battle of the cinna-minis

i noticed something today: the lighting in my house kinda stinks. if it isnt poor lighting, it is bad shadows. even though i started by 10am, i unfortunately did not finish baking until the sun had already set, so the possibility for natural lighting was out of the question; needless to say, i had to get a little creative with lamps and whatnot. hopefully one of these days i can afford some lighting and lenses to get some better pix up here!

in addition to the pie i made for art’s return i baked for my usual monday morning treats, though i decided to go overboard and make a few things to divide up between my cube and the dessert table for the welcome back/thank you. this was not the original intention of course… it seems lately i have been swayed from my original intention on just about everything i have made. i was looking through some of my recipe books and i saw two types of cinnamon cookies that i wanted to make and couldnt decide between them, so i figured i would make both… then i decided to make it a trio!

first up: cinnamon buttons. these are tiny bite sized cookies that are crunchy and delicious; a no-nonsense cinnamon chip cookie… nothing fancy just straight up cinnamon. i couldnt quite tell when they were “golden” so the cinnamon chips on the bottoms are a wee bit overcooked on a couple of them, but no bother, still tasty!

second batter: cinnamon roll cookies. i considered making cinnamon buns, but i decided i wanted to keep everything small this week so i went with these lil gems. the icing recipe that was listed with them was horrendous, so i went with the icing that goes on my cinnamon buns, which in retrospect is a bit heavier than i think they need, but still so good! a little decadence never hurt anyone– well, maybe it did, but not this time. now, this was not only the second cookie i made, but it was the second cookie i made today where the dough needed to be refrigerated. at one point this afternoon i had the dough for two types of cookies and the pie in my fridge… that is a lot of dough to be waiting on… so i threw the third concoction in the oven…

last but not least: cinnamon chocolate hazelnut oat bars. oddly, although this is the last item that i made, it was baked before just about everything else. i was going to make a third cookie or perhaps mini muffins, but since i had contemplated making berry oat bars for art, i was already thinking oats and proclaimed that there would be oats today, in some form or another!  i made oatmeal cookies recently, so bars it is! i had a little bit of a chocolate craving and i remembered the nutella that i had purchased extra of for something else a few months ago and starting thinking…. (yes, it is dangerous when i start thinking!)… unfortunately when i got to the cabinet i found that the best by date on the nutella had passed last month and i did not want to risk it. back out to stop n shop i went! i have gone to the grocery store at least once a day the past few days, including twice today, and i already know i will be going tomorrow once i decide to make for the potluck. it is to the point where the people working there recognize me… i may have a problem. a delicious, yet expensive, problem!

so there you have it… three cinnamon one-to-two-bite size treats, competing for your affection! if you are among those in my office who get to try them, please let me know what your  vote is for.

and i only got one small burn on my arm in the whole process– woohoo!

Recipes:

cinnamon coins (from cuisine at home – holiday cookies)

makes about 80 (1-inch) cookies; total time: 45 minutes + chilling

1 stick unsalted butter, softened (1/2 cup)

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp salt

minced zest of 1/2 a lemon

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup cinnamon chips, coarsely chopped

turbinado or course sugar

1. cream butter in a bowl with a mixer until smooth. add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. blend in the egg, cinnamon, vanilla, salt, and zest

2. fold in the flour and cinnamon chips until combined. divide dough in half. generously sprinkle work surface with turbinado or course white sugar

3. shape each half of dough into an 18-20 inch long rope and roll in sugar, adding more sugar as needed to prevent sticking. wrap ropes in plastic and chill until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight. the colder the dough is, the easier it will be to slice

4. preheat oven to 350. line two baking sheets with parchment paper. slice ropes into coins about 1/2 inch thick and arrange on prepared baking sheets, spacing 1-inch apart. bake 15 minutes, or until crisp and golden. let cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack

cinnamon roll cookies (also from cuisine at home- holiday cookies)

makes about 30 cookies; total time 1 hour + chilling

for the filling:

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 Tbsp ground cinnamon

for the dough:

3 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened (1 cup)

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

for the icing:

1 cup sifted powdered sugar

1/4 cup warm water

1/2 tsp powdered egg whites

1. combine granulated sugar and 2 Tbsp cinnamon for filling in a small bowl, set aside. stir flour, baking powder, 1 tsp cinnamon, and salt together for dough in a bowl; set aside

2. cream butter and brown sugar in a bowl with a mixer until smooth. add eggs and vanilla; mix until incorporated. with a mixer on low speed, add dry ingredients, blending just to incorporate; do not overmix

3. using your hands, pat dough into a 9×16-inch rectangle on parchment or wax paper. sprinkle half of the cinnamon sugar mixture over dough

4. roll dough into a log, beginning on the long side and using the paper to help you. dust outside of log with remaining cinnamon sugar mixture. wrap log in plastic and chill for at least three hours. preheat oven to 350; line two baking sheets with parchment paper

5. slice chilled dough into 1/2-inch thick slices and arrange on prepared baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. bake 10-12 minutes, or until golden. let cool on pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack. combine icing ingredients in a bowl (icing will be thin) drizzle icing over cooled cookies; let stand at room temperature until icing dries

Chocolate hazelnut oat bars:

2 cup old fashioned oats

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts (optional)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup Margarine or butter; melted

1 jar chocolate hazelnut spread (such as Nutella)

Heat oven to 350 F. Grease 11×7-inch baking dish. Combine oats, flour, brown sugar, nuts, cinnamon and baking soda. Add margarine, mixing until crumbly. Reserve 1 cup mixture; press remaining mixture onto bottom of prepared dish. Bake 10 minutes.

Let cool for about 10 minutes. Heat chocolate hazelnut spread in microwave for about 20 seconds, or until easily spreadable. Spread over base layer evenly then sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Bake another 15-18 minutes, or until crumbs begin to brown slightly. Cool on wire rack, then cut into bars.