Twelve egg-travagant recipes for any holiday cookie egg-change

Hello, friends.

Good news: final exams are officially over! I turned my final project in yesterday and I am now back home staying with my parents’ house for the holiday break. I’m ready to relax, spend time with friends and family, work on some business stuff, and bake, bake, BAKE! Growing up, a yearly tradition in my family every Christmas Eve was to make homemade gingerbread and sugar cookies. We would sit down at the kitchen table with a variety of different cookie cutters lay scattered across the dark wooden surface. Flour covered every surface as if it was the fall of the season’s first snow. Momma and I would cut cute little candy cane gingerbread and snowman shaped sugar cookies out, while Father and Jon made anatomically correct gingerbread men and grandma-got-run-over-by-a-reindeer sugar cookies. We were a family divided on creative expression, but it was always a time of laughs, jokes, and memories. That’s why when Eggland’s Best challenged me to test/bake up twelve delicious Christmas cookie recipes, submitted by their fans, worthy of any great egg-change, I was ready for the undertaking!  

Orange Blossom & Honey Cinnamon Buns + a change

Hello, friend.

Whenever I’m feeling homesick (or more specifically, when I’m missing Momma’s cooking), I bake. The smell of warm cinnamon rolls brings me back to those early Saturday mornings growing up. Mom pulling them out of the oven and generously drowning each roll in a sweet icing glaze. Sweet bliss, my friends. These orange blossom & honey cinnamon buns are the perfect end of summer goodbye and hello to autumn brunch or afternoon dessert. I first attempted this recipe back in July (hence some of the rolls in the iron skillet), but I wasn't happy with the recipe so I kept adapting. Now I have a recipe I'm proud of.  The sweet and fruity notes of the orange and honey play beautifully with the floral undertones of the orange blossom water. I am a huge love of rose water. I’ve even featured it in a few recipes (and, hint-hint, it’s a featured ingredient in an upcoming blog post).

A John Daly with a twist

 Hello, friend,

Can you believe that summer is almost over?? That’s a piece of news that's hard to swallow. Soon I will be back to school and starting my senior year of college. Truthfully, I’m genuinely excited about this year. I have a feeling it’s going to be a great year. I hope to make the most of it! But that’s in the future, as of lately, it’s been too freaking hot here in the Midwest. Ugh!! The high humidity has been a lot to handle. It makes me feel sorry for the construction workers having to work out on the roads all day. It makes me wish for autumn where I can at least put on layers and not be sweat stricken sticking to the interior of my car. One can only hope (and wait!).

Momma Crawford’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

Do you hear that? Listen. It’s the sound of birds chirping in the early morning. Look. The soft rays of light beginning to trickle silhouettes across the grass. Feel the gentle air blowing softly against your skin from the open window. The smells of lavender and lily are floating throughout the house, creating a sense of rebirth and rejuvenation. It’s spring again, everyone.  I love this time of year. Nature seems reborn. Life is restored; a season brought a new, the start of new beginnings. Love is in the air, the flowers are in full bloom, and the sight of a fresh tomorrow gleams promisingly on the horizon.  Spring is, without a doubt, my favorite time of year. 

I feel like everyone, and their brother has a recipe for chocolate chip cookies. They’re a childhood necessity. I can remember when I was a child, hopping off of the school bus, and the smell of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies lingering in the air as they cooled on the counter. My brother and I would swing the front door open and burst into the small country kitchen. Momma Crawford, with an apron tied tightly around her waist, with a smile soft and kind upon her face. In her hands, two tall of glasses of cold milk and a small saucer piled with cookies, just waiting to be devoured. The gooeyness and warmth that radiated from those cookies are arguably magical. 

There seems to be something special about eating a chocolate chip cookie as a child. When you grow up, the magic seems to be just a little bit less than before. The pureness and the joy of the simplistic seem to have somewhat drifted slowly off as I’ve grown older. That’s why I believe a spontaneous disposition is a goal we all must strive for in adulthood. Like getting one extra scoop of ice cream, taking a walk in a new part of town, or going on a last minute planned picnic. Life is full of points of spontaneity.

The Midwest finally sees signs of spring. This past Wednesday was 70° and sunny, without a cloud in the sky for miles. The day before, I suggested to my friends at lunch that we should take our food-time merriments to the outdoors on a picnic. Everyone agreed a picnic was definitely in order. The next day, with our lunches in hand, we trudged halfway across the campus to the soccer fields on the farthest end of the college, making camp in a pavilion with a plethora of graffiti-infested tables and multi-stained benches.  I decided to add to the picnic excursion by bringing a few dozen of Momma Crawford’s chocolate chip cookies. The five of us ate every last one. 

If you follow my Facebook page (which I hear is excellent), you would know that I was a runner up for Chronicle Book's 3rd Annual Great Tumblr Book Search.  It's a contest run through the companies Tumblr page where anyone with a nonfiction book idea in either one of three categories: Art, Food + Drink, or Humor, can send in a synopsis of the book and potentially be a grand prize winner that receives a publication of the pitched work. My cookbook synopsis/pitch for Sssalt and Pepepper: The Art of Speaking and Cooking Boldly took runner-up in the Food + Drink category. I may not have won first prize, but I received $100 in free cookbooks which is never a bad thing. So close, but no cigar. Below is a really lovely word written by Chronicle Books about my submission, the blog, and myself as well. 

This recipe has been a part of my family for years. It’s the only chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve ever seen my mother use. Friends and family members rave about my mother’s chocolate chip cookies. I haven’t had a single friend who could no to these cookies; they're truly that addicting. These cookies are buttery, warm, delicate, and perfect with a glass of milk or turned into sweet little sandwiches filled with marshmallow crème or cold vanilla ice cream. 

Momma Crawford’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup butter, soften 
• 2/3 cup shortening
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 3 cup Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 (12 ounce bag) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Pre-Step: Take this opportunity to get your family, friends, or even co-workers and plan a last minute picnic yourself. Make it a potluck event!

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, shortening, eggs, and vanilla extract. Beat with a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer until combined.
2. Slowly add in the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, and salt. Using a wooden spoon, stir to combine all the ingredients until all the flour mixture is mixed through with the wet ingredients. Stir in the semi-sweet chocolate chips. (I know you want to lick the spoon, go ahead, you daredevil.)
3. Using a tablespoon, form the dough into little spherical drops (about 1 ½ tablespoons). Spread the dropped dough 2 inches apart. On a 9 x 13 cookie sheet, 12 drop doughs fit perfectly. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the bottoms is a light golden brown color. Let cool slightly before serving.  

Salted Caramel Sauce │ My Fourth Attempt

“Just because you fail once doesn't mean you're gonna fail at everything.” - Marilyn Monroe

You might be wondering about the “fourth attempt” addition to the title? On this blog, I don't only want to talk about my successes, but also my failures, and this was definitely a failure. I adore salted caramel sauce. It’s salty, sweet , and has a nutty essence, that works beautifully drizzled over a bowl of ice cream. What I hate is spending money on ingredients, getting half way through the recipe, only to find out the recipe is bad or  I made a minor, “no-turning-back-now” mistake, and having to start over. In a 24 hour period, I had attempted the sauce four times, and finally succeeded after countless dirty pans, sticky counters, and disappointing scowls.  Also, the sugar, which had the consistency of concrete, then had to be scraped, chiseled, and otherwise finagled out of the cookware.

Funfetti Mini-Cinnamon Rolls with a Maple Sugar Glaze

Last Tuesday was Marti Gras, which has nothing to do with this post. Side note: I didn’t know it was called “Fat Tuesday”. Why is that? Who comes up with these names? The world is strange. What I am really getting at is that everyone likes a good party (good over-generalized statement, Nate. Love it!). Parties are fantastic ways to get out into the world, meet new people, connect with friends, and just be all around a social member of society. This sounds great in movies and on Twitter, but for anyone who has been to a party of any degree before, knows how anxiety infested they are. Wear the wrong socks, make an inappropriate joke, or bring a vegetable tray (never be that person for the sake of humanity) and you will be instantly annihilated by judgmental stares and passive-aggressive tweets from the other party guests. This is why I choose to stay home and find solace with the Internet, where is never any judgment. 

All kidding and self-deprecation aside, I really enjoy a good party with friends and/or family. As I get older, and more experienced with cooking/baking, I find myself, as I’m going to a party, feeling obligated to make something for the occasion. Even if the host says “Don’t worry about food, just bring yourself and a positive, party attitude”, what I hear is, “I demand food and I demand it now.” Inevitably, my subconscious bullies me into making guilt-tripped baked goods. My twin brother, Jon, and I were invited to a birthday party this past weekend. Unfortunately, I wasn’t going to be able to make the party due to work commitments, but I knew I had to send something fun, creative, delicious, and something that everyone would enjoy. My answer: bite-sized cinnamon rolls with multi-colored sprinkles (keeping to the birthday theme). Nothing says party like baked goods. My other option was banana bread, but I didn’t want to be the short guy and the loser who brought banana bread to a birthday party. 

The cinnamon roll recipe I used is incredible. It comes from Momma Crawford who, after finding a recipe for it online, has made it for my family and me for years. These cinnamon rolls are buttery, soft, warm, and have that sugary-sweet aroma that everyone craves on a Saturday morning. I love the smell of fresh brewed coffee lingering in the air as mom pulls a tray of gooey cinnamon rolls out of the oven. The icing is laced ever so evenly over the tops, melting together beautifully with the rest of the roll. Perfection.

The maple-sugar icing drizzled on top literally, and figuratively, “wraps” the whole roll together. It’s soft, ambrosial, and warm with delight. Imagine the center of a gooey cinnamon roll, but the entire thing being that. This cinnamon roll is that fantasy. I know, your mind is blown. I usually make these rolls bigger (woah size queen), but since I was sending these with Jon (who I personally can’t trust around anything sweet because he’ll just devour it and leave it left for dead), I wanted to make these bite sized. Plus, nothing says party like multi-colored sprinkles (seriously, ask anyone.) On a snowy day or a Saturday morning, these cinnamon rolls are practically perfect in every way (okay, Mary Poppins). 

 Funfetti Mini-Cinnamon Rolls with a Maple Sugar Glaze 

Ingredients

• 1 cup Milk
• 1 packet active dry yeast (2 ½ teaspoons)
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted  
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract (or 1 ½ teaspoons if voiding or avoiding the maple extract)
• ½ teaspoon maple extract (optional)
• 2 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar 
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• Flour, for dusting
• 12 tablespoons softened butter (1 ½ sticks)
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon cardamom
• 1 tablespoon ground cloves
• 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• 1/8 cup maple syrup
• Rainbow sprinkles, for topping

Directions

Pre-Step: Get ready to roll with the punches! Cinnamon rolls that is. What are you gonna do about the haters?

1. Pre-heat oven to 325°F. Over low heat in a medium saucepan, heat milk until it reads 100°F on a candy thermometer.  Remove from the heat and sprinkle in the yeast (it’s the yeast you could do) and sugar. I know you will be tempted, but don’t stir this mixture. Let it sit for about five minutes. After five minutes, whisk in your melted butter, egg yolk, vanilla and maple extract.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and nutmeg. Making a well in the flour, slowly pour in your yeast mixture. With a hand mixer or stand mixer, mix together until a rough dough forms, about 3-5 minutes. Once your dough begins to come together, take it out of the bowl and form it into a ball. Place dough into a greased bowl, cover with a towel, and set on the stove top for 1 hour 15 minutes. 
3. On a floured surface, roll your dough out using a floured rolling pin, about ¼ inches thick. The dough should look like an edible rectangle. With a butter knife and a delicate hand, spread the soften butter on the dough. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, and ground cloves. Distribute the sugar mixture evenly over the dough.
4. Starting from the length end, gently roll the dough into a cylinder. If you take it slow and believe in yourself, your cinnamon rolls will be rolled perfectly and look beautiful. Cut into one inch slices. Take two buttered muffin tins and place the cinnamon rolls into the tins. Cover with a towel and place on the stove top for 45 minutes. 
5. Bake at 325°F for 20-25 minutes. Note: if you are making these rolls bigger in size, add about 10 more minutes on the bake time.
6.  In a medium size bowl, whisk together your confectioners’ sugar, heavy cream and maple syrup the desired consistence you want is achieved. Take a spoon and drizzle the icing over rolls. Let set before transporting.