Intro
Gabe’s in the kitchen baking. Let me just say that again. Gabe. My Gabe. My sweet husband, is in the kitchen baking. While I sit on the couch doing absolutely nothing except letting my mind shut-off and unwind from a rambunctious, albeit, typical day.
You see, my husband doesn’t do a lot of baking, let alone cooking. Sure he makes a mean quesadilla – tortillas perfectly crisped with a generous splash of butter in the hot skillet, cheese uniformly melted through and through and just the right amount of Cholula on the side. But baking, I don’t remember the last time I’ve seen this.
how he bakes
What’s even more astonishing is that I have not tried to micro-manage one bit. I did, however take out his butter for him at the moment he made mention of wanting to bake cookies. But rather than insisting he cream the butter and sugar longer or make sure he scraped the bowl making sure the batter just so I am relishing this moment. Taking in the sweet smells of cinnamon as they make their way to the couch, teasing me into thinking the cookies are ready when I know they have yet to be pulled from the oven. The comforting smell of caramelizing sugar assures me the time is near. I hear the kettle start to shake signaling the boiling water is ready to drip through the Chemex.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Finally the oven sends out the alarm. I remain seated. The last drips of 200º water (Gabe is fastidious about coffee brewing) passes through the freshly ground coffee. And still I sit. Knowing that if I sit hear long enough freshly baked cookies will arrive, as will a cup of coffee in my favorite cup – he knows me so well.
my cup, his cup
Sure enough – cookies within arms reach, coffee in the other hand. He sits down next to me and turns on The Cosby Show. I love this man and he loves me.
the view from where I sit (Baron and I made a Candy shop today – in the background – we’ll tell you about it soon)
Snickerdoodles
This recipe comes directly from SmittenKitchen who adapted it from Martha (Stewart, that is). Unlike his wife, Gabe follows a recipe to a “T”. While I was just going to keep my mouth shut and “oohhh” and “ahhh” over how wonderful the cookies were – and they really were, Gabe came to the same conclusion I did – they need a touch more salt. Gabe suggests adding a bit of salt to the sugar/cinnamon mixture so you’ll get a whisper of a salty tang in the midst of the spicy, sugary crackle. Did I mention that I love this man?
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 stick or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed
2 large eggs
Preheat the oven to 400°, with one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.
Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add eggs, and beat to combine. Add dry ingredients, and beat to combine. (SmittenKitchen suggests chilling the dough – we were too impatient)
In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the ground cinnamon (and salt – if you so choose). Use an ice-cream (or spoons) scoop to form balls of the dough, and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place about two inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are set in center and begin to crack (they will not brown), about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheets after five minutes. Transfer the sheets to a wire rack to cool about five minutes before transferring the cookies to the rack. If stored in an air tight container these cookies will keep for one week. Ha. That’s funny.
his cup, his cookie
Snickerdoodles are such a comfort cookie. I loved them as a kid, and still do. Yum!
My husband rarely cooks or bakes, but when he does he follows recipes precisely (I rarely do) and it always comes out amazing. Or maybe it just tastes so so good because I didn’t have to make it.
Anna – it’s so true. Food tastes so much better when you didn’t make it. These cookies were amazing. In fact, they still are and really they need to get out of my house.
You two are so stinking sweet!
They say if you stay with someone long enough, you start to look alike. I haven’t noticed that yet, but Gabe is slowly but surely morphing into a cooking king…good for him!
MG – Gabe is starting to get light strands of hair throughout his head- oh, wait, those are gray. 🙂 I love the look of him in the kitchen.
so cute – nice work, gabe.
Those look amazing! I have been trying for 11 years to get my husband in the kitchen with me and I finally succeeded last week! Here is how: I bought him an Electric Smoker by Masterbuilt and although that is technically not “in the kitchen” it was while we prepped the spareribs, made the rub and put together the mop! Now how do we get cookies into the smoker…? I have actually been considering a smoked pie crust for a Maple Pecan Pie so when I attempt it I will let you know! 😉
K.Dub – This comment cracked me up. Note to self – get my husband a smoker. The smoked pie crust sounds amazing!! I made a smoked ganache for a smores cake once – amazing. Tasted just like you were eating smores around a campfire.
Please do let me know how it turns out.
coffee in your favorite cup – i love that! i have to be really aware that i don’t try to micro-manage too when my boyfriend bakes, and just love & appreciate the fact that he enjoys baking!
i’ve never used the chemex before. i use a french press at home, would you recommend the chemex over that? it’s definitely prettier…
Joey – The chemex is really amazing. The body is much lighter than a press as the filter is much more fine. I used to love french press but now I have a hard time going back as I find it a bit too chalky. The chemex really allows the soft sweet, citrus and bright flavors to emerge. I really like it. Although I like the woodneck even better than the chemex. 🙂 http://www.amazon.com/Hario-Drip-Pot-Woodneck-240ml/dp/B0006HINCE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1298672802&sr=8-1
so so sweet:) I would be tempted to micro-manage baking too. P.S. my friend Nina mentioned you and I said, “Oh, the Ashley who has the blog ‘Not Without Salt?'” mutual friend:)
This is adorable! I want a cookie, and a Chemex! 🙂 I love it. xo
Awww what a sweet posting! A man in the kitchen is a beautiful thing 🙂
I love the candy shop! Lydia and I built a cardboard kitchen, which I also plan to share on my blog soon.
And I commend your self-control: the urge to micro-manage a husband in the kitchen is a strong one.
So what precipitated this romantic gesture, or are you just lucky enough to have a husband who thinks of making you cookies all on his own for no good reason? My husband made me some chocolate chip cookies once when I was out for the day, it was the sweetest thing to come home to. I think to this day that was the only time he ever baked anything!
This is incredibly sweet. I don’t think I’ve ever seen my guy bake – ever. But it’s so wonderful when anything at all is cooked FOR us isn’t it? Love it.
How sweet! My husband doesn’t do any baking and quite frankly I don’t think I want him too!
Those bodum cups are the freaking greatest for drinking coffee. We put ours in the giant ones because we’re crazy! 🙂
What a perceptive man you have there. Everything always needs just a touch more salt. He’s a keeper!
This post made me so, so happy. I’m glad you managed to stay on the couch and let the rare occasion unfold… It’s so hard not to intervene when there are cookies at stake! I know the feeling of being attached to a coffee mug, and the snickerdoodle-cookie combo sounds perfect. So sweet.
What a lovely day! I just may have my boyfriend read this post to give him some motivation to inch towards the kitchen.
Hey Ashley & Gabe,
We did indeed make these today. With salted butter in the dough + the recommended salt (a heaping half teaspoon) in the topping. And I’m happy to report you were spot-on. Like kettle corn meets snickerdoodle: fantastic!
xo,
Molly
Molly – “kettle corn meets snickerdoodle” ummm. yum. This makes me want to send Gabe back in to the kitchen to whip up another batch.
May I ask where you got your favorite coffee cup? It looks like a good cup for the AeroPess!
Allen, Got my email?
I have found that you can easily substitute Five Spice powder, for the cinnamon when you roll the cookies, with an excellent result.