Cookies Inspired by Books! (Newest Creations)

As mentioned in my September 30th post, a new project I created for myself this year was to create cookies based on books. Which I have done! Ta da! In the story collection I am writing baking/cooking plays a strong role in some family dynamics and in a YA book I've outlined, centering around one of the characters in my anthology, the main character is a teen preparing to go to culinary school and uses cooking/baking as an outlet for her feelings. So if my writing was inspired by cooking why couldn't it also be the other way around?

As mentioned in my earlier post the two books I created cookies for were Amy Garvey's Cold Kiss and Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Both books were published in late September and I had the chance to snag ARCs for both at Book Expo this past May.

Via Twitter and her blog I found out that Amy is an avid baked goody lover! That endeared her to me as much as her lovely book did. Cold Kiss is the story of a teenage girl named Wren who has special powers, of the Wiccan persuasion, and uses them to resurrect her first love and recently deceased boyfriend Danny. The results are not what she expects and it's a tale of a lot of internal conflict in dealing with the decisions she's made and the growing selfishness she feels for what she's done. What's beautiful about Cold Kiss is the way that Amy toggles with Wren wanting to consume herself with memories of Danny while also wanting to move on. It's a tough thing to do but she makes Wren both sympathetic and relatable. I mean, if any of us were in the same situation and had the capabilities would we not think about doing the same thing? Also stay tuned for a sequel to Cold Kiss that I believe is due out next year from HarperTeen.

My first thought for the Cold Kiss cookie was lemon (because I love it). I had suggested lemon or coconut to Amy and she said she had a preference for coconut. This worked because coconut could also represent snow hence cold. 

My goal was to create a cakey-type cookie that had a coconut flavor but not too heavy since I am not a huge fan of the stuff. I also knew I wanted to use sour cream because it helps to retain moisture in the cookie and give it that fluffed up texture I like. Ricotta has a similar effect in cookie dough, but is also quite thick (see my fave Lemon Ricotta Cookies a la Giada DeLaurentiis).

Here's the result and the recipe:

Ingredients

Cookie

¼ cup butter (softened)

¾ white sugar (superfine)

1 egg (can use 2 egg yolks for a lighter consistency)

½ cup sour cream

½ tsp coconut extract

1 1/3 cup flour

¼ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1/3-1/2 cup of shredded coconut (dependant on your enjoyment of coconut or you could eyeball it)

Glaze

1 cup confectioners sugar

1 tbs milk (or coconut milk for extra coconut flavor)

1 tsp vanilla extract (or coconut extract for, again, extra coconut flavor)

Shredded coconut (optional for ‘snow’ effect)

Cream together softened butter, egg, and sugar. Once mixed add sour cream and extract.

Then combine dry ingredients (flour, baking soda & powder and salt, suggest mixing these together beforehand).

Preheat oven to 375 degrees or higher (dependent on oven as mine is SUPER hot).

As dough will be kind of liquidy you should refrigerate for an hour or longer. Could even do overnight.

Drop 1 tablespoon or smaller bits of dough on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (a fave of mine). Cookie cookies for 10-15 minutes or until edges are light brown. Try to make sure the tops are a bit firm.

Cool completely on a rack before making glaze. After drizzling glaze atop cookie sprinkle shredded coconut.

The simple glaze can be made with coconut extract but I think vanilla extract adds a nice complement since you have coconut extract and flakes within the cookie and the glaze adds a nice stickiness to have coconut flakes (representing snow) on top which gives it a nice balance. Putting vanilla extract inside the cookie probably would overwhelm any coconut flavor you have so it's best to use coconut extract but not be too heavy handed.

I sent the cookies to Amy and was glad they got to her in two days time. I saran wrapped the heck out of that Tupperware to make sure to retain moisture.

She said and I quote: "They came! And oh my GOD, are they delicious. Like a tiny coconut cake in my mouth! Thank you so much!" And quote: "And Sara, seven and very picky, calls them the 'best cookies ever.' SCORE!" Score indeed. :-)

The next cookie was one I got a quick idea for which was the Karou Chocolate Hazelnut Cookie in honor of the protagonist of Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone. I knew I wanted to do chocolate because Karou and her best friend Zuzana are fans of the stuff and pastries galore as they study in Prague when the story begins. Hazelnut seemed perfect because this is a huge flavor for coffee and with the story taking place in the colder months and winter approaching here in NYC it seemed like it'd be a perfect pairing. And then I thought cinnamon! So that's a bounty of flavors right there.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is most often referenced as the story of an angel who fell in love with a devil and it not ending well. Which is true. To say too much more would give away the crux of the story of Karou and her mission for the next two books as Smoke and Bone is the first in a trilogy. Karou has a nice life living with said devils who are very humane and kind in raising her like a daughter. But mayhem happens and Karou learns more about her origins realizing she was right in feeling something was missing. Laini is a master of words. Her writing is fluid and engaging and fun and I am in awe. She's also quite sweet and has an awesome artist husband in Jim who's a major talent himself and the most adorable little girl!

So in creating this cooking I knew I didn't necessarily want it to be cakey per se, just chewy.

Here's the result and the recipe:

Ingredients

1/2 cup of butter (softened or near melting)

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 egg

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp of baking soda

1/2 tsp of salt

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup nutella

blue sugar for sprinkling

Mix dry ingredients together and set aside (may want to sift if you have clumps in cocoa powder). Cream together butter and dark brown sugar then add egg then nutella. Mix together well but make sure not to overmix. Fold in dry ingredients in two portions until mixed well. 

Scoop out 1 inch balls with your hands or spoons onto a cookie sheet with parchment paper. (I'm all about parchment! Less cleaning!) Sprinkle blue sugar atop dough. 

Depending on your oven these can bake pretty quickly. At least 10 minutes or at most 15. For my oven at 350 degrees these were done within 10 minutes. You can tell they're done by how brown they get around the edges and if they are somewhat firm to be scooped up with a spatula. Try not to overbake as they will get hard on the exterior. 

Cool on a rack and enjoy. And watch out for the sugar! I suggest putting a towel or paper towels under cooling rack to catch rogue blue sugar bits.

(Also depending on how big or small your scoops are these can make a little less than two dozen cookies or a little more. Size will also affect baking time.)

As you can see I added blue sugar on top in honor of Karou's blue hair which is a signature physical trait in this book. I was thinking of adding a blue colored frosting or glaze but the blue sugar seems to work well and adds a nice boost of sweetness. Also, the beads in the picture are meant to poke fun at the small trinkets she makes wishes on from her adopted father of sorts, Brimstone.

This is a work in progress for me. My landlord and her husband enjoyed it. I like the cookie but feel like I may have overdone it. I was struggling with whether to use hazelnut spread (nutella) or crushed hazelnuts. In the end I used hazelnut spread and I like the flavor but feel the cinnamon got a bit lost in the mix and that perhaps it should come out more with the chocolate. I could also add chocolate chips because the unsweetened cocoa powder doesn't necessarily give you a high octane chocolate flavor if you're a chocoholic. Again, a good cookie, but I aim for greatness, people.

I brought these to work and got overly positive results. Mainly because people are nutella lovers and since the flavor is there it became a fast fave. But I'll see, since baking/cooking is all about experimentation right?

So those are my two cookie/book creations so far. Any further suggestions? Should I make one based around Libba Bray's Beauty Queens or my fave YA series The Hunger Games? Maybe Eugenides' new title The Marriage Plot or Bonnie Jo Campbell's latest? We'll see.

[Recipes © Jennifer Baker-Henry, 2011]

Book Expo 2011: Come one, come all!

This year's Book Expo of America (BEA) brought back memories for those of us who'd attended years prior.  While last year was truncated both in size and scope and also in terms of what publishers offered, this year sought to improve upon that with many giveaways and choices and even a joint convention with the Book Bloggers Convention at Jacob Javits Center in midtown Manhattan. It wasn't as humid as last year but the sun was in full effect which made for a lovely week for visitors and natives to enjoy this event pre-Memorial Day weekend. Last year some notable trade publishers did not have booths. But this year they came back full force. When talking to one of the publicists with Scholastic she mentioned that a big complaint was that they did not have giveaways last year except for author signings in the autograph area, but this year they had a huge booth in the Children's pavilion and had many giveaways including a new book by Maggie Stiefvater (The Scorpio Races) along with galleys of the last book in her Wolves of Mercy Falls series, Forever, and Wonderstruck a new book from Brian Selznick with a lovely, durable tote to accompany the galley.

Hachette Publishers had many giveaways as did HarperCollins, Macmillan, Random House, Gray Wolf Press, Harlequin, Cleis Press, and Penguin. Authors in high demand and with huge lines included Colson Whitehead, Chuck Palahniuk, Tom Perotta, Ally Condie, Melissa Marr, Rick Riordan, and Scott Westerfeld among many others including celebrities with books out (or due out) like Duff MacGrath, Tyra Banks (yes, Tyra is in the book mix now), Julianne Moore, Diane Keaton, Jane Lynch, Michael Moore, and the list goes on and on again.

Tuesday was a mad house with ARCs (advanced reader copies) everywhere! At 9am sharp the masses tend to divide and conquer and get their hands on items that they hope will keep them from standing on a massive line later on in the day. In speaking with many people on lines that you, inevitably, stand on it's always interesting to talk to attendees about their excitement in meeting established authors or being introduced to new ones that they end up loving. These ARCs do a great job to promote debut authors and familiar ones while entertaining readers to no end with the amount they can get their hands on.

While last year's main "theme" was Books in a Digital World it wasn't the main element in panel discussions as it was last year. This year Book Expo was held in conjunction with the Book Bloggers Expo and BlogWorld in addition to the International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF) conference. Press who registered for Book Expo were able to get into some of the other events held at Jacob Javits Center that week. There was a section devoted completely to the rise and growing efficiency of digital publishing for books and the many companies offering services in conversion and distribution.

Self-publishing is also on the rise. I conducted an interview with actress and new author Tanya Wright on her new book Butterfly Rising published with CreateSpace (a self-publishing sector of Amazon) and author Maria Murnane (Perfect on Paper), and CreateSpace sr. marketing manager, Aaron Rosenstein, about what CreateSpace offers as a newer face in the self-publishing world and how it really caters to authors giving them back control of their work. Amazon has also grown in the publishing world with their own publishing imprints as their awards to find breakthrough authors has set them on track to publish many beyond those voted on by Amazon members/visitors. Amazon conducted many signings at their publishing booth and had a strong presence at Book Expo via CreateSpace.

The New Title Showcase is where many self-published authors with more familiar services like iUniverse, Xlibris, and AuthorNotes had their books displayed, but sometimes these get lost in the crowd when it comes to being exposed to a new audience. This is where CreateSpace has more pull in its connection to a stronghold in the publishing and book buying world. Especially since they had a booth to display their authors and their titles rather than having their work lumped together on shelves making the choices akin to being in a bookstore for readers. And when you're on a schedule you may not have time to search through New Titles in the hopes that something may catch your eye when there are so many publishers, authors, galleys, and booths vying for your attention on the main floor.

Many of the Author Stages talked about anticipated upcoming books, ebooks, and also conversations with authors about their process and what's next. There were many "buzz panels" where editors talked about upcoming books they were excited about, many of which had galleys available and were being pushed from new YA series to "The American The Kite Runner" and so on.

Wednesday was just as busy but probably a bit more subdued in the fact that many people got key finds on Tuesday. I was able to navigate and got to meet some wonderful authors. Tayari Jones' new book Silver Sparrow came out last Tuesday and she signed copies of the hard cover.

Laini Taylor was around signing ARCs of her new book with Little, Brown Young Readers Daughter of Smoke & Bone where about a thousand copies were available. Tom Perotta signed for more than his designated time and was kind to each and every person in line who patiently awaited his signature on his new look at a world post-Rapture (perfect timing no?), The Leftovers.

Thursday is always the more relaxed day in that many people use this time to recover from standing in lines and carrying hefty totes full of galleys and new titles. There was less of a rush on Thursday and the doors closed at 3pm allowing exhibitors to clean up and pack up and attendees to prepare shipping and perhaps even enjoy the city.

The week of Book Expo in New York also marks New York Book Week and that means...after-parties! On Monday I went to the Teen YA Carnival in SoHo with author Shana Silver and heard a nice discussion with David Levithan, Kody Keplinger, and Torrey Maldonado among others on writing teen angst though this discussion turned more into their background and how that's helped their process in writing for a YA audience. There were some giveaways and a lot of books to get signed by these authors and others including Malinda Lo!

Tuesday's big after-party was in SoHo where many went to the Bookrageous BEA Bash at Lolita Bar where many authors such as Scott Westerfield, Lev Grossman, and Catherynne M. Valente were. There were numerous author talks in the afternoon and evenings and various events not listed in the New York Book Week guide attendees received along with the list of exhibitors, author signings, and coupon book for deals around the city during the week.

On Wednesday my friend Bonnie and I attended the first ever Goodreads Book Club event at Housing Works where Jennifer Egan's Pulitzer Prize winning book, A Visit from the Goon Squad, is the pick. Ms. Egan signed copies of her books and chatted with the audience while we were entertained by teenage band Care Bears on Fire. Good times. (All proceeds from this event go to Housing Works' mission of supporting AIDS research and individuals with AIDS).

Thursday, more events, but Anna and I attended Scholastic's ThisIsTeen event at the Scholastic store where Libba Bray, Meg Cabot, and Maggie Stiefvater briefly spoke on their writing methods and about their new titles. For Ms. Bray Beauty Queens has already gotten a lot of buzz and was recently listed as one of the "must" on Entertainment Weekly's 10 Must List. 

The rapport with the authors was one of camraderie and comedy and it was a pleasure to hear them speak and then engage with them as they signed copies of their books as well as ARCs that may have been made available at Book Expo or to bloggers/press.

By week's end I believe I collected less books than I did last year. And having learned from years past I made sure to have a wheely suitcase along with me to prevent me from having a sore back and shoulders for days. Though, my feet are a whole other story.

I've met many wonderful authors and fellow book lovers/bloggers at Book Expo and am connecting with people more and more via Twitter each day based on our experiences.

For book lovers Book Expo is similar to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory and us being Charlie or one of the other kids having the golden ticket. But I'll go with Charlie cause he was in awe and so appreciative of what he was able to be a part of. As book lovers, book sellers, publishing professionals, authors, publicists, bloggers, and so on we all come together at this huge event to learn more about authors, the book world, and the tomes we love or may grow to love. We post and report and review to share knowledge of what we deem good or bad and no matter what we're constantly entertained by what's out there for us to consume.

Here's looking forward to another Book Expo in New York next year. It'll be the first week of June, which hopefully means more sunny skies and brilliant evenings.