It’s already week 5 of the Twelve Weeks of Christmas Treats so y’all know what that means. Christmas is swiftly approaching. In a way it’s terrifying – where has this year gone? On the other hand, I’m doing a happy dance because my favourite holiday is a-comin!
My dear friend, Soul Sista, is a personal trainer and a damn good one at that. She runs a boot camp outdoors in a beautiful park so she only holds them during the weather-tolerable months in Vancouver (May to October). I’ve always been afraid of boot camps and never signed up for her class until I saw some before & after pictures of her lil bro. After participating in her boot camp for only a few months, without any other exercise or changes to his diet, he’d totally lost weight and buffed way the hell up. Since I actually know her lil bro and believe that these are real results (unlike in infomercials where the before and after pictures are clearly photos of different people), I was inspired to sign up for Soul Sista’s last month of boot camp for 2012. I’m so happy that I did – it has forced me to get some much-needed exercise, it breaks up my 14 hour days of sitting in front of a computer screen, it gets me outside into the wilderness and everyone in the class is super fun and supportive.
The other night we were running through the park, a light, drizzling rain softly pelting our faces, when I caught a whiff of winter in the air. Do you know what I’m talking about? When the air is cold and crisp, almost to the point of hurting when you breathe it in, and there’s a smoky scent mingled with the smell of evergreens? There is nothing more wintry than that smell. As I continued running, the Bing Crosby song from Holiday Inn started playing in my head…
Happy holiday…happy holiday…may the calendar keep bringing… happy holidays to you…
Just hearing that tune makes me happy. I love when the voices in my head start singing to me! Sometimes they sound eerily similar to this:
For this week’s Christmas treat, I’m recreating a cookie I first tried at the BFF’s house a few months ago. A friend of hers had gone to a bakery in Edmonton and brought back chocolate rosemary sea salt cookies. I’d never had rosemary in a sweet baked good before and I was hooked at first bite. I’m ashamed to say that I ate most of the BFF’s cookies (apologies to her friend who so graciously brought them all the way from Edmonton!).
I knew I had to make them myself.
Chocolate rosemary sea salt cookies (adapted from Cathy Lowe’s Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies)
2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sea salt (plus more for sprinkling)
1 cup unsalted butter, room temp
2 tbsp fresh, chopped rosemary
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1 packet Starbucks VIA instant coffee
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 365 degrees F. Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a bowl, stir together flour, salt and baking soda.
In another large bowl, stir together butter, rosemary, both sugars, eggs, vanilla and cocoa. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
Drop by the spoonful onto your cookie sheet. I made my cookies about 2 inches in diameter and placed them 2 inches apart from each other. Slightly flatten the tops of the mounds of dough and sprinkle generously with sea salt.
Bake for approximately 12-14 minutes. Remove cookie sheet from oven, leave the cookies on the sheet for a couple of minutes, then move to a cooling rack.
I couldn’t wait to get this cookie into my mouth. It satisfied the urge I’ve had to taste that cookie again.
Savoury, minty, fresh. Herbacious. Sharp crack and crunch of salt. Dark, rich, deep chocolate.
Sounds weird but tastes oh so good. So good I can’t even string together whole sentences to describe them.
Twelve Weeks of Christmas Treats is the fabulous brain child of Brenda from Meal Planning Magic. Visit her blog for goodies from the past four weeks or if you want to join along in the fun.
And check out everyone else’s yummy Christmas treats by clicking on the linky button below.
Powered by Linky Tools
Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…
I am so intrigued by the rosemary in these cookies. I think these will have to go on my holiday baking list!
LOVE 🙂 These don’t look like the super elaborate, multi-step baking creations I was just saying that I’m obsessed with lately, but the flavors look interesting enough that I am now DYING TO TRY THIS! I’ve never tried using herbs in baked goods. But I think it’s time to start. Plus the salt? Done deal.
Also, good for you for doing boot camp! I’m completely scared of boot camps of all kinds. I hate people telling me to do stuff when it comes to squats, push ups, etc., but that is the #1 way to push me, since otherwise I will go to the gym and elliptical all day on level 5. Har har.
Awesome combination of ingredients! I would have never thought to mix these together but I can’t wait to taste the results 🙂
Wow r
Wow these cookies look fantastic – rosary is so intriguing 🙂
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Rosemary in a chocolate cookie?? How awesome are these? I love them!!
Oh, those sound yummy! Rosemary is one of my favorite herbs, can’t wait to try them! 🙂
These sound so interesting. I would have never thought to pair rosemary with flour, but I do love them both separately. Perhaps I ought to give them a try.
You said minty, so does the rosemary have kind of a minty taste in these cookies? Interesting. Katrina, Baking and Boys!
oooh, yeah. I blogged a rosemary butter cake recently and so many people said they were amazed rosemary could be used in a cake. I am *so* going make these babies. Sea salt + choc = 🙂
Wow, these sound so delightful! Rosemary, sea salt, chocolate: Great combination.
Love these, and looks like I’ll need to get started. I use the Starbucks VIA, too, since I don’t have a lot of ‘instant’ coffee around..love the rosemary, sea salt, chocolate connection!
What an original cookie recipe. The thought of all those delicious flavors makes my mouth water. (Sweet as Sugar Cookies)
Interesting to put rosemary in chocolate cookies. I’ve never tried that – I bet my husband would love them.
I known exactly what you mean when you referred to the “winter” smell in the air … it’s one of the many things I miss about Vancouver! And as for those cookies – what a creative combination! Never would have thought of using rosemary in desserts, let alone combining rosemary AND chocolate. With this hurricane leaving me housebound yet again, I just might have to give these a try tonight!
very creative cookie — I have never tried a cookie with rosemary in it =)
you just got me super excited for the holidays!!!! these cookies look fantastic, I’ve never tried the chocolate-rosemary combination, but will definitely have to try it soon!
OH MY! Can you please deliver a dozen to my door step? I’d love you forever! These look absolutely divine.
Pingback: Coo-Coo For Cookies | GONE DISHING
These are my favorite cookie.
If you happen to visit Whistler, British Columbia check out Pure Bread bakery located in Function Junction. Paula has been making these same cookies called ” Adult Only” I think since she opened. I can’t pass them up as well as all her other wonderful treats.
They are opening another location in the village sometime in June 2013.
I really like your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you design this website yourself or did you hire someone to
do it for you? Plz reply as I’m looking to create my own blog and would like to know where u got this from. thanks a lot