This and That Cookies

I've made these cookies a number of times before, but this is the first time I've ever wrote one of the recipes down. I say "one of the recipes" because it changes every time, depending on what I put them. Sometimes I start with a basic sugar cookies dough, sometimes chocolate chip and sometimes peanut butter. This recipes starts with a peanut butter cookie recipe from the King Aurthur Cookie Companion. Then I open up my baking cabinet and see what I have kicking around. These cookies come out flat, kind of crispy and kind of chewy but totally delicious.

What You Need:

2 sticks of butter
1 c brown sugar
1/4 c agave
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tbs vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup nutella
1 cup oats
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup coconut
1/3 c white chocolate chips
1/3 c chocolate chips
1/3 c granola, plain or with raisins

What To Do:

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, agave, baking soda, salt and vanilla until fluffy. Add the eggs in one at a time until combined, and then mix in the nutella. In a small bowl, stir together the oats, flour, coconut, white and chocolate chips and the granola. With the mixer on low, slowly add in the dry ingredients until they are all mixed in. Drop by heaping tablespoons onto parchment lined baking sheets. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes. They will spread out quite a bit so make sure you leave plenty of room in between them. This makes 4 dozen cookies.

Christmas Crack - two ways

First off I have to say just how much I love not only the name but the treat as well. Basically it's nothing more then sugar, butter and chocolate. Sure you can throw in some nuts for you good measure and there is some sort of cracker in there too but in reality it's the biggest sugar high of your life. Hence the name. These two recipes aren't mine, however I did add my own spin too it. The first one comes from a post on the Craftster website and was how I was first turned on to it. The second comes from the Food Network's Claire Robinson. Click on thinks for the appropriate recipes. I've made adjustments because I use half sheet pans, so that's what my recipes are for.

For Version One:

1 c butter (2 sticks)
1 1/2 c brown sugar
1 sleeve of saltine crackers
1 (12oz) bag chocolate chips
1 c holiday colored M&M's

Preheat oven to 400 degree and line your rimmed baking sheet with foil or a silicone mat. Spray the foil with a bit of cooking spray. Line the saltines up to cover the bottom of the baking sheet. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the butter and brown sugar to a boil. Boil for about 3 minutes and carefully pour over the crackers, spread it out as best you can and then put it in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove and if any of the saltines have shifted, very carefully put them back into place. Let cool for just a few minutes and then sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top. Once they've melted, spread to coat the toffee layer and then sprinkle the M&M's on top, pressing them into the chocolate slightly. Pop in the fridge to finish cooking completely. Brake into pieces.

For Version Two:

1 c butter (2 sticks)
1 c dark brown sugar

2 sleeves graham crackers (I used the cinnamon ones)
1 c mini chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degree and line your rimmed baking sheet with foil or a silicone mat. Spray the foil with a bit of cooking spray. Line the graham crackers up to cover the bottom of the baking sheet. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the butter and brown sugar to a boil. Boil for about 3 minutes, stir in the chopped pecans and carefully pour over the crackers, spread it out as best you can and then put it in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove and let cool just a few minutes before sprinkling the mini chocolate chips over the top. Pop in the fridge to finish cooling completely and then break into pieces.

How To Make: Homemade Mounds Candy

Chocolate and coconut.... Chocolate and coconut!!! Two of the best things in the world when combined is chocolate and coconut!! Mounds bars are probably my favorite candy, or at least in the top three. I love to stick a bag of the fun sized ones in my freezer and have them as an after supper treat. Making your own isn't quite as easy as opening a bag bought from the store, but it is more fun!

What You Need:

14oz bag shredded coconut
1 cup powder sugar
5oz sweetened condensed milk
2 bags of chocolate chips

What To Do:

In a bowl mixed together the coconut, powdered sugar and condensed milk. This does take a little effort to get it all mixed throughly. Alternately, you can place the powdered sugar and coconut into a food processor and pulse a few times to chop the coconut up finer, like you would find a store bought mounds bar, but I never feel like washing mine afterwards so I don't do this. Using your hands, shape the coconut mixture into small balls or semi flattened logs. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and place in the fridge for about an hour to set. This hardens them up a bit so it doesn't fall apart when coated in chocolate.
Heat the chocolate chips up in a heat safe bowl over barely simmering water until melted. Dip the coconut centers into the chocolate one at a time and place back on the parchment lined sheets. Let set on the counter for about 15 minutes, then pop into the fridge to finish setting. Eat and enjoy!

Five Minute Fudge

I kid you not! It seriously only takes 5 minutes to make this delicious fudge recipe. Plus it only have 5 ingredients too. I'm not sure where the recipe came from, most likely some vast internet search, but I have been making this, and several variations for the last few years. See, I have 3 brothers in law and I swear they only put up with me because I can cook, and cook well. They also happen to be some of the hardest men to shop for when it comes to the holidays. One year I decided that I was just going to make them all fudge and be done with it. The following Christmas came and all they wanted was more fudge. Now ever year for Christmas I make a few different kinds, pack them into cute tins and they're all done. This recipe has become a life saver for me. I just made a batch this afternoon for one of the boys who won't be here on Christmas this year, but will actually be here tomorrow. It's something that's so quick and easy, I'm sure you'll be adding it in with your holiday baking in no time!

What You Need:

1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tbs butter
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt

What To Do:

Line a 8 or 9 inch square baking pan with parchment paper and just barely spray with cooking spray. Set aside. In a large, microwave safe bowl, add the condensed milk, chocolate chips, butter and salt. Place in the microwave for one minute. Give it a stir, and place back in the microwave for 30 seconds. Give it another stir and if it's not completely melted and smooth, place it back in the microwave for 30 more seconds. Once it's all melted and smooth, stir in the vanilla. Pour it into your prepared pan and place in the fridge to cool completely. I let mine set overnight to make sure that it's solid all the way through.

Cow Pies

About two weeks ago my husband started bugging me for S'mores. Not that I can blame him. What's better then graham crackers, melted chocolate and toasted marshmallows all smushed together. They're messy, gooey and oh so yummy. So I made a few in the microwave for him. Then he started going on about these little cupcake like things that were nothing more then the layers of S'mores packed into cupcake form. Knowing that trying to take these S'mores out of my pans would be a terrible ordeal, I started playing around with a couple ideas. I made these little S'more bites in just a few minutes and that's what I was originally going to call them. That was until they were completely made and looked more like little cow pies instead! Just a couple of ingredients and just as few minutes, you can make these little bites anytime. However I should warn you. They are extremely addicting!

What You Need:

1 sleeve graham crackers

1/2 bag of marshmallows

2 Hershey's chocolate bars

1 tbs butter

What To Do:

In a bowl, crush up the graham crackers with your hands. You're not making crumbs out of them, just breaking them up in small pieces. Set aside.

In a large pot, melt the butter and then add in the marshmallows. Stir constantly until the marshmallows are melted. Remove from heat. 

The chocolate bars I used are the ones that they market specifically for S'mores. I'm sure they're just a plain Hershey's bar but this time of year you always find them together with marshmallows and graham crackers. I put them in a bowl and melt them in the microwave. It only takes 30 to 60 seconds.

Dump the graham crackers into the melted marshmallows and stir well. Drizzle the chocolate over the top and again stir well so that everything is combined. 

Using two tablespoons, scoop a bit of the sticky mixture up with one spoon and use the other to smush it together and then place onto a parchment lined sheet. Let sit and cool till they firm up. I would store them in the fridge, however they never lasted long enough to make it there!

S'more Granola Bars

Adapted from The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion, these wonderfully delicious cookie bars really are just like eating a s'more. There is no graham crackers to be found in the recipe, instead of mixture of oats and Rice Krispies cereal are combined together with a mixture of hot sugar and butter. They're sturdy enough to survive the day in the bottom of a backpack, which makes them perfect for kids. The recipe makes about four dozen bars and is so quick and easy that it's perfect for a bake sale too. My husband devoured them within the week!!

What You Need:

4 cups rolled oats
4 cups Rice Krispies cereal
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 tsp salt
4 cups mini marshmallows
1cup chocolate chips

What To Do:

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. On a half sheet pan, (or two 13x9 pans) spread the oats out and toast them in the preheated oven for about 6 minutes. They should smell toasty but not brown. You might need to stir them to keep the outer edges from burning. Remove from oven and place into a large bowl. Stir in the rice cereal.

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, water, corn syrup and salt over high heat. Bring to a rolling boil and let boil for 5 minutes or until a candy thermometer reaches 250 degrees. If you don't have a candy thermometer, don't worry. The 5 minute boil time is pretty accurate and won't effect your bars if you only reach 240.

Remove the syrup from the heat and pour it over the oats and cereal, stirring to combined. Add in 2 cups of marshmallows and stir well until they're incorporated into the mix. Press into the bottom of a lightly greased half sheet pan (or two 13x9 pans), patting it flat. Using another pan to press the mixture works really well.

Sprinkle the top with the remaining 2 cups of marshmallows and the chocolate chips. Bake in the oven for about 5 minutes or until the marshmallows are puffy and slightly browned. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan and cut into squares while still warm. I found the easiest way was to take my pastry scraper and cut them into long strips, then cut each strip into squares.

New York Style Marble Cheesecake with Strawberry Sauce

Cheesecake is my guilty pleasure. It is basically a blank canvas that you can take and turn into the most delightful desserts or enjoy as it is. Smooth and creamy on the tongue, New York style cheesecake has lemon zest mixed in giving it just barely a hint of tartness to cut through the rich sweetness that cheesecake is known for. Blending in some bittersweet chocolate to part of the batter, then swirling it in with the rest, makes it even better. To make it the best thing you've ever tasted, a sauce of fresh strawberries tops it off. It's such an elegant dessert that is sure to impress anyone you serve it to.

What You Need:

2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup plus 3 tbs sugar
1 stick melted butter
3 (8oz) pkgs cream cheese, softened at room temperature
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 tbs flour
1 cup sour cream
3 eggs
Zest of 1 lemon
4 oz bittersweet chocoalte
2 pints fresh strawberries, hulled and chopped
1/2 cup sugar
Juice of a lemon

What To Do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9 inch spring form pan.
In a bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, 3 tbs sugar and melted butter together. Press into just the bottom of the spring form pan. This makes a nice thick bottom crust. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes or until it's slightly golden brown. Remove and let cool while you make the filling.

Melt the chocolate in the microwave and sit it aside and let cool.

In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the remaining cup of sugar, cream cheese and vanilla. To make a smooth creamy batter, you have to make sure the cream cheese is at room temperture. I take my cream cheese out of the fridge in the morning and let it sit at least 4 or 5 hours so that it's nice and soft.

Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Blend in the flour and then the sour cream, again scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mix in the eggs 1 at a time until well incorpoated. Scrap down the sides and bottom once more, making sure it's all mixed well. Mix in the lemon zest. Remove about 1 1/2 cups of the batter and mix it into the melted chocolate.

Pour half of the remaining batter over the bottom of crust. Place several spoonfuls of the chocolate batter into the plain batter, using about half of the chocolate. Cover this with the rest of the plain batter, dotting again with the rest of the chocolate.

Using a knife, gently swirl the two batters together, making sure not to over mix it or it will all become chocolate. Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour, or until the center is almost set. Run a sharp knife around the rim of the pan and allow the cake to cool on a wire rack before removing the rim. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight before serving.

To make the strawberry sauce combine the berries, 1/2 cup sugar, and lemon juice and cook over medium heat until the berries are very soft and liquid is thick. You can serve it as is or you can blend it together and strain to remove the seeds before putting it over the cheesecake.

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Chocolate Ganache

It doesn't get much better then a creamy cheesecake
with chocolate on top, that is, until you add pumpkin to the mix. This is great for something different on thanksgiving or really anytime you want to impress. The key to a smooth and creamy cheesecake is to have all of your ingredients at room temperature, especially the cream cheese. It is important to also remember to scrap the sides of your bowl often as cream cheese will stick to the side and not be incorporated. There really isn't much to making cheesecake, it's quite easy to make. I promise!

What you need:
Crust:
2 cups grahm cracker crumbs
1 stick of butter, melted
2 tbs sugar

Filling:
3 (8oz) packages of cream cheese at room temp
1 c sugar
1 tsp vaniila
1 (15oz) can (approx 2 cups) pumpkin puree
3 eggs
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Topping:
2 1/2 oz of milk (2% works fine)
5 oz of your favorite chocolate or just plain chocolate chips works too.

What you do:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs together with the stick of melted butter and the 2 tbs of sugar. Using the bottom of a flat measuring cup or glass, press the mixture into the bottom and 2/3 up the sides of a 9 incn spring form pan. Place in the oven and back for 10 mins just to set the graham crackers. Remove from the oven and let cool while you make the filling.
The best way to make cheesecake is with the whip attachment to a stand mixer, but a good hand mixer and a large bowl works just fine. Blend together the sugar and cream cheese on high speed until nice and smooth. Scrap down the sides of the bowl. Blend in the pumpkin and vanilla. Scrap down the sides of the bowl again. On medium speed, mix the eggs in, one at a time until incorporated. Once they are all in, scrap down the sides of the bowl and add in the spices. Scrap down the sides of the bowl one last time and give it one last mix. Pour into the cooled crust. Place a pan of very hot tap water on the bottom most rack of your oven. Then place your cheesecake on the middle rack of your oven and let bake at 350 degree for at least an hour. Your cheesecake is set when it is no longer giggly in the middle and a toothpick comes out clean.
Don't worry if the top cracks. They will be covered with the chocolate. Let cool for an hour before making the ganache for the top.
To make the topping, finely chop the 5oz of chocolate and place in a bowl. Heat the milk in a small sauce pan just until it simmers. Pour the milk on top of the chocolate and let sit for a few minutes. Whisk the chocolate until it's all melted and smooth. Pour on top of the cooled cheesecake and place in the refrigerator. The chocolate will set and give a nice rich topping to the cheese cake. Make sure you keep it in the refrigerator. It's also a good idea to let the cheesecake sit overnight before eating but I don't know of very many people who could do that!

H A P P Y  C O O K I N G !!

Divine Chocolate Pound Cake

I found this recipe on the inside of a Nordic Ware bunt pan that was on sale after Christmas. My brother in law, Eran, was visiting for a couple days so I decided to make this for dessert one night. I have to warn you that it is in no way, shape or from low calorie so if you made a resolution to watch your diet this year then you may want to leave the page now. One look at this cake and I know you will want to make it!

Ingredietns:

3 cups of sugar (yes that does say cups)
1 cup butter, softened
3 eggs
1 3/4 cups milk or half and half
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups of flour
1 cup cocoa powder (dark cocoa powder works good too)
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt


Preheat your oven to 325. Grease and flour your pan. The flouring of a pan is especially important if you use a fancy bunt pan with lots of grooves. It helps the cake to release much better without tearing. To do this, first grease your pan with cooking spray, lard, shortening, whatever you use. Then take 2 tbs of flour and sprinkle it around the pan. Take the pan in your hands and rotate it in all directions, tapping the outside as you go to move excess flour. Once the whole pan is coated, turn it upside down and tap it again to remove any flour that is left.
In a large mixing bowl, mix sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, then add in the milk and vanilla; mixing well.
Mix in the remaining ingredients, making sure that it all gets incorporated.
Spoon into prepared pan, only filling about 3/4 full.
Bake for 90 to 95 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto wire wrack to finish cooking.
Sprinkle with a little powdered sugar if you desire and serve with ice cream.

H A P P Y  C O O K I N G !!