Tuesday, April 22, 2014

White Chocolate Pistachio Blondies




I never made (or had?) a blondie before but sort of had an idea of what they would taste like. Chewy. Dense. Perhaps brownie like? I really appreciate those crispy edges on brownies or any sort of bars/cookies of that kind. These blondies turned out little crisp on the outside and very fudgy and moist on the inside. A very sweet and indulgent bite.

This recipe stood out from the rest because it calls for granulated sugar and egg whites rather than brown sugar and whole egg. Since I had a yolk left from my previous bakes, it works out perfectly. As a result, the blondies were a pale light brown color (with little green studs of pistachios).




White Chocolate Pistachio Blondies
recipe adapted from BethCakes
makes 1 pan or 10 squares

1 cup white chocolate chips*
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 egg whites
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup AP flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 cup pistachio*

be careful not to over- mix (over- mixing= collapse)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x9 inch (or 8x8 inch) baking pan with foil and leave a 2-3 inch overhang on two sides. Spray with non-stick spray.
2. In a microwave safe bowl, melt white chocolate chips and butter according to directions on the white chocolate chip bag.
3. Combine melted white chocolate and sugar in a bowl and mix well.
4. Add the egg whites and vanilla, and whisk until just incorporated.
5. Stir in flour, baking powder, and milk.
6. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with white chocolate chips.
7. Bake for 25-27 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the blondies comes out clean. (There can be a few crumbs on it.)
8. Let the blondies cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes. Lift blondies out of the pan by the foil overhangs and let them cool on a wire rack.


ready to bake!

These blondies were very white chocolate-y rich and sweet. I enjoyed the crunch that the pistachio added; it contrasted very well with the moist chewy blondie. Moreover, pistachio lessened the guilt of eating white chocolate and butter,and I love pistachios!! *I highly recommend adding some nuts and chunks of white chocolate(:

fresh out of the oven- smells ahmazin`

Taste: 4 stars out of 5
A little overly sweet for my taste. Wanted a more caramel-y note.
Texture: 4 stars out of 5
Moist dense chewy fudgy center. Slightly crisp edges. 

Black Sesame Cookies

After cooking up some black sesame ice cream base at work, I was inspired to bake some black sesame goodies. I have made black sesame macaroons which turned out pretty tasty. This time I want to go with something basic. Just a simple black sesame cookies. I pick this particular recipe because of the use of almond meal. Almond or any nuts in recipe just seems to make things more healthy regardless of that one whole stick of butter.. :p




Black Sesame Cookies
recipe adapted from Just One Cookbook
made ~24 cookies

1 stick unsalted butter
160g AP flour
40g almond meal
66g sugar*
pinch of salt
30g ground black sesame seeds**
10g roasted black sesame seeds**
1 egg yolk

*reduced sugar from 80g
**original recipe calls for 40g roasted black sesame seeds

straight out of food processor


1. Cut butter into small cubes and keep refrigerated until ready to use.
2. Combine AP flour, almond meal, sugar, salt, and 30g sesame seeds in food processor. Mix.
3. Add butter in food processor and mix/ pulse.
4. Add 10g sesame seeds and yolk. Mix.
5. Transfer to a separate bowl and thoroughly mix and form into a ball.
6. Cut the ball in half and roll into 2" log.
7. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
8. Preheat oven to 350F. Cut log into 1/4" thick slices.
9. Place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
10. Bake for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges.
 (Mine took 18 minutes and 2 minutes cooling in oven while it's off)
11. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes.

logged


Taste: 3 stars out of 5
There's a strange raw taste. From the almonds? Black sesame?
Sweetness was on point with reduced sugar.
Texture: 3 stars out of 5
Crumble upon bite.

Parents approved of the cookies. But some changes I'd like to make for next time is definitely slice them thinner and see if they turns out more crisp.