Hermit Cookies

Why this recipe works:

Most recipes for Hermit Cookies we tested involved creaming the butter, but this produced dry, biscuitlike cookies. Melting the butter delivered a chewier, moister cookie. We took melting one step further by cooking the butter in a saucepan until light brown and fragrant, which added a nutty flavor to the hermits. Tasters settled on the simple, yet potent, combination of cinnamon, allspice, and ginger. Adding these spices to the browned butter bloomed their natural flavor, which allowed us to use less. This avoided a dusty texture from too much ground spice. We steeped the raisins in melted butter to soften them, and pureed them with crystallized ginger into a rough paste. This helped distribute raisin flavor into every bite, while the pureed ginger lent pungent sweetness and chew. When it came to shaping them, we found that hermits baked in logs and then sliced were much chewier and moister. (less)

Makes about 18 cookies

For this recipe, we prefer using mild (or light) molasses instead of the robust or blackstrap varieties.

Ingredients

• 1 cup raisins
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 2 cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup packed (5 1/4 ounces) dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 tablespoons orange juice
• 3/4 cup (3 ounces) confectioners' sugar

Instructions

1. 1. Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Process raisins and ginger in food processor until mixture sticks together and only small pieces remain, about 10 seconds. Transfer mixture to large bowl.
2. 2. Heat butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat, swirling pan occasionally, until nutty brown in color, about 10 minutes. Stir in cinnamon and allspice and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Stir butter mixture into raisin mixture until well combined; let cool to room temperature.
3. 3. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in bowl. Stir brown sugar, molasses, and eggs into cooled butter-raisin mixture until incorporated. Fold in flour mixture (dough will be very sticky) and refrigerate, covered, until firm, at least 1 1/2 hours or up to 24 hours.
4. 4. Divide dough into quarters. Transfer 1 piece of dough to lightly floured surface and roll into 10-inch log. Transfer to prepared sheet and use ruler to neatly square off sides. (Each sheet will contain 2 logs.) Repeat with remaining dough. Bake until only shallow indentation remains on edges when touched (center will appear slightly soft), 15 to 20 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let logs cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes; transfer parchment to wire racks and let cool completely.
5. 5. Whisk orange juice and confectioners’ sugar in small bowl until smooth. Drizzle glaze onto cooled logs and let sit until glaze hardens, about 15 minutes. Cut logs into 2-inch bars and serve.

Really Good Brownies

Really Good Brownies
America’s Test Kitchen
Makes twenty-four 2-inch brownies
For the chewiest texture, it is important to let the brownies cool thoroughly before cutting. If your baking dish is glass, cool the brownies 10 minutes, then remove them promptly from the pan (otherwise, the superior heat retention of glass can lead to overbaking). While any high-quality chocolate can be used in this recipe, our preferred brands of bittersweet chocolate are Callebaut Intense Dark Chocolate L-60-40NV and Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Bar. Our preferred brand of unsweetened chocolate is Scharffen Berger. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
1/3 (1 ounce) cup Dutch-processed cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso (optional)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons boiling water
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped (see note)
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups (17½ ounces) sugar
1 3/4 cups (8¾ ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon table salt
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, cut into ½-inch pieces (see note)
1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Make a foil sling using the following steps: Cut 18-inch length foil and fold lengthwise to 8-inch width. Fit foil into length of 13 by 9-inch baking pan, pushing it into corners and up sides of pan; allow excess to overhang pan edges. Cut 14-inch length foil and fit into width of pan in the same manner, perpendicular to the first sheet (if using extra-wide foil, fold second sheet lengthwise to 12-inch width). Spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Whisk cocoa, espresso powder (if using), and boiling water together in large bowl until smooth. Add unsweetened chocolate and whisk until chocolate is melted. Whisk in melted butter and oil. (Mixture may look curdled.) Add eggs, yolks, and vanilla and continue to whisk until smooth and homogeneous. Whisk in sugar until fully incorporated. Add flour and salt and mix with rubber spatula until combined. Fold in bittersweet chocolate pieces.
3. Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake until toothpick inserted halfway between edge and center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer pan to wire rack and cool 1½ hours.
4. Using foil overhang, lift brownies from pan. Return brownies to wire rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve.

German Chocolate Cake with Coconut-Pecan Filling

Published January 1, 2005.  

Serves 12 to 16.  

Why this recipe works:

We wanted a streamlined German chocolate cake recipe that would be less sweet and more chocolaty than the original. After testing, we discovered that the texture of the cake actually improved when we used whole eggs instead of laboriously separating the eggs, beating the whites, and folding them into the batter. We enhanced the chocolate flavor with a combination of cocoa powder and high-quality semisweet or bittersweet chocolate. Finally, we adjusted the level and proportions of the sugar (both brown and white) and butter in the cake and filling, and toasted the pecans, for a German chocolate cake that was easier to make and had better texture and flavor than the original.

When you assemble the cake, the filling should be cool or cold (or room temperature, at the very warmest). To be time-efficient, first make the filling, then use the refrigeration time to prepare, bake, and cool the cakes. The toasted pecans are stirred into the filling just before assembly to keep them from becoming soft and soggy.

Ingredients

• Filling
• 4 egg yolks
• 1can evaporated milk (12 ounces)
• 1cup granulated sugar (7 ounces)
• 1/4cup packed light brown sugar (1 3/4 ounces)
• 6tablespoons unsalted butter (3/4 stick), cut into 6 pieces
• 1/8teaspoon table salt
• 2teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/3cups sweetened shredded coconut (7 ounces)
• 1 1/2cups finely chopped pecans (6 1/2 ounces), toasted on baking sheet in 350-degree oven until fragrant and browned, about 8 minutes
• Cake
• 4ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate , chopped fine
• 1/4cup Dutch-processed cocoa , sifted
• 1/2cup boiling water
• 2cups unbleached all-purpose flour (10 ounces), plus additional for dusting cake pans
• 3/4teaspoon baking soda
• 12tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), softened
• 1cup granulated sugar (7 ounces)
• 2/3cup packed light brown sugar (about 4 3/4 ounces)
• 3/4teaspoon table salt
• 4 large eggs , room temperature
• 1teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4cup sour cream , room temperature

Instructions

1. 1. FOR THE FILLING: Whisk yolks in medium saucepan; gradually whisk in evaporated milk. Add sugars, butter, and salt and cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until mixture is boiling, frothy, and slightly thickened, about 6 minutes. Transfer mixture to bowl, whisk in vanilla, then stir in coconut. Cool until just warm, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until cool or cold, at least 2 hours or up to 3 days. (Pecans are stirred in just before cake assembly.)
2. 2. FOR THE CAKE: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine chocolate and cocoa in small bowl; pour boiling water over and let stand to melt chocolate, about 2 minutes. Whisk until smooth; set aside until cooled to room temperature.
3. 3. Meanwhile, spray two 9-inch-round by 2-inch-high straight-sided cake pans with nonstick cooking spray; line bottoms with parchment or waxed paper rounds. Spray paper rounds, dust pans with flour, and knock out excess. Sift flour and baking soda into medium bowl or onto sheet of parchment or waxed paper.
4. 4. In bowl of standing mixer, beat butter, sugars, and salt at medium-low speed until sugar is moistened, about 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until mixture is light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula halfway through. With mixer running at medium speed, add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down bowl halfway through. Beat in vanilla; increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 45 seconds. With mixer running at low speed, add chocolate, then increase speed to medium and beat until combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down bowl once (batter may appear broken). With mixer running at low speed, add dry ingredients in 3 additions, alternating with sour cream (in 2 additions), beginning and ending with dry ingredients, and beating in each addition until barely combined. After final flour addition, beat on low until just combined, then stir batter by hand with rubber spatula, scraping bottom and sides of bowl, to ensure that batter is homogenous (batter will be thick). Divide batter evenly between prepared cake pans; spread batter to edges of pans with rubber spatula and smooth surfaces.
5. 5. Bake cakes until toothpick inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool in pans 10 minutes, then invert cakes onto greased wire rack; peel off and discard paper rounds. Cool cakes to room temperature before filling, about 1 hour. (Cooled cakes can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 1 day.)
6. 6. TO ASSEMBLE: Stir toasted pecans into chilled filling. Set one cake on serving platter or cardboard round cut slightly smaller than cake, and second cake on work surface (or leave on wire rack). With serrated knife held so that blade is parallel with work surface, use sawing motion to cut each cake into two even layers. Starting with first cake, carefully lift off top layer and set aside. Using icing spatula, distribute about 1 cup filling evenly on cake, spreading filling to very edge of cake and leveling surface. Carefully place upper cake layer on top of filling; repeat using remaining filling and cake layers. If necessary, dust crumbs off platter; serve or refrigerate cake, covered loosely with foil, up to 4 hours (if refrigerated longer than 2 hours, let cake stand at room temperature 15 to 20 minutes before serving).

Step-by-Step

Assembling the German Chocolate Cake

1. With serrated knife, halve each cake evenly through equator.

2. Carefully lift off upper cake layer and set aside.

3. Evenly distribute about 1 cup filling on bottom cake layer.

4. Place next cake layer on top and repeat process.