It’s been a while since I did one of my “stranger” flavor combination type cookies so I felt inspired to combine dried apricots, pistachios and chocolate. For some reason, it seems like a bit of a Middle Eastern combo to me, but I don’t really know why. At any rate, these shortbread cookies definitely deliver on taste. Not too sweet but very flavorful!
Cookies
I’m not sure these photos do these cookies justice: they are HUGE. I mean, big. I mean wicked big. So big, in fact, that I used Ghiradrdelli Dark Chocolate Melting Wafers instead of chocolate chips … but as chocolate chips, just really big ones. They are crispy and golden on the edges and still nice and chewy in the middle. A serving is likely only one cookie (they are 1/4 cup each, 4 inches / 10ish cm in diameter!)
Ever have a craving for something random, so that you go to the store to get all the ingredients, get home and then realize “Nah, not in the mood anymore?” That is sort of what happened with these. I had a Rice Krispies Treat craving (I should have just bought the already-made ones and eaten one in the store parking lot), but then … well, let’s just say I decided to dress them up a bit with chocolate chunks, caramel bits and pretzels. I was going to call them “Everything But the Kitchen Sink Rice Krispies Squares” but I would have had o throw in peanuts, Oreo pieces and Doritos…. lucky for you, I didn’t have any of those around!
Today is the last day of “Meteorological Winter”. No, we still have a few weeks to go before we hit Astronomical Spring, but the last day of February … things can really go warmer from here. We did get snow on this last day of February, so I figured it was still ok to make snowball cookies. This recipe is actually the same as my Vanilla Crescents (Vanillekipferl) at Christmas time, just shaped differently. Either way, they taste the same and are super delicious.
If there is one thing that screams “I’m from Maine” (besides lobsters, blueberries and LLBean boots), it’s Whoopie Pies. I know, I know … some people say they are from Pennsylvania, but I am still going with Maine. That said, these are mini-whoopie pies, because I don’t like the really huge ones. Just a couple of bites with these. Also, I added a touch of cinnamon to the filling, which is just a bit of a twist too. Yum.