Happy Birthday Bryan!

Today I made a cake for one of my young readers.  He turns 6 today and really wanted an Advengers birthday cake with flames!  So here is what I made!  I hope you have a great day Bryan and you love your cake!

Crispy Oatmeal Cookies

This recipe I made today with the 2 1/2 year old twin girls I babysit.  The mom had the idea that these would be granola bar like cookies and some what healthy.  Whether these are healthy or not is debatable, but I will tell you that they are delicious!  There is a tablespoon of cinnamon which I love and will make your home smell wonderful!  

Recipe - Yield 4 dozen

Ingredients:

1 Cup Butter, unsalted, room temperature

1 Cup Sugar

1 Cup Brown Sugar

2 Eggs

1 Teaspoon Vanilla

1 1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour

1 Tablespoon Baking Soda

1 Teaspoon Salt

1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

1/2 Cup Chopped Pecans

3 1/4 Cups Rolled Oats

Directions:

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl - the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
2. Cream the butter and sugars together.  Add eggs and vanilla and mix until smooth.
3. Add dry ingredients and mix until combine.  Add pecan and oats and mix.  
4. Divide into 4 balls and roll into a log.  Refrigerate for at least an hour.  
5. Cut log into 1/2 inch cookies and bake until brown and crispy, about 15-18 minutes, or for a softer and chewier cookie, bake for 12-14 minutes.  Cool on rack.
6. Enjoy!!

Guest Blogger Post: Monster Cookies

Happy President's Day!  It is a great day as for I had the opportunity to be a guest blogger on Sweet As Sugar Cookies! She has been blogger for over a year and I am her first guest blogger!  She makes some amazing treats and is a great cook too!  Today I made some delicious monster cookies, I encourage everyone to go check it out HERE!  

Better Than Crack Brownies

So this recipe has been gaining popularity over the last few weeks. I have been seeing it everywhere so I decided it was time to try it for myself.  I also had all the ingredients in my pantry just waiting to be used.  I still had leftover marshmallows, Rice Krispies, and peanuts, as well as lots of those Reece's Christmas tree leftover from Christmas.   So I gathered all the ingredients and went to work!  I used the Oooey Goooey Fudgey Brownie recipe from How Sweet It Is because it had marshmallows in the batter and with a name like that, I had to try it!  Its kinda magical because all the marshmallows disappear in the oven and leaves you with a fluffy fudgey delicious brownie.  Anyways, the brownie recipe alone is ridiculously amazing, but with all the other goodies on top, it becomes better then crack status!  Once you try these, i don't think you will ever want to eat regular brownies again!  Its not much more work, but yet the outcome is triple the taste!  You get the crunch from the Rice Krispies and peanuts, as well as a creamy peanut butter from the middle layer of Reece's!  You really cant go wrong, and I am sure this will be a hit wherever you serve it!  I hope this encourages all you bakers out there to try this recipe!!

Somebody took a bite....

Better Then Crack Brownies

Yield - 24 Brownies

Ingredients:

1 Batch of Brownies (box mix, oooey gooey fudgey brownies from below, or your favorite recipe)

1/2 Cup Peanuts (salted or unsalted)

1-2 Cups Chopped Reece's Peanut Butter Cups

1 1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips

1 1/2 Cup Peanut Butter (I used creamy)

1/2 Tablespoon Butter

2-3 Cups Rice Krispies

Directions

1. Mix brownies according to recipe.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until almost done in a 9x13 pan.
2. Remove from oven and top with peanuts and Reece's peanut butter cups, then bake for another 4-6 minutes.
3. While they are finishing baking, melt the butter, peanut butter, and chocolate chips together.  Stir in the Rice Krispies.  
4. Remove the brownies from the oven and top with the cereal mixture.
5. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
6. Enjoy with a glass of milk!

Ooey Goooey Fudgey Brownies

Yield - 24 Brownies

Ingredients:

1 Stick Butter, unsalted

1/2 Cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips or bakers chocolate

2 Cups Sugar

4 Eggs

1 Cup Flour

1 Teaspoon Vanilla

1 Cup Chocolate Chips

2 Cups Mini Marshmallows

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Melt butter and 1/2 cup chocolate in a microwave safe bowl.
3. Pour the melted mixture into the bowl of your kitchen aid.  Cream the mixture for 2 minutes.
4. Add in the sugar and vanilla and beat for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add in eggs one at a time.  Add flour just until combine.
6. Fold in chocolate chips and marshmallows.
7. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan, and bake for 20-25 minutes or until just done.
8. Continue with the Better Than Crack recipe from above, or eat plain.
9. ENJOY!!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today I decided to make something classic and simple for one of the wonderful staff at Working Wardrobes.  She has helped me with the job search process so I thought she deserved some cookies!  These chocolate chip cookies are amazing! Perfectly soft with lots of chocolate chips!!  I am sure most people have their own chocolate chip cookie recipe they use, but I urge you to try this one!!  It is sure to impress!  I got this recipe from Lovin From The Oven.  

Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Yield - 2 Dozen
2 Cups Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
3/4 Cup Butter, unsalted, melted
1 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 Tablespoon Vanilla
1 Egg
1 Egg Yolk
2 Cups Semisweet Chocolate Chips


Directions:

1. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt together and set aside.
2. 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 combine. 
3. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Add the chocolate chips and mix just until combined.
4. Refrigerate the dough for at least an hour.  Preheat the oven to 325.
5. Spoon cookie dough onto cookie sheet.  I used a cookie scoop, but a spoon or tablespoon measurement works fine too depending on what size cookies you want.
6. Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool and then EAT!
7. Enjoy!!

Nutella Chocolate Souffles

I hope everyone had a wonderfully valentines day!  My boyfriend took me to dinner but I insisted on making dessert.  I love chocolate and I love nutella, so when I found this recipe for nutella chocolate souffles, I knew this would be a winner recipe!  I was very nervous while making this, I did some research and there were so many tips and things to make sure the souffles came out perfect.  Needless to say, my first attempt was a SUCCESS!  They were perfect!!  They were very light and fluffy, chocolaty and moist!  The nutella had just sunk to the bottom, but it was a nice surprise when you got there.  Overall, I would recommend this recipe to anyone with a love for nutella!!   Sorry the pictures are not the best, I was so anxious to try it i just snapped a few while they were cooling.   

Nutella Chocolate Souffles - Adapted from Chocolate and Carrots

Yield - 2 Souffles

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Flour

1/4 Cup Unsweetened Cocoa

1/4 Teaspoon Baking Powder

1/4 Cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1 Egg

2 Egg Whites

1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla

1/4 Cup + half of 1/4 Cup Sugar

1/8 Teaspoon of Salt - or just a pinch

2 Spoon Scoops of Nutella

Directions:

1. Preheat Oven to 350.
2. Spray 2 ramekins with PAM.
3. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa, and baking powder together.
4. In a small microwaveable bowl, melt the chocolate chips and butter together.  It should take 1-2 minutes and be sure to stop and stir every 30 seconds.  Stir til smooth.
5. In another bowl, preferably glass, beat together the eggs, vanilla, sugar and salt with a hand mixer.  Mix on high speed for about 5 minutes or until a light yellow color.  
6. Mix in the chocolate mixture just until combined.
7. Fold in the dry ingredients, just until combine.
8. Spoon the batter 1/2 way into the ramekins, then drop a spoon full of nutella into the middle, then fill the rest of the way with the last of the batter. 
9. Put in a roasting pan and then bake for about 25- 30 minutes or until the cakes have risen and they are little cracks on the top!
10. Let cool for 5 minutes, and server immediately!  Serve with ice cream or whipped cream, or eat plain!
11. Enjoy!! 

Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Here is just a picture post because I wasn't very happy with the recipe.  I made the chocolate sugar cookies from Joy of Baking thinking that they would be good, but that was far from my experience today.   They had a very weird texture that I didn't like and were difficult to roll out.  Maybe I didn't make the dough correctly or something else went wrong, but I wasn't impressed.  I decided to decorate them anyway in the spirit of Valentines day.  I hope you like them!

Valentine's Day Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

I have been dying to make a homemade vanilla cupcake and today was the day.  I spent some time researching recipes but I don't like to bake with sour cream, and I didn't want to use milk.  I eventually gave up finding one without milk and picked this one from The-Crafty-Penguin.  I really liked the recipe because it only made 8 cupcakes which is perfect for me.  Now if you make this you must follow the directions carefully!  It is not the normal process for making a cupcake batter, so don't be alarmed, it will turn out okay in the end.  I was thrilled with the results and this will definitely be my go to recipe!  It really is just as quick and easy as a box mix!!  I also decided to spice it up a little bit and do different color layers.  I think it looks very Valentine's Day festive!  Enjoy!!!

Vanilla Cupcake
Yield - 8 Cupcakes
Ingredients:
1 Cup Flour
3/4 Cup Sugar
1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
A Pinch of Salt
3 Tablespoons of Butter, unsalted, room temperature
1/2 Cup Whole Milk
1 Egg
1/4 to 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla - depending on how vanilla-yy you like it


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. In bowl of stand mixer, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and butter with paddle on slow. 
3. When the mixture forms a sandy consistency (this will happen pretty quickly), slowly pour in half the milk. Stop mixing once combined.
4. In a small bowl, whisk the other half of the milk together with the egg and vanilla (this will just take a few seconds.) Pour into flour mixture and mix until smooth (no more than a couple minutes.) Scrape the bowl as you are mixing.
5. Extra Step if you want color - Divide batter evenly into the number of colors you want.  Mix in the color completely with a spoon, then continue on...
6. Pour into a muffin tin that is lined with cupcake wrappers. Each wrapper should be no more than 2/3 full. This will make 8 cupcakes. 
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 325 degrees F. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
8. Enjoy!!

Vanilla Buttercream

Yield: Enough for 8 Cupcakes

Ingredients:

3 Cups Powdered Sugar

1/3 Cup Butter, unsalted, room temperature

1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla

2 Tablespoons Milk - depending on what consistency you want

Directions

1. Beat butter for a couple minutes on high, using paddle attachment. Turn mixer to low and slowly add powdered sugar.
2. Add vanilla extract and slowly add milk. Increase speed and beat for another minute or two, until fluffy. 
3. For thicker frosting, add more powdered sugar. For thinner frosting, add more milk.
4. Pipe or spread and ENJOY!!

Rocky Road Brownies

This again is a recipe I made because I had stuff in my pantry that I need to use.  Marshmallows were my item this time and so I decided to make these delicious rocky road brownies.   They were super easy and so delicious!!  I hope you enjoy making these as much as I did!!

Recipe adapted from Savory Sweet Life
Recipe: Yield 16 brownies


Ingredients:
3/4 Cup Butter, Melted
1 1/2 Cup Sugar
2 Teaspoons Vanilla
2 Eggs
3/4 Cup Flour
1/2 Cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/3 Cup Chopped Peanuts (or whatever nuts you like)
1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips
1/2 Cup Mini Marshmallows


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. In a medium-large bowl, mix by hand melted butter, sugar, and vanilla until blended. Add one egg at a time mixing/beating well. 
3. Add flour, cocoa, and salt and stir the batter until fully incorporated making sure you scrape the sides of the bowl including the bottom. 
4. Spray an 8×8 square pan with non-stick spray. Spread brownie batter inside the pan as evenly as possible. 
5. Evenly distribute the marshmallows/chocolate/almond mixture all over the top of the brownie batter. Using the back of a clean spoon, gently press down the topping mixture into the batter just enough so the topping is slightly packed down. 
6. Bake for 25 minutes or until done. Marshmallows will have a slight crisp edges. 
7. Allow to cool slightly before serving.  Brownies slice really nicely if completely cooled.
8. ENJOY!!

Twix Cookies

I love TWIX, therefore I love TWIX COOKIES! New favorite cookie for sure!

Yes that is a river of carmel!

Recipe adapted from lovintheoven


Twix Cookies
Recipe: Yield about 2 Dozen
2 Cups Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
12 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter Softened
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 Egg and 1 Egg Yolk
2 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 Cup Chopped Twix Bars - I bought 3 regular size bars and chopped that up, so six stixs of twix


Directiosn

1. Preheat oven 325.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Beat in egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined.
4. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Gently stir in the Twix chunks.
5. Roll the dough into balls and bake on a baking sheet for 12-15 minutes.
6. Allow the cookies to cool for ten minutes before removing them off the baking sheet.
7. ENJOY!!

Big Mama's Home Kitchen: Stylish Blogger Award

Rice Crispy Treat Cupcakes

Here is a fun alternative to a regular cupcake, although there is a mini cupcake hiding inside.  I have a friend who loves rice crispy treats and it was his birthday recently, so it was a perfect opportunity to try these.  Nothing fancy here, just the regular rice crispy recipe off the box, confetti cake mix, but fancy chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream.  They turned out pretty good, you couldn't really taste the cupcake inside, but the frosting and crunchy outside made for a fun treat!  Maybe if i had made chocolate cupcakes, the flavor would be more pronounced.   But anyway, this is a perfect recipe for a rice crispy treat lover!! 

Happy Birthday Pepper!

Rice Crispy Treat Shell Recipe:

Follow the box... I did 1/2 the recipe and it made enough for 12 cupcakes

Directions:

1. Melt the butter and marshmallows together.  Add the rice crispies and stir.
2. Coat a cupcake pan with PAM - i used a silicon one and it worked great because i was able to pop out the cupcakes when i was done.
3. Take a spoon full of rice crispies and mold it just around the edges of the cup.  I sprayed my fingers to make the shaping process less sticky.
4. Save for mini cupcakes.

Mini Cupcakes:  Use your favorite recipe here... don't cook in cupcake liners, just spray the pan with PAM so they are easier to put into the rice crispy mold.

Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Recipe: 

1 1/2 Cup Sugar

6 Egg Whites
Pinch of Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Cream of Tartar
2 Cups of Butter, unsalted and room  temperature, cut into tablespoons
1 Cup Cooled Melted Chocolate - milk or dark - I used dark

This recipe makes enough to frost a 2 layer cake or frost 24 or more cupcakes, depending on the amount of frosting per cupcake...

1. Heat sugar and eggs: Bring a saucepan filled with about 2 inches of water to a simmer. Meanwhile, combine sugar, egg whites, and salt in a large heat-proof mixing bowl. Set bowl over (not in) simmering water, and whisk until whites are warm to the touch and sugar is dissolved, 2 to 3 minutes. (Heating the eggs relaxes their proteins, enabling the eggs to whip up higher and more quickly; the sugar also melts, for a silky smooth consistency.) Test by rubbing between your fingers; the mixture should feel smooth.
2. Whip meringue: Attach bowl to a standing electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat on low speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar, and beat on medium-high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form and mixture is cooled completely, about 10 minutes.
3. Mix in butter: Reduce speed to medium-low; add butter 2 tablespoons at a time, beating to incorporate fully after each addition. Don't worry if the buttercream appears curdled at this point; it will become perfectly smooth again with continued beating. After all the butter has been incorporated, beat in Chocolate.
4. Finish: Switch to the paddle attachment. Beat on the lowest speed to reduce air bubbles, 3 to 5 minutes. Let stand, covered with plastic wrap, at room temperature. (If not using the same day, transfer to airtight containers and store in the refrigerator up to 3 days or the freezer up to 1 month. Before using, bring to room temperature; beat with paddle attachment on the lowest speed until smooth and pliable, about 10 minutes.)
5. I frosted the cupcakes with a large pastry bag and a 1M tip.
6. Enjoy!!

Check out this post on paisley passions

and check out this post on sweet-as-sugar-cookies - sweets-for-saturday

Browned Butter Brownies

So i have been seeing a lot of recipes with "browned butter" in the name.  I decided that i must jump on the band wagon and try it myself.   Basically this recipe is a regular brownie recipe but the cool thing is that you make/mix it all in a sauce pan, and i think it has a richer and more distinct flavor due to the browned butter.  I think i cooked this batch a little too long because they are not as gooey as i had hoped but that is my fault.  Overall, this is a very delicious from scratch brownie recipe!

 

This recipe is adapted from Doughmesstic


Recipe: Yield about 16 brownies
10 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
1 1/4 Cup Sugar
2 Teaspoons Water
A Dash of Cinnamon
3/4 Cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Salt (recipe called for sea salt but I used regular and just added a bit more)
2 Teaspoons Vanilla
2 Eggs
1/2 Cup Flour
1/3 Cup Chocolate Chips ( I just chopped up a dark chocolate bar that I had)


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325.  Line an 8×8 square pan with parchment or foil, leaving an overhang on two sides for easy removal.  Spray the prepared pan liberally with PAM.
2. Place the butter in a small pot, and melt over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Butter will get foamy, and eventually start to brown and smell nutty.  Be careful not to burn.  Total time should be 6-8 minutes.
3. Once browned, remove from heat and immediately add the sugar, cocoa, 2 teaspoons water, cinnamon, sea salt and vanilla. Stir to combine.
4. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes, then add in the eggs one at a time, whisking vigorously after each addition.  Mixture will become shiny and thick. 
5.  At this point, stir in the flour and beat vigorously for 2 minutes. Stir in chocolate chips.
6. Pour into prepared pan, and bake for 20-25 minutes - could be longer depending on your oven, up to 30 minutes.  Brownies will be gooey, but will firm up once cooled.  Allow to cool in pan, then remove from pan by lifting them out with the parchment/foil overhang.
7. Enjoy with a cup of milk!!

YUMMY

Check out this post on http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/2011/02/sweets-for-saturday-3.html and http://www.inlinkz.com/wpview.php?id=32913