Meeting-friendly snacks to bake

[Anna N]

Did the meeting people like the hermits?  Allow me to quote:

 

"Cookies really yummy. One girl said. Better than sex."

 

 I rest my case. 

[Anna N]

 

 If there were beauty contests for cookies these would not even place but I bet there are none left by 9 o'clock Monday morning when they hit the meeting table!  We can call them either "oatmeal cookies for chocolate lovers" or "oatmeal cookies for raisin haters" (you know who you are).  

 

(The date paste slipped my mind.  A Freudian slip I'm sure.)

 

Edited April 24, 2017 by Anna N (log)

[BeeZee]

hmmm, what about oatmeal cookies with raisinets...for those of us who like both?

[Anna N]

12 minutes ago, BeeZee said:

hmmm, what about oatmeal cookies with raisinets...for those of us who like both?

 Maybe next time. For the record I prefer raisins in my oatmeal cookies. 

[ElsieD]

Anything other than raisins or nuts do not belong in an oatmeal cookie.

[chromedome]

1 hour ago, Anna N said:

 Maybe next time. For the record I prefer raisins in my oatmeal cookies. 

I'm with you on Team Raisin. Chocolate just doesn't work for me in an oatmeal cookie; it's always a huge disappointment to pick up one of those by mistake. 

[Tri2Cook]

I've never tried adding chocolate to oatmeal cookies but it sounds good to me. I usually just add walnuts if I'm going to add anything... which I quite often do not.

[Anna N]

 You all need to remember my audience!   If it is sweet and homemade then it will fit the bill.

[Katie Meadow]

I  like chocolate chips in oatmeal cookies, although oatmeal cookies have never been my favorites. Anna, until five minutes ago I would have followed you anywhere, but raisins? They don't belong in cookies any more than they belong in rice pudding. Raisinets? That stuff that coats them is chocolate? Who knew?

[Anna N]

28 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

I  like chocolate chips in oatmeal cookies, although oatmeal cookies have never been my favorites. Anna, until five minutes ago I would have followed you anywhere, but raisins? They don't belong in cookies any more than they belong in rice pudding. Raisinets? That stuff that coats them is chocolate? Who knew?

 Sorry about the parting of the ways. 

[JohnT]

On 27 March 2017 at 6:21 PM, Anna N said:

 

 I always feel a little like I am cheating when I make brownies.   They just seem too easy.  But I also know I never get a complaint.  

 

@Anna N, the post regarding your Katherine Hepburn Brownies is of interest to me and I have looked up the recipe on the net and found a few variations. Can you point me to the recipe you use? The one in the NYT seems about the most authentic to me - is it the recipe you are using?

 

Edited to add: Maybe I should say the NYT recipe uses cocoa powder and some others use melted chocolate. Also, some use chopped walnuts, whilst others use chocolate chips or some use no nuts or chips. All are called the "authentic" Ketherine Hepburn recipe!

Edited May 5, 2017 by JohnT
Additional comment added (log)

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, JohnT said:

 

@Anna N, the post regarding your Katherine Hepburn Brownies is of interest to me and I have looked up the recipe on the net and found a few variations. Can you point me to the recipe you use? The one in the NYT seems about the most authentic to me - is it the recipe you are using?

 

Edited to add: Maybe I should say the NYT recipe uses cocoa powder and some others use melted chocolate. Also, some use chopped walnuts, whilst others use chocolate chips or some use no nuts or chips. All are called the "authentic" Ketherine Hepburn recipe!

 

 Mine is from the Saveur book Comfort Food. 

 

Here's my ingredient list although I skip the nuts:

• 1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for buttering the pan (4 oz) 
• 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
• 1 cup/7.1 oz granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts

 

 

[Anna N]

Apparently in my dotage I can no longer tell the difference between figs and dates. Upthread I mentioned that I had inadvertently purchased date paste instead of dates and had added insult to injury by buying not just one but two packages.  I was quite determined that I would use up these damn dates. I was also equally determined that I would use a new COVERED baking pan which measures 9 x 13.   I spent quite a time researching recipes looking for one that would make date squares in this size pan.  Having successfully found one I began this morning by converting all the volume measurements to weight measurements, gathering up my ingredients and doing the necessary weighing and measuring.  All seemed good until I went to retrieve the dates. Seems I had only bought one package of dates which had been partially used in hermits.  But were two unopened packages of Kalamata figs. DAMN. But date? Fig? Who really cares unless it is a leaf you are interested in and you need to cover up something on Michelangelo's David?   Then it matters.   So I chopped up some figs, discarding the tough stems, tossed them in with the remaining date paste and cooked the two of them down to a thick paste.   The figs did not disintegrate quite as much as I would have liked so I gave the resulting paste a few whirls in the food processor.   

 

Once the pan is cool I will cover it with the lid, let it rest overnight in the refrigerator and cut it into squares tomorrow. I do not believe I have ever made this sort of confection before but it's hard to believe that much could go wrong. But then again I did  think I had dates. 

 

 

[JohnT]

Do yourself a favour and tell your SIL that the squares are sun dried Moroccan figs that you managed to obtain on a special. Bet he and co-workers will not tell the difference! They will just wolf them down and appreciate them to the last crumb! And appreciate even that last crumb.

[Anna N]

Quality control. I have to say that the worst part of preparing these date & fig bars is the final step--cutting them up!

 I shall be chasing escapee crumbs around my kitchen for eternity.  They are also coma-inducing sweet.  I ate some of this for breakfast which I now realize was insane. 

 

[Anna N]

 Well apparently my efforts were worth it. Had some serious doubts that this group would enjoy date squares but apparently they did. My cleaning angel took her share as if carrying contraband saying that date squares were her favourite treat in the world.  I guess I am just out of step. I would much prefer a cheese and onion sandwich.

Edited May 12, 2017 by Anna N (log)

[Tri2Cook]

Personally, I like figs better than dates anyway. So I would have been fine with the discovery. 

[Darienne]

I'm with Tri@Cook on the fig issue.  My Mother made Date squares continuously and I hated the filling.  Loved the top and bottom...it was just those horrible sweet dates that I loathed.  

[lindag]

Speaking of onions, I picked up my first Vidalia of the year yesterday.  I couldn't wait to put a big slice onto my lunch time hamburger!  Love, love, love onions and as much as I really like yellow and Spanish I like the mild sweet onions to eat raw.

[Toliver]

6 hours ago, Anna N said:

 Well apparently my efforts were worth it. Had some serious doubts that this group would enjoy date squares but apparently they did. My cleaning angel took her share as if carrying contraband saying that date squares were her favourite treat in the world.  I guess I am just out of step. I would much prefer a cheese and onion sandwich.

 

I am glad to hear they were a hit. I don't eat dates often enough to say "I've had my fill", so I'd enjoy a treat like yours more than not.

 

32 minutes ago, lindag said:

Speaking of onions, I picked up my first Vidalia of the year yesterday.  I couldn't wait to put a big slice onto my lunch time hamburger!  Love, love, love onions and as much as I really like yellow and Spanish I like the mild sweet onions to eat raw.

I also enjoy a slice of a mild sweet onion on my burger/sandwich. And I can't get my fill of caramelized onions (see the popular eG discussion "Onion Confit").

[Anna N]

 

 Mary Berry's lemon drizzle cake baked in a quarter sheet pan.  Are used Eureka lemons which were purchased only a few days ago and could've been eaten like a sweet orange as they had so little lemon tang to them.  In retrospect I should've added something to boost the lemon flavour but it's too late now.  TASTE TASTE TASTE. 

[Anna N]

 

  No one would ever describe these cookies as elegant. But how many of you reach for an elegant cookie?   What they lack in elegance they make up for in taste and texture.  They would please neither the raisin lovers nor the raisin haters.  Wanted to make them with dried cherries but had a shortfall and had to make up with raisins.  These are the one bowl oatmeal cookies from Serious Eats.  (For those who remember my Tiffin, I made good use of it today as my mis en place  bowls which neatly stacked on my limited counter space.)

[Tri2Cook]

On ‎2017‎-‎05‎-‎12 at 8:28 AM, Darienne said:

I'm with Tri@Cook on the fig issue.  My Mother made Date squares continuously and I hated the filling.  Loved the top and bottom...it was just those horrible sweet dates that I loathed.  

We agree on the figs but I think we have slightly different views on the dates. I just like figs better, I don't dislike dates.

[Anna N]

 

I remembered to take a photograph as I was in the middle of packing these up. The last treats for my son-in-law until I return in August. These are from the David Lebovitz website – – salty, deep – dark chocolate brownies. 

Edited June 26, 2017 by Anna N (log)

[Anna N]

 Everyone seems to be back to work in the family so I am back to baking.  This morning I read all the way through the Brownie Bake Off topic.  

 

I was not so much looking for brownies that I like better because I just don't like brownies. I was looking for a recipe that might give me a a bit more depth/height. These are one of the recommended recipes from that topic called Chewy Brownies. It is from Fine Cooking. 

 

 

I followed the recipe exactly except for using black cocoa powder (2 Tbs).

 

 I never quite understood what was meant by "chewy"  as it relates to brownies.  Now I do. 

 

 I will be interested in the feedback I get on these because they are very different from any others I have made in the past.