Craisins | I Can Cook That

Dark Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies

This is my third year participating in the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap!

In its fourth year, the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap helps raise money for Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, a national non-profit organization committed to funding new therapies used in the fight against pediatric cancer, which claims the lives of more children in the US than any other disease.

In the past, I’ve made Hot Cocoa Cookies and Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip, and Pecan Cookies so I decided to do another spin on Chocolate Chip Cookies this year!

I adapted a recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction. She has these fantastic Soft Baked cookies on her blog, and I used her Soft Baked White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies as the inspiration for this recipe. The secret to these soft and chewy cookies is the addition of cornstarch.. who would’ve thought??

I changed Sally’s original recipe just a touch, adding dark chocolate chips instead of white, using light brown sugar instead of dark, and substituting in almond extract for the vanilla extract. If you’re looking for some baking inspiration this holiday, absolutely check out Sally’s Baking Addiction, you won’t be disappointed!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup dried cranberries

adapted from sallysbakingaddiction.com

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Couscous with Dried Cranberries and Pine Nuts

I need more sides in my life. Couscous is a great weekday choice because it’s so quick to make, maybe 20 minutes in total. This recipe is from the Fresh & Healthy DASH Diet Cooking Cookbook which I absolutely love. The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet was developed by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute a encourages increasing whole grains, nuts, fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and lean proteins and minimizing processed gains, high-fat meats and dairy, sugars and sodium… which is basically more just eating healthy versus a diet.

This couscous recipe is made with vegetable broth to give it some flavor with bites of pine nuts, dried cranberries, and scallions.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons canola oil
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 cups reduced-sodium vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup couscous (whole wheat if you can find it)
1/3 cup dried cranberries
2 scallions, coarsely chopped

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Banana Berry Pecan Granola Bars

There are so many fantastic food bloggers out there. One food blog I regularly check is Cookin’ Canuck. Dara makes the most appealing looking recipes and her photos are always stunning. She has also cooked her way healthy and has a wonderful post about her journey. Dara has a great recipe for Low Fat Granola Bars with Bananas, Dried Cranberries, and Pecans that I just had to try. I switched it ever so slightly, but you can find the original recipe here.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup pecan pieces
3 ripe bananas
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tablespoons honey (to make vegan, substitute agave nectar)
3/4 cup dried berries (I used Trader Joe’s Golden Berry Blend)
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3 tbsp whole flax seeds
1/2 tsp salt

Baked Brie

There is a Moroccan restaurant in the Fairmount section of Philadelphia called Figs that has the most fantastic Baked Brie dish. It comes in a clay pot and is topped with honey, lavender and almonds.

I randomly had a craving for this appetizer this weekend and decided to try to make my own.

Ingredients:

1 wheel of brie
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup sliced almonds
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons dried cranberries
Day Old Bread, or Toasted Pita

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