These were my dad’s all time favorite cookie.  I think that’s why I enjoy making them so much.  I break this out whenever I make cutout cookies – Valentine’s Day, Easter, Superbowl Sunday and of course, Christmas.  The recipe is from a family friend, Mrs Ramire.  Again, my decorating skills stink, so I make them as sandwich cookies. 

1 1/2 cups shortening,  1 1/3 cups sugar,    4 eggs,  1 tsp vanilla,   4 cups flour,            1 tsp salt, 1 tsp baking powder.

Cream shortening and sugar for 2 to 3 minutes.   add eggs and vanilla.  mix in two cups of flour.  add remaining twould cups, salt and baking powdee.  cover and chill overnight.     roll out on floured surface and cut.  bake in oven preheated to 350 degrees.  6 to 8 minutes.  (lightly browned on bottom, somewhat set on top).  do not overbake.  frost and decorate as you wish!     

These are a favorite of many – like a homemade version of a Reese’s peanut butter cup.  this recipe is from my friend Helen’s mom.  Mrs Cianciosi was a wonderful kind lady, a ton of fun and an excellent baker and cook.  I remember spending many weekends at their house  there during winter and summer breaks from Geneseo.  

2 cups peanut butter,   1 cup butter (soft),  2 cups graham cracker crumbs,   1 tsp vanilla, 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar.  mix well.  pour into 8 x8 pan.  top w melted chocolate (melt 2 cups chocolate chips w 2 tbs oil or shortening).  store covered at room temperature.

Sometime I cheat and melt the butter.  then I add more powdered sugar if need be.

I love to make cutout cookies, but unfortunately, my decorating skills are that of a four year old (which may be offensive to four year olds).  So, until I can take a decorating class, I make them into sandwich cookies and put the frosting in the middle.  that way people can actually see what they actually are, and not ask “is that a bicycle?”  no, that is actually Santa.

Today’s version is the chocolate variety.  I will post other versions as well.  Remember to scoop out the flour from you bag or container and pour  into your measuring cups.  it is the best way to measure flour and get the right amount.  too much flour can make treats dry. 

The ingredients

2 3/4 cups flour    3/4 cup baking cocoa 1/2 tsp salt             1 tsp baking powder       1 cup butter (softened)   1 3/4 cups sugar 2 eggs                                    2 tsp vanilla.  

Beat butter and sugar medium high speed 3 minutes, add eggs and vanilla, mix in dry ingredients.  chill. 

 I take the dough out of the fridge and hour or so before I want to bake the cookies.  the dough is easier to roll out that way.  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

roll dough on surface area that has been sprinkle with flour.  also sprinkle a little flour on top before you roll.  some people use powdered sugar.  I have not, but if you try it, let me know how it works out.

Roll dough about 1/2 inch thick.  cut with cookie cutter.  bake for 7 to 8 minutes.  let cool.

Use whatever frosting you want for the filling.  or you can do something simple with 1/4 cup butter melted .   I add some powdered sugar, tsp of vanilla and enough cream or milk to get the consistency you want.  then add food coloring.  I am the worst at determining how much frosting to make for anything.  it is either too much or too little.

This is a recipe from Betty Crocker that I  used to help get rid of yet another bag of halloween candy (6 down, two left to bake with) 🙂  I used regular semisweet chocolate chips.  if you want to mix it up and use peanut butter chips, milk chocolate chips etc, feel free.

2 pouches peanut butter cookie mix (1 lb 1.5 oz), 1 1/2 cups quick oats,  1 cup butter (softened),  3 eggs,  1 cup chocolate chips, 1 cup m&ms, peanut butter cups

Combine cookie mixes, oats, butter and eggs.  stir in chips and m&ms.  form  2 -3 tbs dough around each peanut butter cup.  chill dough for at least a few hours or up to  a couple of days.  bake in oven preheated to 375 degrees.  bake for 12 to 14 minutes.  I like to take mine out a little early bc they cook a little on the pan as they cool.  store in a covered container.  the next day or so, you can also microwave a cookie for 10 seconds and they taste like they came.right out of the oven!

Today’s recipe is from our friends at Ghirardelli.  they are ultimate  double chocolate cookies.  I decided to dip the bottoms in melted chocolate because… well, why not?

1 2/3 cups 60 percent cacao butters weet chocolate chips, 6 tbs butter, 3 eggs, I cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips.

Melt bittersweet chocolate and butter in 45 second increments until you can stir it smooth.  in  a separate bowl, beat eggs and sugar until mixture is thick (a couple of minutes ).  add egg mixture to chocolate, stir in dry ingredients.  fold in chips.  Dough  will be very soft.  chill at least an hour.  roll 2 tbs of dough into balls.  cook at 375 degrees 10 to 12 minutes.  let cool.  then dip bottoms into melted Chocolate chips, peanut butter chips or white chips.  then place top of cookie face down to let dry.

These are a great little holiday treat from a recipe  my Aunt Patty gave me, that my friend Christine wanted me to post.  so here it is.

2 cups of flour ,   1/2 tsp salt, 1 cup of butter (softened), 1/3 cup sugar, 2 tsp vanilla.  1 cup of mini chips (opt), 1 cup of ground walnuts (optional)

cream butter and sugar for a minute or so.  add flour and salt.  mix well.  it may take a while to form a dough, as it can be quite crumbly.  stir in chips and nuts.  roll tbs of dough into balls.  bake at 325 degrees for  15 to 17 minutes.  let them  cool for 10 minutes on cookie sheet.  prinkle with powdered sugar.  let cool and sprinkle with additio al powdered sugar.  

A couple of weeks after Halloween and we still have 5 bags of candy leftover.  I can’t just bring bags of candy to work, I need to put them in treats!  today, I used peanut butter snickers in peanut butter cookies!  

A couple of tips I want to offer.  when measuring flour, instead of pouring from the bag into a measuring cup, use the scoop method.  take a spoon and add appropriate amount of flour into yoir measuring cup that way. some directions for baking suggest to put all your dry ingredients in a separate bowl and them add them to your butter/sugar mixture.  I have never done that.  I prefer less  dishes to clean. 🙂  I just add them to my butter/sugar mixture added the cookies come out fine. 

Cookies

10 tbs of butter (softened), 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 tsp vanilla, 4 eggs, 2 1/4 cups flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt, 1 1/2 bags (15 ounces)  of peanut butter chips (melted in 30 secon increments until you can stir mixture smooth)

Beat  butter, brown sugar and sugar.  add eggs and vanilla. mix in melted chips.  add dry ingredients.   I use an ice cream scoop (or 2 tbs of dough) and wrap each around a snickers.  then I chill the dough, do the cookies don’t spread as much.  bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes.  if cookies are a little doughy, leave cook them longer, in minute interivals until you get the desired result.  leave them on the pan for another 5 minutes and them move them to a plate, tin foil etc to completely cool.

hi! here are the Churro cupcakes I made for our friends who just welcomed a baby boy to their family.   Mom is a big churro fan, so I found a cupcakes recipe and make them up.   they made the house smell amazing (as the lurker, Charlie) can attest to.  They were super easy too.  here is the recipe

for the cupcakes – 1 yellow cake mix, 1 cup of milk, 1 stick of butter (melted), 3 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla, 2 tsp ground cinnamon.  mix for three minutes at medium speed.  pour into lined cupcake pan.  put in oven that has been preheated to 400 degrees.  cook for 5 minutes.  without opening the oven door, lower temperature to 350 and cook for another 3 or 4  minutes for mini cupcakes, 5 min for regular size and 8 min for jumbo.  (use a toothpick to test if they are done.  it should come out with just a few crumbs).  repeat process with until you use all the batter up.  let cool completely.

frosting – 3/4 stick butter (softened), 1 tbs vanilla, 2 tsp cinnamon, 2-3 tbs heavy cream or milk, 3 cups powdered sugar.  cream butter, vanilla and cinnamon.  add powdered sugar and mix.  use milk to thin out and beat to consistency.  frost cupcakes

Today’s post is about trusting your instincts and that if you feel you need to get a second opinion on anything for you, a loved one, friend, or even a pet, you should.  In July 2015, Charlie was not feeling well, couldn’t keep his food down.  When we took him to our vet, “Dr Z,” she wanted to take an x-ray and showed us what appeared to be a piece of bag from food he had stolen off the table.  To be sure, she wanted to do an ultrasound the next day.  She called that day and told us Charlie had a tumor on each side of his intestine, about 1/2 inch long on each side.  She said his prognosis is poor.  She said we could do two surgeries – one to see if the tumor was malignant, the other to take it out – for $6000.  We did not want to put him through that and didn’t have the money to do so either.  When “Dr Z” learned of our decision, she became disinterested in us and our dog.  She acted as if we were bothering her  any time we called to ask for help. My husband did research and found we could feed him ground hamburger.    We fed him that and he kept that down.  In November, “Dr Z” insisted on seeing Charlie.  She could not have been ruder or more disinterested, but of course probably didn’t mind the $100 office visit.  My husband said “we’re done with this place.”  So we went to a clinic around the corner, where the vet examined Charlie and said “he has two teeth so infected, it could be disastrous.”  We had the teeth taken out and he ate more.. so much so that he went from 78 pounds to 92 pounds in three months.  Then in May, he was getting sick again, a lot.  I thought it was the end and the tumor had taken over.  We took him to our new vet and they kept him over the weekend.  It was excruciatingly long and quiet.  “Dr P” said “I don’t know how to say this, but there is no tumor in Charlie.  We can’t find it.  We called your other vet to make sure we are not missing anything and they have not called us back.”  Charlie is pretty healthy now – will be 13 in February and is eating well and living a good life.  I am so glad we switched vets who cared more about our dog than making money.  I just wanted to post this to warn people that a second, or even third opinion, is never a bad thing. 

these recipes use some of the six bags of leftover Halloween candy we have!

1/2 cup butter        3/4 cup peanut butter       2 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla      2-4 tbs milk        7 chopped butterfinger pb cups

cream butter.  add peanut butter.  Mix in powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. beat to consistency.  stir in butterfinger pb cups