Oneshot: Nutella Cookies!

Nutella is the Lolita of spreads.

Skim milk, cocoa, and hazelnuts...how can three ingredients combine to make something that most people, including myself, have no problem eating straight out the jar? Eff using a spoon. I use my fingers. And I refuse to share.

So naturally, when I saw a recipe on Tasty Kitchen, an amazing recipe/blog/sharing site, for Nutella COOKIES..well, you know I had to go and make it. Especially, b/c it's so damn easy! Only 4 freaking ingredients necessary.

One egg.

A half cup of sugar.

One cup of Nutella.

One cup of Flour.

That's it! The end. In the recipe post, a stand mixer is used to combine all of the ingredients together...seeing as that most of my money goes to student loans, I used good old fashioned elbow grease, and a wooden spoon. I should have probably taken a picture of it...but the spoon snapped right in half...but, I'm getting ahead of myself! Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and prep your baking sheet (or, sheets).

Start by mixing the egg and sugar together...I made a double batch of these lovelies so I could bring some to work the next day. I doubled the quantities of everything, so keep that in mind. Whisk them together so they're nice and combined. Then, add in your Nutella. This is probably when you should switch over to a wooden spoon to make your life easier.

The last thing I added in was the flour, which i did in 4 parts, stirring after each addition. This is where it gets a little hard. If you have a stand mixer, you'll be fine. If you don't, you'll end up with a broken wooden spoon like yours truly. As it starts getting tougher to mix, switch over to a metal spoon. It seemed to be getting a little too dry, so I only used about half of my last part of flour. When it was good and mixed, I put some plastic wrap over it and let it rest for 10 minutes in the fridge.

I used a tablespoon to scoop out the dough and rolled it into balls with my palms. I fit about 12 on my non stick cookie sheet comfortably. Now, the recipe said to use the bottom of a drinking glass to flatten them out. The dough balls were pretty sticky, so I dipped the bottoms of the glasses in sugar, then flattened the dough. No sticking! And now the tops of the cookies would have a nice sparkle and crunch. I wanted them to stay chewy in the middle, so I only flattened them slightly. Put these in the oven for about 7-8 minutes until set. Cool on a rack, and repeat until you've baked up all of your cookies.

Sparkles! That sugar was a good move. I loved the texture and flavor of these cookies! The taste of the Nutella wasn't overpowering in the least, and the crumbly edges and super chewy middle of the cookie was addicting. One problem though, these will stick to your teeth like no other, so be prepared to brush your teeth afterward! I stored these in Tupperware with a slice of bread to keep them soft til the next day, and they tasted even better.

A few notes for next time:

I would probably change some or all of the sugar to brown sugar. I'd be interested to see how the Nutella and the slightly caramel flavor of the sugar work together. Plus, the molasses in the sugar (that's what makes real brown sugar brown), would keep the cookies extra moist.

I would also rest these in the fridge longer. Because there really isn't any liquid in the dough, a longer time in the cooler would give the dough a better chance to absorb the water in the eggs. Plus, the cookie would spread slower.

I'm also curious to see how the cookie would taste with some cinnamon added to it. Cinnamon + chocolate = YUM. Yay for for experimenting!

Try these beauties out, and let me know how you like em. Thank you so much Miss Amy and Tasty Kitchen for sharing!

Oneshot: Fatty McFatterson Breakfast - Croissant French Toast

....yes, I have no shame.

The first time I took part in this insanely delicious treat was with my friend David at Maureen's Kitchen in Smithtown (Long Island). I was in love with the place at first site, squealing over the adorable cow print motif and cozy atmosphere. I had their baked oatmeal with warm milk, which tasted like a warm, gooey oatmeal cookie and a huge cup of tea. What really stole the show though was the croissant french toast with blueberries and apple cinnamon cream cheese. Good God. I like my french toast on the crunchier side, and all those buttery flaky layers in the croissant soaked up the custardy batter without making it soggy. With the fresh fruit and slightly sweetened cheese: fantastic. I dreamed of remaking it at home, and years later...I did. What can I say, I'm a little slow on the uptake sometimes.

If you look at the picture, you notice that there's some juicy berries, Nutella, and wait...some cream cheese on my lovely creations. Before I got started with the toast, I prepared those first. The cream cheese was just softened (via microwave) and mixed with 2 spoons of sugar. The berries were macerated with sugar and a little red wine for hutzpah and oomph...and other emotive words. 

For the french toast itself, I used croissants from Balthazar Bakery because, I used to work there AND because I think they're delicious. But you can use any that you fancy, but just make sure they're good quality. Don't use the whomp canned kind.

Whenever I make french toast, I kinda just put it together off the top of my head. I used (for 4 croissants) 2-3 eggs, beaten well, added some whole milk (skim will NOT DO), a couple spoonfuls of sugar, a generous teaspoon of vanilla, and shakes of nutmeg and cinnamon. I used a whisk to get it nice and homogenized. Get a nice heavy pan/skillet on the stove and set it to medium heat. Let it get all warm and happy.

Slice the croissants so that they open like a book. You want that yummy batter to really soak in. I try to use a shallow dish to dredge as many pieces as I can. Make sure you let them soak a bit on both sides!

Now take a pat or two salted butter (you can use unsalted too), and swirl it around your skillet. Let it foam and turn a little brown...I usually turn down the heat a tad because my stove has demons. Slap those bad boys in, two at a time, for 3-5 minutes on each side. Replenish the butter as needed, and let them get real golden brown and delish. As they finish up, i put them on a foil covered sheet pan in a VERY low oven to keep warm. REALLY LOW, because i didn't want them to get to crispy, aka BURN.

I served them up the way I had them at Maureen's, like a sandwich. Nutella on one side, cream cheese and berries on the other. Smushed together, with a little maple syrup drizzled over the top. To keep me honest!


Egg whites, bacon, and sausage links round out this perfectly HEALTHY and NUTRITIOUS breakfast!

I figure if I type it in large letters...it'll make it true.