Lemon Cookies

I'm obsessed with these lemon cookies! But we can't always make it to Maggiano's so here are some recipes I'm hoping to try from Live Fit and Healthy and QueenMotherBlog. 

Almond Jello

Serves 4-6
Ingredients:

• 2 packets Knox gelatin
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 2 tsp. almond extract
• 1 c. cold milk (2% or whole)
• 1 can 8oz fruit cocktail

Directions:

1. Bring 1.25 cup water to a boil, when it is ready pour into a mixing bowl and sprinkle gelatin over it.
2. Let sit for a minute, then stir the mixture until all the gelatin is dissolved. Hint: set the bowl over low heat to keep it hot enough to melt all the gelatin.
3. Add sugar and almond extract. Stir until dissolved.
4. Add cold milk
5. Pour liquid mixture into a casserole or baking pan. Bonus points if it is Pyrex or Corningware, and even better if it’s something you can serve the dessert in!
6. Refrigerate until firm.
7. Cut the gelatin into 1″ cubes and then carefully mix with fruit cocktail and syrup, thinned with cold water to taste.

Very Quick Recipes

In an effort to make a New Year resolution to eat properly without eating out all of the time, I'm trying to alter my approach to cooking. I haven't quite figured it out, but ideally any dish that requires few ingredients, or ingredients with long shelf lives (so I can minimize grocery store trips), that requires little preparation, and that uses few dishes (so I can minimize cleaning time) would be great. That seems nearly impossible now that I write it out, but... maybe I can figure something out.

• Cream biscuits
• Congee! (Juk)

A Collection of Recipes

• Japanese Potato Salad
• Penne di Funghi con Pollo e Salsiccia
• Churros and chocolate
• Egg salad
• Shrimp and walnuts
• Chinese asparagus
  
• Mushroom Carbonara Pasta
• Chocolate Cake Roll
• Apple Cake
• Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Cake
  
• No-Bake Cheesecake
• Japanese Tuna Spaghetti
• Red Potatoes, Green Beans and Mushrooms
• Honey Ginger Salmon
• Japanese Chicken Rice

Apple Pie Bars

Recipe from the velvet bird.

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
pinch of ground cloves
1 stick of butter, softened
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 TBSP of vanilla
2 apples, cored and diced (don't bother peeling them& granny smith is best, but any variety will do!)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and spices.
In a large bowl (or your stand mixer) beat butter and sugars together until light&fluffy.
Add in eggs one at a time on low speed until completely mixed together and smooth.
Add in a little flour mixture at a time on low, mix until all of the flour is incorporated.
The dough will be super thick, more like the consistency of cookie dough so don't worry if its hard to mix!
Stir in apple chunks.

Spread dough evenly into your greased pan, you can use a spatula to help get it even or I just sprayed my hands with a little of the nonstick spray and flattened everything out that way.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, it will be a yummy golden brown looking.
Let cool completely before cutting into them.

Carrot Cake

I still want to bake a cake this break

Recipe from David Lebovitz.

One 8- or 9-inch (20-23cm) double layer cake

Ingredients
For the cake layers:

4 large eggs, at room temperature
¼ cup (60ml) vegetable oil
¾ c (180ml) melted brown butter (or more oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups (280g) all-purpose flour
2 cups (400g) sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
generous pinch each of nutmeg and cloves
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups (13 ounces/375g) loosely packed grated carrot
1/2 cup (60g) raisins, preferably golden raisins (sultanas)

For the frosting:

1 pound (450g) cream cheese, at room temperature
4 oz (110g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2-3 cups (240-360g) powdered sugar, sifted
a few drops of vanilla extract

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter and flour two 8- or 9-inch (20-23cm) cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.

2. To make the cake layers, sift together the flour, sugar, spices, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. With a handheld mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the eggs until they are pale and frothy (they need not increase dramatically in volume). With the mixer running, drizzle in the oil and melted butter, then the vanilla.

3. Add the dry ingredients to the eggs and mix carefully until just combined. The paddle will accomplish this easily but if you only have a hand held mixer you may want to just do it by hand.

4. Fold in the carrots and raisins, then divide the batter between the two pans. Bake 30-35 minutes, until the surface springs back when gently touched. Cool the cakes completely before frosting.

5. To make the frosting, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Slowly add the powdered sugar (do this on low speed to avoid a dust cloud) and mix until light and silky. Add the vanilla.

Serving and Storage: This cake is best served at room temperature but will keep for a few days stored in the refrigerator.

Cake

Today I was struck by the random idea that I'd love to bake a plain cake and bake it well. Here are 2 recipes - one for an intense, professional buttercream frosting that sounds amazing and another for a strawberry chiffon cake that looks wonderful!

Recipes from Washington Post and Diamonds for Dessert.

Buttercream Frosting

Makes about 4 cups (generously frosts a three-layer cake)

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups whole or low-fat milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
24 tablespoons (3 sticks) unsalted butter, soft but cool, cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Whisk together the sugar and flour in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan.

Add the milk and cream; cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, whisking, until the mixture starts bubbling and becomes thick.

Transfer the mixture to the bowl of stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer. Beat on high speed until cool.

Reduce the speed to low and add the butter in several increments; beat until thoroughly incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 5 to 6 minutes, until the frosting is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and beat to incorporate.

If the frosting is too soft, transfer the bowl to the refrigerator to chill slightly, then beat again until it is the proper consistency. If the frosting is too firm, place the bowl over a pot of barely bubbling water and beat with a wooden spoon until it is the proper consistency.

Strawberry Chiffon Cake

Ingredients
6 egg whites
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 egg yolks
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
1 t vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
3 t baking powder
pinch of salt

Whipped Cream Ingredients
4 T sugar, divided
2 cups heavy whipping cream, cold and divided
1 t gelatin
1 T water
1 pint strawberries (+ kiwis, canned peaches, etc.)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the egg whites in a bowl and use an electric mixer to beat them until soft peaks begin to form. Once this happens, gradually add 1/2 cup sugar while mixing until stiff peaks form. Set aside. In another bowl, mix the egg yolks, vegetable oil, water, and vanilla together. Set aside. In another bowl, mix the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, salt, and 1 cup sugar. Mix the egg yolk mixture with the dry ingredient mixture till smooth. Then gently fold in the egg white/sugar mixture.

Gently pour the mixture into 2-8" nonstick sprayed or parchment paper lined cake pans and smooth the tops. Bake the pans for around 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean and the top springs back when you press on it. Remove the cake from the pan and let cool on a wire rack.

Strawberries: Wash and dry the strawberries. Cut off the leaf portion of the berries. Keep a few prettier strawberries to top the cake (I kept 6 for a 6-inch cake, so if you make an 8-inch cake, keep 8 berries) and set them aside for now. Take the rest of the berries and thinly slice them.

[NOTE: In addition, you can also use other similarly textured fruit, like sliced kiwi, or slices of canned peaches with the strawberries.]

Whipped Cream: Chill two large metal bowls and your beaters in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. Place the teaspoon of gelatin and tablespoon of water in a pan. Mix and let sit for 5 minutes. In the meantime, pour 1 cup of heavy whipping cream and 2 T sugar in the chilled metal bowl. Beat on high power until you get soft peaks. Stop.

Heat your pan of gelatin and water over low heat until it turns liquid and the gelatin is just dissolved in the water (it should be warm, not hot, if hot, let cool a little). Scrape this liquid into your whipped cream. Continue beating the cream until stiff peaks form. Then stop, cover this with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Next, in the other chilled bowl, add 1 cup of heavy cream with 2 T sugar. Beat on high until you get stiff peaks in the cream. This cream without gelatin will be used first when assembling the cake layers.

[NOTE: In the final decoration steps, the whipped cream with gelatin is used in order to ensure that the piped design keeps. If you prefer whipping all the cream in one step, just double the amount of gelatin and water and add it in after you get soft peaks while beating all the cream. (I did it in two because I prefer not having so much gelatin in my whipped cream and I like working with smaller amounts of cream at a time).]

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Ariel made some amazing pumpkin chocolate chip cookies a week and a half ago. I am attempting to replicate them with this recipe...

Recipe from Joy the Baker.

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola or corn oil
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips, or any chip you like

Directions
Position a rack in the middle of the oven . Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and butter the paper.

Stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until smooth and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix the oil, pumpkin, and vanilla until blended. Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chips.

Using an ice cream scoop with a 1/4-cup capacity, scoop mounds of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies at least 2 1/2-inches apart. You could also simply use a 1/4-cup measuring cup if you don’t have a scoop. Use a thin metal spatula to smooth and flatten the rounds.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, about 16 minutes. Cool them on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool cimpletely.

Dust the cooled cookies lightly with powdered sugar. The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

If I want to make whoopie pies out of these cookies...

Filling Ingredients
1/2 stick butter
4 oz. cream cheese
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions
Mix together melted butter, brown sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, pie spice, pumpkin puree and eggs until smooth. Add flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix well until a thick batter forms. Drop by spoonful onto parchment lined cookie sheets. You need 24 cakes for 12 pies. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 - 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cakes comes out clean. Cool completely and make filling.

Blend softened butter and cream cheese with vanilla. Add powdered sugar and stir until smooth. Fold in chocolate chips. Spread on 12 cakes and top each with another cake.

Oatmeal Creme Pies

I want oatmeal creme pies!!
Recipe from Marzipan.

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 cups uncooked quick-cooking oats (I used the regular oats instead of the quick)

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°.

Beat butter and sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add egg and vanilla, beating well.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour and next 3 ingredients in a bowl, stirring well. Add oats; stir well. Add to butter mixture; stir until well blended. Drop by rounded tablespoons 2 inches apart onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake at 375° for 10 minutes. Cool on pan 2 to 3 minutes. Remove cookies from pan; cool on wire racks.

Spread 1 tablespoon Cream Filling over each bottom side of half of cookies; top with remaining cookies, right side up.

Creme Filling Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined, scraping bowl. Beat on high until light and fluffy.

Chocolate Mousse Cake

Wish I had time to bake.

Recipe from David Lebovitz.

For similar results, use chocolate that is approximately 52% cacao solids and whip the egg whites pretty firm before folding them in. Line the cake plate with a clean cloth or thin tea towel. Best eaten 2 days after baking.

250 g (9 ounces) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
45 ml (3 tablespoons) water
190 grams (7 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3 tablespoons sugar, preferably light brown
4 large eggs, separated

1. In a medium saucepan, warm the chocolate, water, and butter over low heat, stirring, until melted and smooth.

2. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar.

3. Fill a basin or the sink with a few inches of very cold water and beat the chocolate for a few minutes until the consistency of brownie batter.

(The original recipe said “blanchiment” which I thought meant “whiten” but when she did it, it didn’t whiten, or even really lighten at all. But I’d still do it.)

4. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Fold the whites into the chocolate mixture until smooth.

5. Moisten well a muslin cloth or a clean (lint free) tea towel, and line a 9-inch (23 cm) round glass or earthenware baking dish such as a pie plate, with it, letting the sides overhang the edges over the dish.

(Note: Although she normally uses and recommends a round dish, we used a square baking dish which worked fine.)

6. Scrape the batter into the dish and smooth the top. Lift the sides of the damp cloth and fold it over the batter, enveloping it.

7. Let chill for 2 days before serving.

To serve, open up the towel and invert onto a serving plate.

Grape Pie

This is such a GENIUS idea. Why ARE there no grape pies? It's baffling! Apparently it's super juicy, so the crust gets a little soggy, but I hope I get to try this anyway. I do like grapes.

Recipe from The Kitchn.

Ingredients
2 unbaked pie crusts, such as those from this recipe
Approximately 2 1/2 pounds green grapes (weighed before stemming)
1 cup white sugar, plus extra for top crust
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup elderberry flower syrup
1/4 cup dark honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Directions
Heat the oven to 425°F. Pat one pie crust into a 9-inch pie pan. Place the pie pan into the freezer while you prep the filling.

Pluck the grapes off their stems and place them in a large saucepan or pot. Add the sugar, nutmeg, lemon juice, elderberry flower syrup, and honey. Turn the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently. When the mixture is quite warm to the touch, whisk in the salt and cornstarch. Cook, whisking frequently, until the mixture is boiling and thickened slightly.

Remove from the heat and use a slotted spoon to remove the grapes from the liquid. Put all the grapes into the frozen pie crust, then pour in enough of the syrup liquid to fill the pie crust. Leave about 1/2 inch space between the top of the crust and the liquid. Top the grape mixture with the pieces of butter. Press the second disc of pie dough on top of the pan, and crimp the edges together. Cut a few small slits in the top, and sprinkle the top crust generously with sugar.

Bake for 30 minutes or until crust is well-browned and filling is bubbly. Let cool completely before serving.

Chocolate Mousse

My friend Steven mentioned that he likes chocolate mousse, and as he will be my like, only friend in Philadelphia, I figure it will be best to get on his good side. I found this recipe on a French blog and assumed it, therefore, HAD to be great. Through the joys of Google Translate, the recipe is included below (in English).

Recipe from Sooishi.

Serves 5
Ingredients
170g dark chocolate
80 g of whole milk
1 egg yolk
4 large egg whites
2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Directions
Break up the chocolate into small pieces using a large knife.
Boil the milk. Remove from heat, add chocolate and stir in crushed with a wooden spoon until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Once the mixture is lukewarm, add egg yolk.
Beat the egg whites until stiff with a pinch of salt.
Halfway through, when the whites begin to be strengthened slightly and form flexible ridges, gradually add sugar while continuing to whisk.
The whites should be firm and shiny.
Add one quarter of the white chocolate mixture, beating strongly to make the mixture smooth and then add the remaining whites gently and very gently to avoid breaking them.
This step is very important and should be done with great delicacy.
Once the whites and chocolate are delicately blended, the mixture should be homogeneous and must not contain traces of egg white.
Pour the mixture into the container chosen.
Place in refrigerator for 1 hour at least, but it is better to let the foam take a little longer in the refrigerator for a frothy texture.

Chocolate Mint Chip Cookies

In honor of SLO's Cowboy Cookies...

Recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod.

Makes 3 dozen cookies.

Ingredients
1-1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup dutch-process cocoa-make sure to use dutch process for a rich/dark flavor
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cubed and room temp
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/3 cup milk
1 bag of mint chips-I used Guittard

Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line baking sheets with silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

Whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa, and set aside. Beat the butter on medium-high until light and add sugars, creaming well. Add the vanilla and beat until smooth. Add the flour mixture in 2 batches, alternately with the milk in one batch, mixing well. Stir in the mint chips. Chill dough for at least 15 minutes. You can make the dough a few hours or 2 days before baking and it will be fine. Just wrap it up and keep in the fridge.

Scoop the dough onto a parchment- or silpat-lined cookie sheet, press down on them slightly, and bake for 14-15 minutes…for a normal size cookie. Let the cookies cool completely on the cookie sheet, they will set up as they cool. Store in an air-tight container, they will stay fresh for a couple of days.

Deep-Fried Bananas

Anyone who has gone with me to a Thai restaurant where a fried banana dessert (with ice cream! and honey!) is served knows that I love this dessert!

Recipe from Seasaltwithfood.


Ingredients
12 Ripe Bananas, peeled, halved lengthwise and cut into 2 pieces (the sweet Burro banana or plantains)
Peanut or Vegetable Oil for deep-frying

120 g All Purpose Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Sugar
½ tsp Sea Salt
25 g Desiccated Coconut
2 Tbsp Sesame Seeds
300 ml Water

Directions
Combine all the ingredients for batter and mix well.



Pour enough oil into a saucepan or a in deep-fry on medium to high heat. Coat the bananas with the batter and fry until golden brown in color. Remove the fried bananas with a slotted spoon and drain on papers and serve warm.

Apple and Cinnamon Mini Pies

There is no way I could have resisted.

Recipe from Technicolor Kitchen.

Ingredients
Pastry:
1 cup + 1 tablespoon (150g) all purpose flour
1 ½ tablespoons caster sugar
1/3 cup (75g) cold unsalted butter, chopped
1-1 ½ tablespoons iced water

Filling:
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large apple, peeled, cored and finely diced
2 ½ tablespoons caster sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoon golden raisins
½ teaspoon corn starch
½ teaspoon water
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten with 1 teaspoon milk
granulated sugar, for sprinkling

Directions
Start by making the pastry: process the flour, sugar and butter in a food processor until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. White the motor is running, add enough iced water to form a smooth dough and process until just combined. Knead the dough lightly, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Now, prepare the filling: place the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook until melted. Add the apples, sugar, cinnamon and raisins and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Cook for 5 minutes or until the apples are just tender. Place the corn starch and the water in a bowl and stir to combine. Add to the apple mixture and cook, stirring, for a further minute. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F; butter four 9cm tartlet pans.
Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface or between two sheets of non stick baking paper, until 3mm thick, and cut eight 12cm circles from it. Line the prepared pans with four of the dough circles – make sure you leave a tiny overhang of dough. Divide the filling between each pan and top with the remaining dough – make sure you seal the filling well inside the tartlets, sticking the overhand of dough and dough circle together, pressing the edges with the back of a spoon; otherwise the lid might get loose after the pies are baked.
Use a small kitchen knife to trim the excess and to score the tops of the tartlets. Brush with the egg wash and sprinkle with the sugar.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden.

Makes 4

Lemon Shortbread Sandwich Cookies

We have so many lemons grown in our backyard, so I'm trying to gather up lemon recipes to try out while I can!

Recipe from Heidi Bakes.

Ingredients
2 cups unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons lemon extract (I always use 1 tsp lemon extract & 1 tsp vanilla)
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 cups flour

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream butter until light & fluffy. Gradually add both sugars and beat until fluffy, stopping occasionally to scrape the bowl. Beat in lemon zest, yolks, extract & salt. Add flour & beat until just blended.
At this point, you can either stuff the dough into your spritz cookie gun and shoot them on out OR you can simply roll the dough into a small ball and flatten with a glass that has been dipped into either powdered sugar or granulated sugar.
Bake until the cookie are barely brown along the edge. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool.
For the lemon butter cream, use 2 sticks of butter, several squirts of lemon juice and keep adding powdered sugar until get consistency desired.

White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies

I always seem to have these ingredients lying around, so this would be the perfect cookie to bake spontaneously!

Recipe from The Baker's Daughter.

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup plus 1 tsp butter
½ cup sugar
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp salt
1 cup rolled oats
½ tsp baking powder
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup pecans
3/4 cup white chocolate

Directions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In medium bowl, using a stand or hand mixer beat the butter and sugars until creamy, approximately for 1 minute. Beat in egg and vanilla.
In small bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt and rolled oats. Add flour mixture gradually, blending thoroughly. Stir in cranberries, pecans and chocolate.
Roll tablespoonfuls (or 1/4 of a cup) of dough into balls with hands.
Bake until the cookies are pale golden brown and cookies are soft, 12 to 15 minutes (cook for 15-20 minutes for the larger sized cookies).
If making ice cream sandwiches, let the cookies cool fully before spreading the softened ice cream. Freeze until you are ready to use them.

Easy Peach Pie

Yes, more food recipes to save for later...

Recipe adapted from Food Tale.

Ingredients:
1 big can of peach
1 cup sugar
5 tablespoon normal flour
200 gram light sour cream

Arrange the peaches in a pie dish.
In a big bowl, mix together sour cream, 3/4 cup sugar and flour.
Pour the mixture on top of the peaches. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar on top.
Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 35-40 minutes or until brown/golden.

Samoa Cookies

Recipe from Sweet Cakes Bakeshop.

Samoas Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
up to 2 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350F.
Cream together butter and sugar in a large bowl. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt at a low speed, next, the vanilla and milk, adding in the milk only as needed to make the dough come together without being sticky (you may not need any at all). The dough should come together into a soft, pliable ball. Add in a bit of extra flour if your dough seems sticky.

It's easiest to roll the dough out in 2 or 3 batches (between pieces of wax (or parchment) paper to about 1/4-inch thickness (or a little thinner) using a 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter to make rounds. Place on a parchment lined (or on silicone mat) baking sheet and make a hole in the center. I used the small end of a large round piping tip. Nicole comments that you can use a knife, or the end of a wide straw, to cut a smaller center hole. Repeat until the dough is used up (it's okay to re-roll, this dough is shortbread-like and very forgiving.)

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes, until bottoms are very lightly golden brown around the edges.

Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet, to allow them to firm up slightly, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Topping:
3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
12-ounces good-quality chewy caramels
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons milk
8 ounces dark or semisweet chocolate (or milk chocolate, if you prefer)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees (F)

Spread coconut evenly on a rimmed baking sheet and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Watch carefully, especially near the end of toasting time; the coconut toasts very quickly once it begins to become golden.

Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.
Using the spatula or a small offset spatula, spread topping on cooled cookies, using about 2-3 teaspoons per cookie. Reheat caramel for a few seconds in the microwave if it begins to firm up, to make it soft and spreadable once again.

While topping sets up, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. (I melted mine stovetop using double boiler method.) Dip the base of each cookie into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment paper (I used silicone baking mats instead). Transfer all remaining chocolate into a piping bag or a ziplock bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle finished cookies with chocolate. (Melt a bit of additional chocolate, if there is not quite enough for each cookie.)

Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.