gingery cookies and naming

i'm not calling them gingerbread cookies because they're lacking a key ingredient - molasses. can't be gingerbread w/out molasses, sorry. i'm pretty unforgiving on this topic. 
so instead i used a molasses replacement and came up with a whole new cookie that is very popular in our house. 
i'm just not sure what to name 'em. why don't you try out the recipe and lemme know what you think an awesome name would be for them? 

don't you love the shapes of the cookie people?

gingery cookies

- 1 stick of butter
- 1/2 c sugar
- 1/3 c maple syrup (the real stuff!)
- 1/4 c agave  (you could use honey instead)

melt a stick of butter in a sauce pan.  add in 1/2 c of sugar and stir.  now add the agave and maple syrup, and continue stirring until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture isn't grainy. 

in a separate bowl combine until well-mixed:
- 2 c all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- pinch of salt
- 3/4 tbs ginger root (ground) or powder
- almost 1 tsp cinnamon 
- 1 tsp nutmeg

create a hole in the middle of the bowl and slowly pour in the lukewarm sugar-butter concoction. mix it until the dough starts to form a ball in the center of the bowl. then take it out a knead it a few times on a wooden cutting board.  
cover it in saran wrap and leave it out for an hour or so (if you plan to use it immediately). you can also refrigerate the dough for 4 days.  when you're ready to make cookies, roll the dough into a ball and sprinkle the very minimum of flour on a flat surface. roll the dough flat and even, and cut out shapes. 
bake for 7 to 10 min at 375 on parchment paper.  
you can decorate them with some frosting, or raisins and nuts....lots of options.  clearly we went with the easy colored-sugar stuff.  it was a good project for kid A.

 try them and lemme know what you think!  
enjoy!

mocha brownie torte

this recipe was recommended to me by a fantastic cook, and i made it as a surprise for valentine's day. it was perfect, b/c the dinner i made was a bit more complex and this recipe is very very simple.  it didn't end up actually being a surprise, since conroy's a sneak who peeked in the fridge. so, i should warn you if you want to surprise someone with this, it takes up a far bit of space in the refrigerator.

it's the whipped cream flavor that really makes this "cake". although, next time i try it i'm going to add some crunchy peanut butter to the brownies, instead of walnuts. (but, i gotta say , the walnuts worked out well). 

w/o the frosting on top.

 

ingredients:
1 package of fudge brownie mix
1/4 cup of water
2 eggs
1/2 c chopped nuts
1 1/2 c chilled whipping cream
1/3 c brown sugar
1 tbs instant cofee
shaved chocolate


heat oven to 350.  grease and flour two round 9X1 1/2 inch layer pans.
mix brownie mix with eggs and water, stir in nuts. 
spread in the pans and bake for 20 min. (this makes the brownie's more cake-like. if you want more standard brownies, add 1/4 c oil to the mix).   take out, let cool for about 5 min, and then cool the cakes (on wire racks, or what have you) until room temperature or cooler.
in a *chilled* bowl, beat the cream until it begins to thicken. gradually add the sugar and coffee until it's stiff.  
fill the layers with ~1 c  of the whipping cream mix.  add the remaining to the top of the torte (i didn't do this part until i served it up). sprinkle with chocolate shavings and chill for at least an hour. 
a variation of this recipe that i am definitely going to try is adding maple to the whipped cream mixture. what can i say, i'm a mainer and i'm a sucker for some family-made maple syrup.