Turtle cookies

Today’s treat – turtle cookies.   A large chocolate cookie with topped with homemade caramel,  melted milk chocolate and crushed oreos.  feel free to use any flavor frosting you want.  Vanilla would be great, at would peanut butter, chocolate or marshmallow fluff frosting.

I did add some finely ground  pecans to put to the cookie dough.  You can’t  even detect them.  You can leave them out if you want. 

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour container into your measuring cup so you get the right amount (same goes for the baking cocoa)

I advise chilling the scooped out dough a few hours.  Also preheat your oven before baking.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
  • 1 1 /2 cups brown sugar (firmly packed into measuring cup)
  • 1/4 cup corn syrup (or honey)
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
  • 3 3/4 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter, brown sugar and sugar.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Blend in dry ingredients.  Scoop out 1/4 cups of dough.  Place in a covered container and chill a few hours or overnight.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.   Bake 11 to 13 minutes.  Cool completely.

  • Homemade caramel ingredients
  • 4 tbs butter
  • 2/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream

Directions – in a saucepan, combine and stir butter and brown sugar, over low -medium heat, to a boil.  Boil and stir one minute.  Remove from heat.  Stir in heavy cream.  Let set 15 minutes.   Scoop a tbs on top of cookie.

Top with melted chocolate.

Top with crushed oreos.

Store in covered container.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  

Smores cookies

My latest treat for work was a request from my hubby, Rob, who saw these smores cookies in a store.  A graham cracker like cookie, topped with melted chocolate and a toasted marshmallow.

So that is what I made today.  I have to be honest, putting a toasted marshmallow on top was no easy on some of these and I have no idea why!

A little messy with the marshmallow on top

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount. And, I recommend chilling these individual doughs a few hours or overnight.  I might make these a little bigger next time and make them a little flatter too.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup crisco (or butter flavor crisco)
  • 1 1/3 cups brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs
  • Milk chocolate
  • Large marshmallows

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter, crisco, and brown sugar.  Blend in eggs and vanilla.  Fold in dry ingredients and graham cracker crumbs. 

Scoop out 2 tbs of dough, roll into a ball and slightly flatten.  Chill a few hours or overnight.   Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or nonstick baking liners.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Stagger cookies on sheet, like below.

Bake 10 to 11 minutes, no longer.  They will be a little gushy on top.  It is ok.  Let them cool a bit and pop them in the fridge to firm them up. 

While their cookies are baking, melt your chocolate.  I melted some milk chocolate chips for most of them.  I ran out of that and called an audible and melted some Reese’s eggs for the final 6.

To toast marshmallows – preheat oven to 450 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  I sprayed a little pam on the parchment paper.  Bake these 5 to 7 minutes or until the marshmallows are as toasted as you want.

Take a cookie and lay it on a flat surface.

Top with melted chocolate.

I sprayed my hands with pam and place a marshmallow on top.  Sometimes I did a fine job.

Other times, I did not.

Store in covered container. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I wish you a day filled with happiness, joy and love and remember to be kind

Chocolate chip cookie truffle stuffed dark chocolate cookies

I wanted to make chocolate chip cookies, but they spread out way too much and i found them unacceptable to bring into work, so I decided to crush them up, make them into truffles and stuff them into dark chocolate cookies. 

The truffles were pretty easy to make and I think stuffing them in cookies was a pretty good idea.

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount.  The same goes for the baking cocoa.  I also recommend freeze the cookie doughs once they are stuffed to keep them puffy.

  • Truffles ingredients
  • Chocolate chip cookies, finely crushed
  • 4 ounces cream cheese softened

Directions – in a bowl, mix well.  Scoop out 1 tbs and roll into balls.  Freeze an hour.

  • Cookies ingredients
  • 5 tbs butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 1/3 cups dark chocolate chips, melted (i put the chips in a microwave safe bowl and microwaved them in 45 second increments until I could stir smooth)

1 cup plus 1 tbs flour

1/4 cup baking cocoa

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter, sugar and brown sugar.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Stir in melted chocolate.  Blend in dry ingredients.  Scoop out 1 tbs dough and slightly flatten.

Place a chocolate chip cookie truffle on trop

Scoop out another tbs dough and slightly flatten.  Place on top of truffle.

Seal edges.  

Chill doughs a few hours.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookiensheet with nonstick baking liners or parchment paper.  Stagger cookies on sheet.  Bake 11 to 13 minutes, no longer.  Cool completely.   Store in covered container.

Celebrating the first day of the NCAA tournament

In honor of the first day of the NCAA tournament,  I made cookie basketballs.  These are brown sugar cookies.  Instead of the classic sugar cookie, I used all brown sugar.  And maybe calling them basketballs is a stretch, but the orange frosting is the best I could do.  A while back, i tried to put the stripes on the cookies with chocolate  frosting, but it took too long and iblost patience.  My decorating skills stink so these are the best I can do.

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount. I also recommend chilling the individual doughs for at least a few hours.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 3/4 cups brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter and brown sugar.  Blend in egg, yolk and vanilla.  Fold in dry ingredients.   Scoop out 2 tbs dough.  Roll in granulated sugar.  Chill a few hours or overnight.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with nonstick baking liners or parchment paper.  Stagger cookies on the sheet. Leaving room because these spread a bit.  Bake 10 to 12 minutes, no longer. 

Cool completely.  Frost if desired with a simple buttercream frosting. 

Store in covered container in  fridge a few hours to firm up.  Store at room temp in covered container. 

Stuffed monster cookies for Championship week Saturday

Keeping my Championship week treat baking going with stuffed monster cookie#.  These have peanu butter, oats, milk chocolate chips and are stuffed with a) Reese’s pb cups

b) double stuff oreos or c) golden oreos. 

The oats make them healthy, right?

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount.  I also recommend chilling the individual doughs for an hour or two.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 cup oats (i used instant)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1 cup mini m&ms
  • 1 cup milk chocolate chips

Directions -in a bowl, cream butter, peanut butter, brown sugar and sugar.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Blend in dry ingredients and oats.  Fold in chips and m&ms.  Scoop out 1 tbs dough and slightly flatten.

Top with a Reese’s pb cup or oreo

Scoop out another tbs of dough, slightly flatten and place on top.

Seal edges.

Chill and hour or two.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and stagger cookies.

Bake 11 to 13 minutes, no longer.  Cool completely.   Store in covered container .

A peanut butter cup peaking through

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Yellow cake mix- sugar cookie bars with fudge swirl frosting

For Championship week Friday. I present yellow cake mix sugar cookie bars with fudge swirl frosting.  How did i get the frosting to swirl?  I pressed chocolate chips on top of the bars immediately after taking them out of the oven and then I was in a hurry, so I frosted them with vanilla frosting while the bars were warm and the melted chocolate chips swirled in with the frosting!

These are super easy.  You can use any cake mix you want and any flavor frosting you want.  I baked these for 25.  I would probably go a little less next time, checking them around 20 minutes.

  • Cake mix, any flavor
  • Sugar cookie mix
  • 1 cup butter, melted
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3 eggs
  • Chocolate chips (opt)

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9×13 rectangular pan with baking spray. Set aside.  In a bowl, combine cookie and cake mix.  Blend in butter, eggs and vanilla.  Press evenly into prepared pan.  Bake 20 to 23 minutes.  Remove from oven.  Immediately, gently press chocolate chips on top, like below.

Cool completely.  Or frost while warm and get fudge swirl frosting!

  • Frosting ingredients
  • 6 tbs butter, softened
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • Milk

In a bowl, blend powdered sugar and butter.  Add vanilla.  Mix in milk, one tbs at a time, until you get the consistency you want.  Frost bars. 

Store in covered container. Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Carrot cake bars for Championship week Thursday

I got some carrots to make a carrot cake, but changed things up a bit and made carrot cake bars.  I used melted butter, so they are a little chewier than carrot cake.  Also, they have way too much frosting!  But there are worse things in life.  I doubled this recipe and used two 8×8 square pans to bake them in.

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount.  And preheat your oven before baking.

  • Bars ingredients
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 cup shredded carrots (wow, is that fun to do)
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ginger
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions- line and 8×8 square pan with parchment paper and spray with baking spray.  Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.    In a bowl, combine butter, brown sugar and vanilla.  Blend in egg and yolk, then carrots.  Mix in dry ingredients.  Fold in chips.  Evenly spread in prepared pan.  Bake 28 to 32 minutes, no longer.  Cool completely.

  • Frosting ingredients
  • 1/4 cup butter softened
  • 8 oz cream cheese, softened
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 cups powdered sugar

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter and cream cheese.  Add vanilla.  Blend in powdered sugar slowly.   Frost bara.  Chill in fridge. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Brownie stuffed M&M chocolate chip cookies for Championship week

This is a big week – championship week in men’s college basketball, amid the start of NFL free agency, and races are tightening in the NHL and NBA ahead of the postseason.  So I felt stuffed cookies were in order.  Specifically – M&M chocolate chip cookies stuffed with a brownie.  Sounds about right. 

  • Ingredients list
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup butter crisco
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3 1/4 cups flour
  • 3.4 Oz instant vanilla pudding mix
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 1/2 cups M&ms
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips
  • One batch of brownies cut into small cubes

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter, butter crisco, sugar and brown sugar.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Blend in pudding mix.  Fold in dry ingredients.  Mix in chips and m&ms.  Scoop out 1 tbs dough and slightly flatten.  Place a brownie cube on top.  Scoop out another tbs of dough and slightly flatten.  Place on top of  brownie cube and seal edges to hide brownie.  Chill and few hours or over night.  Preheat oven to 350.  Line a cookie sheet with nonstick baking liners.  Stagger cookies doughs on sheet. 

Bake 12 to 14 minutes, no longer. 

Cool completely.   Store in covered container.  Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Brookies topped with melted milk chocolate

I could not decide between making brownies or chocolate chip cookies, so I made both –  brookies!  And I topped them with melted milk chocolate! These were not too hard to bake… just took a little more time because I made two doughs. 

Remember to scoop your flour from  your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount.   Also make sure your oven is preheated before baking. 

  • Brownies ingredients list
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 1/3 cups chocolate chips
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tbs vegetable  oil
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 tps salt
  • 3/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1 cup flour
  • 4 tbs cocoa
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a saucepan over low heat, combine and melt butter and 1 1/3 cups chocolate chips stirring occasionally until smooth.  Add sugar, then eggs, one at a time and blend well.  Stir in vanilla and oil.  Blend in dry ingredients.  Fold in chips.  Line a 9×9 pan with tin foil and spray with baking spray.  Evenly spread batter in prepared pan.  Set aside.

  • Cookie ingredients
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 1/3 cups flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions – in a bowl, cream butter, brown sugar and sugar.  Add vanilla and egg. Blend in dry ingredients.  Mix in chips.  Scoop out spoonfuls of dough and gently place in spots on top.  Spread evenly with spatula. Bake 25 to 28 minutes, no longer.   Cool completely.  Top with melted chocolate.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Brownie cookies

These cookies are super simple, sweet and chocolatey.   All you need is a brownie mix, 2 eggs, some melted butter and a cup of chocolate chips.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1 brownie mix
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with non-stick baking liners or parchment paper.  In a bowl, combine brownie mix, eggs and butter.  Blend in chocolate chips.  Scoop out 2 tbs dough.  Stagger on prepared sheets.  Bake 10 to 12 minutes, no longer.  Cool completely.    If you feel they need to firm up a little more, pop them in the fridge for an hour or so.  Store in covered container.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!