Just For Licks

Espresso Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

I do believe I am the queen,
Of that thing they call the bean.

Not legumes with rice you eat,
But the beans you grind and heat.

One thing you should know ’bout me,
I live for super strong coffee.

Espresso, latte, three shot, four,
I’ll go back for even more.

Some might call it muddy rot-gut,
To this I must strongly re-but.

Not only does it taste supreme,
It gives me energy extreme.

Chocolate is my treasured love,
There is no food I love above.

White or milk or bitter-sweet,
My meal is never quite complete,

Without a chocolate bite to nibble.
(Alright. Devour – let’s not quibble.)

Now marry chocolate with the bean,
And things will start to get obscene.

I baked a shortbread cocoa treat,
With espresso bought from Peet.

If you try to take a bite,
With me you will have to fight.

This combo I don’t like to share,
It’s truly my own love affair.

But try this simple recipe,
And I know you will agree.

This coffee-chocolate combination,
Is quite the epicurean sensation.

I love this cookie recipe! It is easy, delicious and a new family favorite.  This recipe is adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s cookbook, “Baking – From my home to yours.” If you enjoy baking, this is an excellent book to have on hand. I have made a few minor changes to the original recipe – I used salted instead of unsalted butter and, instead of instant espresso, I used fresh brewed espresso.

RECIPE

1 T. espresso

2 sticks butter (room temperature)

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate or 3/4 cup chocolate chips (preferably mini)

Powdered sugar for dusting (optional)

Make sure espresso is room temperature. Set aside.

In a mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is smooth. Beat in the vanilla and espresso. With the mixer on low, add the flour and beat only until the flour disappears into the dough. This dough should not be over-worked. Fold in the chocolate with a spatula.

Transfer the dough to a gallon-size zip lock plastic bag. Lay the bag on a flat surface and with the top open, roll the dough out until it is about 1/4′ thick. Try not to let the plastic crease the dough. Press out all of the air from the bag, zip the top and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Position the oven racks so that the oven is divided into thirds.

Place the plastic bag of dough on a cutting board and slice or cut it with scissors so that only the dough remains. Cut even squares and set them on your lined cookie sheet. With the tines of a fork, prick each cookie all the way through two times.

Bake for 18-20 minutes rotating the sheet from top to bottom rack and front to back at the midway point. The cookie should not have much color. Transfer to a rack to cool. Dust with powdered sugar. Dorie’s recipe makes about 32 cookies but mine never does. I may cut them a little too wide but they are still delicious!

Ginny Flaherty, once Giuffre,
Like old times, came over to play.

Ginny

She and I and Tricia Dunn,
In the kitchen, so much fun!

Grammar school our old playground,
Through the years new interests found.

Ginny’s a handsome farmer’s wife,
Who really knows how to wield her knife.

Though you could not call her tall,
Short on brains? No, not at all!

Loves to dance and wear tights,
And drink her wine with evening bites.

Do not dare to offer milk,
Her people are not of that ilk.

Santa Marina, Sicily

Sicilian pride her blood contains,
Love of food runs through her veins.

Fruit and veggie close at hand,
Grown abundant on her land.

So that day she came to cook,
She brought along a tattered book.

Pages marked with yellowed card,
She held in very high regard.

Papa Carlo

A gift from Carlo, so very dear,
“From Papa to Ginny,” he’ll always be near.

The smells in my kitchen a potpourri,
As she deftly prepared Papa’s Manicotti.

Sauce Pomodoro, spicy and rich,
Whipped it up without a glitch.

Creamy filling of spinach and cheese,
She made it seem like such a breeze.

No traditional pasta plate,
A delicate crepe she must create.

This fragile shell stuffed and sauced,
Into the oven it was tossed.

I took one bite and oh what flavor!
This recipe truly one to savour.

Papa would be so impressed,
To this fact I could attest.

Not only is she friend so fine,
Ginny is a cook divine!

POMODORO SAUCE

5 cloves garlic, pressed

3 12 oz. can diced or chopped Roma tomatoes

2 cups basil, chopped                        

32 oz. chicken broth

2 cups red wine, preferably cabernet

2 carrots

sea salt to taste

coarse ground pepper to taste

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

Sautee pressed garlic in olive oil to soften, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, chicken broth, wine, salt and pepper. Add carrots, cut in half to soak up acid of tomatoes. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 1 minutes. Reduce heat to simmer and cook uncovered for 2 hours. If carrots still intact, remove them when done cooking sauce.

MANICOTTI FILLING

1 cup Ricotta

1 cup spinach, cooked

1/2 cup fresh paesley

2 egg yolks

1 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 lb. shredded Mozzarella cheese (processed, not fresh)

handful basil

pinch nutmeg

sea salt to taste

coarse ground pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Set aside. This is one dish where processed Mozzarella works better than fresh.

CREPES

2 cups flour

3 eggs

2 1/2 cups milk

2 T. oil

pinch of regular salt

In a mixer, add eggs, milk, oil and salt. Blend together while slowly adding flour. Chill for 2 hours.

Using a napkin or towel dipped in olive oil, lightly coat the bottom of a small crepe pan. Fill a 1/8 measuring cup with crepe batter and drop it in the center of the crepe pan, gently swirling it until it stops running. Let cook for about a minute, then check the edges with the tines of a fork. When they lift off the sides of the pan easily, and the center of the crepe looks dry, gently lift the crepe out of the pan. Makes about 20 small crepes.

Stuffing and Baking the Crepe Manicotti

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Stuff each crepe with 1 heaping T. of the filling, flattening it out on the crepe. Gently roll them so the fold is at the bottom. In 2 13×9 baking trays, ladle 1/2 inch layer of tomato sauce. Line filled crepes on top of the sauce, fold side down. Ladle more sauce over the crepes. About 10 crepes per tray. Place in oven and cook for 15-20 minutes. Take out and let set for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and serve.