Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Cream together butter and sugars until pale and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Stir in peanut butter. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. Add to peanut butter mixture and blend in. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet and crisscross mark them with a floured fork. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes, until cookies just start to colour around the edges.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375° F. Cream together butter and brown sugar until smooth. Add egg and blend. Stir in vanilla and molasses. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and spices. Add to butter mixture and mix in. Add oats and raisins and stir just until oats are coated with cookie batter. Drop tablespoonfuls onto a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 7 to 9 minutes, until cookies start to brown around the edges and loose their shine.
2. Cookies will keep up to a week in an airtight container.
3. Yield: 2 dozen cookies.
4. VARIATION: OATMEAL COOKIE ICE CREAM SANDWICHES: You will need 6 cups maple walnut ice cream and 1 1/2 cups of walnut crumbs, toasted. For sandwiches, press a small scoop of ice cream between 2 cookies. Roll edges of ice cream in walnut crumbs and chill until ready to serve. Yield: 1 dozen sandwich cookies.

Directions

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

1. Over a pot filled with 2 inches of simmering water, place a metal or glass bowl and add butter. Stir until melted halfway and add white chocolate chips. Stir until just melted and remove from heat (don’t worry if it separates). Set aside.
2. Whip eggs with sugar and vanilla with electric beaters or in a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, until pale and thick, about 5 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Whisk melted chocolate into egg mixture until incorporated. Whisk in flour mixture and stir in semisweet chocolate chips. Cover batter with plastic and chill for at least 4 hours before baking.
4. Preheat oven to 325 °F. Spoon cookie dough by tablespoonfuls (or teaspoonfuls for dainty cookies) and roll gently to shape into a ball and place on a parchment-lined or greased cookie sheet, leaving 2 inches between cookies. Bake for 18-20 minutes. To test doneness, lift a cookie off the tray – if it comes off cleanly, then cookies are done.

Reverse Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

1. Prepare the same recipe as above, except replace 8 ounces of white chocolate with 10 ounces of bittersweet chocolate and increase sugar to 1 1/2 cups. Prepare remaining recipe as above and enjoy!

Directions

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Cream together butter and sugars until smooth. Add egg and vanilla and blend in.
3. Stir in flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Stir in chocolate chunks.
4. Drop by tablespoons onto a greased baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown around the edges.

To Assemble

1. Let cool slightly and enjoy.

Directions

Amaretti Cookies

1. For amaretti, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
2. Sift flour, cornstarch, cinnamon and 1/3 cup of sugar and lemon zest over ground almonds and toss to blend.
3. In a separate bowl, whip egg whites until foamy, then gradually add remaining 1/3 cup sugar. Whip until whites hold a stiff peak. Stir in almond mixture and add almond extract. Shape teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, wetting your hands with cool water to prevent sticking. Sift icing sugar over cookies and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until lightly browned. Allow to cool, then store in an airtight container.

Almond Cream

1. For almond cream, stir mascarpone, sour cream and brown sugar together to dissolve sugar. Stir in extracts. Whip cream until a soft peak forms and fold in. Chill until ready to assemble.

Cherries and Assembly

1. For cherries, toss cherries with Kirsch and sugar and let sit for 5 minutes.
2. To assemble, place one amaretti cookie on a plate. Add a dollop of almond cream. Top with another amaretti cookie. Top with another dollop of almond cream, a sprinkle of toasted almonds and then a spoonful of cherries. Repeat to make 4 servings in total. Serve.

• 4 large egg whites
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup condensed milk
• dash salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 1/2 cups coconut
• 1/4 cup flour

1. Preheat oven to 300° F. In a heavy saucepan stir together the egg whites, sugar, condensed milk, salt, vanilla, almond extract and coconut. Sift in flour and stir the mixture until it is combined well. Cook the mixture over moderate heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Increase the heat to moderately high and cook the mixture, stirring constantly, for 3 to 5 minutes more, or until it is thickened and begins to pull away from the bottom and side of the pan. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, let it cool slightly at room temperature, then chill completely before baking.
2. Drop heaping teaspoons of the batter 2 inches apart onto greased or parchment-lined baking sheets and bake the macaroons on center rack of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they are pale golden. Transfer the macaroons to a cooling rack.
3. Macaroons will keep up to 10 days in an airtight container.
4. Yield: 30 macaroons.