Sunday, March 29, 2009

Just for Chloe...

If you remember, I did say just about everyone I know celebrates their birthday in March... and last night was no exception. This time we all gathered in honour of Chloe. I wanted to celebrate it with a dessert I knew would mean something to her.

Chloe went to Vienna for a law competition several years ago - and she, like the rest of us who visit Vienna, ended up trying the famous Sachertorte. This is a seriously dense chocolate torte - the richness cut by apricots. Chloe came home raving about the torte. So I went recipe hunting and was able to find one that I thought would hit the spot.

If you're a chocolate lover - and want to satisfy a craving - this is the treat for you. It looks more complicated than it really is - but well worth the effort (and the early morning bake fest yesterday).

Sachertorte
ingredients:
5 oz dark chocolate chips (10 tbsp)
4 tbsp butter, room temperature
1/2 c. brown sugar
5 eggs, separated
2/3 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. apricot jam

Preheat your oven to 325F and take out your 9-inch springform pan (you really should use a pan that has removable sides since you aren't going to butter the pan).

Now, take that dark chocolate and melt it in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Set aside to cool.

With an electric hand mixer, beat the butter. Once creamed, add the sugar. Once fluffy, incorporate the egg yolks - 1 at a time, beating the whole time. Use a large rubber spatula and fold in the chocolate and the flour. Set aside.

With the mixer at high speed, and in a glass bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.

Fold the egg whites into the torte batter. Spoon the batter into the cake pan. Bake for 55 minutes - a toothpick should come out clean when inserted in the centre.

Remove the torte from the oven and cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Now, remove the sides and allow the torte to cool completely. Once cooled, use a serrated knife to cut the torte in half horizontally. Place the bottom layer on your serving plate and cover with the apricot jam. Cover with the top layer. Now for the frosting...

Chocolate Espresso Frosting
ingredients:
1 tbsp butter, room temperature
4 oz milk dark chocolate chips (or chopped) (8 tbsp)
1/3 c. COLD prepared instant espresso (1 tsp of espresso powder in 1/3 c. boiling water - CHILLED)
2 c. icing sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract

In a bowl over a pan of simmering water melt the butter and chocolate together. Stir in the coffee, icing sugar - gradually so that it doesn't clump up - and vanilla. Allow to chill in the fridge so that it becomes more of a caramel topping.

Once chilled (I'd say an hour) - take it out and stir it up a bit. Using a metal blade, spoon the frosting on top of the torte and cover the entire thing (top and sides). Return to fridge and keep chilled until you are ready to serve.

Delish... and Rich! If you are aiming to impress... this is the recipe for you.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

figs... a sweet little treat

Gigi celebrated her 29th birthday this week. I wanted to make her a special little birthday treat...

The very first time I went through my golden book of patisserie I found a fig, vanilla and honey cupcakes recipe... and thought "this is the one for Gigi!" So I've been saving this little recipe for a month.

A sweet and delightful treat... just like Gigi!

Gigi's fig-a-licious cupcakes
ingredients:
1 c. self-rising flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 tbsp butter, softened
1/4 c. clear honey
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract (heaping tsp)
zest of 1 small orange
1/2 c. finely chopped dried figs
1/4 c. finely chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 325F and line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl.

In another bowl and with an electric hand-mixer - beat together the butter, honey, eggs, vanilla and orange zest. Once everything is blended - stir this mixture into the flour mixture. Add the figs and walnuts. Mix to just combine.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. I got about 2 mini scoops per cupcake.

Bake for 25 minutes. The cupcakes will be golden brow and firm to the touch when they're done.

Put on a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. I took some liberties with this one... (again, I know those of you who have been reading my blog aren't surprised eh?)....

Honey Frosting
ingreidents:
3 tbsp butter, room temperature
2 tsp clear honey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 c. icing sugar
*if you have fresh figs, use them to top the cupcakes. I had to use dried figs.

With your hand mixer - blend up your butter (this loosens it up nicely). Add the honey, 1 tsp to begin with, and the vanilla. Combine well. Then add the sugar. Start mixing. I added almost 2 more tsp of honey because I really wanted it to taste like honey. So taste as you mix - and adjust the amounts according to your own personal preferences. This made for REALLY sweet icing...so be careful when adding the honey...

Once everything is well combined and there aren't any lumps - you're frosting is done. You can either using a piping bag and pipe it onto the top of all the cupcakes - or just spread it on with a knife.

Top with the figs (either dried or fresh - depending on what you have available). Or do like we did - and simply top them all with candles! It was a birthday celebration after all!!

nutty eh? or just NUTELLA!

ok... so the title of my blog today is a little lame. But I wanted to include my homemade Nutella recipe. The last time I made this I used really dark cocoa - this time I stuck to a regular dutch cocoa... I think I prefer it this way. The result is just a bit sweeter - which is nice since the cupcake recipe I combine it with uses only bittersweet chocolate.

As long as you have a food processor - and don't mind hearing it run for about 5 minutes (nonstop) then you're good to go. And you'll impress the pants off your friends and family. :0)

no name brand Nutella (ha ha ha)
ingredients:
1 c. hazelnuts, blanched
1/2 c. icing sugar
1/8 c. cocoa powder
1/8 c. canola oil (I used a safflower oil)

First - if, like me, you bought unroasted hazelnuts - then you'll need to roast them... put them in a pan over medium heat and heat them up for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and place on top of a tea towel. Fold the towel over the nuts and then start to rub. The skin will rub off - again, don't worry if all the skins don't come off.

So once you have your blanched/roasted hazelnuts, put them in your food processor and start it! Let it run while your hazelnuts get ground up - keep it running until they start to form a ball on their own (about 3-4 minutes).

Add the icing sugar and the cocoa powder. Combine well in the food processor - again, let it run for about 2 more minutes.

While the food processor is still running, slowly add the oil to the mix so that it loosens it all up a little and forms a spread.

That's it. Pretty simple eh? Yep. The one thing you'll likely do is scrape down the sides while the hazelnuts are being ground up and then again once you add the sugar and cocoa. Other than that, this pretty much makes itself. I heart my food processor :0)

Place in a tupperware container and store in your fridge. They say this should last 3 weeks... but really... as if Nutella EVER lasts that long.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Recipe Update

I ended up making those White Chocolate Caramel Cupcakes again... 8 am Saturday morning and there I am in my kitchen baking for Steph's 30th birthday... and true to my word in my blog on Friday night - I did twist up the original recipe.

This time I included pecans - 1/3 c. of pecans were added to the batter before spooning it into the muffin tins.

And, I only made 12 - these ones were larger than Friday's cupcakes.

Also, instead of the Milk Chocolate Butter Cream Icing I made a Maple Butter Cream Icing. Topped with pecan halves - these little treats were a real hit!

Maple Butter Cream Icing
ingredients:
3 tbsp butter, room temperature
1 1/4 c. powdered sugar
4 - 5 tbsp maple syrup
12 x pecan halves

Beat the butter, maple syrup and the sugar together in a bowl until pale and fluffy.
The original recipe called for 3 tbsp maple syrup - so you can start with that and then adjust according to your taste buds and what you feel is appropriate for the cupcake.
I piped the icing on top of the cupcakes and then topped them each with a pecan half.

Happy Birthday Steph!

my version of a peanut butter cup... only it's a cake

So Mel's favourite things are chocolate and peanut butter. All of her friends know that combining those two flavours together will always mean a successful treat. As you know, last weekend was Mel's birthday weekend - and so not only did I make those brazil nut cookies, but I also attempted my very first roulade. Yep, I baked a cake, rolled it up, unrolled it and filled it with a delightful filling and rolled it back up. Then I covered it in chocolate. Sounds difficult, but it really wasn't . I don't recommend making this more than a day in advance - the cake is so thin that it dries out quickly. But I would make this again.

This recipe was inspired by the chocolate-orange roulade from my Party Cakes recipe book. I swapped out the orange for vanilla in the cake batter and totally altered the filling. This cake really was made specifically for Mel.

Chocolate Roulade
ingredients:
1/2 c. self-rising flour
1 tsp b. powder
1/4 c. cocoa powder
1/2 c. ground almonds
5 eggs
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 375F. Butter a 17 x 11 inch jelly-roll pan (a large cookie sheet that has at least an inch high side). Then line the pan (base and sides) with waxed paper - you need to have some overhang with the paper so that it's easy to remove the baked cake.

Sift the flour, b. powder and cocoa into a bowl and mix in the ground almonds.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla for 10 minutes with a handheld mixer. The result should be a thick batter that has tripled in volume. Fold in the dry ingredients using a large metal spoon.

Pour the batter into the jelly roll - spread it out evenly, make sure that all the corners are filled and even. Bake for 12 - 15 minutes (depending on your oven... mine took 14 minutes). The cake should be firm to the touch.

Meanwhile, soak a tea towel in cold water and wring it out. Lay it on a clean work surface, place a sheet of waxed paper on top and sprinkle white sugar on top of the wax paper.

Once you remove the cake from the oven, let is cool for 1 minute. Now, turn out the cake onto the sugared wax paper. Peel the wax paper that was lining the cake off (best to remove it in strips so that you can be more gentle with the cake). Now starting at the short side closest to you, start rolling the cake. Only roll the wax paper - keep the damp tea towel on the surface. Set the rolled cake aside and allow to cool completely.

While it's cooling you can then make the filling :0)

Peanut Butter Tofu Frosting
ingredients:
1 box silken tofu
1/2 c. maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 c. peanut butter

Blend the tofu in a food processor until it becomes very smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients and continue to blend until everything is well combined.

Now - unroll the roulade, discard the wax paper and spread the tofu frosting over the entire cake using a spatula. Roll the cake back up carefully and as tightly as possible and place it on whatever serving plate you are going to use. Set aside.

Almost done... but not quite! Now for the Chocolate Frosting.
ingredients:
3/4 c. dark chocolate chips
1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1/3 c. powdered sugar

Melt the chocolate in a metal bowl over a simmering pot of water. Allow the melted chocolate to cool for 10 minutes. Beat the butter and the sugar together until smooth - then add the chocolate and combine well. Set the frosting aside for 20 minutes - it needs to firm up a little. Spread the frosting over the roulade with a metal spatula (I don't have a metal spatula, so I use a large knife and carefully use the metal blade to spread the frosting).

As it sits the frosting will get firmer - almost forming a ganche effect over the roulade. If you want a dessert that impresses people - this is it. :0)

nutella cupcakes... seriously

A few weeks back I spent a Sunday afternoon baking at Deb's place... and I meant to add this recipe to my blog then, but it seems that life gets in the way of blogging sometimes :0) so without much further ado - here is the recipe for my Nutella filled chocolate cupcakes.

I found this recipe in my cupcakes recipe book by Susannah Blake - her gooey chocolate and hazelnut cupcakes recipe. I thought this could be very interesting (and delicious)...

I made the nutella at home the day before - I figured if I was making "homemade" cupcakes the entire thing might as well be made by me... and I have to say - SUCCESS!! I was very pleased with the result of my nutella. I'll post that recipe separately since I don't want this entry to be too long :0)

Chocolate Nutella Cupcakes
ingredients:
1/4 c. bittersweet dark chocolate, chopped
4 tbsp butter, at room temperature
1/2 c. b. sugar
2 eggs
3 tbsp blanched hazelnuts, ground
3/4 c. self-rising flour, sifted
1/2 c. Nutella
3 tbsp blacnhed hazelnuts, toasted and cut into large pieces - for decorating

Preheat the oven to 350F. Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray or line with paper liners.

To blanch the hazelnuts - heat them in a pan over medium heat. Remove from heat after a few minutes (they should get quite hot and smell nutty) and place on top of a clean hand towel. Fold the towel in half so that the nuts are covered and rub well. The skin from the hazelnuts should rub off. Don't worry if some of the skin doesn't rub off.

Melt the chocolate in a metal bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Once all the chocolate is melted, set it aside and prepare the rest of the batter.

Beat the butter and sugar together so that they become fluffy. Beat in the eggs - one at a time. Stir in the ground hazelnuts (a food processor will grind the hazelnuts well). Then add the flour to the mixture and fold in. Finally add the melted chocolate to the batter.

Drop 1/2 heaped tbsp of the mixture into each muffin cup, flatten a little to make an indentation in the centre of each cupcake. Fill that indentation with a tsp of Nutella. Top all cupcakes with the remainder of the batter.

Bake for about 18 minutes (I start with 15 minutes). The cupcakes should spring back when gently pressed. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool.

While they cool you can mix up a Chocolate frosting. I decided to use my Tofu Chocolate Frosting - see my Chocolate Strawberry torte with Tofu recipe from February for the recipe.

Once the cupcakes are cooled, spread the frosting over each individual one and then arrange the hazelnuts that you saved for decorating.

Deb, Julie and I really enjoyed them that afternoon. And if you wanted to sweeten it up a little more - use milk chocolate instead. I used dark chocolate for everything (Nutella, batter and frosting) so it certainly made it a dark chocolate lovers delight! Enjoy.

Friday, March 20, 2009

cupcakes...such a sweet little treat ;0)

I think just about all of my friends celebrate their birthdays in March. It also seems that many of my colleagues are celebrating their birthdays as well. This week two of the ladies at work got to celebrate another year - so I decided to make some cupcakes for the office. The request was chocolate and caramel. So this is what I came up with. Can I just say... W-O-W! these little treats pack a real punch. I'm already thinking about the next time I will bake them - and what additions to make (just cuz that's how I am)

White Chocolate Caramel Cupcakes with Milk Chocolate Butter Cream Icing
ingredients: (cupcakes)
8 tbsp white chocolate chips
1/2 c. (1 stick) of butter, room temperature and coarsely chopped
3/4 c. b. sugar
1/4 c. corn syrup
2/3 c. milk
1 c. whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 c. self-rising flour
1 egg, lightly beaten

Preheat the oven to 330F. Line a 12 case cupcake tin with paper liners (or make them a little smaller and the batch can make 18 cupcakes).

Combine the chocolate, butter, b. sugar, c. syrup and milk in a saucepan. Stir (continuously) over a low heat (a level 4) until everything is melted and combined. Take the saucepan off the heat and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, sift the flours together and mix into the caramel mixture (always in the saucepan). Stir in the egg.

Divide the batter between the cupcake liners - I made 18 yesterday, so it came out to 2 mini ice cream scoop full in each cup. But if making 12 cupcakes, 2.5 scoops per cup.

Bake for 25 minutes.

Remove the tins from the oven, transfer the cupcakes to a rack and cool completely.

ingredients: (Milk Chocolate Butter Cream Icing)
1/2 c. butter, room temperature
2/3 c. icing sugar (heaping amount)
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tsp. very hot water

beat the butter and sugar together until smooth. Combine the cocoa powder and water together until well mixed (use a bit more water if need be). Add the cocoa mixture to the butter and sugar mix. Beat well. The icing will be smooth.

using a piping bag to whirl the icing onto the cupcakes.

Really lovely. I'll let you know how I decide to twist up this winner of a recipe.

memories of Scotland... thanks to a Brazil nut

It was Mel's birthday last weekend - and so a weekend away meant that treats were an absolute necessity :0)

When Mel visited me in Scotland we became OBSESSED with chocolate covered brazil nuts (makes you wonder why anyone would waste their time with chocolate covered almonds or peanuts...seriously). So in my Golden Book of Patisserie I found a cookie recipe that brought back memories of those delicious nuts ;0)

This batch makes 3 dozen little bite-size cookies - cute, yummy, and oh so easy to make. And this recipe was all about Melanie. I hope you all enjoy these cookies as well...

Chocolate & Brazil Nut Cookies
ingredients:
1/4 c. butter, room temperature
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 1/3 c. whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp b. powder
2/3 c. brazil nuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 c. white chocolate
1/4 c. dark chocolate

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line two cookie sheets with wax paper.

Beat together the butter, sugar, and vanilla using a hand mixer. Th result should be pale and creamy. Add the egg, beating everything until just combined. Lower the speed of the mixer to low and add the flour and b. powder, combine well. Stir in the nuts and chocolate by hand using a wooden spoon.

Now, wet your hands so that they are damp, and roll the mixture into 36 walnut sized balls and place them on the prepared cookie sheets. (space them a little apart - but they don't really expand while they bake)

Bake them for 15 minutes, or until golden.

Let cool on the cookie sheets for about 5 minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

these are probably my new favourite cookies.

Monday, March 9, 2009

creamy corn muffins... olé!

I decided to have a little Mexican fiesta over the weekend... a good excuse to bake some treats - an even better excuse to have everyone over for a relaxing evening. It turned out great - both the company and the food were a HUGE success. I made a batch of my creamy corn muffins - originally inspired by the Eat, Shrink and be Merry ladies... I have to say, their recipe is pretty good - I tweaked mine a little (why not right?!)... and always get great results. If you want to add a little something to your Mexican fiesta (or to have with some chili) I recommend these - and so do most people who try them :0)

Creamy Corn Muffins
ingredients:
1 c. yellow corn flour
1 c. yellow cornmeal
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp b. powder
1/2 tsp b. soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 can (398 mL) cream-style corn
1/2 c. buttermilk (milk w/ 1/2 tbsp lemon juice, allow to sit for 5 minutes)
1 x egg
2 tbsp butter, melted

Preheat your oven to 375F. Spray a 12-cup and a 6-cup muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a large bowl combine the corn flour, cornmeal, sugar, b. powder and soda and the salt. Set it aside.

In a smaller bowl, whisk together the corn, buttermilk, egg, melted butter and diced green chilies. Add these ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir together until everything is just blended (you don't want to over work these muffins).

Using a small ice cream scoop, divide the batter into the 18 muffin cups (about 2 scoops in each cup - or 1 large scoop). Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the muffins from the tins immediately and allow to cool one a wire rack. Delish.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

untraditional meat loaf

I wasn't raised on meat loaf... not really a very French Canadian meal :0) A couple of years ago I found a recipe in Canadian Living for their healthy version, and thought it was worth a shot. Their version, Garden-Style Turkey Loaf became a favourite - leftovers in a sandwich was always a good brown bagged lunch (delish)...

I thought it was time to pull this recipe out. I decided to use ground bison instead of turkey (I'd had enough poultry in the last couple of weeks) - and I also changed up the spices and added a couple dashes of hot sauce! Easy to make - seriously 10 minutes to prep, 60 minutes to bake, done.

Bison & Veggie Loaf
ingredients:
1 1/2 lb ground bison
10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and drained (1 frozen package)
1 c. oats, uncooked
1 onion, finely chopped
1 zucchini, shredded
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 c. milk
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp spanish pepper
a couple dashes hot sauce
2 red hot peppers, finely diced

Preheat the oven to 350F.
In a large bowl, mix everything together. Combine. Shape it into a loaf pan.
Bake for 60 minutes.

That's it. Super simple and easy.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

An added pop to a regular poppy seed cake

I was given a belated Christmas present... The Golden Book of Patisserie, and since I got it last Sunday I pretty much haven't put it down... this thing weighs a ton, and yet still finds a spot in my backpack to make the 30 + minute trek to work and back everyday... so I figured, all of this effort should hopefully produce a wonderful end result.

I'd never made a poppy seed cake before. I've never actually baked with poppy seeds before. But there was something about this cake that just made me want to give it a try. So last Thursday evening, I decided to pull out the recipe, add my own little twist to it and make what has probably become my favourite cake. Moist, not overly sweet, this cake is a crowd pleaser (the folks in the office loved it... Jeremy, this recipe post is for you). Based on the recipe for a Poppy Seed Layer Cake - I hope you enjoy my version.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
ingredients:

Cake:
1 c. milk
1/2 c. poppy seeds
2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
2 1/2 tsp b. powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c. butter @ room temperature
1 1/2 c. b. sugar
2 tsp Limoncino (be generous)
3 large egg whites

Simple Syrup:
1/2 c. w. sugar
1/2 c. water
1 tsp Limoncino (be generous)

Over medium heat, bring a sauce pan with the milk to a boil. Remove it from heat and stir in the poppy seeds. Set the mixture aside and allow to cool.

Preheat your oven to 350F. Line an 11 inch round cake pan with wax paper and spray with non-stick spray.

Combine the flour, b. powder and salt in a medium bowl.

In a larger bowl - cream together the butter, sugar, and Limoncino together with an electric mixer (medium-high speed). Reduce the speed to low, and gradually beat in the dry ingredients and milk mixture - alternate between the two. Place the batter aside.

In a glass bowl, whisk together the egg whites at high speed. Beat until the whites become stiff and glossy.

Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg whites into the cake batter -the folding is important since it's what makes the cake fluffy and light. Spoon the batter into the pan and bake on a lower rack for about 49 minutes (I started with 40 minutes and increased the baking time - again, use your judgement).

Cool the cake in the pan for about 10 minutes and then remove it from the pan (mine is a spring form pan, so the sides are removed - makes for very easy baking). Cool completely.

Meanwhile - make the syrup by combining the sugar and water and bringing to a boil and then a simmer over the stove top. Remove from heat and stir in the Limoncino. Allow to sit for a bit and cool down.

When you're ready - pierce a couple holes (with a fork or tooth pick) into the cake and pour the syrup generously over it. It doesn't make it overly sweet (I probably had half the syrup left over). Place in the fridge to cool completely and for the syrup to really penetrate the cake. Serve to people you really like or people you want to impress. Everyone will be thanking you... and asking for seconds.

Salty/Sweet Mexican Treat! ;0)

I didn't post last weekend - but I did get to spend my Sunday afternoon with Deb and Brynn Ransom again... with Julie joining us in the kitchen. On the agenda was a recipe from my rebar modern food cookbook - their lime sugar cookie. The thought of limes and sugar made me think of margarita's.... so I decided to make these cookies but add some coarse sea salt along with the raw brown sugar. An outright success! These cookies will keep you coming back for more (Julie, Deb and Gigi both really enjoyed them since they both have more of a salty tooth than a sweet one). Easy to make - I even whipped up a batch for my friend Emily early this morning. Grab and go when you need a little escape from the end of winter blues... and a quick trip to Mexico! :0)

Margarita Cookies
ingredients:
1 c. brown sugar
2 tbsp. butter @ room temperature
2 tsp vegetable oil
zest of 1 lime
1 large egg
juice of 1 lime
1 3/4 c. whole wheat flour
1/4 c. pumpkin seeds, toasted and roughly chopped
1/2 tsp b. soda
1/2 tsp salt (I used some coriander flavoured sea salt)
raw b. sugar and coarse sea salt to sprinkle

Preheat your oven to 350F. In a large bowl, cream together the sugar, butter, oil, and lime zest until well combined. Add the egg and lime juice -the batter should loosen up and combine well.

Meanwhile, on your stove top - toast the sunflower seeds in a non-stick pan. Keep the heat about medium, and toss them occasionally. You don't want them to burn. The seeds will start to pop when they are done - about 5 minutes. Take the seeds off the heat and coarsely chop them.

In a smaller bowl, combine the flour, seeds, b. soda and salt. Add this mix to the wet batter. Combine with a wooden spoon.

I used my small ice cream scoop (which only seems to be getting lots of use recently) and form small balls, dropping them onto a wax paper lined cookie sheet. Leave space between the cookies - they spread out while baking.

Flatten each cookie with a fork and then sprinkle with the raw b. sugar and the coarse sea salt. Place in the oven and cook - mine needed about 12 minutes (but start off with 8 minutes and increase by a couple minutes... it all depends on your oven).

Cool on the sheet for a couple of minutes and then remove the cookies and place on a wire rack. You should get about 20 well sized cookies.