Chewy Chocolate Raisin Cookies

I am constantly clipping out cookie recipes and tucking them inside of cookbooks or pasting them into binders. I would be a prime subject for a new reality show called "Recipe Hoarders." I know I'll never end up making many of them, but just knowing I can is comfort enough. This week's cookie falls into the hoarder category. I don't remember when I first clipped it, but my guess is within the past two years. What attracted me to this recipe for Chewy Chocolate Raisin Cookies was the huge picture included on the page. The cookie photo is of a beautiful chocolaty brown cookie with a large white chocolate chunk and flecks of sugar coating the outside. It's my idea of not only a tasty cookie, but a beautiful one too.

This recipe is fairly easy to prepare. It requires soaking the golden yellow raisins in 1/2 cup of brandy for 20 minutes. While the raisins are soaking, I continued to measure and prepare both the wet and dry ingredients.

The chewiness of the cookie was evident from the very first bite. I detected a hint of the white chocolate, a hint of brandy-soaked raisins, and a hint of honey but not much else. Actually, they tasted like a chewy ginger snap. Don't get me wrong, these are good cookies. Especially if chewy cookies are your thing. But overall, they left me wanting a more intense flavor. Next time I may try swapping the raisins for dried sour cherries and use more and larger white chocolate chunks.

Chewy Chocolate-Raisin Cookies

1 cup golden raisins, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup brandy
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
6 ounces white chocolate, cut into 1/2 inch chunks (try 3/4 inch chunks)
1/2 cup granulated sugar

Bring chopped raisins and brandy to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat, stir, and let stand for 20 minutes.

Mix flour, cocoa, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, baking soda, and salt together in a small bowl.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat butter and brown sugar with a mixer set on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add honey, and beat until creamy. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture, and beat until combined. Drain raisins, discard liquid. Add raisins and chocolate to the dough. Mix to combine.

Whisk together granulated sugar and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Scoop 2 tablespoons of dough, roll into a ball and then roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture to coat completely. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake until just set and starting to crack, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool on sheets.

Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Cookie press review: 3 1/2 cookies (out of five)

Raisins and Rum Boiling on the Stove














Whisking the Dry Ingredients Together














Mixing in the White Chocolate and Raisins













Ready for the Oven













Cooling on the Pan

Raspberry-Cream Sandwich Cookies

The name says it all. What could be better than raspberries and cream in the form of a sandwich cookie? Nothing comes to mind. Sandwich cookies are great because you get two cookies wrapped around a creamy center. There is a reduced guilt factor since technically you're eating only one cookie. Am I right?

The filling is made with white chocolate, heavy cream, and fresh raspberries. Believe me, these cookies are so rich you won't want to eat more than one at a time. They're great for sharing since their shelf is two or three days at most. After three days they turned to a sweet ball of mush.

The recipe calls for fresh raspberries, but I'm sure you could use frozen strawberries thawed and drained of excess liquid. I used a tablespoon of dough for each cookie but I suggest you make them smaller since they spread quite a lot which led to rather large cookies.

Here's the recipe on Martha Stewart's website.

Cookie press rating: 3 cookies (out of five)