with coconut, walnut and apricot
Happy mid-week! What did you get up to over the past few days? I celebrated two of my good friends’ milestone birthdays on Saturday (one quarter century and one big 3-0), went to a huge flea market in an ice-rink on Sunday morning and had a little moment of fame a couple of days ago. Oh, and I also baked some decadent, flavourful, incredible cookies yesterday.
I’m gonna say it- this recipe is my favourite cookie recipe ever! I mean it. Very excited to share it with you.
You’re a big foodie aren’t you? A shameless food lover! Well of course you are, you came here specifically to oggle some tasty baking pics. Ha! Caught ya. Do you bake too? If so, I have to ask– what do you do with your freshly baked goodies? I’m so bad at planning this part. As you know, usually I just bake for the sake of getting my bake on. It’s a weird craving I get. Do you have any silly impulses like that?
Funnily enough I don’t have much of a sweet tooth, so usually my goodies go into the mouths of little baby birds AKA the lucky little beggars in my life. If my baking isn’t gone within the blink of an eye, I usually have the bad habit of tucking my treats away in a tupperware or stashing them in my packed freezer, forgotten and frosty. The shame!
Recently, I’ve found a much better solution to this problem of mine. My baking won’t get mouldy in a tupperware or expand the waistlines of some of my particular greedy-eyed baking fans. ;)
Back in September, some of my girlfriends and I decided to plan some “organized fun nights” since we were all feeling pretty tied down with work and weren’t seeing each other enough. Is that the sign that we’re entering our late-twenties? Gasp! The idea of some planned fun morphed into a “Documentary Film Club” which we’ve been organizing almost weekly since then. So pretentious, I know :). Next up is this great film and we can’t wait to sink into it.
These movie nights and the occasional HBO night have been a great way to catch up with my girlfriends, but have also turned out to be a great way to share fresh baking with my girls and indirectly with their lucky loved ones as well.
Oh, are you wondering what my little moment of fame was this weekend? On Saturday I was featured in this Globe and Mail article where I explained the rationale behind cookie bartering and shared TV time. It feels so good to spread the love and some fresh baking far and wide.
Blue Owl’s Smartie Cookies
yields: 30 drop cookies. prep time: 30 mins bake time: 9 mins bake temp: 350 deg. store: In tupperware or cookie jar up to one week. (if they last that long!)
wets
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
2 organic, free range eggs, room temp
1/4 cup peanut butter, room temp
2 tsp vanilla
dries
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup oats
fun stuff
1 cup roasted, chopped walnuts, cooled
1/4 cup dried apricots
1/4 cup coconut
1 tbsp flax seeds
1 1/4 cups smarties bought in bulk or
good quality chocolate chips
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350. Prepare cookie sheets and set aside. Cream butter until white and fluffy, then add brown sugar and beat on high until creamy. Blend in peanut butter. Add eggs one at a time, then the vanilla. Set aside. 2. Whisk dries together in a deep bowl, set aside. Chop apricots until they look tiny and nibbly, then place them in a small bowl. Spoon a little bit of the flour mixture into apricot mix and then add coconut. Stir around. 3. Roast chopped walnuts on 350 for about 2 mins (until golden, watch carefully!) Let them cool on tray separately. Measure out “fun stuff” into a medium sized bowl excluding walnuts and mix around. Add apricot/ coconut mix to fun stuff mix. 4. Add dries to wet mix and blend on medium until smooth. Grab a wooden spoon and mix fun stuff into cookie batter by hand. Don’t forget the walnuts! Spoon little drops of cookie batter onto prepared cookie sheets. Gently squish down. Portions should be spoon-size. 5. Bake 9 mins or until lightly golden, rotating tray half way through baking. Cool on wire rack and make sure everyone gets one!Recipe inspired and adapted from my favourite cookbook Rebar Modern Food Cookbook.
Reference: Alsterberg, A and Urbanowicz W. (2000). Rebar modern food cookbook.Big Ideas Publishing Inc.: Victoria, B.C.
If you prefer hands on..
Here’s a little printable Blue Owl Treats gift for your recipe box at home:
Blue Owl Smartie Cookies Recipe
I hope you enjoy your cookies. They are such a cheer up! The cookies turn out so chewy and soft with a hint of peanut butter and coconut decadence. I enjoyed a cookie last night with a cold cup of milk and it was delicious. Maybe they will be your fav’s too?
Stay dry Vancouver! I hope you have a week full of laughter and productive vigour.
Love,
Blue Owl
Blue Owl Treats 
again, care package please? How good do you think the cookie would be by the time it gets to Sydney? :)
good and crunchy!