Turtle Thumbprint Cookies

"Potchky" is a Yiddish word I heard as a kid. I don't know if this is the correct meaning, but in my house, it referred to something that required a lot of small steps and fussing around to make. These cookies were a lot of  "potchkying" but worth every little second.
I made them for one of the many desserts for my granddaughter's 4th birthday and they went over really big! More with adults than children( this is the cake i made for the kiddies), but well received with the young ones as well.

The "potchkying" steps were making the dough, chilling, rolling into balls, dipping in egg whites, rolling in chopped pecans (had to toast them too, so that's another step), making a thumbprint indentation, after 8 minutes in the oven, making the indentation again, baking another 4 minutes, removing from the oven and making the last thumbprint impression to hold the filling. More "potchkying"- make the caramel filling, fill the thumbprint and top with a whole, roasted (another step!) pecan on each.

It may sound like I'm complaining, but understand- I'm not. I love the whole process. It's just not the same as mixing a batter, pouring into a pan and shoving in the oven. These babies require a bit extra attention and TLC, but are exquisite when done. Worth every second of effort!

You can find the recipe here, at Baked Sunday Mornings! Enjoy!

Sugar Baby

I've always wanted to explore the world of candy- beyond eating it, that is! I have to admit to being a sugar lover. Tried many times to kick the habit, but it's more powerful than me. I think , though, in recent years , I've at least managed to cut down my sugar intake, but what the heck- only pass this road called life once, and as long as I don't overdo it, I'll enjoy every last bite.

I came across this new book Sugarbaby, by the wonderful Gesine Bullock-Prado. It's not just a "cookbook"- she writes in a way that anyone can understand the workings and magic of sugar even if you've never(like me) dealt with it before ( other than in baking and that's really different). Her writing is humorous and fun to read. I ordered the book and when I received it, just sat down and read the whole thing from cover to cover. I continue to read it and learn more about working with sugar each time. You can check out Gesine's site for the book at http://www.sugarbabycookbook.com/. She has a lots of extra tips and ideas that aren't in the book. She also has another great blog called Confections of a Closet Baker which is definitely worth following!

ANYHOO.... my first go at candy(this is the one I saw pictures of that made me buy the book.) Does anyone remember those bullseye caramel creams? I certainly do! Can't remember the brand name.

These Fleur de Sel Spirals are a vanilla cream fondant wrapped in a fleur de sel caramel. The caramel would be fantastic on it's own , but that touch of salt just takes it to a whole other level! Just like the original but 100x better. 

The process was nowhere near as difficult as I had imagined and I was soooo proud of myself! They came out great and I wrapped them individually in squares of waxed paper. Can't wait to try another project from the book. Enjoy!

Happy Mother's Day to all Mommies, Grandmas, mommies-to -be etc. ,etc.!!

TWD Caramel Crunch Bars- Candy or Cookie?

I love these kinds of bars- or are they cookies- or are they candy? Probably a combination of all three. One thing I do know is that they are sooo yummy! I had to get them out of the house beofre I ate the whole batch, so I decided to take them to my students and let them be the judges. Now, just to bring them in for no reason and let them eat away; well I suppose I could have done that, but I thought it would be better to put it under the guise of a "prize" for a Quiz Bowl type of activity. They were given a group of questions, divided into groups and told that the first group to finish with the most correct answers would get the prize. OK, so I knew in advance that everyone was going to get them , but I didn't let them on to my plan.

Towards the end of class when everyone finished, I announced that not one team had won, but all of them. (Did they really think I was capable of handing out goodies to one and not the others?!) I explained to the class that I am a member of an online baking club and from now on they will be my "taste testers". ( Yeah, they were real upset about that news!) Great way to get my baking done and not leave it in the house, since my waistline is definitely suffering the consequences of my efforts.

The verdict was happily very clear this time. It was an overwhelming thumbs up! They just about finished the whole box ( I think they were all just a bit shy about being the one to take the last one or two!)

As far as the actual making of the bars, the base was very easy and Dorie's description of the bubbling in the oven was perfect. I found that pressing the dough down in the pan was a bit sticky and messy but nothing major that couldn't be dealt with. I don't get Heath Bar Bits or even Heath Bars themselves ( this country doesn't know what it is missing!!), so I had been looking for an alternative. Luckily I found some Heath Bars in a specialty store that brings a lot of imported foods, so I just crushed two candy bars and sprinkled them over the top. Worked super!!