Sassy Cookies : Sweet, Spicy, and Savory Treats with Swagger

Praised by In Mamas Kitchen, Publishers Weekly, RealSimple.com, and the Gluten Free Lab for her first cookie-baking book, Luane Kohnke is back with an exotic collection of cookie recipes exploring sophisticated flavor combinations, delicate textures, and childhood favorites all grown up. In this unique contribution to baking, Kohnke provides detailed instructions for forty of her original recipes to suit even the most refined palate. Each is captured in a mouth-watering image by talented photographer John Uher.

Kohnke breaks her cookbook into several distinct sections, many of which include gluten-free offerings. Presented are timeless chocolate cookies, including Lemony White Chocolate and Pink Peppercorn Delights and Chocolate Shortbread and Hazelnut Cream Sandwich Cookies, bringing new flavor combinations to expand every baker's repertoire. The second section experiments with edgy and grown-up versions of brownies, blondies, and bar cookies, including the irresistible Goat Cheese and Caramel-Swirl Brownies. Another set of recipes explores savory treats that are perfect as accompaniments to soups, salads, and fruit-and-cheese trays or as stand-alone, satisfying appetizers. These include Black Olive Bites, Tarragon-Lemon Cookies, and a tantalizing twist on traditional cheese cocktail cookies. Additional sections delve into nutty and fruity treats and delicate sensations, including Saffron Pistachio Lace Cookies. Provided as reference are detailed instructions on preparation and storage to make baking and sharing these cookies as enjoyable as eating them!

Luane Kohnke fondly remembers experimenting with baking cookies as a youngster on the family farm. She followed this passion, obtaining culinary training at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. Fascinated by the changing world around her, she went on to obtain a BA in sociology and political science from Valparaiso University and a PhD in criminal justice from SUNY-Albany. Her days are spent as an internal marketing and analytics consultant for a marketing agency, but the remainder of her time, she focuses on her first love, baking.
Kohnke has been a guest writer on numerous cooking blogs and publications, where she highlights unusual ingredients that are definitely not cookie-cutter clones! Her wholesale bakery, Luane's Cookies, serves clients around the country. She enjoys using her free time to create and bake delectable goodies for friends and family from her home in the Bronx, New York.

John Uher owns the well-known studio bearing his name in midtown Manhattan. For more than twenty-five years, he has specialized in exceptional food and beverage photography. His photos have appeared in publications of every type, capturing the drama and beauty of gastronomic delights. Uher has his own sweet life, filled with just the right amount of "cookies": a wife, four children, two sons-in-law, and three grandchildren.
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"Throw out what you thought you knew about flavor pairings; Luane Kohnke's Sassy Cookies will take your taste buds on an extraordinary flavor journey through sweet, spicy, and savory ideas inspired by Latin America, Europe, and Asia. In addition to recipes starring cayenne and cherry, chocolate and ginger, goat cheese and caramel, saffron and pistachio, and green tea and almond, you'll pick up handy tips and techniques for working with a variety of traditional doughs as well as gluten-free macarons, meringues, and cookies. Sassy Cookies is sure to spice up your baking!"
-Sarah T. Hodge, Amazon top reviewer and home baker
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