally ripe straight from the pack and it means I can bake when I want (and need) to!

Moving on to this cake - the first time I made it, it was slightly dry and could have definitely used more sweetness, so I tweaked the recipe and it's definitely much more to my taste now! I wouldn't recommend decreasing the coconut oil, but depending on how sweet or not you like your treats, I would increase or decrease the honey content. Feel free to sub with maple syrup or agave, but remember the flavor will defer slightly depending on which sweetener you choose.

No matter what you do, however, this cake will turn out luscious. Crusty on the bottom, moist inside and best of all, crusty-nutty-gooey on top (where the pears and almond slices are!).

Ingredients
1 cup plain flour
1/2 cup almond flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 tsp ground cardamom (or cinnamon or nutmeg)
pinch of salt
2 eggs
2/3 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 tsp almond extract
1/3 cup coconut oil
2/3 cup yogurt
1 1/2 pears, sliced
sliced blanched almonds, for topping

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease and flour a round cake pan and set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom and salt.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the vanilla until pale and frothy. Add the coconut oil, honey, yogurt, vanilla and almond extracts and beat again.

Add the dry mix to the wet mixture and stir until just combined.

Pour the batter into the cake pan, arrange pear slices on top and sprinkle with the sliced almonds.

Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out with a few tiny crumbs sticking on. It will continue to cook slightly as it cools, and you definitely don't want dry cake!

Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Serve warm, drizzled with some thick honey (if you're feeling indulgent!). Enjoy!