Hot Cookie - the Archive

Here's what I took to Christmas lunch at Jill and Mara's. Clockwise are: Cranberry-Pistachio Biscotti (a recipe from local teacher Iole Aguero), Anise-Scented Fig and Date Swirls (ice-box cookies from the book), Mocha Toffee Bars, Walnut Acorn Cookies (this time made with almonds inside the cookie and pecans on top), and (center) Bourbon Balls, a family favorite version I've been making for 30 years. The mischievous elves did not get even one.

My "skewed distribution" cookies. If you like playing with clay, you'll love making these cookies. Form a long rope of the chocolate part and wrap it in the vanilla part. Bake the two long cookie bars once, then slice (like biscotti), and bake cookies flat for another 5 minutes. Sounds doable, right? The trick is to get each half of the dough the same consistency. The recipe doesn't accomplish that goal; the center is too stiff and the vanilla covering too flabby. I hate flabby. Chocolate center is too dry to hold together. Vanilla layer spreads and spreads. The problem is the timing of the dry ingredients. The recipe wants you to incorporate a full 1/4 cup of cocoa (dry ingredient) plus a half cup of almonds (another dry ingredient) to the chocolate half, at the very end of the mixing. The result? A stiff chocolate dough that barely holds together. Meanwhile, the vanilla layer gets no compensating addition of flour to firm it up. So, the vanilla outer...