Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hello Everyone,

I'm back after being away for quite some time. I've just had a lot of changes happening over the past couple of years and I need some time to get everything figured out. But now I'm in a good place and I should be back on a regular basis.

So right now I'm teaching full-time and crafting part-time. If you get a chance go check out my Facebook page Melanie's Design Studio. It'll show what I've been up to the past few years.

I've had to narrow down my crafting to a specific interest and I've decided that it should be kitchen merchandise. I have a wide assortment of cozy bowls aka microwave bowls, kitchen towels and various cute coffee mugs. I still like doing my quilting, pallet signs and customized t-shirts, but I'll do those on request from people.

Today the recipe I'm sharing is chewy chocolate chip cookies. They are made with plenty of chocolate chips to make them super yummy. They also have cinnamon and oatmeal in them. The cinnamon is just a little hint and the oatmeal gives a little chewyness to the cookie. One drawback to making these cookies is you need to chill the dough a few hours. I only chilled mine for an hour and they turned out just fine. Just remember the more chilled the dough is the less spread you will get when you bake them.

So what are you waiting for? Go get everything and start making these cookies.

Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 and 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon cinnamon ,to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter ,melted and cooled to room temperature
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 large egg
• 2 and 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 and 1/4 cup chocolate chips , your favorite kind
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts , optional but recommended

Instructions

1. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda & salt. 
2. In a separate bowl beat together the melted butter and sugars using an electric mixer. Add in the honey, vanilla and egg and continue beating until combined. 
3. Turn the mixer down to low and beat in the flour mixer until almost combined.
4. Add in the oats and beat on medium speed until combined. 
5. Then turn off the mixer and stir in 1 cup of the chocolate chips and the chopped walnuts.
6.  Refrigerate for at least an hour. Form dough into balls and place on cookie sheets. You may want to flatten slightly. (I just let mine spread on their own).
7. When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Spray cooking spray on  your baking sheets or use parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and place the cookies at least 2 inches apart. 
8. Bake for 12-14 minutes until the tops of the cookies look almost set.
9. Allow to cool on the cookie tray for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to continue cooling.

recipe from www.justsotasty.com

Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Chocolate Sugar Cookies

     Today was one of those days that just didn't feel like summer. It felt more like a fall day. It was very cool out. In fact I wore jeans and a sweatshirt most of the day. When its cool like this it's time for me to turn the oven on and do some baking, since heating up the house is a good thing when the temp is in the 60's.

     I was in search for something different that I hadn't tried before. I was in search of something chocolate. I found the perfect choice with these chocolate sugar cookies. They taste like a brownie. i could see adding these to a bowl of vanilla ice cream and drizzling some chocolate syrup on top.

     Now of course these cookies are superb all by themselves. One has to have some self control with these babies because they are so moist and chocolatey that you just want to keep on eating. They go perfect with a tall glass of milk and satisfy that craving for chocolate.

     So go ahead and make some. You'll be happy you did! 

Chocolate Sugar Cookies

1 C butter, softened

1 1/2 C brown sugar

2 eggs

1 t vanilla

3/4 C cocoa powder

2 C all purpose flour

1 t baking soda

1 t salt

1/2 C sugar for rolling

Cream butter and brown sugar together and mix until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla mixing well. In a separate bowl combine cocoa powder, flour, soda and salt. Slowly add this mixture to the wet mixture. Mix well.

Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Using a cookie scoop, scoop out dough and roll into a ball. Then roll in sugar and place on a greased cookie sheet. Place cookies 2 inches apart on cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Let cookies cool 8-10 minutes on cookie sheet and remove and place on cooling racks to cool completely.

Recipe from http://chocolatechocolateandmore.com

Snickers Chocolate Chip Cookies

Snickers Chocolate Chip Cookies

     Right now I'm on a baking streak. A cookie baking streak. I have a few new cookie recipes that I want to try out and as soon as one batch of cookies is eaten up I'm ready to make another. This is cookie recipe #3.

     Today I decided to make these Snicker Chocolate Chip Cookies. I love Snickers candy bars and of course I love chocolate chip cookies, so it just seemed natural for these two to join forces. The combination is amazing! I can tell that these will not last long. In fact I'm sure they will be gone by tomorrow.

     The recipe makes about 5 dozen cookies. At least that's how many I got. I used my small cookie scoop to make the cookies. They are not huge in size, but they are still a nice size. They are also very chewy and full of chocolate flavor.  I found the recipe on Cooking Classy. I did alter the recipe slightly, but not by much.

     This cookie recipe doesn't take much time to mix up and bake. I was done before I knew it. Give it a try I think you'll really like them too. I know it was a big hit at my house.

Snickers Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 3/4 C all-purpose flour
1 T cornstarch
1 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1 C butter, softened
1 1/4 C brown sugar
1/4 C sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 t vanilla extract
8 oz Snickers Bites
1 C milk Chocolate chips

Directions
 Cut Snicker Bites into quarters and set aside.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl combine flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Set this aside.
In a bowl mix with an electric mixer butter, brown sugar, and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and blend. With the mixer on low add the flour mixture slowly until combined. Add the chopped Snickers and chocolate chips and blend until mixed in.
Use a cookie scoop and place dough on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool on the pan slightly before removing to cool on a cooling rack. I found that a metal spatula works better to remove the cookies from the pan. Store in an airtight container.

Adapted from www.cooking classing.com

Ginger Cookies

  

Ginger Cookies

  I've been trying to work out lately and be really good about eating healthy, but sometimes a girls just gotta have a little sweet treat. I mean really I can't give up everything. Besides I'm not the type of person to go hog wild eating a ton of sweets. I just need a little something every now and then.

     So last night I went to the gym and worked out a bit. I'm trying to get arms that look like Jennifer Aniston's. I mean have you seen her arms? They look amazing! She looks like she could hold her own in a scuffle. Anyways, I did my regular routine, a little cardio and then some weights for the arms.

     Now I was fighting the urge to bake some cookies before I left for the gym. I was almost ready to start baking when my daughter coaxed me into going. I gave in and went, but on the condition that I was going to make cookies when I got home. Of course she laughed at me and then said o.k. I'll help.

     So once we got home we went to work on getting these cookies mixed up and baked. They were quick to make. It was a snap to get the dough mixed together and to get them on the pans and ready to bake. The hard part was waiting for them to cool enough to take off the pan and enjoy.

     These cookies are highly addictive. They are super moist and have a taste similar to gingerbread. In fact these cookies are so good there are now no more cookies left. The recipe made about 2 1/2 dozen and they were gone in less than 24 hours. Now around here that means the cookies must have been good. I think that's a record around here.

Ginger Cookies
2 1/4 c flour
1 t baking soda
2 t ground ginger
1 t cinnamon
3/4 t cloves
1/4 t salt
3/4 C softened butter
1 C sugar
1 egg
1 T water
1/4 C molasses
4 T sugar (reserve for rolling dough in)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Mix together flour, soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually add the flour mixture and mix well. Roll the dough into small 1 inch balls and roll in the reserved sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cookies cool on cookie sheets for 5 minutes before removing from pan and cooling on a cooling rack. Store in an airtight container. 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

  

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

  I finally got the bug to bake some cookies. I don't know if it's the thought that spring is not very far away or what. All I know is I haven't been baking or really cooking at all that much lately. My meals have been from freezer to oven to table. My snack of choice has been ice cream.

     Now today I've decide to make some cookies. I couldn't think of anything better to make than cookies that have peanut butter and chocolate chips in it. Chocolate and peanut butter go so well together. It's like a little homemade Reese treat.

     These cookies were a snap to make. Not very many ingredients and nothing unusual either. If I were to make them again I might do a little mix of shortening and butter. I like my cookies to spread out a little more. With just the shortening they don't spread as much. I guess I'm use to baking with butter.

    

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
makes 2 dozen

3/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup shortening
1-1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
3 Tbsp. milk
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1-3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375º F.

Cream first 6 ingredients until smooth. Combine dry ingredients & add to peanut butter mixture. Blend. Drop by teaspoon onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool slightly, then remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Polka Dot Macaroons

Polka Dot Macaroons

     It's Christmas cookie time!

     Now that the snow has come people are getting the Christmas fever. The shopping mall is packed and all the streets around it are busy with traffic. If one is planning on going shopping brace yourself for crowds of people and no place to park.

     Of course one could easily avoid this chaos. There would be no need to go to the  mall to shop if 1. Shopping was done in advance of Thanksgiving (not happening here!) or 2. Shopping online and taking advantage of that free shipping (probably what will happen from here on out.) 

     I love shopping, but not when there is a ton of people around. I like to take my time. Not be rushed to grab something because there is a limited amount left. I also don't like being jostled around by people going crazy for that one item that is marked down to an unbelievable price. It just ruins the whole shopping experience. It's like going to a restaurant and having to sit by the kid that screams and cries the whole time. Or flying on an airplane with the little kid kicking your seat the whole flight.

     I much rather prefer to stay at home and do some baking or sewing. These past week I have done a little bit of both. Although I have done some sewing this week (trying to make a quilt for Christmas) I have not done any cookie baking. But......my husband has come through and made some delicious cookies using my Simple and Delicious cooking magazine. And since he went to all the trouble of making cookies and since they were so yummy I thought I'd share the recipe. 

     These cookies were so good we bought more coconut to make some more because we just inhaled the ones he made. He said they were easy to make, but they were a little sticky. He also made them a little bit bigger than what the recipe said to do. I believe they are meant to be more bite size, but heck who cares, they were still super good.

Polk Dot Macaroons

5 C flake coconut

1 Can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk

1/2 C all purpose flour

1 1/2 C M&M Minis

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine coconut, milk and flour; mix well. Stir in M&M's. 

2. drop by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto greased baking sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

Recipe from Simple and Delicious

Halloween Cookies with Royal Icing

Halloween Cookies with Royal Icing

     Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I know some people don't consider it to be a holiday, but I do. I love the decorations, the costumes, and the great holiday treats. I have some fond memories of Halloween from childhood into adulthood.

     I enjoy going to Goodwill or Savers looking for that perfect costume. The rummaging through the clothing racks looking for that just right item to complete a costume what fun! Some people think yuck! But I think this is fun. Easily amused I guess. I'm still debating if I want to dress up to hand out candy this year. I might just go with a simple costume for that, but if I had someplace to go this year I might really do it up.

     Well since it was the Education Minnesota Conference and I did not have to work. My daughter asked if we could make Halloween cut out cookies. Now one might think that my daughter is school age, but she is actually in college. Obviously she still likes to do the holiday stuff too. So it was decided that on Friday we would make cookies together.

     On Thursday I went to Michaels and they just so happen to have all kinds of Halloween cookie and cupcake decorating supplies on clearance. Much to my surprise I found a kit by Wilton with 7 Halloween cookie cutters in it. It was perfect for what we wanted to do so of course I had to pick it up.

     The next step was finding a cookie recipe where the cookies were soft. No crunchy cookies in this house. I almost made the lofthouse cookies but then I thought I'd check out the Wilton site for their cookie recipe. I also needed a royal icing recipe too and I found one on this site as well. I did change the icing a bit just to make it a little more spreadable.

     I just want to warn you that it did take us about three hours to make these cookies from start to finish. That includes cleaning up the kitchen too. But do not fear these cookies are well worth the time and effort. Besides I think they turned out pretty cool.

     So if you want to do something fun for Halloween give these cookies a try. You will not regret the time and effort that you put into it, and besides everyone will be in awe over your awesome cookies.
    
Cookie Dough 
1 C (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 1/2 C sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 t vanilla extract
1/2 t no-color almond extract
2 3/4 C all-purpose flour
2 t baking powder
1 t salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter with the sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add in the egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Mix flour, baking powder and salt, add 1 cup at a time to butter mixture, mixing after each addition.
Do not chill the dough.
Divide dough into 2 balls. On a floured surface, roll each ball into a circle about 1/8 inch thick. Dip cookie cutter in flour before each use. (I didn't do this and I had no problem cutting them with my cookie cutters).
Bake cookies on ungreased cookie sheet on top rack for 6-7 minutes. Let cool slightly on pan before transferring to a cooling rack.
Let cookies cool completely before icing them.

Easy Royal Icing
1 C powdered sugar
3 t milk
3t corn syrup
coloring paste, various colors

Mix together until smooth. Add coloring and mix well. Recipe adapted slightly from Wilton.com
I transferred the icing to squeeze bottles to decorate the cookies. It worked rather well. I also made about 3 different batches to color. One white, one gray and one black. I cheated with the orange and just used some orange frosting from a can. I just heated it a little in the microwave and then spread it on the pumpkins.

Recipes from Wilton.com
    

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

    
      Oh this afternoon was a trying afternoon. Not that my students were misbehaving, they were just loud. It just seemed that as the afternoon wore on they got louder and louder. By the time we were heading for the bus my head was pounding.

     I knew that I needed either a drink or some chocolate. So since it is the middle of the week I opted for chocolate. Chocolate with peanut butter.

     I found this recipe on Pinterest and decided that they look like just the ticket for me. I really wanted chocolate, but this had a bonus of peanut butter. Plus this recipe had a minimal amount of ingredients.

     These cookies were perfect! About the time I started to mix them up a thunderstorm came rolling through. I love making cookies when the temp has cooled off and there is rain coming down on the roof. It is also a perfect time to eat warm cookies with a tall glass of milk. YUM!

     I followed the recipe almost exactly except I used chunky peanut butter. I was trying to use up some peanut butter in the cabinet and I figured what could a few peanuts hurt.

     I ended up making about 4 dozen cookies with this recipe even though the original recipe said it makes 2 dozen. I must have made my cookies a little bit smaller, but they are in my opinion a good size. This way I also get to eat a few more.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
3/4 C Chunky peanut butter
1/2 C shortening
1 1/4 C brown sugar
1 egg
3 T milk
1 T pure vanilla
1 3/4 C all purpose flour
3/4 t baking soda
3/4 t salt
1 C semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375. Cream peanut butter, shortening, brown sugar, egg, milk and vanilla together. In a separate bowl mix flour soda and salt together. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture. Mix well. Add chocolate chips and mix together well. Drop by teaspoon onto ungreased cookie sheets and bake for 10 minutes. Cool slightly before removing from pans and cool on wire racks.

Adapted from Silver Boxes

Spicy Oatmeal Cookies

     Well the Memorial weekend is upon us. The weather of course is not cooperating. It is going to be cold and rainy most of the weekend. I'm hoping that I can get a bonfire in sometime in between the rain.


    I guess it's a good weekend to do some cooking. I might as well especially since the whole crew is here. I will be busy cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner. Sometimes that's good and sometimes it can be a lot of work. If the weather is nice I don't mind grilling outside, but that might be a challenge this holiday weekend. It also helps if I can make things up ahead of time so I don't have to be stuck in the kitchen while everyone else is enjoying themselves.

     I did make some cookies this week. They are an old favorite of my families. I originally got the recipe from my son's daycare provider. He just graduated from college two weeks ago so this recipe has been around for some time. I'm sure they don't remember these cookies because it has been ages since I have actually made them.

     I will probably make some more this weekend and use them to make some ice cream sandwiches. I think they would be perfect for that. These cookies have coconut in them and molasses. Both ingredients are a must in this recipe. The cookies are super soft and chewy, so keep them in an air tight container to keep them fresh.

Spicy Oatmeal Cookies
1 C margarine
1 t salt
2 t cinnamon 
2 t vanilla
2 T Molasses
2 C sugar
2 eggs
2 C flour
1 1/2 t soda
2 C oatmeal
1 C coconut
1 C chopped nuts (optional)

Blend shortening, salt, vanilla, molasses, cinnamon, sugar and eggs. Sift and blend flour and soda. Add remaining ingredients. Drop on cookie sheet allowing room to spread out. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. 

Lemon Sugar Cookies

     Well today is suppose to be a 90 degree day here in Minnesota. And with that on my mind I was in the mood for a treat that was summery. I knew I wanted to make some type of cookie, but I just wasn't sure what kind.

     Now I didn't want to make chocolate chip, or oatmeal. I needed something that was sweet but tasted light and spoke the words summer. This took a lot of searching on the internet, especially on pinterest.

     I found some sugar cookie recipes, but I wanted something with a lemon flavor. I found a few lemon sugar cookies, but I am a stickler for soft sugar cookies. I just hate the crunchy, crumbly type. There were a few out there. None to my complete liking so I did a little modifying of sorts and came up with this recipe.

     I've always read to put cornstarch in your cookies and it will make them soft. I know this works with the lofthouse type of cookie, so I thought why not try it. I also added 100 percent lemon juice to this recipe too.

     These cookies are very soft and very lemony. I am tempted to add some vanilla ice cream between two to make ice cream sandwiches. That would be perfect on a hot day.

     These cookies are very easy to make and don't take much time at all either. Give them a try and enjoy the taste of summer.

Soft Lemon Sugar Cookies

Lemon Sugar Cookies

3 C all purpose flour
2 t cornstarch
1 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 C butter, softened
1 1/2 C sugar
1 egg
1/2 t vanilla extract
1 1/2 t lemon extract
2 t lemon juice
1/2 C sugar for rolling cookies

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl combine flour, cornstarch, soda, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
In a medium bowl beat butter and sugar with a mixer until smooth and fluffy.
Add the egg, vanilla extract, lemon extract, and lemon juice.
Gradually add the flour mixture and combine well.
Roll the dough into balls and then roll in the sugar. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes. Let cookies cool on pan for 2 minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack.
Store cookies in an air tight container to retain freshness.

Oatmeal Scotchie Cookies

       It has been an extremely beautiful weekend. We are finally able to go sit out on the deck and enjoy the warm temperatures and the beautiful sunshine. I can't believe it took until the end of April for it to get this nice.

Oatmeal Scotchies

       Most of our eating and drinking this weekend have been outside on the deck using the grill of course. There is something about being able to sit at that patio table and listen to the birds chirping while you have dinner and drinks.

I did, however, decide that I needed to make something sweet for dessert. I had the craving at first for something chocolate, but then I started to think that maybe oatmeal cookies would be good. After looking through my recipe box I decided to make some oatmeal scotchies.

     Oatmeal scotchies are simply oatmeal cookies with some butterscotch chips thrown in. They are super amazing and my family was quickly devouring them as soon as I took them out of the oven. In fact I had to quickly snap a picture for the blog because they were eating them so fast I thought I wouldn't have any to take a picture of to show.

These cookies are a snap to mix up and they don't require anything special besides the butterscotch chips, but I always have a variety of chips for baking. They are just the right amount of sweetness too. I think these cookies would also make a really good ice cream sandwich. I just might have to give that a try today :)

A pan full of goodness

Oatmeal Scotchies
1 C Shortening
1 C Sugar
1 C Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
1 t Vanilla
1 1/2 C Flour
1 t Salt
1 t Soda
3 C Oatmeal
1/2 C Butterscotch Chips

Cream shortening and sugars. Mix in eggs and vanilla and set aside. In another bowl sift flour, salt and soda. Fold into creamed mixture. Stir in oats. Add the chips and stir. Roll into small balls and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.

Brownie Cookies

Well I'm on spring break this week and since I have no money or anyone for that matter to go on spring break with I'm staying home and enjoying some of the things that I don't get to do regularly.

One of the things that I want to do is go to the tanning salon. I know people tell me how bad it is, but really is it any worse then those people who are going to tropical places to play out in the sun from the time it rises to the time it sets? It's not like I'm baking in there for a super long time nor am I doing this on a regular basis. So if the thought of going to a tanning salon upsets you just skip this part. My hope is to get a little bit of color on this pastey white body of mine and feel a little bit better about the crappy weather I'm putting up with right now.

Brownie Cookies

I also want to go to the gym to work out. I've been slipping lately and I need to get back into my regular routine. I went yesterday and boy could I feel how out of shape I am. I need to get back to running and working out on the elliptical. I also want to go to a yoga class again. I miss yoga and I need to start going and getting back into it 

Another thing that I want to do is to go shopping at some stores that I've never been to before but I'm very curious about. If you can believe it I've never been to Trader Joe's. I'm dying to go there and see what they have. I've heard that they have some very unique items and that their prices are great.

I also want to go to Home Goods. This store is suppose to have all kinds of items for the home at unbelievable prices. I'm excited to go and see if maybe I can find some stuff to liven up my home a little bit. Maybe I'll find those curtains for my bedroom that I need so desperately.

I would really like to go to the Science Museum too. Right now they have Body Worlds there. I went the last time they had an exhibit like this and it was amazing. This time it is centered around athletics. I think that my daughter whom is going to be a physical therapist would love the exhibit too. It might be tricky planning a  time working around her school schedule, but I'm going to try.

I also want to bake and cook a bunch of old and new recipes so I can have a plethora of already tried and photographed dishes to share. It is hard teaching, coming home and getting everything else done and then cooking for just two. I exploring the option of making one day on my blog a college cooking day where I can scale back on ingredients and time.

Well to start this week out I decided to make something with chocolate. These cookies are extremely rich so look out. I don't know where I got the recipe from. I found it in my pile of recipes that I want to try. I had cut it out of some magazine or something a long time ago and I've never attempted to make it.

So here's the recipe for Brownie Cookies!
Brownie Cookies
1/2 C butter
4 (1oz) Squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3 C (18oz) semi sweet chocolate morsels, divided
1 1/2 C all purpose flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
4 eggs
1 1/2 C sugar
2 t vanilla extract
2 C chopped pecans, optional

Combine butter, unsweetened chocolate, and 1 1/2 cups chocolate morsels in a large heavy saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until butter and chocolate melt; cool.
Combine flour, baking powder, and slat in a small bowl; set aside.
Beat eggs, sugar, and vanilla at medium speed with an electric mixer. Gradually add dry ingredients to egg mixture, beating well. Add chocolate mixture; beat well. Stir in remaining 1 1/2 cups chocolate morsels and pecans.
Drop dough by 2 tablespoonfuls 1 inch apart onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets.
Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Cool slightly on baking sheets; remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Yield: about 2 1/2 dozen.

S'More bites

S'More Bites

After watching the Shark Tank Friday night I was challenged to create a bite size s'more that tasted like a s'more. I was up for the challenge. I know that one can google a ton of recipes for this delightful treat and so I set out to make a bite size s'more.

I just couldn't stand watching my nephew's wife, who has never cooked a day in her life, pitch her line to the sharks about how she created this recipe for her "Smuffins" and how she and her husband have always dreamed of owning a s'more shop. Gag me! Only in LA would this line of crap go over as real.

So after listening to her and watching the sharks slam her idea as ridiculous and telling her it didn't even taste like a s'more I just knew I could make a treat that was good, but of course no way would I ever think of charging $10 for a treat. Obviously people in LA don't cook very much if they are willing to pay an outrageous price for a mini s'more dipped in chocolate.

Now I know that she sells different flavors of smuffins, but one can also find different varieties with the aid of google. I did and it didn't take much time or energy. Maybe next time I'll try peanut butter or dark chocolate. The possibilities are endless.

So try the recipe below and I'm sure this recipe will have you saying "I've gotta have s'more and there is smuffin to it!"

S'More Bites
7 whole graham crackers
1/4 C powdered sugar
6 T butter, melted
4 Hershey Milk Chocolate bars
12 Large marshmallows

1. Preheat oven to 350. Place graham crackers into a large resealable plastic bag. Finely crush into crumbs using a rolling pin. Combine graham crackers crumbs, powdered sugar and butter in a small bowl. Using a small scoop place a scant scoop of crumb mixture in each cup of a mini-muffin pan. Press crumbs to form a shallow cup. Bake 4-5 minutes. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Remove pan from oven; place one rectangle into each cup.
2. Cut marshmallows in half crosswise using kitchen shears dipped in cold water. Place one marshmallow half, cut-side down, into each cup. Return to oven 1-2 minutes or until marshmallow is slightly softened. Remove pan from oven and cool on a cooling rack for 15 minutes. Carefully remove cups from pan. Cool completely.
3. Bread remaining candy bars and place in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high 1-1 1/2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 20 seconds. Dip the top of each marshmallow in melted chocolate. Turn top-side up and let stand 40 minutes-1 hour or until set.

Spritz Cookies

Today I am in need of some baking. Things are a bit stressful in my life right now and one way I know of curing it is to bake something sweet.

Since it's the holiday season I decide I would try my hand at making some spritz cookies. Now I haven't made these in years and if I remember right it was a bit difficult working that dumb cookie press.

These cookies bring back memories of when my daughter was a little baby, not quite one, and she was sitting in her high chair eating spritz cookies. I was busy decorating the tree when I heard my baby's first word.... "more". So precious! I was so excited to finally hear her talk I of course gave her more cookies. 

I have purchased a new cookie press since my last attempt at making these cookies and I was hoping that this new Cuisinart Electric Cookie Press was going to work like a charm. Well much to my surprise it worked great.Super Easy!!!

I only made 1/2of the recipe this time. I didn't know how the press would work and I am short on time tonight, but I now know that I'll be making some more of these before Christmas.

The recipe is from my mom. She's been making them since I was a little girl and I'm not sure where she got the recipe. The recipe does state to add vanilla to taste. I added 2 teaspoons to this batch, but I could probably added more. So here's the recipe. I hope you enjoy them!

Spritz Cookies
1-lb butter
1 C granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 extra yolks
4 1/2 C sifted flour
vanilla to taste
Mix butter, sugar, eggs & yolks together with a mixer. Add vanilla. Slowly add the flour mixing with your mixer. Put dough in the cookie press and press cookies onto ungreased cookie sheets, sprinkle with colored sugar. Bake at 350 for 5-6 minutes. Cool slightly and remove from pans.

Peanut Butter Cookies

Today was just one of those days that I just wished I could have had the day off. Not that I don't like my job it's just that I have been going strong since mid August and I really need a break.

 I am also really starting to feel the pressure as the end of the trimester approaches. So many assessments that need to be finished and only 14 days to do it in. Yikes!

Needless to say I am really need some stress relieving food right now. Usually I would opt for chocolate, but I'm just not in the mood for that.

What I am in the mood for is peanut butter. So I decided to make some peanut butter cookies. This recipe is one that my mom use to make when I was a kid. I have no idea where it came from. All I know is it is one of the best peanut butter cookies that I have tried.

It tastes best when you use a real good brand name peanut butter, but I don't have any in the house right now so I'm going with a cheaper brand.

I'm sure these cookies will help chase away my blues and give me that positive outlook that I need to get these darn assessments done! Be gone dumb assessments! Be gone stress!

Peanut Butter Cookies

Peanut Butter Cookies
3 C flour
2 t soda
1/4 t salt
1 C shortening
1 C sugar
1 C brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 C peanut butter
1 t vanilla

Mix the first three ingredients together and set aside. Mix the next seven ingredients together. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well. Form into tiny balls and press on a greased cookie sheet with a fork. Bake at 375 for 15-18 minutes.

Banana Whoopie Pies

Banana Whoopie Pies

Well it happened again. I had three bananas go bad on me. I'm the only one at my house that eats bananas, so it's really hard to not have a few go bad. But I'm getting really tired of making banana bread or banana bars and wanted something a little different.

So after searching the internet I came upon a couple recipes for Banana Whoopie Pies. Now I've never made Whoopie Pies before and I wasn't really sure what they would taste like or how they would bake up, but I thought I'd give it a whirl.

I decide to go with the recipe from Taste of Home. I liked the idea that the filling had peanut butter in it and I like peanut butter. The recipe also sound very simple. I did add a teaspoon of cinnamon to the cookie part to spice up the banana part. It was a good choice.

The one suggestion that I would make is to make the cookie part smaller than what they suggest. The recipe says drop by tablespoonfuls, which I did and it made huge cookies. I would make them half the size because they are quite sweet to have such a large whoopie pie.

So I hope you enjoy the recipe.

Banana Whoopie Pies
1/2 C butter, softened

3/4 C sugar
1/4 C brown sugar
1 egg
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 C mashed ripe banana
1/2 C milk
2 C all purpose flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1 t cinnamon

Filling:
1 pkg (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 C creamy peanut butter
3 T butter, softened
1 C confectioners' sugar
1 t vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a large bowl cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl mash a banana to measure 1/2 C. Add to sugars along with the milk and mix well. Combine flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a separate bowl. Gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well.
2. Drop by 1/2 Tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart (they will spread) onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes or until set. Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
3. For filling, in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, peanut butter, and butter until fluffy. Beat in confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread filling on the bottoms of half of the cookies and top with the remaining cookies. Store in the refrigerator.  Makes 2 dozen. 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

OK, so today I'm not having the best day and it's looking like my week is not going to really get much better. One way I know to make it a little more bearable is to bake something. That something is preferably chocolate. Actually peanut butter and chocolate.

I found just the cure for my blues, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!

The recipe is basically a peanut butter cookie recipe with chocolate chips added. You can use either chunky peanut butter or creamy peanut butter. I used creamy because that is what I had on hand, but I sure bet it would be great with chunky. Maybe next time.

Well I might not be good at much, but at least I'm good at baking! I can pretty much bake just about anything and it'll turn out pretty darn good.

In my dreams I imagine what it would be like to have my own tiny, little small town bakery. It would of course have a few staple specialty items, but on occasion have a few seasonal type items. A place where one could get a sweet little treat and a cup of coffee or a glass of milk. After all what would cookies be without the milk? Still working on that dream though. A girl can dream can't she?

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1C butter, softened (2 sticks)
1 C chunky or creamy peanut butter
1 C sugar
1 C brown sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 C flour
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
2 C semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.
Cream butter, peanut butter and sugars until light. Add the eggs and mix until fluffy.
Blend the flour, baking powder, soda and salt together well. Add these dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Add the chocolate chips.
Drop cookie dough by teaspoonfuls onto lightly gteased baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 375.
Makes 6 dozen. 

Confetti Cookies

I just had to share a new found recipe for a soft, moist cookie. My daughter and I just really had a sweet tooth and we wanted something that was quick to make to satisfy our craving for something sweet. I also wanted something that was not too labor intense so I could whip it up without a lot of trouble and kick back on the couch and continue watching the Bachelorette.

I started looking around on some cooking blogs that I had bookmarked and I found this very interesting recipe for a cookie using a cake mix. The cookie had red and blue sprinkles in it and I had sprinkles (just a little different color).  I liked the picture of the cookie in the blog so I thought what the heck, I'll give it a try. I changed the recipe a little by not adding as much sprinkles to the mix and I used rainbow sprinkles.

Good thing I always keep a few cake mixes on hand for those times when you need a quick dessert. I usually have one white mix, one yellow mix, and one chocolate mix in the cupboard. I also keep a couple of brownie mixes and a can or two of frosting.

The bad thing about this recipe is it only makes 30 cookies. Once you make these you'll just want to eat and eat and eat these cookies. They remind me of that Funfetti cake and frosting that you can buy. Make sure you have a glass of milk ready when you sit down. You're going to need it. Enjoy!

Confetti Cookies

 

Confetti Cookies

  

1 box french vanilla cake mix, 18.25 oz*

1 tsp baking powder

2 eggs

1/2 C vegetable oil

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 C rainbow sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix and baking powder. In a small bowl, mix together the eggs, oil and vanilla. Add the egg mixture to the cake mixture and stir to combine. Stir in the sprinkles. Drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to cooling rack. The cookies will be very soft at first. Cool and enjoy! makes 30-32 cookies

 adapted from my funfetti cake batter cookies

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