Peanut Butter Cookies

So I was in the mood for some peanut butter cookies today. Even though I had a ton of homework to get done, I decided to take a study break and make a quick batch.

Back before college when my two sisters and I still all lived together at home, we loved to bake. We each had our specialty. My sister Erica always made chocolate chip cookies, Lauren made apple pie, and I made peanut butter cookies.

Normally when I made them, I would double or triple this recipe because they do not make that many. Unfortunately we did not even have enough brown sugar at my apartment to make one batch. I was only about one eights cup short and I really wanted some, so I just substituted it with regular white sugar.

In the end, they came out a little dry. I’m not sure if this was because of not having enough brown sugar or if I over baked them. Regardless, they were still really good and a perfect break to doing homework!

To get the perfect cross pattern on the top, I rolled the dough into balls then used a fork to press down both ways. Even though this doesn’t change the taste it definitely makes them more presentable. Another idea is to add Hershey’s Kisses to the top to make them even more delicious. However, if you do this make sure you don’t press the cookies down before you bake them. Also, make sure you do not over bake these because they harden up a lot after they come out of the oven.

Here is the recipe:

Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup shortening (half butter or margarine softened)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions: 

Cream the butter for 2 minutes. Add the sugars, cream for 2 more minutes. Mix in the peanut butter and egg. Mix together the dry ingredients. Stir into the sugar butter mixture.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Shape dough into 1 1/4 inch balls. Place about 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten in crisscross pattern with a fork. Bake until light brown, 9 to 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheets for a minute; transfer to rack to cool completely.

Baking Without Baking?

While I was home over break, My Mom gave me a great recipe for Chocolate Cookie Dough Truffles. This recipe was a lifesaver because it requires no actual baking in an oven. Over my break, I was supposed to make a dessert to bring to a friends house, but our oven conveniently decided to stop working just in time.

If you are someone who always eats half the batter of chocolate chip cookie dough before you even bake the actual cookies, these are for you. The ingredients are pretty much the same as regular chocolate chip cookies, which makes them easy to make. However, they do not contain egg so that they are safe to eat unbaked.

I would recommend that once the dough is made, that you let them chill until they are very firm so that they are easier to mold into balls. Another tip for rolling the balls is to put flour on your fingers so that they do not stick as much.

One thing that I noticed with the chocolate coating is that it was a little too thick. To fix this, I added a little Crisco to smooth out the chocolate a little. I would definitely let the chocolate drip off before placing it down on the waxed paper. As much as I love chocolate, it was still a little too much in ratio with the dough balls. But, even with the extra chocolate, these were definitely a hit with my friends and family. This is a simple, but delicious recipe that I will definitely be making again!

Here is the recipe:

Cookie Dough Truffles

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1-1/2 pounds dark chocolate candy coating, coarsely chopped

Directions

In a large bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Gradually add flour, alternately with milk, beating well after each addition. Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts. Shape into 1-in. balls; place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Loosely cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until firm.

In a microwave bowl, melt candy coating; stir until smooth. Dip balls in coating; allow excess to drip off; Place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes. If desired, remelt remaining candy coating and drizzle over candies. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 5-1/2 dozen.

Snickers Brownies

While browsing for new recipes to try online, I stumbled upon a recipe for Snickers Brownies. I was in the mood for chocolate (as always), so I decided to give them a try. I had never made brownies from scratch before, so I was a little nervous as to how hard they were going to be. But to my surprise, they were extremely easy to bake and did not require too many ingredients.

Since all of my roommates have a sweet tooth like me, I decided it would be a good idea to double the batch. And what a good idea it was because they loved them!

After they finished baking, we let them cool for a few minutes, until we couldn’t wait any longer. Now, let me say that homemade brownies are much better than from a box. With the Snickers bars added, they were even richer with chocolate and added caramel swirls and crunchy nuts (yum!).

When at the store shopping for ingredients, I also picked up some French Vanilla ice cream to put on top of the brownies (another great idea).

I think the best thing about this recipe is that even if you don’t like Snickers; you can still substitute it with any candy bar. I could definitely recommend these to any chocolate lover! They were very simple and easy to make. One tip the recipe gave was to make sure to not over bake them. I strongly agree with this because the more gooey the better!

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients


4 ounces unsweetened chocolate; coarsely chopped


3/4 cup butter


1 ½ cups white sugar


3 eggs; lightly beaten


1 teaspoon vanilla extract


¼ teaspoon kosher salt


1 cup all-purpose flour

12 Fun Size Snickers Candy Bars; cut into fourths

Directions


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8 inch baking pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.


2. Microwave chocolate and butter or margarine in large bowl at medium (50% power) for 3-4 minutes or until butter is melted.


3. Whisk until chocolate is melted. Stir in sugar. Add in eggs, extract and salt. Gradually add in flour and stir until just combined.


4. Spread ½ the batter into prepared pan. Add an even layer of Snickers and cover with remaining ½ of brownie batter. Bake for 30-35 minutes; do not over bake.


5. Remove to cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before cutting

Magic Cookie Bars

Golden Brown!

To start off, I thought I would try to make a family favorite, Magic Cookie Bars. Not only do I love the name, but also they are delicious. I have been eating these since I was little when my Mom would make them for family parties or other special occasions. I have never actually tried to make them myself, so I thought I would give them a try.

This recipe is pretty simple, but I did manage to run into one problem. In the recipe, the bottom layer is crushed graham cracker to form the crust. Since I am living in a college apartment, or course we did not have a food processer. So, I had to improvise and decided to put the graham crackers into a plastic Ziploc bag and crushed them with a can. This worked pretty well, but took much longer than a food processor would have.

Despite this minor problem, the rest went smoothly. In the end they came out well, baked for the perfect amount of time. In the recipe, it says to only set the oven at 325 degrees if you have a glass dish. I would definitely recommend following this. I used a glass dish and they came out at the perfect consistency.

The recipe says to use chopped nuts. For mine, I decided to use chopped walnuts. I would definitely suggest using these because they were tasty. They were a great texture to go along with the chocolate chips and coconut.

Here is one tip to make this simple recipe even simpler: The recipe says to spray the pan with cooking spray and to mix the melted butter with the crushed graham crackers. Instead of this, I simply put the stick of butter in the oven to melt and mixed the crushed graham crackers right into the bottom of the pan. I had no problems with the bars sticking and I saved washing a few dishes!

Here is the recipe:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk

2 cups (12 oz. pkg.) semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/3 cups flaked coconut

1 cup chopped nuts

HEAT oven to 350°F. Spray 13 x 9-inch baking pan with no-stick cooking spray. COMBINE graham cracker crumbs and butter in small bowl. Press into bottom of prepared pan. Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over crumb mixture. Layer evenly with chocolate chips, coconut and nuts. Press down firmly with fork. BAKE 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Loosen from sides of pan while still warm; cool on wire rack. Cut into bars or diamonds.

It is available at Eagle Brand

About Me

I’m Renee, I’m 20 years old and I am currently a student at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). At RIT, I am in my third year studying Advertising and Public Relations. I originally started this blog as part of one of my classes, but hope to become inspired by experimenting with new recipes.

I have always loved sweets and have a particular sweet tooth for anything chocolate. I love to bake, but have never done anything professionally. To me, it is more of something fun and relaxing to do. When baking, I typically stick to the easy stuff like cookies and cakes. However, with this blog I hope to branch out and try different and challenging recipes.

I grew up with a close family who loved to cook and bake, which is where I got inspiration to create this blog. My family has always loved food, lots of food. I grew up in the same house for 20 years with my parents and two sisters. Our kitchen was always the center of our house. Whenever friends or family came to visit, it seemed like everyone gathered around the food.

One thing about my kitchen that I have always treasured is a ceramic tile hanging on the wall saying, “Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first,” by Ernestine Ulmer.  I can say that I have used this quote as justification over the past few years for overindulging numerous times. I hope that you also take this quote as inspiration and seek to never regret overindulgence.

Recipes are always welcome!

Enjoy J