Brown Sugar Sandwich Cookies

In case you haven’t been following me for long, I’m a registered dietitian. I graduated about two years ago and went through a somewhat tough time doubting if what I chose as a profession was suitable to me. I knew from my internship that I love seeing patients, I love food, and I love that immense sense of reward knowing that I was helping people in need, but sometimes it's hard to control where you can release those feel-good vibes.

I’ve already vented about my unhappiness before, but I recently landed a new job and I’m happy to say I love waking up to it. You know how there are jobs out there that eternally drain you as if someone pulled the plug from a swimming pool? The job slowly and painfully tugs at your insides, exhausting you from head to toe till you don’t have the energy to do anything else when you get home. That’s the kind of job I used to have. It’s kind of a haunting, sickening feeling at the pit of your stomach.

When I graduated, I was chosen by my classmates to speak at our ceremony. At my low point a few months ago, I retrieved the speech I reminded myself: Have passion in what you do. When you love what you do, time flies by, but it also gives you a great sense of satisfaction that makes your life easier and so much better (by the way, though I’m a dietitian, the recipes and food I blog here don’t necessarily reflect my diet nor what I recommend to clients. Buttered Up is a place for me to share, explore and showcase my passion for food and all things sweet).

Anyway, enough of my preachyness. I was browsing through Heidi’s blog for interesting cookies and stumbled upon these lovelies: brown sugar sandwich cookies. The initial game plan was to ditch the chocolate filling (ridiculous, I know) but when I nibbled on a cookie and realized they were better smeared with chocolate, I hopped on the chance to chop up some dark chocolate. 

These cookies, made with spelt flour and all-purpose flour aren’t sweet at all, they carry a hint of sweet butter and graininess and the poppy seeds give it an itty bitty crunch that despite sticking between your teeth, is actually quite fun and make them very special. I imagine these would make perfect gifts for your friends, seeing as how my colleagues swooned when I brought them into work. You can make them in any shape, but it's hard to say no to heart-shaped cookies, especially when Valentine's day coming up...hint hint! 

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Recipe here!

Rosemary and Dark Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

For the longest time I’ve been mixing, beating, creaming and aerating cakes, cookie batters and egg whites with an electronic handheld whisk. It’s been with me since my parents bought it for me and has tagged along in the 13 places I’ve called home over the years. When it’s not busy whisking, its bottom can be detached to function as a food processor or a blender (though I sadly lost that part in Montreal).

 

Though my mixer has served me well, I’ve spent many hours on my laptop yearning for KitchenAid mixers. I’ve also hung out at The Bay for much longer than socially acceptable admiring the rows of mixers that light up the kitchen department as if they were trophies.  I’ve swooned over the limited edition satin copper mixer at Williams-Sonoma, a spotlight directly over it, casting a magical aura over it.

Then, as if Santa missed the deadline, a KitchenAid mixer arrived at my doorstep. I was still asleep but roused awake when my mom, confused, repeated to the deliver boy: we didn’t order it, I didn’t order it! Turns out a good friend of mine generously bought it for me and had it sent to my door. I wish I could tell you I tore open the box like a grizzly bear on Ritalin, but I didn’t. Instead, I waited 11 hours later to rip through the packing tape and cardboard, I swear bells and angels sang as I lifted the mixer from its styrofoam shell and placed it carefully on the corner of my kitchen counter beside the rice cooker. It’s a thing of beauty and a lovely addition to my baking arsenal (move aside handheld mixer!)

I would totally spoon it to sleep, take it everywhere I go like a security blanket, and take it out to parties, but I don’t think its what normal people do. I do however, look forward to many years of mixing, pouring and quicker clean-ups with my brand-spanking new mixer, knowing that there will be plenty of breads and desserts (maybe I’ll successfully master macarons) to whip up in the very sweet future.

Take this cake for example, I don’t know what takes me so long to amble my way through my ridiculously long list of Must Make Now, but I’ve got to thank Heidi for this amazzzing creation. The cake is part herby, part sweet and a riddled with chunks of rich chocolate, in other words, nothing could go wrong.

With the recent plummeting temperatures, nothing beats the woodsy, rustic smell of rosemary and in combination with olive oil, it’s simply sensational. Not to mention that this cake is mostly whole grain (which is even better if you’re into that kinda thing). The best part are the crunchy granules of sugar and itty bitty bits of rosemary that you would think is overpowering, but rather, infuses a smoothing flavour in just the right amount. Trust me when I say you ought to make this. Like now. Stat. 1, 2, 3, GO!

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Recipe here!