What would it feel like if vacations lasted forever? Would it feel as good as I think it would? Yes. Yes, it would.
Reality hits hard after you’ve had days to let your brain ease into a happy mush.
I’m not complaining. Does it sound like I’m complaining? Ok… maybe a little. It’s just hard to let vacation time slip out of my hands.
Maybe permanent vacation is like only eating these cookies for the rest of your days. Sure, they have both chocolate and vanilla, but you can’t eat cookies forever. They’d lose their cookie goodness. Maybe permanent vacation would somehow start to feel like work. Constant cookies and vacation? I’d be willing to experiment just to see how the two would treat me after a few years.
While I’m day dreaming of vacations past, I’d like to send a big fat thank you to my darling friends who hosted us this weekend.
Britt is one of my few friends who actually still has a land line. Phone with a cord!? Well done.
Seattle is a great city. A big thank you for all of your Seattle suggestions. I actually used to live in Seattle so this vacation was half sightseeing and half old stomping ground good times.
Now… cookies.
Salted Chocolate and Vanilla Bean Cookies
adapted from Martha Stewart
These cookies are the perfect combination of vanilla and dark chocolate. They aren’t too sweet and the chunky sea salt really brings out the rich chocolate flavor. They’re pretty impressive for slice and bake refrigerator cookies. Can you dig it? I can.
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 14 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 large egg yolk, save egg white for brushing cookie dough
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or scraped vanilla beans from 1/4 vanilla pod
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons semi sweet chocolate, very finely chopped
- course sea salt
- Sift flour and salt into a medium bowl; set aside. Put butter and sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low. Mix in egg yolk and vanilla bean or extract. Gradually add flour mixture; mix until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Remove half of the dough; set aside. Add cocoa powder and chopped chocolate to remaining dough; mix on low speed until well combined. Turn out chocolate dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll into a 10-inch log, about 1-inch wide and 1/2-inch tall. Repeat with reserved vanilla dough. Wrap each rectangle in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until slightly firm, at least 30 minutes.
- Remove the chilled doughs from the fridge. Brush the top of the chocolate piece with a bit of a remaining egg white. This will help the chocolate and vanilla stick together. Press the vanilla piece on top of the moistened chocolate piece. Press lightly. Rewrap dough and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut log into 1/4-inch-thick rounds; space 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. If dough becomes too soft to slice cleanly, return to freezer until firm. Sprinkle course sea salt onto the chocolate half of the cookies. Press in lightly with fingertips.
- Bake until firm to the touch, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to wire racks; let cool. Cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.
{ 61 comments… read them below or add one }
At least I am holding a cell phone in the picture. I like to rock it old school. We had a great time I hope you guys did to. You are welcome any time.
I have to applaud any cookie recipe that makes a point of incorporating sea salt. Yum.
These look fabulous!Yum Yum!
Sure, we can’t live on only cookies and vacations, but I do think the world would be a happier place if everybody had cookies and vacations just a little more often :)
These look delicious, as always!
These look so delicious. I want to drop everything and bake them RIGHT NOW!!
These look so yummy! And, I believe, are addictive ;)
Definetely need to give them a try.
P.S. Your blog is soooo amazing!!
I love salt on cookies – tried it first on a recommendation from King Arthur’s Cookie Companion when I made chocolate chip cookies. It sounds odd until you taste it – it really adds a lot to the cookie.
Glad you had a nice visit with friends, Joy. :)
Joy, I would have absolutely no problem with a constant vacation nor with eating these every single day :) I am dying to visit Seattle, and your pics made me want to go even more!
These are like the best of two worlds: black and white cookies and chocolate-vanilla pinwheels. BUT, you definitely kicked the sophistication level up a notch with high quality chocolate, vanilla bean and salt. Yum.
How cute! Maybe you could add red food coloring to one side and make them for Valentines! And to send your kids into that hyperactive state that only red dye # whatever can cause.
Ohhh! Culinarywannabe has a great idea! I think I’ll make these little darlings into heart shaped, red tainted cookies for V-Day!
They look delicious! I have to make these just to see which side everyone in my family eats first.
would it be possible to roll these out and cut them with a cookie cutter? I wanted to make vanilla hearts with little chocolate hearts in the center, and the combo of these 2 doughs sounds too good to pass up.
These sound fantastic! Are they chocolate-y enough, though? 4T doesn’t sound like a lot (yes, I have a SERIOUS chocolate problem/issue/mmmmm…addiction dare I say?)
Also how many cookies does this recipe produce?
Here’s another design suggestion: Roll out the dough flat. Place the Chocolate on top of the Vanilla (or vice versa). Then Roll into a log. Refrigerate. Slice. Cook. They should (in theory) be swirls!
Chocolate, salt, vanilla beans. Sounds like perfection to me!
Wow. I love salted anything, and I have a feeling that these will be no exception. They’re beautiful.
I adore these cookies!!!
I will have to try these! Its that time of month when every night calls for some sugary dessert, my girls love it when I have to have sweets, because they know I will be baking.
They look like dual colored dominoes..dominoes that you can eat!
These look beautiful!
These look amazing and delicious and complicated. But the directions don’t sound complicated, so I must try them. Love the look of these…different and wonderful. Thanks for the recipe!
oh these look just awesome :)
14 Tbs. of butter; Be still my heart!!! I’m hooked!
Ha ha I totally have been making these since they were the cookie of the day, ohhh, say last month I think. And I had the same idea with the vanilla bean addition. Yet again, you have trumped me though, with the extra chocolate and salt addition. I wanted to add a little somethin somethin to the chocolate part but was to scared to mess with it. Plus they were for a bake sale, so as long as they looked good, they sold well and I was in the clear!
These remind me of a cookie I made once that was a checkerboard square. Such an ordeal to make but so pretty in the end!
BakingandMistaking.blogspot.com
Sea salt and chocolate is the best combination!! Thanks for sharing htis recipe!
Okay, I’m making these right now and my dough is really dry–I’m pretty sure I did everything right! Is there anything I can do to fix it? Or did I just forget something…?
I read this and thought it would be weird, but really, the salt brings out the chocolate to a much higher degree. So good!
These sound amazing Joy! The perfect cookies!
Anything with a vanilla bean in it, has to be good. They look wonderful!
just discovered your blog, these cookies look absolutly delicious :-). And your blog too :P! Yummy yum … XOXO
wow these are so cute! I must try, they look delicious! I a huge fan of salty sweet.
I haven’t seen a phone with a cord in ages! Makes me a bit nostalgic. I’m digging the nail polish, though. Nice modern color there.
They actually DO sound like the perfect cookie.
Oh my sweet goodness, I almost don’t want to attempt those cookies in anticipation of how shortly they’ll be in existence… I’d love to try these with that rice pudding. mmm!
You have such great recipes! We’d love it if you’d join our recipe card swap!
http://www.swap-bot.com/swap/show/30141
Check it out! Share your recipes and get some new ones to try!
They look amazing!!
I’m one of those few who still loves land lines, but my fiancee never wants to have one.
What fun cookies. Why would you leave Seattle? I love it here.
Oh goody! I love the sea salt and choc. combo! A few sprinkles in a hearty cup of cocoa is da bomb!
Hope you had fun on your visit! These cookies look wonderful, one of my favorite types!
these are so adorable!
Oh. My. God. You have found my weakness…dark chocolate, cookies AND salt. My stomach thanks you but my soon-to-be-too-tight pants are not impressed.
wonderful! you did these way better than Martha…
Bookmarking these as I type, Joy! They are so beautiful and look delicious.
As for your idea of not being possible to eat cookies forever… May I disagree? :D
Oh, and your blog looks absolutely gorgeous!
Wow those look lovely – best of both (cookie) worlds! Gorgeous photos too :)
Cool way to shape cookies.. I can see the vanilla bean specks :)
These will be the next cookies I bake, I promise!
I have always wanted to go to Seattle. Your pictures make me want to go there even more. And I have to make these cookies I love slice and bake cookies because they keep if you don’t have time or are to tired to bake that day.
I was really excited when you posted this recipe and couldn’t wait to try it out. I attempted to make these last night, but my dough came out really dry and crumbly. Did I overmix it? I should note that I don’t have an awesome Kitchenaid mixer so I had to use a hand mixer with the egg beater attachment. Is it absolutely imperative that the dough is mixed with a paddle attachment?
Made these for friends, teachers & assorted loved ones for Valentine’s Day and they were a HUGE hit! Thanks soooo much for sharing this recipe – a new favorite for sure (though my hips have definitely paid the price – they are addictive!! :-)
I will definitely try making these in my shop tomorrow! They look fabulous!
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