Cranberry & Raisin Oatmeal Cookies

I have been so sleep deprived this week. Having worked six days in a row did not do much good to my energy level either. I wish I am one of those people who can sleep in for as many hours as they want. I was craving some sweet treats so I ended up making these cookies.
I love oatmeal cookies for their chewiness. These have dried fruits in them, giving them a lighter and fruity sweetness. I suspect they would taste really good with choc chips in them too~

Cranberry and Raisin Oatmeal Cookies, adopted from Baking Bites

1/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup wholemeal plain flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup raisins
1 1/4 cup rolled oats

1) Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with baking paper.
2) In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Stir in vanilla extract.
3) In a separate bowl, mix together flour, wheat germ, baking soda and baking powder. Add in dried fruits.
4) Slowly incorporate the dry mixture into the butter mixture. Add in the rolled oats and stir well.
5) Drop 2.5cm balls on the lined baking sheet, about 2cm apart. Slightly flatten the balls. Baking for approx 11-12 minutes or until the edges start to turn brown. Leave cookies on the baking sheet for 1-2 minutes before putting them on a wire rack to cool completely.

The Ultimate Chocolate Cookies

I went to watch Toy Story 3 with a friend last weekend and thought I would make something special (ie something really unhealthy and full of butter and sugar) to share. I remember this recipe from Nigella Express. These cookies are an absolute form indulgence. Really rich and moist and loaded with chocolate richness in every bite. They've got melted dark chocolate, cocoa powder AND dark chocolate chips. So rich it would literally make your stomach sick.

The Ultimate Chocolate Cookie

125g dark chocolate
150g plain flour
30g cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
100g butter, at room temperature
60g brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg, cold from the fridge
110g dark chocolate chips

1) Preheat oven to 170 degrees C. Melt the 125g dark chocolate in a heatproof dish over a pan of simmering water.
2) Combine the flour, cocoa, soda and salt into a mixing bowl.
3) Cream the butter and sugar in another bowl. Add the melted chocolate and mix together.
4) Beat in the vanilla and cold egg. Then mix in the dry ingredients. Stir in chocolate chips.
5) Place tablespoonfuls of batter on a lined baking sheet. Do not flatten.
6) Bake for approx. 15 minutes, testing with a cake tester to make sure it comes out semi-clean and not wet with batter. The cookies will not set completely as they will harden while cooling.
7) Leave to cool slightly on the baking sheet for 4-5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack.

Cookie Craving

On my train ride back home from work today, I had the biggest craving for cookies. I could have used my old recipe but decided to try a new one. I have never used self-raising flour for cookies before so I went with this one from the book Easy Baking.I have to say I am not 100% happy with the recipe. I do not have a scale at home so I converted the measurement to cups from grams. I have also adjusted baking time slightly but otherwise followed the recipe to the T. The amount of butter stated just was not enough to bind all the flour together. After combining the wet and dry ingredients together, the dough was really crumbly even after a lot of mixing. I ended up having to stir in excess butter into the batter in order to bring all ingredients together. And that is probably why the cookies turned out to be extremely buttery and crunchy. I divided the batter into two portions and made two different types: Chocolate & almond and Chocolate & cranberry.

Low fat choc chip almond cookies

These are probably the healthier cookies I have ever made and eaten. Low in fat, high in fibre, they can probably lower cholesterol level, I think. Don't be put off by how unphotogenic they are. They are chewy, moist, chocolatey and very satisfying. I brought them to work and people loved them. And you don't have to feel guilty while enjoying them. They are Low fat oatmeal choc chip almond cookies.
This is a really versatile recipe base that can turn into many variations. Skip the choc chips, add other dried fruits such as raisins, dried cranberries, dried strawberries, chopped walnuts, etc, to create your own version of low fat cookies :)

Adopted from Baking Bites

1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 cup wholemeal plain flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 2 tbsp wheat germ
1 tbsp cocoa powder (Should have used more - the dough did not turn out as dark as I wanted it)
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
1/2 brown sugar 1 egg
1/4 cup applesauce 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
toasted almond, chopped

1) Preheat oven to 175 degrees C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
2) In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, wheat germ and cocoa powder.
3) In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in egg, followed by applesauce and vanilla extract. Working by hand, stir in the flour mixture, oats, choc chips and chopped almonds until all ingredients is combined well.
4) Drop tablespoonfuls of the dough onto the prepared baking tray, flatten each cookie slightly. Bake for about 10 minutes. Cookies will be light brown at the edges when done. Let cool on the tray for 3-4 minutes to allow them to continue cooking. Then transfer to a wire rack to coll completely.

5) Store in air-tight container.

Before they went into the oven

After they are cooked

Only 2 tbsp of butter in ALL these cookies (plus one that I sampled after baking)
- didn't think that would be possible!

My Mixed Berry Buckle

Today was one of those days when the Sunshine state got a bit wet. The streets were wet. The cars were wet. My shoes were wet. I like the rain. It's soothing. It's dreamy. It smells amazing. It almost takes you to another world just by listening to it. (it also makes the weeds in my front yard grow like crazy. but i'm ignoring them) Great soundtrack for a day of study (or procrastination). And in queensland it's a rarity not having to worry about your SPF for one day.

So I was deciding between two recipes that both look delicious and doable (for a beginner baker like me). Sure, blueberry boy bait sounds more appealing. But blueberry buckle got so many good reviews and looks like a much "safer" recipe. So I went ahead and made my own version of the Blueberry Buckle. I've only got frozen mixed berries so that's what I've used. I've cut down the sugar by 2/3 'coz that other cake recipes from allrecipe.com that I have tried have been too sweet. I skipped the topping because of laziness. And also because I was a bit reluctant to add another 75g of butter into the recipe after watching that Heart Foundation ad this morning. After all I don't want to become one of those people who go on a statin at the age of 35. Instead I just put a few mixed berries on top of the batter and sprinkled a mixture of ground cinnamon and sugar on the top, which was suggested in the blueberry boy bait recipe.

(please forgive the amateur photography!)

Turns out that I should have pushed in the berries into the batter 'coz they came out of the oven BLACK. Well I didn't think about that then so just like that it stayed in the oven for 40 minutes. And this is, once again, a lesson for me to never to trust the recipe 100%. 40 minutes were apparently too long and it came out a bit burnt and not as moist as it could have been. Probably 30-35 minutes next time. And more cinnamon on the top!!

This is a buttery, rich, sweet cake with refreshing berries in every mouthful. Great for afternoon tea or anytime you feel like a lift. Another recipe for my collection~

PS And I'm sorry I forgot the cookies Anna!! So here they are. Buttery chewy cookies with the perfect balance between Hershey's choc chip and dried cranberry.