Knock-Off Girl Scouts' Samoas Cookies

I have had this recipe in my bookmarks for a while and haven't worked up the courage to make them yet.  But I was looking for something a bit more challenging than just your average cookie, so I decided to make these.  I had never made a shortbread type of cookies before and I'll be honest, I had some really frustrating moments.  But overall, the result was fantastic.  I'm pretty proud of my first time at making these, because the next time I attempt these, they will be even better!

Cookie
1 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar (I used Splenda)
2 c. flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
up to 2 Tbl. milk

Topping
3 c. shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened, I used sweetened)
12 oz. chewy caramels
1/4 tsp. salt
3 Tbl. milk
8 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate

To make the cookies:
1. Preheat oven to 350. 
2. Cream together butter and sugar; mix in flour, baking powder & salt at a low speed.
3. Add vanilla.  Add in milk in 1/2 Tbl. increments--use enough needed to make the dough come together without being sticky.
4. Refrigerate dough (mine was SO STICKY), then roll dough out in a few batches (I did 4) in between pieces of flour and wax paper.  Use a cookie cutter (or a glass) to cut out rounds.  You might want to add flour in order to help dough roll out better, it can be pretty sticky. 
5. Place cut out rounds on greased baking sheet and make a hole in the center.  Reroll dough and use until all dough has been used up.
6.  Bake cookies for 12-15 minutes, until bottoms are very lightly golden brown around edges.
7.  Allow cookies to cool completely

To make the topping:
1. Preheat oven to 300.  Spread coconut evenly on a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil and toast for 20 minutes.  Stir every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden.  It might seem like that's a lot of coconut, but trust me on this.  You'll want it.  Watch the coconut carefully the last 8-5 minutes.  Let cool.
2. Unwrap caramels and microwave with milk and salt.  Cook on high 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir.  When smooth and melted, stir in toasted coconut.  And try not to eat it all, because it's very yummy.
3.  Spread topping on cooled cookies, using 1-3 tsp. per cookie. 
4.  After topping has set up, melt chocolate in a small bowl.  Transfer chocolate to piping bag or a large ziplock bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle chocolate onto cookies. 
*the original recipe says to dip cookies 1/2 way and THEN to drizzle, but my cookies were a bit too fragile for this to work.
**also the next time I make these, I think I will quickly dip the cookies into a thinner chocolate mixture before adding the topping, so it will stick to the cookie better.

Makes 3-4 1/2 dozen cookies--I personally got 41 from this batch.

pre-drizzle

post-drizzle

Hazelnut Toffee Crunch

So I made this on a whim, because I had leftover hazelnuts from attempting to make hazelnut coffee creamer for Zak.  I'm debating to post that recipe, because I wasn't too thrilled with the result, but Zak was impressed and liked it, so there you go.  Anyways, I wanted to find another use for the hazelnuts because I spent like, 1 1/2 hours toasting them and rubbing the stupid skins off of them.  This time I went with this recipe; but I did find a recipe for homemade Nutella, and that might become a reality soon.  But anyways, I made this toffee, and it was my first time making a candy that needed a candy thermometer, but it turns out that my meat thermometer was a decent substitute.  I took a bunch over to our friends' house, and they raved about it, so that made me feel better about a recipe I wasn't 100% on!

1 1/2 c. milk chocolate chips
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 c. hazelnuts, chopped
2 Tbl. light corn syrup

1.  Toast hazelnuts in a single layer at 275 degrees for 20 - 30 minutes, until skin starts to crack and turn golden brown.  To remove skins, pour hot nuts in a damp towel, wrap up and let steam for about 5 minutes.  Rub skins off with towel until most of the skins have been removed.  This website & this one was helpful.
2.  Once hazelnuts have been skinned and chopped, line 9x9" or 8x8" pan with aluminum foil extending up the sides.
3.  Melt chocolate chips in the microwave until smooth.  Set aside in fridge until chocolate has cooled a little.
4.  In a small saucepan, combine butter, chopped nuts, sugar and corn syrup.  Bring to boil, stirring constantly until butter melts.  Heat the mixture to between 250 - 265 degrees F; it will start to bubble a lot.
5.  Pour candy mixture over cooled chocolate and spread evenly.  Return to fridge to cool.  When cooled completely, break into bite-sized pieces; I got about 64 pieces out of this recipe.  Store in an airtight container.

after two hours in the fridge

yum!

another shot

Nutritional Facts
servings per recipe: 64
amount per serving

Calories: 58.2
Total Fat: 4.3 g
Saturated Fat: 1.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 2 g
Cholesterol: 4.7 mg
Sodium: 14.3 mg
Potassium: 34.2 mg
Total Carbohydrate: 4.9 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.4 g
Sugar: 2.2 g
Protein: 0.7 g
Vitamin A: 1.1 %
Vitamin C: 0.3 %
Calcium: 1.1 %
Iron: 1 %

Carmelitas

Warning: you will want to consume the entire pan of these, try your best not to.  These are delicious.  And are way too easy to eat.  They are called 'carmelitas' and I found them on a cute blog, and decided to give them a try, with the idea that we'd give some away.  We did give some away, just not as many as I had hoped.  Because we ate most of them.  They are just amazing, oh man.  They're a combination of cookie and bar, and are very rich, but kind of addicting.  They're also pretty simple to make, they just require a lot of time to cool.  I didn't get more than a few pictures, because I was too busy eating them.  Enjoy!

32 caramel squares, unwrapped
1/2 c. heavy cream
3/4 c. butter, melted
3/4 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. flour
1 c. oats
1 tsp. baking soda
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Combine caramels and cream over low heat until completely melted and smooth.  Set aside.
3.  In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, oats, baking soda and butter.  Pat half of the mixture in an 8x8" pan.  Bake for 10 minutes.
4.  Remove pan and sprinkle chocolate chips over baked crust.  Pour caramel mixture over chocolate chips; sprinkle remaining oats mixture on top of caramel layer.
5.  Return to oven and bake additional 15 - 20 minutes, or until sides are slightly browned.  Remove and let cool completely before cutting.  To make a 9x13" pan, simply double ingredients.

fresh out of the oven

I tried to get a good picture...

...but then I devoured them...

Christmas Treat Boxes (Oreo Truffles, Chocolate Cookie Bark)

This year I made treat boxes for our friends for Christmas.  I made the Oreo truffles that were a hit the year before, and a peppermint crunch variation.  I also made a very simple cookie bark, some covered in semi-sweet chocolate, the other in white chocolate.  I had a fun time making these, I just put on some Christmas music and went about my day, and eating pieces of the goodies here and there.  These recipes are all very simple, and everyone told me how much they loved them.  So here you go, enjoy!

Oreo Truffles

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1 package (16 oz.) Oreo cookies (also can use other cookie variations, if desired)

16 oz. semi-sweet chocolate 

optional white chocolate to drizzle

1.  Crush cookies in food processor or blender, or by simply putting them in a bag and pounding on them with a rolling pin.  It worked well enough for me.

2.  Pour into bowl with softened cream cheese and mix until well blended.  Place in fridge for about 30 minutes to firm up before rolling.

3.  Roll mixtures into 48 (1 inch) balls and place in freezer for 30 - 60 minutes.  If the mixture gets to soft while rolling, place bowl in fridge until it becomes more firm.  

4.  Right before removing from freezer, melt chocolate.  Dip each ball into chocolate and place on a wax or parchment paper lined baking sheet.  

5.  Place baking sheet in fridge for 30 - 60 minutes.  Before removing, melt remaining chocolate or white chocolate and melt.  Remove balls from fridge and drizzle chocolate on each ball.  Refrigerate again until ready to serve or package up.

should make at least 48 truffles, depending on size

Peppermint Crunch Oreo Truffles

6 - 10 candy canes, finely chopped, divided (save some for sprinkling on top)

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1 package Oreos

16 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

1.  Follow same directions and fridge/freezer times as above.  Except add in a fair amount of the crushed candy canes with the Oreos and cream cheese.  When you're dipping them in chocolate, sprinkle some of the saved candy canes on top immediately after.

so yummy and pretty!

Chocolate Cookie Bark [I doubled this recipe, and did half with semi-sweet chocolate, half with white chocolate, but feel free to use your own variations, etc.]

1 package Oreos

2 2/3 c. white chocolate chips

2 2/3 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 tsp. vanilla extract (use with semi-sweet)

1.  Line a 9-inch baking pan with wax paper.  Coat with nonstick spray and set aside.

2.  Take half of the cookies from the package and crush them.  They don't need to be as small as the truffles.

3.  Melt the semi-sweet chips and, once it's cooled a bit, add in extract.  

4.  Add cookies into chocolate and mix until incorporated.  

5.  Pour into prepared pan and spread to a 1/2-inch thickness.  Refrigerate until solid, about 1 hour.

6.  Remove from pan, carefully peel off wax paper, and place on cutting board.  Using a sharp knife, cut into bars or triangles.  

7.  Repeat and use the remaining cookies with the white chocolate chips.

Makes a couple dozen pieces, it depends on the size.

I cut them into bite-sized chunks, more or less

in the cute boxes 

ready to be delivered!

Seriously 'Sinful' Cheesecake Brownies

I heart cheesecake brownies. They are more or less, my number favorite dessert. It is hard to describe my love from them. I try to not make them often because I will sit and eat the whole pan in one sitting. So, moderation is the key. I made these because our friend Mat did a lot of help with our car recently and wanted to make a little something for all of his help. I got this recipe from food.com and it did not disappoint.

brownie

6 Tbl. unsalted butter

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate (or semisweet; I used a combo of semisweet and milk)

2/3 c. sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/2 c. flour

1 Tbl. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 c. chocolate chips (I used a mix of milk, semisweet and white chocolate, just to see)

pinch of salt

cheesecake

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

1 large egg yolk

5 Tbl. sugar

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Line an 8" or 9" pan with foil (trust me, you'll regret it if you don't..), lightly mist with non-stick spray.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3. In saucepan, melt butter and chocolate over low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat, pour into heatproof bowl.

4. Add 2/3 c. sugar, and then eggs.

5. Mix in flour, cocoa powder, salt, then vanilla and chocolate chips. Spread evenly in prepared pan.

6. In a separate bowl, beat together cream cheese, yolk, 5 Tbl. sugar and vanilla until smooth.

7. Distribute cream cheese mixture across top of brownie mixture, then swirl together with dull knife.

8. Bake for 35 minutes.

9. Once cool, lift foil out of pan and cut into pieces.

soooooo delicious

Homemade Oreo Cookies

I found this recipe on some blog that looked intriguing. I had never thought about making oreo cookies from scratch before, but after this recipe, I think I will from now on. They taste a little different than the store ones, but in a way that I can't describe. I don't know. They were pretty good and are great with milk. I will say one thing though: make tiny, like dime-sized cookies on the baking sheet, because these things expand like you wouldn't believe. It took a few pans to get them down to the average oreo size. Oh, and this recipe will make something like 50 or so small cookies. We have a ton of them leftover.

Cookie:
1 1/4 c. flour
1/2 c. unsweetend cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. + 2 Tbl. butter, room temperature
1 egg

1. In a medium-sized bowl, mix flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt and sugar.
2. Beat in the bugger and egg, continue mixing until dough comes together in a mass.
3. Make little balls (dime-sized, seriously) of dough and flatten slightly on hand (they also turn out very thin and crispy), place about 1 inch apart on greased pan.
4. Bake for 8 - 9 minutes at 375 degrees, set on a rack to cool.

Filling:
1/4 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 c. vegetable shortening
2 c. powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste, which is what the blog author used)

1. Place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and mix at low speed.
2. Gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla.
3. Turn mixer on high and beat for 2 - 3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.
4. The blog author talked about using a piping bag or something to place the filling on a cookie; I just took a small spatula and spread it on the bottom cookie and made sure the top cookie was about the same size, and gently pressed them together.

yum! (see the different sizes? yeah, these things get big quick)

Tuxedo Chocolate Cake

This. Cake. Is. Fantastic.

However, it takes a fair amount of time to make, it is huge, and one piece is probably a fair amount of your caloric intake for the day. But it is worth it, because it it divine. Here we go.

Cake:

4 c. sugar

1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

4 c. flour

1 Tbl. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. buttermilk

1 Tbl. vanilla

1 c. unsalted butter

1 c. canola or vegetable oil

2 c. water

4 large eggs

Whipped Cream Filling & Frosting:

4 c. chilled whipping (heavy) cream

1 1/4 c. powdered sugar

Chocolate Glaze:

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces

1/2 c. whipping (heavy) cream

1/4 c. Lyle's Golden Syrup OR Dark Karo (corn) syrup [the Lyle's stuff is apparently British, so I did some research to find a reasonable substitute]

2 tsp. vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Prepare three 9-inch round cake pans; lightly grease pans with shortening, line with parchment paper, and then lightly grease the top of the paper and dust with flour.

2. In a (very) large mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; whisk together to mix.

3. In a small bowl, combine buttermilk and vanilla.

4. In a medium saucepan, combine butter, oil and water. Heat over low heat until the butter is melted, stirring often.

5. Pour the butter mixture into the sugar/cocoa mixture. Using an electric mixer or a wire whisk (which works just fine), stir until combined and smooth.

6. Crack the eggs into a small mixing bowl and whisk thoroughly to break up the eggs, then add to batter, stirring until combined. Add the buttermilk mixture and stir until everything is thoroughly combined.

7. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake 40 - 45 minutes or until center tested with a toothpick comes out pretty and clean.

8. Place pans on a wire cooling rack for 15 minutes, then remove cakes from pans to cool completely. Make sure they are cooled completely before frosting, at least one hour.

9. In a large mixing bowl (it works a little better if you chill the bowl and mixing tool beforehand), beat the 4 c. whipping cream until soft mounds form. Gradually add the powdered sugar and beat until thick and stiff.

10. Place one cake on the plate you are going to use, thickly spread some of the whipper cream over the top. Top with the remaining cake layers, coating the top of each with the whipped cream. Cover the sides of the cake as well, and make it as smooth as possible over the top and sides.

11. Refrigerate the cake at least one hour to stabilize the whipped cream before glazing.

12. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl.

13. In a small saucepan over medium low heat, heat the 1/2 whipping cream until it is hot and just beginning to steam.

14. Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate, stirring until it's completed melted. Add the Golden Syrup (or dark Karo corn syrup) and vanilla, stirring until completely melted.

15. Pour the chocolate mixture into a pitcher, or liquid measuring cup with a pouring spout and let it cool for 8 - 10 minutes (if it sits longer than that, it will thicken up too much to pour over the cake, so set a timer).

16. Slowly pour the glaze over the cake. Cover the top entirely, then let some of the glaze drizzle down the sides, allowing some of the whipped cream to show through.

17. Refrigerate the cake until the glaze is set and the whipped cream frosting is firm at least one hour. To serve, slice the cake with a long serrated knife.

cooling

I used foil pans, since I didn't have enough pans, so it was kind of a challenge...I had to fill in the gaps with extra whipped cream

more or less frosted

with the glaze, ooh

look how lovely!

Fudgy Brownies

This is from the Bridal BH&G recipe book. I really wanted brownies on Sunday so I just made them. Oh and decided to go for the chocolate-cream cheese frosting because, why not, right? The brownies were good, but the frosting was the best (in my opinion).

brownies
1/2 c. butter
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2/3 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
2. In medium saucepan, melt butter and unsweetened chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; cool.
3. Grease an 8"x 8" (or 9"x 9") pan, set aside.
4. Stir sugar into cooled chocolate mixture in saucepan. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating with spoon until just combined. Stir in the vanilla.
5. Add flour and baking soda to chocolate; stir until just combined.
6. Spread batter into the pan, bake for 30 minutes. Cool in pan on a wire rack; if desired, frost with Chocolate-Cream Cheese Frosting; cut into bars.

chocolate-cream cheese frosting
In a saucepan, melt 1 c. semisweet chocolate pieces over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; cool slightly. In a small bowl, stir together two 3-oz. packages softened cream cheese and 1/2 c. powdered sugar. Stir into melted chocolate until smooth.

Reeses Squares (no bake)

I made this recipe because I was really craving it and it sounded easy (it is). I made, like a third of the recipe and they turned out well (how could a no-bake recipe not?).

1 1/2 c. graham cracker crumbs
1 lb (3 - 3 1/2 c.) powdered sugar
1 1/2 c. peanut butter
1 c. butter, melted
1 (12 oz.) bag milk chocolate chips


1. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar & peanut butter until mixed well.
2. Blend in melted butter until well combined.
3. Press mixture evenly in a 9 x 13" pan.
4. Melt chocolate chips in microwave or in double boiler.
5. Spread over peanut butter mixture.
6. Chill until just set and cut into bars (they are hard to cut if the chocolate gets 'rock hard')

Snickers Surprise Peanut Butter Cookies

My boss made these cookies last week at work and they were so good, I went online after work and looked up a recipe for them. I made a batch to take to Washington for the 4th of July and Zak's grandpa's 70th surprise birthday party. I accidentally burned a few of them (too busy running around cleaning and packing), but they were devoured. They are very simple to make and the chocolate drizzle on top is optional, but I thought it would be a good balance to the big peanut butter taste. I got about 31 or 32 cookies out of this recipe, which is a bit more than it predicted.

Anyways, these were a hit and are very delicious!

1 c. butter, softened
1 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla
1 jar creamy peanut butter (18 ounces)
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 bag mini Snicker's brand candies
1/2 bag chocolate chips, melted, for drizzling on top (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until smooth.
3. Add the eggs, yolk and vanilla; mix until fluffy. Stir in peanut butter.
4. In another bowl, add in flour, baking soda, salt; add to peanut butter mixture.
5. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.
6. Form dough into 1-1/2" balls, flatten and wrap around each mini candy bar.
7. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly brown on edges.
8. Let sit for a minute or two before transferring to a cooling rack.
9. Once cooled, add melted chocolate in drizzles across each cookie.

I put them in the freezer to harden up the chocolate before our drive

PMS Cake--Absolutely Delicious!!

Today my friend Kristie and I made this cake. It is absolute heaven! Plus, it has like 5 ingredients and is super easy to make. MMMMMMM!

1 box dark chocolate cake mix (I used devil's food and it was great)
4 eggs
8 oz. sour cream
1 small box instant chocolate pudding
1/2 c. warm water
1 - 2 cups chocolate chips (I used milk, mmm)

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients together (save chips for last)
3. Pour into greased bundt pan.
4. Cook for 40 minutes.
5. Turn out of pan onto cake dish (I used a baking sheet, since I am cake dish-less) immediately and wrap with plastic wrap to preserve moisture.

**It has come to my attention that if you have remaining cake the next day and you heat it up, it is even more delicious!

Fresh from the oven

Turned over-only a little mishap

mmmmmmmmmmmmm!