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Yes, I am still in the process of developing the perfect dessert for the Today Show Thanksgiving contest. I have always been super detail-oriented and somewhat of a perfectionist, so when I put my mind to something, I can’t submit it until I am completely satisfied with the results. This is why you can often find me in the Donnelly computer lab until all hours of the night tweaking projects.
In this case, however, my kitchen was the lab. I’ve spent at least seven hours baking and experimenting over the past week because of my compulsive need to get my “vision” to materialize correctly. Finally, at on Friday morning, it all paid off! I made Thanksgiving S’mores that were fantastic!
I decided to stray from the cookie concept because I thought it might be too plain and conventional for the Today Show. The s’mores idea developed out of my desire to make something simple enough for my readers to execute, yet creative and tasty enough for the judges of the Today Show to appreciate as well. Add some Thanksgiving elements like cranberry sauce and cinnamon, and you’ve got yourself a winner! Hopefully…
Now that I’ve perfected all three recipes and chosen which one I’m going to submit, I’ll post them here for you all to enjoy as well. Try them out and let me know if you think I made the right choice!
Apple Cinnamon Cookies
Adapted recipe and photos by Culinary Chronicles of a College Kid.blogspot.com
Original chocolate cookie recipe by Giada de Laurentiis
Servings: 2 dozen cookies
Ingredients for the cookies
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 cups and 2 tbsp. of flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp apple pie spice
- 1 cup finely chopped apples (preferably
Fuji
Ingredients for the sugar glaze
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp softened butter
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp water
For the cookies:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Combine the sugar, egg, vanilla, and butter in a bowl and mix well. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and apple pie spice. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients in three different segments, mixing in between each addition. Once they are combined, add the apples and fold into the mixture.
Take a tablespoon-sized ball of dough and place it on an ungreased cookie sheet, gently pushing the center down to flatten it slightly. Repeat the process, leaving about an inch in between each cookie. Place in the preheated oven for 14 minutes. Let cool for about five minutes, and then place on a cooling rack for another ten minutes.
For the glaze:
Add the sugar, butter, vanilla, and water in a bowl and mix well until a glaze consistency is formed. Drizzle over the cookies and enjoy!
White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies
Adapted recipe and photos by Culinary Chronicles of a College Kid.blogspot.com
Original chocolate cookie recipe by Giada de Laurentiis
Serves: 2 dozen cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 cups and 2 tbsp. of flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine the sugar, egg, vanilla, and butter in a bowl and mix well. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients in three different segments, mixing in between each addition. Once they are combined, add the cranberries and white chocolate chips and fold into the mixture.
Thanksgiving S’mores
Original photos and recipe by Culinary Chronicles of a College Kid.blogspot.com
Serves: 12 s’mores
Ingredients
- 2 cups of mini marshmallows
- 12 graham crackers
- ¾ cup of cranberry sauce
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon
First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then, spread about a teaspoon of cranberry sauce on half of a graham cracker. Put a few (about 10 or so) mini marshmallows on top of the cranberry sauce, then place the other half of the graham cracker on top. Place on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and repeat the process for the remaining s’mores.
Put the baking sheet into the preheated oven for about 6-7 minutes, allowing the marshmallows to melt slightly.
As these are cooking, set up a double boiler to melt the chocolate. Place the white chocolate chips in the double boiler and continuously stir until it is completely melted. (FYI a double boiler is a pot of simmering water with a bowl resting on top of it. Pour the white chocolate in the bowl and let the steam from the simmering water heat the chocolate. Make sure the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water). This will take a few minutes, and the s’mores should be out of the oven and cooling at this point.
Add the cinnamon to the melted white chocolate and mix well. Frost the top of the s’mores with the white chocolate and cinnamon mixture. If you prefer to drizzle the chocolate on top, that is effective as well. Let the s’mores sit for about 45 minutes until the chocolate has fully cooled before plating and serving. Add some dried cranberries on the plate for presentation!
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