Cookie Day!

Here are our cookies from "The Decider" this year

The Decider Having a Holly Jolly Christmas

Cookie Day!

Thanks to The Decider we are all experiencing a major sugar high in the cataloging department today.

William's Chocolate Biscuit Cake

To celebrate the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate, our own William, aka Mr. Bill or The Decider, made a delicious Chocolate Biscuit Cake. This is the same cake that is being served at the wedding today and was Prince William's favorite cake as a child. If you love dark chocolate you will love this cake. Here are some pictures and the official recipe.



CHOCOLATE BISCUIT CAKE
The royal family prefers McVitie's brand Rich Tea Biscuits for their chocolate biscuit cakes, but any firm butter cookie can be used in this intensely rich and chocolatey no-bake treat. Cover and refrigerate any leftovers; the cake gets better with time.
Start to finish: 3 1/2 hours (30 minutes active)
Servings: 12
For the cake:
7-ounce package butter tea biscuits (sold in the cookie aisle)
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
16 ounces (about 2 1/2 cups) bittersweet chocolate bits
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the glaze:
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
6 ounces (about 1 cup) bittersweet chocolate
Coat a 7- or 8-inch round springform pan with cooking spray.
To make the cake, with your hands break up the biscuits into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces; you want chunks, not crumbs.
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the cream, honey and butter. Microwave on high for 1 1/2 minutes, or until bubbling. Add the chocolate and stir until melted and the mixture is smooth. Stir in the vanilla, then the crumbled biscuits. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan, using the back of the spoon to smooth the top. Gently tap the pan on the counter to eliminate any air pockets.
Refrigerate for 3 hours or until thoroughly chilled.
Once the cake is chilled, prepare the glaze. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter and cream. When the mixture reaches a boil, remove it from the heat and add the chocolate, stirring until completely melted and smooth.
Carefully remove the sides from the springform pan (you may need to slide a paring knife around the inside upper edge to ensure the sides come away cleanly from the cake). Invert the cake onto a wire rack, then remove the bottom of the pan from the cake. Set the rack over parchment paper to catch drips.
Pour the glaze evenly over the cake, allowing it to drip down and completely cover the top and sides. Allow to firm up, then transfer to a serving plate. Refrigerate leftovers.

Holiday Cookies

One of the really nice thing about working at HCPL is being here on the day The Decider brings in his holiday cookies for the entire building. This year there were 9 varieties including his always popular and highly requested Nanaimo Bars. My personal favorite is the Raspberry Almond Bars, or whatever I'm eating at the time. This year he tried a new recipe which has been a big hit with my co-workers (and me).

Here is the recipe which came from the Whole Foods Market website. He changed it up a bit by substituting regular flour for whole wheat and using salted butter, but no salt. He also didn't use parchment paper.

Cranberry Pecan Shortbread Cookies

Cranberries and pecans, two symbols of the fall harvest, work beautifully in these rich shortbread cookies. Serve them with strong black tea for an afternoon treat. The dough freezes well, so keep a log in the freezer and you'll be prepared to provide holiday visitors with freshly baked goodies at a moment's notice.

Make 30 to 40 cookies
3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup pecan pieces, toasted
Mix together butter, sugar and maple syrup with a wooden spoon or in an electric mixer. Add the vanilla and stir to combine. Add flour one cup at a time, mixing well after each cup is added. Stir in the salt, cranberries and pecans.
Shape dough into two logs and chill until firm, 1 to 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut dough into 1/2-inch slices and arrange on baking sheet. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. Cookies will keep several days in an airtight container.
Nutrition Info
Per serving (About 1 Cookie/32g-wt.): 160 calories (90 from fat), 10g total fat, 5g saturated fat, 2g protein, 15g total carbohydrate (2g dietary fiber, 6g sugar), 20mg cholesterol, 20mg sodium

Bad things come in threes

That's what thedeciderints said and he is seldom wrong which is why he is "The Decider"
On monday when I got home the house was unusually hot. The 15 year old ac unit had finally broken. I was expecting this to happen and was very grateful it happened in October and not in August since the hottest my house got was a tolerable 85 degrees. I ended up getting a new ac and furnace and am now 7,000 poorer. I also missed the HCPL training conference. The next day my 11 year old car started smoking on my way to work. I took it into Demo's in the village on my way home and the radiator was cracked. That and the thermostat needed to be replaced. Now to the third thing. For a month or so I have been looking forward to seeing a friend of mine I haven't seen in over a year. We planned to have lunch on Friday and then maybe shop and just catch up. On Friday morning I started feeling sick but then I felt a little better by the time she showed up at my house. I was ok until about half way through the meal at Grotto. Then I started shivering and my teeth were chattering. I managed to drive home. My friend left and I went to bed. I had 103 fever. Pretty unusual for me to be sick.
BTW, I highly recommend Demo's for any type of auto repair. They do great work and are very reliable. I've been taking my car there for years and I never feel like I'm being ripped off. They are at 2438 Tangley right off of Kirby.

DUH

The Decider in TS has pointed out why one might want an RSS feed instead of just having something book marked. When you look at the bloglines account you set up, it tells you automatically if anything new has been added to that site, saving you the time and trouble of going to every site everyday. OK now lets hear it ... DUH.
I admit it, I'm slow. That's why it so nice to work with so many helpful people including thedeciderints, ancatexanca, and librarylioness8. Thanks!