Shortbread cookies

 

Don't you just love cookies that melt in your mouth when you eat them? For me, a good shortbread recipe should do just that. I have tried many over the years and most have only been so-so. 

I was impressed by these ones. This recipe is one I made with the kids and we found it on Pinterest. 

It's super simple so that makes it even better right?

What you need: 

• 1 cup butter, softened (I used salted)
• 1/4 cup corn starch
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup toppings of choice, sprinkles, nuts, candy, etc. (We used coloured sanding sugar and chocolate kisses)

What you need to do: 

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 

Step 2: Line a baking sheet with parchment

Step 3: Put butter in a bowl and whip until fluffy (I used my kitchen aid mixer)

Step 4: Add all dry ingredients (Not your toppings) mix until everything has incorporated

Step 5: Portion using 1 tablespoon and roll into balls. Place the balls onto the parchment paper. You need about 2 inches of spacing or your cookies will stick together. 

Step 6: Put a little bit of confectioner sugar into a bowl. Using a fork dip it into the sugar and gently push each cookie flat. (They should be about 1/2 inch thick)

Step 7: Put on your toppings. 

Step 8: Bake in the oven for about 14 minutes. (Check bottoms at 10 minutes if your oven runs hot)

Step 9: Cool on cookie sheet for a few mins and then move to plate or wire racks to finish cooling. 

ENJOY now or freeze in containers or freezer bags for another day. Remember to put parchment between the layers of cookies when freezing. 

 

 

 

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

 

 

 

 Normally I stick to the same recipes every year for my Christmas cookie trays. Each year I look at neat new recipes and think I am going to try that this year and then they just end up saved in the back of the drawer or as a pin on one of my Pinterest boards.

2020 I decided to give a few of these a try that has just been sitting there looking yummy, but I never knew if they actually were.

These are old fashion crinkle cookies and in the photos, they look amazing, on the tongue they taste delightful and for the soul, they are a hug of Christmases of past.

The recipe is super simple too and guess what? they make that crinkle pattern all by themselves!! Even better news right?

What you need:

1/2 cup vegetable oil (I used Canola oil)
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons  pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa  
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon  kosher salt (I used normal salt)
1/4 cup confectioners sugar (I used more like 1/2 a cup)

What you need to do:

1) Whisk together the oil and sugar in a large bowl (I used my kitchen aid mixer). Add in eggs and vanilla and whisk until well combined.

2) Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. Slowly pour the flour mixture into the sugar mixture and stir until well combined.

3) Chill the dough in the refrigerator for 15 to 30 minutes. (it was more like an hour as I started and finished another recipe while these were in the fridge)

4) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Shape dough into 1 1/2 inch balls (I use a tablespoon).

5) Place confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl and roll each cookie in the sugar.

6) Place cookies onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 8 to 10 minutes (mine were 10 minutes), or until the cookies are slightly crisp around the edges and soft in the middle. Allow to cool on the pan for 2 minutes, and then transfer to a cooling rack. (I gave them a little squish to flatten them a bit because I was worried they would not flatten outright)

You can eat them right away and their centers are amazingly soft. Each of the children and adults got to try 1/2 of one before I put them into containers and into the freezer. I put parchment between each layer of cookies in the containers. Now with these ones, I didn't freeze them for long maybe a few days and once they came to room temperature open the taste and texture were the same as the day they were baked!!!


After looking at A LOT of crinkle cookie recipes I found this one to the best!

Reindeer poop

So many recipes to try so little time

I miss my drive to bake, I miss the energy I had to be in the kitchen all the time.

The kids LOVE being in the kitchen with me whether it is baking or cooking dinner they don't want to miss a minute of it.

This year I have been baking with each little one to make cookies for the cookie trays. For this, my OCD has to take a back burner which is hard for me to do. Years of baking cakes and so many other sweet treats for clients where everything had to be perfect will do that to a person.

No, I don't let the kids pick their own recipes only because they don't know enough about the millions of different cookies to make choices. For example, every time I bake with "H" she wants to make oatmeal cookies, that would make for some pretty boring cookie trays if they were only filled with oatmeal cookies.

This year I am winging the cookie trays, it will be whatever I feel like baking that day on each of them.

Thus far we have made oatmeal, oatmeal chocolate chip, what I call reindeer poop, confetti squares, and whipped shortbread.

The oatmeal, oatmeal chocolate chip, and reindeer poop all made it to the freezer. The confetti squares seem to have been eaten by our house hippos. We will be remaking those.


The oatmeal cookies are one recipe that I will never give out.

This is the recipe for the reindeer poop cookies. I LOVE these cookies and have been making them since I was about 12, it is a recipe my grandmother taught me.

Reindeer poop

What you need:

3 cups quick oats
1 cup flaked coconut (you can use sweetened or unsweetened)
2  cups white sugar
1/2  cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 milk
1/2 margarine

What to do:

1) Mix oats and coconut in a large bowl

2) In a heavy saucepan or a normal pot (I use a special heavy saucepan that is only used for baking) mix butter, cocoa, milk and margarine together. Over medium heat melt everything together. Bring to a boil and allow to cook for 2 more minutes.

3) Line a cookie sheet with parchment (I like when recipes tell me to do things like this while I am waiting for things to mix from step 1)

4) Once it has cooked for 2 minutes pour over the oats and coconut in your large bowl. Mix well.

5) By the tablespoon put scoops onto your lined cookie sheet and put in the fridge until hard. Eat right away, store in a container or freeze like what we are doing.

Let me know how yours turned!!! I would like to see pictures of your creations!



 

Chocolate covered strawberry brownies

YUM is one word for it. Easy is another.

I found a bunch of pinterest recipes I wanted to try with the strawberries I got on the farm that were different than my normal go to recipes.

This one was the first one I tried and its quick, simple, the kids and men loved it. I didn't like it.

Here is the link to the full recipe!

What you need:

2 12oz bags of chocolate chips (I only used 1 bag)
1 box of brownie mix (this might be why I didn't like them, I like my homemade mix better)
1 egg (or whatever the mix tells you)
1/4 cup of oil or whatever the mix tells you
1/4 cup of water or whatever the mix tells you
1/3 cup milk (I don't measure this I just use a bit in with the chocolate to make it melt)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350°

2) Grease and line your pan

3) Mix your brownie batter as per the instructions on the box

4) Bake as per the instructions on the box

While the brownies bake:

5) Quarter or half your strawberries

6)  Melt your chocolate and milk together in a double broiler or heavy sauce pan on the stove.

Once brownies are baked:

7) Put strawberries on top of brownies

8) Evenly pour melted chocolate on brownies

9) Place in freezer for about 20 mins. Frozen squares are easier to cut.

10) Remove from pan and cut into equal squares

Enjoy!!!

Now I am not sure why I didn't like them but the kids loved them and so did the men. It made enough for dessert last night and some to freeze for later.

Cookies

Yes its considered homeschool. Lets look at why.

Things they learn:

Measurements (Math)
Science
Patience
Fine motor skills
Cooking skills
and probably many more things that I just can't think of at the moment.

Today was the first time in Blaines little life he begged me from the moment he woke up to bake cookies. He hates getting messy, has a hard time focusing on one task and well has the attention span of a wet noodle (Yes I say that with LOVE).

Two days ago he found some cookies cutters I had gotten on sale at Micheals and was planning on using just for fondant.

I haven't made shaped cookies in so long, not for Christmas or anything. I used to make them all time but the past few years I have had no interest in them. (A lot has changed because of the brain injuries)

Because of the many many many years of baking for clients I am a bit of a control freak in my kitchen between no dogs, special clothes, hand washing etc. Well when it comes to children in the kitchen everything changes and tends to go out the window.

It took a lot of self talk to remind myself these are not for clients and that its okay if they are not perfect or not the way I would do it. JUST HAVE FUN AND ENJOY THE MOMENT!

The butter didn't get quite mixed as well as I would have in the mixer so I worked on that while I just mixed it in when I rolled out the dough. They turned out awesome! Although a little miss shapened (which apparently isn't a real word but I am going to use it anyway.)

He was excited and actually ate 1/2 of one. Which is huge for him because well he will tell you he hates cookies other than oreos but who doesn't love oreos.

He had a blast and loved every moment of it, other then the few times he got flour on himself and he had to run to the bathroom to wash his hands (we have a sink in the kitchen but he has to wash his hands in the bathroom).

I know these things seem like normal everyday things but for a mom with a child who has ASD they are huge. Will it happen again, who knows but at least we have one memory of making cookies together.

And this afternoon we will taking our pumpkins to the animal farm because the animals there love them and I need out for a little bit! 

Mini cheesecakes!!!

Strawberry Mini Cheesecakes

OMG YUM!!! I am not sure what is with everyone wanting mini things but I am in love and there where a few extra so I got to have one too. This order was for a clients dinner party a few weeks back.
I am not going to give my secret recipe but I will explain how to make mini cheesecakes using your favourite cheesecake recipe. I use only baked cheesecakes because I feel the no bake cheesecake is cheating and tastes like crap.

Warning it will make about 36 mini cheesecakes

What you need:
Your favourite cheesecake recipe all whipped up in your mixer
Muffin Tin
Cupcake liners
You are going to want to double your crust recipe
Strawberries
Raspberries
Sugar
Potato Masher or fork


Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees (depending on your oven I have to put mine at 350)

Put about 1/2 tablespoon or less of your cookie crumb bottom into each of your lined muffin tins.
Flatten it down and make it as even as possible.
Pour almost to the top of each muffin liners.
Bake in oven for 20 mins or until middle is just about set.
Let cool to room temp
Put into fridge for 3 hours.

Sauces:
Cut up strawberries into tiny pieces (I used about 10 strawberries to cover 12 mini cheesecakes)
Place in a bowl with 1/4 a cup of sugar. (more or less sugar to your taste)
Mash and squish everything up until it is a paste
Cover and put in fridge until ready to serve.

Repeat for raspberry sauce, only difference is I used the whole whole clam shell of raspberries.


Top when ready and serve!!

Raspberry mini cheesecake