Thin Mint Star Cookies

I bet you noticed something is a little different.  No, I didn't get a haircut.  No, I didn't lose 10 pounds (I wish!).  But YES, thank you for noticing, I did redesign The Ginger Cook.  I obviously wanted to keep the whole ginger (read: redhead) color present, but I wanted to strip everything down.  I worked to achieve this by making the background a crisp white and the accent colors two shades of "ginger" and gray.  I made all the "badges" and the header using pixelmator (i.e. Mac photoshop) and in my perfect little dream world, I'm going to update the banner for every season.  Let's see if this will actually happen or not.

All in all, I would say I am really happy with the redesign!  Yes, there are still some things that need to be worked out, but quite honestly, I really need to take a break from coding.  I am not a coder and will never be.  Screaming at my laptop at 2am happened more times than I would like to admit.  There was a lot of "BLERG!  Why won't the font just change??'  U of M, the few web design classes I took did not prepare me for doing it all on my own.  I'm sorry, but it's the truth.  I guess we can just call it even and say you gave me the life skills to be able to be mildly web savvy all by myself.

I would like you apologize, though, for posting a ('holiday') cookie recipe well after Christmas and while most of you are in the throes of your "get healthy" New Years resolutions.  I swear, I'm not trying to be cruel!  I'm trying to be healthy too.  Expect a lot of soups and lentil concoctions in the upcoming weeks.

Though, aren't thin mints good for the soul year round?  Yes, that's right.  These cookies taste almost exactly like thin mints!  We can't be completely dependent on Girl Scouts, they control the cookie market too heavily.  Break out of their controlling grasps and make to your own girl scout cookies - show them who's boss!!  Girl Scouts, I mean you no harm.  I was one until I was in middle school, but your cookies are too good to be seasonal.  It's very frustrating.




Thin Mints

Adapted from Martha Stewart Holiday Cookie Magazine 2010
Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 3/4 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
• 8 large candy canes, crushed
• 1 pound white chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 pound dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed for 1 minute. Reduce speed to medium-low, and add egg, then yolk, beating well after each addition. Beat in peppermint extract. Slowly add flour mixture, and beat until just incorporated. Shape dough into 2 disks, wrap each in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days).
2. Roll out 1 disk of dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Using a 2-inch round cutter (or a shot glass, like my classy self), cut out circles, and place 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Roll and cut scraps once. Freeze cookies until firm, about 15 minutes. Repeat with remaining disk.
3. Bake until cookies are dry to the touch, about 12 minutes. Transfer parchment, with cookies, to wire racks, and let cool.
4. Melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of gently simmering water. Remove from heat. Dunk cookies into melted chocolate. Using a fork, turn to coat, let excess drip off, and gently scrape bottom against edge of bowl. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets, and sprinkle with crushed candy cane.  Refrigerate until ready to serve (they stay fresher longer that way).