Perfect Party Cookies

I love Funfetti. I also love cookies. So combine those two loves, and what do you get?

These fantastically awesomely Perfect Party Cookies from Stephanie Cooks.

I can't wait to make them again. They really ARE perfect! I used some sprinkles I had leftover from Valentine's Day, but I really wish I had thought to use the kids' dinosaur sprinkles (no worries - I used those in another funfetti recipe - coming soon!). I also used actual funfetti cake mix because I happened to have it.

Perfect Party Cookies
from Stephanie Cooks

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup yellow boxed cake mix
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 cup butter, melted, and slightly cooled
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 4 tbsp. colored sprinkles

In a large bowl sift together the flour, cake mix, and baking soda. Set aside.

In a bowl, beat together the melted butter, egg yolk, egg, and vanilla until slightly creamy. Add the sugars and stir well.

Add the flour mixture, stir until well combined.

Stir in the chocolate chips and sprinkles.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes (the dough will be very runny).

Preheat oven to 350.

Once dough is chilled, scoop heaping tablespoons worth of dough onto greased cookie sheets. The dough should be slightly smaller than a golf ball. Keep dough cool until it goes in the oven.

Bake 12-15 minutes, until the edges are golden and the center sets.

Cool for 5 minutes on the sheet, then place on a cooling rack to cool.

Big Giant Cookie

I was super fortunate enough to win an awesome heart-shaped pan a couple of weeks ago from My Baking Heart. I am excited to add this to my kitchen and couldn't wait to break it in.


I remembered seeing a giant cookie on Sing For Your Supper, and I knew Ryan would get a kick out of baking (and eating!) this with me.

I used the recipe on the back of the Nestle chocolate chips and they were delicious. I followed the preparation instructions, but instead of using a cookie sheet, I smooshed the dough into the pan and baked it for about 23 minutes.

I even had enough dough left over to make regular cookies. Score!


Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
• 1 cup chopped nuts

PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

PAN COOKIE VARIATION: Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan. Prepare dough as above. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack. Makes 4 dozen bars.

SLICE AND BAKE COOKIE VARIATION:
PREPARE dough as above. Divide in half; wrap in waxed paper. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm. Shape each half into 15-inch log; wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.* Preheat oven to 375° F. Cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices; place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

* May be stored in refrigerator for up to 1 week or in freezer for up to 8 weeks.

FOR HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING (5,200 feet): Increase flour to 2 1/2 cups. Add 2 teaspoons water with flour and reduce both granulated sugar and brown sugar to 2/3 cup each. Bake drop cookies for 8 to 10 minutes and pan cookie for 17 to 19 minutes.

Sloppy Brookes

Ryan really loves our friends Brooke and Joe and associates their names together. So I probably shouldn't have been surprised when the following conversation took place a few weeks ago.


We were about to sit for dinner, and he asked what we were having; I told him I made Sloppy Joes. He thought about that for a minute and answered, "And Sloppy Brookes, too?"

I, of course, told our friends about this immediately, and Brooke declared that there SHOULD be a Sloppy Brooke sandwich. We immediately started collaborating and discussing Brooke's favorite foods: chocolate, cheese, and coffee.

I didn't really think cheese belonged in that group, but Brooke reminded me that cream cheese would work just fine. We brainstormed some more and finally...

The Sloppy Brooke was born.


I selected Brooke's favorite chocolate chip cookie for the "bread" part of the sandwich (I did not enlarge them like she suggests, though I would for sure do that if I was making them to stand alone), and stuffed it with a mocha cream cheese filling. Since Brooke drinks hazelnut coffee, I rolled the sandwiches in roasted hazelnuts.

Ryan and I had a blast concocting these, and they were delicious! The mocha in the cream cheese is subtle and not overpowering (and the leftovers are awesome on your morning bagel!), and the roasted nuts made me feel like I was eating Nutella. And the cookies... oh, the cookies! On their own they are fantastic; as part of this sandwich, they are divine.

Brooke, we hope you enjoy these little treats! Next up, a Sloppy Chily...


Ingredients

For the cookies:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

For the mocha cream cheese filling:

• 2 cups cream cheese
• 2 rounded tablespoons hot chocolate mix
• 1-2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 cup espresso

• 1 cup hazelnuts, chopped

To make the cookies:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon. Cover dough and chill for 2 hours.
Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool completely on baking sheet.

To make the mocha cream cheese filling:
Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a mixer. Mix on medium speed until smooth and incorporated.

To make the hazelnuts:
Place in a small skillet over medium heat and toast, stirring frequenty, for just a few minutes. Watch them closely - they burn easily!

To assemble:
Take one cookie and drop a spoonful of the cream cheese mixture on the underside. Top with another cookie (so the bottoms of the cookies are "facing" each other). Roll the sides in the roasted hazelnuts; repeat for all cookies.

Santa Cookies

Ryan really enjoys cooking and baking with me, so I was really excited when I found these M&M Cookies on Sing for Your Supper (originally from King Arthur Flour). M&Ms? Cookies? Christmas? Score!


He helped me bake them first for a cookie exchange, and was really upset when they were all gone.

"But, Mommy... we need them for SANTA!"

I tried explaining that we would make more, that we had plenty of time... but he wasn't convinced.

We baked them again this afternoon to leave out tonight for Santa, and you could practically taste the relief from this kid when they were finished.

I altered them just slightly to include chocolate chips as well. I don't know if it's the addition of milk or what, but these are so delicious; I'm pretty sure Santa won't be able to resist leaving us some extra special surprises this year.


Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar, light or dark, packed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 2 tablespoons milk, optional
• 1 cup Holiday M&M’s
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease two baking sheets, or line with parchment. Beat together the butter, sugars, salt, vanilla, baking soda, and baking powder until well combined.

Add the egg, beating until smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl, and beat again until smooth.

Add the flour, mixing it in completely. Stir in the milk, then carefully stir in the M&M’s.

Drop the cookies by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2″ apart. A cookie scoop works well here.

Bake the cookies for 14 to 16 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown, and a bit darker around the edges.

Remove them from the oven, and cool right on the baking sheets.

Rice Krispie Cookies

A couple of weeks ago I went to my friend Christina's house for a game night.  I offered to bring some cookies to snack on, and I was excited to find this recipe for Rice Krispie Cookies from Amber's Delectable Delights.

The only change I made was to add chocolate chips, because I don't think I know how to make cookies that don't include chocolate!

I thought these were really good - very different.  The cereal added a surprising little crunch, and gave me justification to have a couple of these babies for breakfast.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons hot water
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups Rice Krispies
• 1 cup butterscotch (or peanut butter) chips

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat until combined. Mix in hot water and vanilla. Add flour mixture, in two batches, beating just until combined – be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Using a wooden spoon, fold in butterscotch chips and Rice Krispies. Cover and refrigerate for 30 min. or longer.

Preheat oven to 375. Scoop out tablespoons of the dough and roll into balls. Place all balls on one baking sheet, and chill at least 30 min. Remove from fridge and place 12 balls on cookie sheet at a time. Bake until the middle looks just set and the edges begin to turn a light golden – about 8-12 minutes. Remove and let sit on the sheet for a minute. Move cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Banana-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

You cannot possibly imagine how giddy I was when I was nonchalantly flipping through the latest issue of Cooking Light magazine and came across this cookie recipe.


I didn't feel guilty at all about chowing down on these (then again, I rarely feel guilt when eating something yummy. Ha!) because of the banana, oats, etc.

I altered the flour and chocolate slightly, so click on the link above for the original recipe. But make these today!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 medium)
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 5.6 ounces whole wheat flour
• 2 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• Cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add egg; beat well.

3. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, oats, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add flour mixture to banana mixture in bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

4. Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 18 minutes or until golden. Cool on pans 2 minutes. Remove cookies from pans; cool completely on wire racks.

Pudding Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I promised one of my classes that I would bake for them since they won this little contest we had at school. It took me weeks to get around to it, and I felt terrible, but finally I did it!

I found this interesting recipe for Pudding Chocolate Chunk Cookies on the Kraft site and decided to go with that.

I liked these a lot, actually, though I think I'd like to play around with pudding flavors next time. They make mint and cookies and cream and all kinds of cool ones! For this one, I used plain ol' chocolate.


Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
• 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Instant Pudding, any flavor
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2-1/4 cups flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 pkg. (12 oz.) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks

PREHEAT oven to 375°F. Beat butter, sugars, dry pudding mix and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs; mix well. Gradually add flour and baking soda, beating until well blended. Stir in chocolate chunks. (Dough will be stiff.)

DROP teaspoonfuls of dough, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from baking sheets. Cool completely on wire racks.

Chocolate Chip Cookies-in-a-Cookie

If you are my friend on Facebook, then you may have noticed that my status a few days ago claimed that Brooke is my hero. What you'll find below, folks, is why.



These are without a doubt the best cookies I have EVER made. I made a last-minute substitution that I think will remain the new norm; I realized I only had 2 cups of chocolate chips, not 3, so I used a cup of mini M&Ms. Whoa boy. There are simply no words to describe the deliciousness of these cookies. Make these ASAP!

(I also didn't make mine as large because to me, more is better. So I used my regular sized cookie scoop and probably got about 40 cookies total.)



Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips (or, like me, you can replace one cup with mini M&Ms!)

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until blended, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixer. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until blended, about 1 minute. On low speed, add the flour mixture, mixing just until it is incorporated. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Drop 10 heaping tablespoons of dough 3 inches apart onto one of the prepared baking sheets. Set aside the remaining dough. Bake until the edges of the cookies are lightly browned but the centers are golden, about 13 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Break the cooked cookies into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces. Add the pieces to the reserved dough and mix on low speed to distribute them evenly, about 10 seconds.

Using an ice cream scoop or measuring 1/4 cup, scoop mounds of dough onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart. Bake the cookies until they feel firm on top but are still soft in the center and the edges are beginning to brown slightly, about 15 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to four days. Brooke says she got 18-20 cookies, but like I said, I made mine smaller...

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

When the most recent issue of Everyday Food arrived in my mailbox the other day, I tore out this recipe so fast and made it the next night.

I don't usually cook or bake with peanut butter since Ryan is allergic, but I really couldn't help myself. These things are SO GOOD!


They are slightly denser than most cookies I make (similar to the zucchini-chip cookies I've made) but they are good. Really good. Really, really good.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup peanut butter (I used chunky but I don't think it matters)
• 4 TB (1/2 stick) unsalted butted, room temp
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 8oz semisweet chocolate, cut into chunks

Preheat oven to 350.

In a bowl, whisk together flour and baking soda; set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat peanut butter, butter, and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until smooth. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture, beating just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop dough by heaping tablespoons, 1 inch apart, onto two large baking sheets. Bake until golden, 13 to 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool.

Yields approximately 36 cookies.

Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies

This is another recipe that I snagged from Brooke. I can't imagine sometimes what I'd cook/bake if not for her...

Ryan and I had a blast making these together; I included some pictures at the end.

These were really good! I fully intended on following Brooke's recommendation to use more mint extract, but I actually ran out in the middle of making these. I don't even think I had enough for the quantity she used, let alone more. Also, I considered dying the dough, but I feared cookies that would look like these muffins... ;)


Ingredients

• 1 cup (1/2 lb.) butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 large egg whites
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup miniature chocolate chips or 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

In a bowl, with a mixer on high speed, beat butter, powdered sugar, peppermint extract, and vanilla until well blended. Beat in egg whites until incorporated. Reduce speed and mix in flour, salt, and chocolate chips. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill until dough is firm but pliable, about 30 minutes.

With powdered sugar-dusted hands, shape dough into 1 1/2-inch balls, flattening each slightly between your palms to about 2 1/2 inches wide. Place 1 inch apart on buttered 12- by 15-inch baking sheets.

Bake in a 300° regular or convection oven until cookies feel firm to touch and are barely beginning to turn golden on the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. If baking more than one sheet at a time in one oven, switch positions halfway through baking. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Cup Surprise Cookies

I don't usually like to make too many things that involve peanut butter since my son is allergic, but when I saw this recipe on Picky Palate, I knew I had to try these.


My friend Denise is a fellow Picky Palate fan, and we often will notify each other when a new yummy-looking dessert has been posted. Denise was due with her first child this month and said she simply didn't have the energy to make them. I promised her that when the baby came, I'd visit in the hospital with these little delectable treats.

Well, that day was yesterday - on Sunday, September 21, Abigail Rose entered the world! True to my word, I immediately ran to the grocery store upon hearing the news.

Well, leave it to me to screw up such an easy recipe.

After baking, my husband was begging for a sample. However, the first words out of his mouth were not words of worship like you would think. His exact reaction was: "These don't taste done."

I checked the oven which was still on, and sure enough - I set the oven to 250 rather than 350. I threw them back in for another 5 minutes, but it was too late. They were irreconcilable.

They still taste amazing - I just couldn't bear to bring them to the new mom. Rest assured, Denise - I'm going to try these again for you!

Ingredients

• 1 Cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 Cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 12 mini Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, unwrapped
• 36 mini marshmallows
• 1 Cup semi sweet chocolate chips
• 2-3 Tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/4 Cup mini M&M's

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place peanut butter, sugar and egg into a large bowl and mix until well combined. Scoop dough evenly into a 12 count mini cheesecake pan or mini muffin pan. Cook for 13-15 minutes until almost done. Remove from oven and press a peanut butter cup into the center of each cookie until flush with cookie top. Top each cookie with 3 mini marshmallows and return to oven for 2-3 more minutes or until marshmallows are puffed. Remove and set aside to cool for 10 minutes.

2. Place chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals until melted smooth. Stir in 2-3 Tablespoons heavy cream until silky and smooth. You can return back to microwave for 15 seconds to get a thinner consistency. Spoon chocolate over top of puffed marshmallows and sprinkle with mini M&M's.

12 cookie cups

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

Okay, don't mind the pictures. They were dark, and these are my feeble attempts with the editing software I didn't know I had.

Anyway, these cookies are SO YUMMY! They taste like little bits of pumpkin bread... Even my husband, the self-proclaimed "anti-pumpkin-ist" keeps eating them.


I got this awesome recipe from Living Insanity, who picked it up from allrecipes.com. I followed her suggestions and they are reflected below. Definitely a keeper!

Ingredients

• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Combine pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg. Add milk and vanilla.

In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt.

Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well; add chips.

Drop by spoonful on greased cookie sheet and bake at 365 degrees F (175 degrees C) for approximately 12 minutes or until lightly brown and firm.

Zucchini Chip Cookies

I was in the mood to make some cookies the other day, and these Zucchini Chip Cookies from Barbara Kingsolver (yes, the author) seemed just right. I mean, with zucchini in them, they must be GOOD for you, right? I like to think so. :)

I chose not to flatten my cookies, and they came out nice and fluffy - almost cake-like. I do think that the spices were just a tad too much; I would probably lessen them slightly. But overall, we really liked them - an interesting (and yummy!) variation on zucchini bread. I guess fall really is coming...

These are really cookies for the whole family - no guilt when your toddler pilfers one!

Ingredients:
(Makes about two dozen)

Combine in large bowl:
1 egg, beaten
½ cup butter, softened
½ cup brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Combine in a separate, small bowl and blend into liquid mixture.

1 cup white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg

Stir these into the other ingredients and mix well:
1 cup finely shredded zucchini
12 oz chocolate chips

Drop by spoonful onto greased baking sheet, and flatten with the back of a spoon. Bake at 350°, 10 to 15 minutes.

Half Whole-Wheat Cookies - revisited

Jen and Stella came over for lunch today (YAY!!) so I wanted to make a little treat. I made these Half-Whole-Wheet Chocolate Chip Cookies about a month or two ago, and they were GOOD. I wanted to change up the ingredients a bit to try to make them a tad bit "healthier," and this is what I came up with!


They were still as delicious as last time! Actually, I think they were even better. This time, they were so much fluffier and softer, whereas last time they were a bit flat and crispy. And with all of the changes I made to them, I feel they are practically vegetables. :)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon Morton's low-sodium salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup Smart Balance butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup Splenda brown sugar blend (use a full cup if using regular brown sugar)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 egg substitute (if using regular eggs, use 2)
• 2 cups semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.

Sift together flours, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugar together. Add vanilla and then eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Slowly stir in flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chips.

Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 9 - 11 minutes, or until golden brown.

Let cool completely on wire rack.

Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookies

Here's another awesome recipe from Jenny; this time, it's a cookie made with crumbled Oreos!!

Go look at her blog, though - they look much better. Mine were really flat and weird looking, and not nearly as pretty as hers. Still yummy, though...

Ingredients:

• 1 stick softened butter
• 6 Tablespoons sugar
• 6 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 egg
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• 1 ¼ Cup flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 8 crushed Oreos
• 1 Cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cream butter, and sugars until well combined. Add egg and vanilla until mixed well.

2. Place flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl, stir to combine. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients then stir in oreos and chocolate chips until just combined.

3. With a medium cookie scoop, scoop onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. Bake for 7-9 minutes or until cooked, but still soft. Let cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Half-Whole-Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

I was so excited this morning when I saw that Amanda had created a recipe for cookies that uses an almost 50-50 ratio of whole-wheat to white flour. That automatically makes these cookies healthy, right? ;)

I did wish that they were a little "fluffier"; I'm much more a fan of full, rounder cookies than flat ones, but they were still very good!

Oh, and the hand in this picture? Not intentional. But I guess that's what happens when you try taking pictures of cookies around a toddler.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
  

Preheat oven to 375.

Sift together flours, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugar together. Add vanilla and then eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Slowly stir in flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chips.

Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 9 - 11 minutes, or until golden brown.

Let cool completely on wire rack.

Lunch Lady Bars

If Brooke and I weren't friends in real life, I sure would want to be just because of her cooking! When I saw these lunch lady bars a few days ago, I knew they'd be the perfect dessert to bring to my department's end-of-the-year party.




They were so simple to make, and they were an absolute hit. I made 4 dozen (I doubled the recipe), and minus the handful that Pat (fine - and I) sampled the night I baked them, they were almost completely gone. My supervisor kept telling me how wonderful they are, and several colleagues asked for the recipe.




I think that what I love best about these is that they are kind of a dressed-up chocolate chip cookie. So delicious, yet a bit more impressive than its ancestors.


Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup oil
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips/chunks (I just may have "accidentally" used more than this...)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine first three dry ingredients. Set aside. In bowl beat together oil and sugars. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add vanilla. Gradually beat in dry ingredients. Mix in 3/4 c. of chocolate chips. Spread into 9x13 pan. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 c. chips on top. Bake for 15-25 minutes or until light golden brown.

M&M Chocolate Chip Cookies

Tomorrow is Teacher Appreciation Day, and I wanted to send something to the wonderful girls at daycare to thank them for taking such great care of my baby. I searched the internet and my blogs for something simple but different but good, and this recipe from Carrie's Cooking Adventure fit the bill.


I really liked how these came out! They reminded me of the Keebler Elf version... only better! In fact, my self-proclaimed-"cookie'd-out" husband started digging in, and was bummed when I chased him away. He even took on all the rest of the night's child-care responsibilities if I would go and make another batch. So I did. :)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/3 cups M&M’s, divided
• 1 cup chopped pecans (I omitted.)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. Beat butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla in a large bowl until well blended. Add eggs; beat well. Gradually add flour mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in 3/4 cup M&Ms (I also added in chocolate chips) and all the nuts. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto cookie sheet. Press 5-6 of remaining M&Ms on each cookie before baking.

Bake 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. Yields about 3-3 1/2 dozen cookies.

The Best Big, Fat, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie

This recipe from allrecipes.com has been spreading through the Nest's "What's Cooking?" board like wildfire. It pops up regularly on my Google reader, and it's one of those where I say, "Man, I gotta make that one day."


Well, tonight was the night. And OH. MY. GOD. are they good! Pat kept coming in and trying to steal dough, and I think he would have taken one right off the cookie sheet if I had let him. I don't know what it is about them that makes them so unique, but they are freaken GOOD.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon. Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

S'mores Cookies

Oh... my... god.

These just might be the BEST cookies ever.

When I first discovered food blogs and the Google Reader, this recipe was one of the first that I starred. (I love an excuse to use my KA mixer...) I made it for the first time a couple of weeks ago, and made it a total of three times! They are so unbelievably terrific - thanks, Culinary Infatuation! (She actually got the recipe from another blog - Cookie Madness. YUM!)

I omitted the nuts, but kept everything else the same. I pressed about 3 marshmallows into each cookie, so I have no idea if I stuck with the listed quantity.

EVERYONE loved these - my husband, my brother and his girlfriend, my mom, my in-laws, my friends... these are a crowd-pleaser for SURE.