Triple Layer Fudgy Mint Oreo Brownies

recipe from Averie Cooks via Pinterest

SUGAR COMA ALERT!  Okay. I saw these brownies on Pinterest and thought, "Oh my YUM!"  However, I must warn you. These are not for the sugary faint of heart. In fact, there are some ingredients in these that I am sure could be forgone and these would still be dreamy delicious. When I come down off of my sugar high, I will have to try them again omitting some of the ingredients I thought might be a little unnecessary. So here goes!

One 7 ounce jar of Marshmallow creme

1/8 teaspoon mint extract

8 drops + green food coloring

1 batch of brownies (brownie mix, water, oil, eggs)

One package of Cool Mint Oreo cookies

3/4 cup white chocolate chips (melted)

1 cup vanilla frosting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 inch baking pan with foil and spray it with cooking spray.  In a medium bowl, stir together marshmallow creme, mint extract, and 4 drops of food coloring.

In a large bowl, prepare brownie mix as directed on box using water, oil, and eggs and fold in 12 hand-crumbled Oreos at the end.

Spread brownie batter in prepared pan.  Drop about 1/2 cup of minty marshmallow mixture onto brownie batter and reserve the remainder.  Gently pull a knife through the batter in S-shaped curves for a swirled design. Bake about 25 minutes or until brownies are set, taking care not to over bake. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

While brownies are cooling, make vanilla frosting by combining the following ingredients and beating until fluffy.

1/2 cup butter, softened

3-4 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

splash of milk, if necessary for proper consistency

In another small microwave-safe bowl, melt the white chocolate chips (microwave on high for 30 seconds; stir and microwave 30 seconds longer taking care not to scorch the chocolate. Stir until smooth.  Add the melted white chocolate chips and the vanilla frosting to the minty marshmallow mixture. Stir in 4 drops green food coloring and carefully spread over cooled brownies.  Sprinkle with 18 hand-crumbled Oreo cookies, slightly pressing then into the green mixture. Allow top layer to set fully before slicing and serving. Averie said she prefers these bars chilled. She stores them in the refridgerator in an airtight container (or in the freezer for up to 3 months). 

Gingerbread Cookies

recipe from my Mom

Merry Christmas!  These little gingerbread cookies are fun for kids to make and eat and your house will smell amazing while they are baking.  (My toddler was asleep while I was making these, or these might have turned out more like scary Halloween cookies rather than cute little Christmas gingerbread people! :)  It can be quite a project to make the cookies and frost all in one day, so you may want to make the cookies and then freeze them until you are ready to decorate. It makes them a little less time intensive.

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

1 egg

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

Combine butter, brown sugar, molasses and egg and beat until fluffy.  Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice and beat until blended.  Cover dough and refrigerate for 1-2 hours. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness and then cut into desired shapes. Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.  

I used this glace icing to decorate the cookies. There is also an awesome tutorial on decorating cookies with this icing technique at Our Best Bites. 

Judy's Sugar Cookies with Glace Icing

sugar cookie recipe from my Mom, Glace Icing recipe from Our Best Bites

 

I love Halloween!  I love Fall!  And ever since I can remember, my Mom would make these darling sugar cookies around Halloween. We would use chocolate chips to make the Jack O' Lantern faces, but I wanted to try making them with the Glace Icing that the gals from Our Best Bites have posted on their website.  It was so fun and easy!  The thing I love about the glace icing is how cute the cookies turn out. They look more like bakery cookies and less like cookies I have made with my toddler!  I was so proud of how these turned out. ** Be sure to go over to the Glace Icing tutorial at Our Best Bites to see how you use different consistencies of icing for covering the cookie and for piping.  I also love how after you let the icing set, you can stack them without worrying about sticking, so it makes them perfect for giving away as cute little treats for the neighbors.... has anyone else been "BOOED"  lately? So here are the recipes!  I hope you enjoy them.  Happy Halloween! :)

Judy's Sugar Cookies

* this recipe makes approximately 68 cookies

2 cups butter or margarine

2 cups sugar

6 eggs

7 cups flour

6 tsp baking powder

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp almond extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar in stand mixer.  Add eggs, vanilla, almond extract and mix.  Then add baking powder, and flour a cup at a time to reach desired consistency.  Dough can be stored in refrigerator or used immediately.  Roll out to approximately 1/4 inch thickness and cut into desired shapes.  Bake on greased cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool on cookie sheet for 3-5 minutes, then place cookies on cooling rack until completely cool.

Glace Icing

1 lb. powdered sugar (3 3/4 cups)

6 Tbsp whole milk

6 tbsp light corn syrup 

1 tsp extract (for our Halloween cookies my Mom always used Anise extract which gives the icing a black licorice flavor. I LOVE it, my husband hates it.  You can use vanilla or almond extract, whatever you prefer.)

With a whisk, combine sugar and milk until smooth.  Then stir in corn syrup and extract. You will use this same recipe for both glazing and piping. Thickened, you can pipe outlines, and as you thin it, you can use it for “flooding” cookies.  Make sure to let them dry overnight to fully harden for stacking. 

Reese's Peanut Butter Bars

recipe from Our Best Bites

So, I just realized that I have posted a peanut butter/chocolate combination recently when I shared the Reese's Chewy Chocolate Cookie recipe a couple of weeks ago.  I don't know... read into it what you want.  I don't feel that stressed in my life right now, but it would appear that subconsciously I am drawn to insanely indulgent treats with peanut butter and chocolate right now.  :)  One of my favorite candy bars is Reese's peanut butter cups, and I don't know that my life will ever be the same after making these peanut butter bars. They taste so much like Reese's! They are truly sinful.  So, my suggestion is to make these when you have an occasion to share them or you will be cursing me when you are working them off at the gym.  Enjoy!  I know you will!

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 1 1/2 packages)

1 lb (3 1/2 cups) powdered sugar

1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

1 cup (2 sticks) real butter, melted

1 12 oz bag chocolate chips

*extra scoop of peanut butter

In a large mixing bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, peanut butter and butter and beat until combined.  Press into a parchment (or waxed paper or foil) lined 9x13 pan.

Place chocolate chips and *extra scoop of peanut butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 30 second intervals, stirring after each one, until melted and smooth.  Pour chocolate over peanut butter mixture and spread out evenly. Place pan in the fridge just until chocolate is set and then cut into bars.  

Tip:  If the bars chill until the chocolate is too hard to easily cut, use a sharp knife and score the cuts first, then gently cut through. Can be stored in the fridge or at room temperature. They will stay firmer if stored in the fridge.  

Reese's Chewy Chocolate Cookies

recipe slightly adapted from Hershey's Kitchens

2 cups flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter (2 sticks) softened

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 10 oz package Reese's Peanut Butter Chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  

2. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.  Beat butter and sugar in mixer until fluffy.  Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.  Gradually add flour mixture, beating well.  Stir in peanut butter chips.

3.  Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 8-9 minutes.  Do not overbake; cookies will be soft. They will puff while baking and flatten while cooling. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely.  

Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

Snickerdoodles

my Mom's recipe

Ahhh... the Snickerdoodle.  What a name.  What a cookie.  I have been craving these for awhile.  They somehow take me right back to my childhood.  They are so delicious and buttery with a slight tang from the Cream of Tartar.  Perfect with a glass of milk.  Yummy.  I'm sure most people have some rendition of the Snickerdoodle recipe, but if you have never tried them, you really should. They are delicious.

1 cup shortening (I used unsalted butter), but I have seen some recipes that say they get better results with 1/2 cup vegetable shortening and 1/2 cup butter.

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 3/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon of salt (if using salted butter, you do not need to add this ingredient)

2 teaspoons cinnamon

4 Tablespoons sugar

Beat shortening, sugar and eggs in mixer until light and fluffy.  Sift together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt.  Stir flour mixture into shortening mixture until well combined.  This dough is very soft, so resist the temptation to add more flour.  Cover dough and chill for 1 hour. 

Mix the cinnamon and 4 Tablespoons of sugar together in a small bowl.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Roll dough into 2 inch balls and roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture until well coated.  Place on greased cookie sheet and press down on dough ball with

fork to make a criss-cross pattern.

Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Watch carefully.  You will lose the delicious chewiness of these cookies if they are over-baked.  They will puff up in the oven quite a bit.  When the edges have set and are slightly golden, remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheet.  They will fall when removed from oven, but that is what they are supposed to do.  

Note:  In my effort to try to justify eating way too many of these cookies in one sitting, I did tweak the amount of butter and sugar and found that they still turned out beautifully.  So, if you would like to decrease the butter and sugar, I did have success with about 3/4 cup unsalted butter and  1 cup sugar.  Those are the only changes I made, and the cookies were still wonderful, but they were slightly puffier and not quite as chewy. The picture above was a batch with the reduced amounts to give you an idea of how they will look.

Homemade Clif Bars

recipe slightly adapted from Enlightened Cooking

My husband loves Clif Bars, but they can be sooo expensive!  So, I set out on a mission to find a recipe to make our own and found this!  It is very good and has several variations to try different kinds.  Hope you like them!

1 1/4 cups crisp rice cereal (Erwhon Crisp Brown, Brown Rice Krispies or regular Rice Krispies are fine)

1 cup uncooked quick-cooking oats (I use regular rolled oats and they turn out fine, although you may need to add a little more brown rice syrup to hold them together better if you do)

2 Tablespoons ground flaxseed (I buy the big bag from Costco and use the flaxseed in these bars and in our green smoothies)

1/4 cup finely chopped dried fruit (raisins, Craisins, dried cherries, dates, etc.)

1/3 cup brown rice syrup or honey

1/2 cup nut butter (I use the natural creamy Kirkland peanut butter, but almond butter or another nut butter would also be delicious)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)

Combine the rice cereal, oats, flaxseed meal, dried fruit, and nuts in a large bowl.  Combine the syrup and nut butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until melted and well-blended, or microwave for 20-60 seconds until melted.  Stir in vanilla until blended.  

Pour nut butter mixture over cereal mixture, stirring until coated.  Then you've got to continue to mix with your hands until everything is combined very well.  Press mixture firmly into an 8-inch square pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.  Continue to press down until you have a very firm layer.  Cool in pan and chill at least 30 minutes to help the mixture set.  Cut into bars, wrap bars in plastic wrap and store in refrigerator.

Chocolate Peppermint Sandwich Cookies

Recipe from Our Best Bites

My husband has been begging me for awhile now to make some "homemade oreos."  I checked out a few recipes and decided to try this one. The ingredients were simple items that I already had on hand and the option for peppermint flavor in the filling sounded sooo yummy.  Well, these cookies definitely did not disappoint!  Check out Our Best Bites for some darling ideas for Christmas cookies using this recipe.  I know we are far from Christmas, but for me, peppermint and chocolate are a year-round treat!

1 1/2 cups flour, lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled (don't scoop)

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp table salt

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

5 Tbsp real butter

1 Tbsp water

1 large egg lightly beaten

Filling:

1/2 cup real butter (1 stick)

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 -1 tsp peppermint extract

milk, as needed for consistency

optional: red or green food coloring and sprinkles or crushed candy canes

To make cookies, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.  Heat chocolate chips, brown sugar, 5 tablespoons butter and water in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring until melted and smooth (there will still be grains of sugar though).  Transfer mixture to a a large bowl and beat in egg.  Stir in flour mixture until just combined.  Don't overmix.  

If dough is too soft to work with, let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to firm up, or place in the fridge for a few minutes. Gently roll balls, either 1 tablespoon full for large cookies or about 1/2 inch balls for silver dollar sized cookies.  Place about 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.  Bake cookies until just puffed in the middle and edges are set but centers and still soft - about 8-9 minutes for large cookies and about 5 minutes for small ones.  If using 2 cookies sheets, rotate them halfway through baking. Cool for a couple of minutes on the baking sheets and then transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.  

To make filling, beat all frosting ingredients together, adding peppermint extract to taste.  Add milk one teaspoonful at a time until a spreadable but not too soft consistency is reached.  Add food coloring if desired.  Place frosting in a zip-top bag and cut off a corner*. Pipe filling onto one side of cookie and place another on top. Roll edges in sprinkles or crushed candy canes if desired.  

Yield:  If you used a tablespoon of dough, this recipe will yield 1 1/2 dozen large sandwiches.  If you use a quarter of a standard cookie scoop (about a rounded teaspoon) it will yield 4-5 dozen.

*Tip:  To easily load the frosting into your zip-top bag, place bag over the top of a cup with the top of the bag folded out over the lip of the cup.  Hold the bag in place over the cup with one hand while scooping the frosting into it with the other.  A lot less mess!

No-Bake Cookies

recipe from my Mom

I know probably everyone out there has their own favorite no-bake cookie recipe.  But, for the sake of organizing my own recipes and posting some of my family favorites, I could not pass this one up - especially when the craving came for these cookies the other day.  They are quick, easy, and perfect for when you just need a little chocolate to make the world a better place... tell me you've had days like that too.

2 c sugar

1 stick butter (do not substitute margarine here or your cookies will not set up well!)

4 Tbsp cocoa powder

1/2 c milk

2 1/2 c rolled oats

1/2 c peanut butter

2 tsp vanilla

In a saucepan, combine sugar, butter, cocoa and milk.  Stir frequently and heat to boiling.  As soon as mixture is boiling with bubbles rolling across the entire surface, set timer and continue to boil for one minute. Don't allow them to boil any less or more than a minute or your cookies will either not set up or will be too dry, respectively.  Immediately remove from heat and stir in peanut butter, oats and vanilla.  

Spoon into small circles on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper and set aside to set up.  

Oh Henry's

recipe from my Mom

This recipe was a favorite in our house when I was growing up. It is very simple and perfect for a potluck or neighbor treats (if you can bring yourself to share.)  Although I am not a huge butterscotch fan by itself, when combined with the chocolate chips, it adds a creamy texture and subtle difference in the taste of the chocolate topping that is a-mazing!  Enjoy!

1 c sugar

1 c Karo syrup

1 c peanut butter (I like to use chunky so that you get a little bit of nuttiness)

1 c salted nuts (optional)  I usually don't add these, so that is why I use chunky peanut butter

3 c Rice Krispies

6 oz chocolate chips (I use semi-sweet because this is already a very sweet dessert)

6 oz butterscotch chips

In a medium saucepan, bring sugar and corn syrup to a boil, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and add peanut butter and stir to combine. (I use the same measuring cup that I used for the corn syrup to measure the peanut butter because it helps the peanut butter to just slip right out.)  Add the nuts (if desired) and the cereal.  Mix well.  Spread mixture into a 9x13 pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.  

Melt the chocolate and butterscotch chips in a double-boiler. If you don't have a double boiler, you can boil water in a medium saucepan and place a smaller saucepan inside the medium one  to melt the chips.  

Pour chocolate sauce over the Rice Krispie mixture and spread evenly.  Set aside to cool.  When cooled completely, cut into squares.