You know what would make things better right now?

Does a cookie solve all problems?

That was the question my husband asked me after I got home from work and after the Bills lost by 5 in London and both lineback Matt Milano and defensive lineman Da’Quan Jones left with injuries. And they could both be out a while. Rob’s answer to all this was “chocolate chip cookies.” As soon as he said cookies, Gracie ran in and sat at my feet, like the good pup she is, as if to say “yes, mama, cookies make everything better. I do not agree, but I did make cookies. And yes,chocolate chip ones. Honestly, I am still mad about the loss, but someone will enjoy these damn cookies.

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount. Freeze the dough for an hour or chill for a few hours to prevent spreading. And preheat your oven to 375 degrees for 20 minutes before baking so the oven cycles to the right temp.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1 cup butter flavor crisco
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup bread flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter flavor crisco, brown sugar and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Fold in dry ingredients. Mix in chips. Scoop out 1/4 cups of dough and form tall cylinders. Chill a few hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and stagger cookies. Bake 14 to 16 minutes. Edges will be golden. Middle may be soft,but remove from oven. Cool completley. Chill in fridge to help cookies firm up. Store in covered container.

Thanks for stopping by today! I wish you a day of peace, joy and happiness.

Cookies to celebrate a Bills win and National Homemade Cookies Day

I was alerted on Twitter that today is National homemade cookies day.. which is certainly a day to be celebrated… it was also a Bills victory day, something to be even more celebrated. Nothing to fancy, just browned butter chocolate chip cookies. You know what else, Bills win Christine is so much better than Bills lose Christine. (Just ask my hubby)

These candles below were given to me by my dear college friend, Patty. The Bills are 3-0 when I light them on game day. Just saying 😉

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount. Also, chill the cookies for a few hours or flash chill them (I stuck em in the freezer for an hour to speed up the process). Preheat your oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes

  • Ingredients list
  • 1 cup butter, browned
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed into measuring cup
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 3 1/4 cups flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions – in a pan, heat butter over low-medium heat, stirring occasionally until there are little brown specs in the bottom (it might take 10 minutes or so). Cool 10 minutes. Pour in a bowl, add sugar and brown sugar. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Blend in dry ingredients. Fold in chips. Scoop out 2 tbs dough. Chill a few hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes before baking. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Stagger cookies. Bake 12 to 13 minutes. They will be a little gushy on top. They will firm up as they cool. Cool completely. Store in covered container.

Tollhouse cake mix bars

I had 2 yellow cake mixes that are expiring in a few days, so I decided to whip them up and make them into tollhouse bars and frost them with a simple vanilla frosting. Of course, I frosted them when they were warm, so they will be gushy. I think these will go over well at work tomorrow

These use 2 cake mixes, 4 eggs, chocolate chips, 1/2 cup flour, 1 tsp vanilla, and 12 tbs of butter, melted.

  • Ingredients
  • 2 yellow cake mixes
  • 12 tbs butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup flour (scooped from your flour bag into your measuring cup)
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions – spray a 9×13 pan with baking spray. Preheat oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes so it cycles to the right temp. In a bowl, blend cake mixes, flour, melted butter, eggs and vanilla. Blend in chips. Spread evenly into pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes (edges will be golden). Cool completely. Store in covered container.

A big chocolate blob of a cake

This actually was the second cake I made for Rob’s birthday. The chocolate mid cake was a disaster.. took forever to cook and looked like this. Not acceptable for a cake

This cake will have another purpose as a crust for a cheesecake

So after the above pictured fail, I made a second cake for Rob after I worked out on his actual birthday. Got it in the oven at 510 am. He loved it. It is pretty easy to make. It is quite dense thanks to greek yogurt and has a fudgy frosting and is topped with pieces of oreos. I wanted to finely grind them up in my food processor, but ran out of time.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1 chocolate cake mix
  • 3.4 ounce instant chocolate pudding mix
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3/4 cup oil
  • 1 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Spray a bunt cake pan with baking spray. In a bowl, combine cake mix and pudding mix. Blend in water, oil, and Greek yogurt. Add chocolate chips. Mixture will be thick. Pour into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake 30 to 40 minutes in preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Invert onto plate. Cool completely.

  • Fudge frosting ingredients
  • 8 tbs butter
  • 1/2 cup baking cocoa
  • 6 tbs evaporated milk
  • 3 to 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • Milk

Directions – in a saucepan, over low -medium heat, combine butter, baking cocoa and evaporated milk, stirring occasionally, just until it boils. Remove from heat. Add vanilla. Mixture will be thick and clumpy. Add 3 cups powdered sugar. Again, mixture will be clumpy. Add a tbs or two of milk. Add more milk or more powdered sugar until you get the texture you want. Frost cooled cake. Top with crushed oreos.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!!

Smores brownies

A little story about these brownies. Rob decided to go to a local bakery (!) And buy a treat. He got this smores brownie thing that he said was not good. So he asked if I could make him some. These are pretty easy. I made homemade brownies, but you can certainly use a boxed mix for your brownies base.

These were hard to cut the way i made them. (Baked the brownies, immediately sprinkled with chocolate chips, graham cracker pieces, and cut up marshmallows). I think next time, I would cut the cooled brownies individually, then top them with melted chocolate, crushed graham crackers, and toasted marshmallows.

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount (do the same for your baking cocoa). Also preheat your oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes before baking

  • Ingredients
  • 10 tbs butter, melted
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup baking cocoa
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 2/3 cup flour
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Marshmallows, mini or cut into pieces
  • Graham crackers broken into pieces
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions – line an 8×8 or 9×9 pan with parchment paper and spray with baking spray. In a bowl, combine melted butter, sugar, brown sugar and baking cocoa. Add eggs, yolk and vanilla. Blend in flour, cornstarch and salt. Mixture will be thick. Spread in prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes (until toothpick inserted on center comes out with a few moist crumbs). You can do the topping one of two ways

1) sprinkle hot brownies with 1 cup milk chocolate chips, 4 graham crackers broken into pieces and 2 cups mini marshmallows. Broil on low 3 to 5 minutes. Cool completely. Cut and store in covered container.

2) cool brownies completely. In a pan sprayed with pam, toast marshmallows by broiling on low for 5 minutes Cut into pieces. Top with melted chocolate chips. Crushed graham crackers and toasted marshmallows. Store in covered container.

Thanks for stopping by today! Remember to be kind. We are all fighting a battle of some sort.

Triple chip cookies

Today is the first time in a month it hasn’t felt like you are sitting on the bleeping sun when you go outside. So to celebrate, I made triple chip cookies (Rob’s request). The humidity made so many of my cookies a big, flat disaster. I was assured they tasted good, but the fact that they were flat BUGGED me. (Plus the humidity bugged the hell out of me as well). These cookies did flatten a bit, but not as bad as some of the other ones.

Remember to scoop your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount, form your dough into tall mounds and chill them for a few hours, and preheat oven to 350 degrees before baking so your oven cycles to the right temp. (That last tip was a lifesaver from a tech who serviced one of our first ovens. Very valuable advice)

This is a mound of cookie dough
  • Ingredients
  • 1 1/2 cups butter, cold and shredded with a cheese grater
  • 1 1/4 cups brown sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 4 1/4 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 2/3 cup white chocolate chips
  • 2/3 cup milk chocolate chips
This is how I stagger cookies on a sheet

Directions – in a bowl, cream grated butter, sugar and brown sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Fold in dry ingredients. Mix in chips. Scoop put 1/4 cups of dough and form tall mounds or cylinders. Chill a few hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Stagger cookies on sheet. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until edges are golden and there are golden spots on top. Cool completely. Store in covered container.

Thanks for stopping by today. I wish you peace, love and joy. And remember to be kind. Everyone is fighting some sort of battle each day. Being mean helps no one.

Browned butter/Reese’s pieces/mini M&M chocolate cookies

It is hot and humid today, so why not fire up the oven? 😁 I used browned butter in these because I wanted to speed up the process, as opposed to waiting for the butter to soften to room temp. Browned butter is pretty easy – put it in a pan and cook over low-medium heat, stirring occasionally, just until you see brown specks form. Then immediately remove from heat. I also opted to use Reese’s pieces and mini m&ms, but use whatever mix-ins you want.

Some tips – Remember to scoop your flour directly from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount. Chill the individual mounds of dough for a few hours to help prevent spreading. Preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes when you are ready to bake so it cycles to the right temp.

  • 3/4 cup butter, browned
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 cups flour (scooped from your flour bag into your measuring cup)
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2/3 cup Reese’s pieces
  • 1/3 cup mini m&ms
  • Directions – place butter in a pan and cook over low -medium heat until melted and just until brown specks form. Remove from heat and pour into bowl to cool for for 10 to 14 minutes. Add brown sugar and sugar to butter. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Fold in dry ingredients. Mix in candies. Scoop out 1/4 cups dough. Chill in fridge, or freeze, for a few hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes before baking. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Stagger cookies on the sheet, as seen below.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Cool completely. Store in covered container.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Remember to be kind. We all need kindness in our lives – in terms of giving and receiving!

Puffy frosted chocolate cake mix cookies

These are the exact opposite of my recently posted flatter than pancakes milk chocolate chip cookies. These chocolate cake mix cookies do not spread at all. If you want them flattened, you can do just that… put some flour on your fingers before doing so. 🙂

These are super easy. Just a cake mix, melted butter, and eggs. I tossed in 1 cup of chocolate chips. I also frosted them. But you could sprinkle powdered sugar on top of warm cookies instead, if you prefer.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees before baking so it cycles to the right temp. Don’t overcook these either. You do not want a dry cookie. They will continue to bake on the cookie sheet after removed from the oven.

  • Ingredients
  • 15.5 oz chocolate cake mix (i used devil’s food)
  • 5 tbs butter, melted
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes before baking. In a bowl, combine cake mix, melted butter and eggs. Stir in chips. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, scoop out 3 tbs of dough and form mounds. Stagger cookies on prepared sheet – a row of 2, a row of 1, a row of 2, a row of 1, a row of 2. You can fit 6 or 8 on a sheet, depending on the size of a sheet. Bake 10 to 14 minutes. You don’t want the bottoms too brown. Cookies will still continue to bake on sheet after removed from oven. Cool completely.

  • Frosting ingredients
  • 3 tbs butter softened
  • 3 tbs baking cocoa
  • 1 tbs corn syrup (or honey)
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • Milk

Directions – combine butter and cocoa. Add corn syrup. Mix in powdered sugR. Add milk, 1 tbs at a time, until you get the consistency you want. Frost cookies. Store in covered container.

Thank you so much for stopping by! I wish you a day filled with peace, happiness, and joy. Remember to be kind. We need more kindness!

Blackout Brownies

Blackout brownies

As we close out another week, I thought blackout brownies would be a good treat to bring into work. Rob gave them a 👍 and I think my work friends will enjoy them too.

Remember to scoop your flour and baking cocoa from their containers into your measuring cup so you get the right amount. Also, preheat your oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes before baking so it cycles to the right temp. And right after taking brownies out of the oven,make the frosting. I frosted the brownies while still warm.

A little messy, but good!
  • Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup corn syrup (or honey)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/3 cup black cocoa
  • 1/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees so it cycles to the right temp. Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper and spray with baking spray. In a bowl, combine butter, sugar, brown sugar, and corn syrup. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Fold in dry ingredients. Add chips. Spread evenly into pan. Bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Now, onto the frosting!

  • Frosting ingredients
  • 3 tbs butter, softened
  • 3 tbs black cocoa
  • 1 tbs corn syrup (or honey)
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 to 3 tbs milk

In a bowl, combine butter and baking cocoa. Add corn syrup then powdered sugar. Add milk, one tbs at a time, until you get the consistency you want. Frost warm brownies. Let them cool completely and store in covered container.

Thanks for stopping by today! I wish you a wonderful day, filled with happiness, peace and love.

An ode to Keebler Cookies Magic Middles

Fudge filled chocolate chip cookies

Rob and I were talking about store bought cookies from childhood and I mentioned the only ones I really liked were magic middles by Keebler and Mystic Mint (which I know may gross some people out, because they can’t accept mint in a dessert, but I loved them). Anyways, Rob had never heard of magic middles, but I told him I remembered them as a chocolate chip cookie with melted chocolate inside. I looked them up and it was more of a shortbread cookie, but I decided to do my own version with chocolate chip cookie dough. Of course, I did not make enough fudge, so I used leftover Reese’s eggs for the remainder of the dough and added mini m&ms so the cookies could be told apart.

Filled with mini Reese’s eggs

Reminders – scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount. Do not pour directly from the bag and pack it in. Give yourself time with these. The fudge needs to harden a bit (I scooped put individual scoops of 1 1/2 tbs, put them in the fridge. Once I stuffed the cookies with then, I popped them in the freezer to make sure the fudge didn’t leak all over the place).

  • Fudge ingredients
  • 14 oz condensed milk
  • 2 cups chocolate chips
  • In a saucepan, combine condensed milk and chips over low heat, stirring occasionally until melted. Grease a sheet of tin foil with butter (I sprayed with butter spray). Scoop out 1 1/2 tbs fudge and place in the fridge for about an hour to firm up.
  • Cookie dough ingredients
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions – cream butter, sugar and brown sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Blend in dry ingredients. Fold in chips. Scoop out 1/4 cups of cough and divide in half. Slightly flatten and place a ball of fudge on top.

Top with second half of slightly flattened dough.

Seal edges

I ran out of fudge, so I used mini reese’s eggs for the rest of the dough.

And I used mini m&ms for the Reese’s, so people can tell the difference between them and fudge filled cookies

Chill cookie dough for a few hours or freeze for an hour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees for 20 minutes before baking. Bake 12 to 15 minutes (light golden patches on top). Cool completely. Store in covered container.