Cookie time...

In our house, it wouldn't be Christmas without decorating some sort of cookie - gingerbread or sugar.

This year, Riley requested a type of gingerbread cookie. The recipe I made was in the back of a favorite Christmas book of hers "Gingerbread Mouse."

I can't taste (more on that later...maybe) but I'm guessing they came out fine based on how quickly the children ate them. 

Tonight after dinner I let Owen and Riley decorate one for dessert. Later, after Owen was fast asleep we (the girls) finished decorating them.

Hopefully Santa will like them!

Riley asked if we could keep the cookies forever because they were so beautiful.  :)

Giant Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I thought it time to add another cookie recipe to my blog!

Actually, I didn't.

I just happened to bake yesterday, and my blog popped in my mind.

I was reminiscing back to the holidays last year and how much baking and blogging I was doing!

So, I took a picture of the cookie I had baked.

And - well, here we are.

Giant Chocolate Chunk Cookies!

They aren't the most beautiful cookie I've ever made - but they sure are good.

These cookies are made using egg whites.  As a result, they are light and fluffy.  A soft cookie, for sure.

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Giant Chocolate Chunk Cookies
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large egg whites*
1/2 cup semisweet or dark chocolate chips
Cooking Spray

* I used the egg whites from a carton

Directions:

• Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl; stir with a whisk.
• Place sugars and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and egg whites; beat well.  Add flour mixture; beat at low speed until well blended.  Stir in chocolate chips.
• Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Drop dough by tablespoon on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.
• Bake for 14 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool at least 2 minutes on pan; cool on wire rack.

Yield: about two dozen (if dropping dough by a tablespoon)

Now, lets talk about the "giant" part of this recipe.  The initial recipe suggested dividing the dough up in equal portions - to make six "giant" cookies.  I didn't like that this recipe made only six cookies.  That's silly.  So, I doubled the recipe and just used a tablespoon to drop the dough on the baking sheets.  If you want "giant" cookies - go for it! 

Source: Cooking Light, June 2009

I gave Riley half of my cookie.  She said "mmm" while eating it.

That's my girl!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

I ran out of cookies.

It's a sad day when that happens!

I went ahead and made a new favorite of mine, realizing I never shared this recipe with you!

Reasons they are a favorite? 

They have peanut butter in them, and chocolate chips too!

All with no butter, less sugar and egg whites.  These are definitely a healthier cookie.  (Which I am into right now.)

These cookies are very light, soft and cake-like!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

*½ cup granulated sugar

*½ cup packed brown sugar

½ cup creamy peanut butter

¼ cup water

¼ cup canola oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large egg whites

1 large egg

2 cups all-purpose flour

*2/3 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate mini chips

Directions: 

·         Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

·         Combine first 8 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with mixer at medium speed until smooth.

·         Combine flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl; stir with a whisk.

·         Add flour mixture to peanut butter mixture, stirring just until combined.

·         Stir in mini chips.

·         Drop dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on baking sheets (lined with silicone baking liner).

·         Bake for 12 minutes or until golden.

·         Cool on a wire rack.

* Original recipe calls for 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 cup brown sugar.  It also calls for only all-purpose flour but I always like to add some whole wheat flour in too!

Source:  slightly adapted from Cooking Light, December 2008

Enjoy your weekend!

exercise and cookies

Guys.

I have a serious problem.

Serious!

Today I did a very typical Abby thing.  (Almost embarassing to admit...)

I worked out for an hour during Riley's nap.  (Go Me!)

I then, immediately afterwards, baked cookies.

And ate about six straight from the oven.  (No, I'm not kidding.)

I even burnt my tongue because I couldn't get to them fast enough.  (Idiot.)

Not just any cookies (like my "healthier" versions)...

These babies - Dark Chocolate Chip Comfort Cookies.

They have - yes, lots of chocolate in them.  And, peanut butter.  Need I say more?

notice I'm eating as I take pics...one bite, two bites...you get the point

Dang man.  These are good!

Too good.

Too naughty.

Ugh.  I worked out and then I ate cookies. 

Somehow, the two just don't go well together.

Seriously.  One of these days I need to wake up and get on the ball.  I know that if I cut out (some) sugar that I'd probably see better weight loss results.  Yes?  Yeah.  A no brainer.

I've always said I'd rather work out than diet.  And it's completely true.  I'd rather train and run a marathon before I diet.  I cannot.  Cannot.  Cut out certain foods.  I'd go mental.  I am just thinking about it.

But I could at least cut back from five, to say...two cookies in a day?  That may help.

So, what did I do after Riley woke up from her nap today?  I went for a walk.  (I'm lucky my daughter loves going outside, in the stroller!)  I needed to burn more calories, and walk off some of the "ugh" feeling.  Those "comfort" cookies were making me feel guilty all day.

I didn't even eat dinner because I felt so ill.  You'd think this would teach me a lesson, huh? 

Sorry to say, it won't.  I may not do it again tomorrow - but next week, ummm, probably.

Anyway, I immediately froze all of the cookies - after inhaling several straight from the oven.

Tomorrow will be better.  I think...

I need help!

Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate-Chip Cookies

My mom came for an overnight this past week.

I wanted to make cookies.  (Shocker!)  And too, I wanted her to take some home.

My mom gave me this recipe awhile back.  This is only the second or third time (max) that I've made them.  I'm going to keep them as a frequent cookie around here. 

I love coconut stuff.  (My mom does too.)  But what we love most about these cookies?  There is no butter!  Yup, you heard me right.  And in place of half the oil, I use applesauce...even better!

A sweet treat when you need something, but it won't completely knock you over either! 

The hardest part of this recipe is finding unsweetened shredded coconut.  Most grocery stores only sell sweetened.  Unfortunately, I won't be any help here...my mom gets my coconut from a friend (it's made by Barnstead Pantry).  I know that Bob's Red Mill sells it too (just not sure which stores).  I would definitely suggest looking in Whole Foods, or the like.  And too, whenever you find it - buy a lot!  It'll keep well. 

Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate-Chip Cookies
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

2/3 cups unsweetened, shredded coconut
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup dark chocolate chips
1 cup plus 4 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 scant teaspoon salt
*1 cup canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 large eggs

* In place of 1/2 cup oil, I used unsweetened (natural) applesauce.

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Spread coconut on a baking sheet (stirring occasionally) and cook until lightly golden, 4-5 minutes.  Allow to cool.
• Combine oats, chocolate chips, and coconut in a medium bowl. 
• In a separate medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt.
• In a large bowl, beat oil (and applesauce, if using), vanilla, and sugar on low speed.  Add eggs and beat until smooth.
• Stir in flour mixture just until smooth.  Do not over mix!
• Stir in oat mixture just until combined.
• Drop by tablespoons onto a lightly greased cookie sheet, spacing a couple inches apart.
• Bake for 11-14 minutes (rotate pan halfway through), until cookie edges and centers are uniformly firm.  (If you want softer cookies, take them out when the edges are set but centers are still a little soft.) 
• Cool 5 minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Three for me, please!

OK, alright.  Maybe just two.

 

wow. lots of cookies.

If you want cookie recipe ideas, bookmark these links.

FULL of wonderful cookie ideas (and blogs)!

Roundup Part 1

Roundup Part 2

These lists are from the cookie swap I did and include all the swappers' cookies!

I actually got overwhelmed by all the cookies, and closed the pages.  Ha!

Maybe you will enjoy scrolling through hundreds of cookies? 

Or maybe not.

Either way, I wanted to share!

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All I do know is after the holidays, cookies need to stay far away from me...or is it the other way around?

My jeans and thighs are battling.

Candy Cane Blossoms

I found this recipe initially from Pinterest...the great pic caught my eye!

 

Source: bakedperfection.com via Abby on Pinterest

I had this cookie in mind when I signed up for a contest at my church, as part of a Girls Night event they were having on Dec 13.

I had never made them before, but they looked pretty!

I baked all the cookies (6 dozen +) the night before the event.

They are probably one of the smallest cookies I've ever made, ha! 

They were super cute (and yummy)!  These Kisses taste similar to peppermint bark.

If you want a festive cookie to make this Christmas, try these!

Candy Cane Blossoms
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

1 bag Hershey's Kisses Candy Cane Kisses

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 egg

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons milk

Red and Green colored sugar

 

Directions:

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Remove wrappers from Kisses.
• Beat butter, sugar, vanilla, and egg in large bowl until well blended.
• Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; add alternatively with milk to butter mixture, beating until well blended.
• Shape dough into 1 inch balls.
• Roll in red or green colored sugar.
• Place on ungreased cookie sheet; bake 8 - 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and cookies are set.
• Remove from oven; cool 2 to 3 minutes.
• Press candy piece into center of each cookie.
• Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.
• Cool completely.

Source: Hershey's and Baked Perfection

 

 

The event was awesome, such a nice night.  And the cookie contest was fun! 

 

There was a total of 12 of us that participated.  We had to bring 5 dozen cookies for the audience, and 1 dozen had to be plated (pretty) for the judges.

 

Here was my beautiful creation, for the judges...

 

 

Nice, huh?  I thought so!

 

I was in the kitchen, literally figuring it out as I went!  I had a general idea of what I wanted to do but wasn't sure how to piece it together.  The candy canes around the glass was actually my friend's idea.  She was out shopping with me at Michael's the night before and we were discussing it! 

 

The sign is stuck into a large marshmallow with mini marshmallows all around it, hidden under the unwrapped Kisses.

 

I thought it turned out cute...it went with my "candy cane" theme, obviously!

 

Then to top it off...

 

 

Cellophane wrap (which is a favorite thing of mine), a ribbon and a little note to the judges.

 

And the winner of the cookie contest is...

 

ABBY!

 

No, not really.  I did not win the grand prize, but I did win something...

 

A Christmas platter!

 

AND...a Christmas tree spatula!

 

To be totally honest, I was so excited to win.  (Even if I was 1 of 4 to win the same prize.)  I was all giddy.

 

I was not expecting to win the grand prize - in all seriousness, because my cookie was OK but it wasn't awesome, right?  It wasn't super duper creative or anything (heck, the recipe is on the back of the Hershey bag!) but I knew my plate decoration was killer.

 

When I went up to the stage at the event to place my plate next to the others, I knew I had a shot.  Mine looked sweet.  It looked Christmas-y and pretty.  I walked away from that table with a smirk on my face.  (I'm so competitive, right?!)

 

I came home to tell my step-daughter, Emillie (who was babysitting Riley that night) about my win.  I showed her my prize...and she said, "how adorkable."  Not adorable...aDORKable.

 

Great.

 

I'm 30.  I'm into baking.  I enter cookie contests.  And I get excited for winning a platter and a spatula.

 

She's right!  I am a dork.  A cookie baking dork.

 

Thanks, Emillie, for bringing me back down off my winning high. 

 

Someone had to do it. 

 

dare I say it?

I'm starting to get "baked" out of my mind!

Ha ha.

I love baking.  Love it.

But, the holidays kick my butt!

Yesterday I was at it again...

I baked Chocolate Crinkles (a gazillion of them)! 

I love this classic cookie.  (I remember my mom making them some holidays.)  They are soft, chewy, chocolatey and pretty too!  I always double the recipe and freeze these cookies. 

I'm going to be sharing these babies with my family and a few others, too.  I use the Betty Crocker recipe.  And I always refrigerate the dough about 8 hours (or overnight).

And, I also...

made Pretzel Turtles (using Rolo's).  EASY, and yummy!

Last year was the first year I made them.  They were a big hit with my friends and family.  I got the recipe off of Allrecipes.

And this year I have seen it floating around Pinterest too...

Source: glorioustreats.blogspot.com via Abby on Pinterest

I was inspired to make them again!

If you haven't made these before...definitely give them a try.  Besides tasting good, they really make a fun and easy gift.  It's a homemade candy (sort of), but without a lot of fuss (and thermometers, blech!).

Cookie sheet, Parchment paper, pretzels, Rolo's and pecan halves.  That's all you need.

I cook mine at 300 degrees.

In 4 minutes...you get this gooey deliciousness.  (The pecan goes on after you cook the chocolate!)

I put the whole sheet in the refrigerator, so they harden fast.

After they harden, you can package them up pretty to serve in your home or gift them away!

I also store mine in the fridge, but I don't think you have to.

A chocolate day, indeed!

Oh yeah.

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Remember the "Dough Down" cookie contest I was telling you about?  If not, read it here (and scroll to the bottom of the post, if you don't want to be bored with my talk!)

I will be posting about the experience soon...so stay tuned!

Yes, another cookie.

Peanut Brittle Blondies

You've waited...and now, the secret is out!

For the Cookie Swap...




I made Peanut Brittle Blondies.

This was a new recipe; I had never made before!  I love peanut brittle and it's a favorite holiday candy.  I thought the idea of it inside a brownie...even better!

If you are looking for a good, rich, sturdy bar (maybe something to mail?) give these a try!  Obviously, you have to like peanut brittle...and if you don't, well then boo hoo for you!  Ha ha.

PEANUT BRITTLE BLONDIES

(Printable Recipe)

A rich and sturdy cookie bar

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups firmly packed light brown sugar

¾ cup butter

2 large eggs

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

*3 cups coarsely crushed peanut brittle (about 14 ounces)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

·         Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

·         Combine brown sugar and butter in a saucepan over medium heat; heat until butter is melted.
·         Remove from heat; let cool slightly.
·         Add eggs, one at a time, beating until blended.
·         Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; stir into brown sugar mixture.
·         Stir in peanut brittle and vanilla.
·         Press into a greased and floured 13 x 9 baking dish.
·         Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
·         Cool in dish on a wire rack.
·         Cut into bars when completely cool.

*I used Old Dominion Peanut Company’s Old-Fashioned Peanut Brittle (comes in 6 ounce boxes).

 Yield: 2 dozen.

Source: Hallmark Christmas Cookies, 2005

After baking these (which was really easy!) I had to package them both securely (so they could mail) and pretty (so that I would approve).

 

I decided on small white boxes (I bought blouse boxes from Target).  And to (hopefully) preserve some freshness while shipping, I wrapped each bar in Saran wrap.  Not the most attractive package job, but at least the wrap was clear so you could see the bars when opening the box.  I added extra Parchment Paper in between the gaps so that the bars wouldn't move around too much inside the box while in transit.

I then assembled all three boxes (one of the rules of the swap was to give a dozen cookies/bars to each of our swap matches).  I bought some gold ribbon to wrap around the boxes.

I went with a color theme...gold (to match the bars) and dark red (to add a holiday touch)!

I then made a copy of my recipe and tucked that behind the ribbon on each box.

I also included a note to each recipient with a brief description of the cookie bar they were receiving and who it was from (me!)

I just printed the note off my computer (since my handwriting has gotten sloppy) and glued that to a piece of dark red card stock (again, to go with my color theme).

I worked on a clean, large surface so that I didn't include anything else in the packages that I didn't want to (like one of Riley's toys...or a piece of food leftover from dinner)!

I used tissue paper that I bought at Target (totally matching my color theme), three small-ish boxes, and bubble wrap to finish packing the cookies!

I wrapped the outside of the white blouse box that had my bars inside, with bubble wrap.  I then used tissue paper on top of that, so that when the box was opened they would see pretty paper!

Here is a lovely blog post from Rachel over at little Chef BIG Appetite about receiving my box in the mail!  It was fun reading what one of my recipients thought of the bars.  Thanks again, Rachel!  (I also sent my cookies to Kelley from The Culinary Enthusiast and Lindsey from Feasibly Happy.)

You already saw the kinds of cookies I received in the mail.  If you haven't, please read the post of mine and then visit my senders' blogs for their recipes too! 

Aside from baking cookies...and eating them, the big thing about this swap is that it connects you to other (food) bloggers out there.  Some of the bloggers I was introduced to are solely food bloggers, others blog about food along with other passions of theirs, and some are momma bloggers like me!

It's a lot of fun!

So...are you sold? Do you want to participate next year? If so click here. You can sign up to receive notification about the swap next year. It's definitely a good idea, that way you don't have to remember about it one year from now! They'll remember for you.

Thank you again to all of you who had me as your "match."  I really enjoyed your cookies...actually, I still am enjoying them!  I even have been kind enough to share.

Thank you to Julie & Lindsay for hosting such a great Cookie Swap!

I'm done...that's it from me.  Now, go eat a cookie!!