pecan bars

The original recipe came from Betty Crocker's website and it's called "Scandinavian Almond Cookies" and because of my creative mind, others might call it failure to follow instructions, I just couldn't leave it alone! So I substituted a few ingredients and viola! Pecan Bars. They are one of my family's and co-workers favorites. And as we learned from my previous post (which I thought was hilarious!) red and green cookies have fewer calories, I made sure green and red were seen from space.

Ingredients:
1 pouch of Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix

1/3 cup butter, softened

1 egg

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

3 teaspoons of milk


*Glaze:

1 cup of powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

5-6 teaspoons of milk

1 cup of finely chopped pecans

Red or Green food coloring gels

*Bakers note: the original recipe calls for 1 cup of powdered sugar, but every time I make these cookies I end up making a second batch of the glaze. It might be a good idea to double up on the glaze recipe from the beginning.

Heat oven to 375°F.

In large bowl, stir cookie mix, butter, egg, flour and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract until dough forms.

Divide dough into 3 equal parts; place on parchment lined cookie sheets. Press each into 12x3-inch rectangle. I like to use either plastic wrap or wax paper to press the dough. Less sticky mess to deal with. Brush each rectangle with 1 teaspoon of milk;

Sprinkle with 1/3 cup of pecans;

Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are light golden brown;

Mhhh! The smell emanating from the kitchen announcing that the cookies are done it's addicting. It makes you want to eat the air.

Cool for about one minute and remove from the cookie sheet, parchment paper and all, and while they're still warm, cut into 1 inch diagonal slices;

Move to wire rack for a complete cool down, about 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, stir powdered sugar, 1/4- tsp vanilla extract and 5-6 tsp of milk until you achieve the desired consistency. Normally I would stop at this point and drizzle the glaze, however in honor of the season, we decided to add some festive colors to the bars. Divide the glaze into two equal parts. One I left au naturale and the other one I colored green (I was out of red coloring or I would have done both). Add food coloring until you reach the desired hues and drizzle over cookies. I sprinkled some magic red dust to make up for the lack of red glze and here the are...

Let them sit for a few hours or overnight so the glaze can set. Store in an air tight container, share with your friends, or enjoy with a nice tall glass of milk.

Ahhh....cookie heaven!

christmas cookie rules

1. If you eat a Christmas cookie fresh out of the oven, it has no calories because everyone knows that the first cookie is the test and thus calorie free.
2. If you drink a diet soda after eating your second cookie. It also has no calories because the diet soda cancels out the cookie calories.
3. If a friend comes over while you are making your Christmas cookies and needs to sample, you must sample with your friend. Because your friend's first cookie is calorie free, rule #1 is yours also. It would be rude to let your friend sample alone, and being the friend that you are makes your cookie calorie free.
4. Any cookie calories consumed while walking around will fall to your feet and eventually fall off as you move. This is due to gravity and the density of the caloric mass.
5. Any calories consumed during the frosting of the Christmas cookies will be used up because it takes many calories to lick excess frosting from a knife without cutting your tongue.
6. Cookies colored red or green have very few calories. Red ones have 3 and green ones have 5 - one calorie for each letter. Make more red ones!
7. As always, cookie pieces contain no calories because the process of breaking causes calorie leakage.
8. Any cookies consumed from someone else's plate has no calories since the calories rightfully belong to the other person and will cling to their plate. We all know how calories like to CLING!   And finally...
9. Any cookies consumed while feeling stressed have no calories because cookies used for medicinal purposes NEVER have calories. It's a rule!

oatmeal pumpkin bites

Just in time for Thanksgiving!

I was going for cookies but I think what came out was a mix between cookies and bread, pretty yummy non the less. I hope you like them. I'm thinking about entering the recipe into Betty Crocker's Cookie Mix Context.

Ingredients:

1 pouch of Betty Crocker's Oatmeal Cookie mix
1/2 stick of butter, soften not melted
1 egg
1 cup of canned pumpkin
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1/4 tsp of pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup of finely chopped pecans
1 cup of cinnamon graham crackers, or vanilla wafers, or whatever cookie wafer you might have at hand, finely crumbled.

Set the oven at 375°F.

In a medium size bowl mix the oatmeal cookie mix, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, butter and egg.

In a different bowl, mix the cookie crumbs and pecans. Add a pinch of pumpking pie spice if desired. I did and it gave them a little extra.

Scoop about 1 inch size balls and roll them in the cookie pecan mix until well covered. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Bake for about 8 1/2 minutes or until you see the light golden edges begin to show.

leave on the cookie sheet for about 1 minute and then transfer to a cookie sheet to cool off completely......

..nah! you don't have to wait that long to enjoy this bites. They're actually pretty good while warm.

Mh...you want one now, don't you?!   Go make some and come back tand tell me how they turned out! 

pistachio-craisin oatmeal cookies

These cookies are soft and moist, full of flavor and ah so easy!  It all starts with..... you guessed it,  one of Betty Crocker's cookie mixes.

Oatmeal cookie mix.  This time I followed instructions as directed on the back of the pouch, ok, kind of followed, I also added craisins and vanilla for extra flavor and...

pistachios for crunch and more flavor.  I love pistachios. They were hard to find, not to mention expensive, when I was a kid so it was rare when I got to eat them.  But I digresss....

Set the oven at 375 F 

Ingredients:

1 pouch of Betty Crocker Oatmeal cookie mix

1 stick of butter (Softened not melted.  If you forget to get it out of the fridge before hand, just throw it in the microwave for about 1 min at Power Level 1.  Do a second minute if necessary)

1 Egg

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1 tbsp of water

1/2 cup of craisins (Cut into small pieces.  You could also substitute the craisins for raisins or any other dry fruit,  I'm thinking mango)

1/2 cup of finely chopped pistachios (I put them in a small food processor and usually about 4-5 pulses does the trick)

Incorporate the craisins and pistachios with the dry ingredients and mix with a fork until they're evenly distributed.  Add the vanilla with the wet ingredients (including the butter) and mix throughly with a fork.   The dough comes out a little sticky,  but not to worry that is normal. 

With a spoon or cookie scooper, scoop out about 1 inch balls onto a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes, at least that's what the back of the package calls for, however I found out that the best time for my oven is about 8 to 81/2 minutes.  So I recomend you start checking for light golden brown edges at about 8 minutes.

I know it's hard to see in this picture, but when you turn them over....

Nice golden edges..

You are going to feel compelled to try them when they're warm,  but I would suggest to let them cool off completly before you sink you teeth into this delicious rounds. 

Once cooled off, you could stack 'em.....

Pile 'em up,  or simply enjoy them with a nice tall glass or milk or hot cup of coffee. 

Come back and tell me how they turned out!

finally, some cookie talk!

The original recipe, wich one day I will share with you,  called for almonds and powdered sugar, but I did not have any almonds nor almond extract,  what I did have were pecans and vanilla extract.  I don't think I need to tell you how the story ends, Pecan Cinnamon Sugar Cookies....Yummy! 

Although I think they deserve a more appropriate "stage" name like..."peek-an-mon cookie bites"  or  "sugar-mon pecan bites".  What do you think?

It all starts with ingredients you probably already have in your refrigerator and your pantry; granulated sugar, ground cinnamon, butter, eggs, vanilla extract, corn starch, pecans and my secret ingredient.....

....Betty Crocker's Sugar Cookie mix.   Best invention ever!  It makes baking so easy AND  it makes me feel like a big shot baker. And they come in a variety of flavors; chocolate chip, oatmeal, and oatmeal chocolate chip to name a few.

I have started stocking up on this mixes,  believe it or not they are hard to find during the holiday season.

And you thought I was kidding.  What you can't see,  is another row of cookie mix pouches right behind this one!  I know, I need help.

Ingredients:

1 pouch of Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie mix

1/3 - 1/2 cup of corn starch.

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 egg

1/2 cup (one stick) of butter - soften, not melted. 

1/2 cup of finely chopped pecans

1 cup of granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon.  I really like cinnamon so I use it all, and some times I add more,  but if you are not sure,  you should start with one teaspoon and add to your taste.

Before you start mixing,  set the oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium size bowl, mix the sugar cookie mix, corn starch, pecans, vanilla, egg and butter.  Mix with a fork until well blended.  Roll or spoon about 1/2 inch size balls onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. I use a small cookie scooper,  easier and less messy.  It yields about 46 cookies.

Bake anywhere from 7 - 10 minutes.  It really depends on the oven.  Mine takes about 7 to 71/2 minutes until the edges start turning a light golden brown......

Viola!   Nice light golden brown edges. This cookie is done! Baking at least....all it needs is a good dusting.....

While your cookies cool off on a rack....

Mix the granulated sugar and ground cinnamon in a small bowl.  Once your cookies have cooled off roll them in the sugar and cinnamon until they're all covered with the sugary mix....

Yummy! 

A mountain of goodness.

But don't take my word for it.   Locally, one of my hardest critics,  my 8-year old son, was at hand to provide an unbiased opinion.....

What I did not know was that two of his alter egos were going to participate in the judging.  And yes, they all had a cookie.

Almost a perfect score!.........but wait.......

Apparently after a review of the previous scorings and a second tasting they have decided that my cookies deserved not 2 but 3 PERFECT TENS!

This cookies are ready for the market place.  They would make the perfect addition to our early morning garage sale.

We packaged...

Priced....

and cha-ching$!$   At least that's what we thought.  Sorry to say, I'm keeping my day job.

But I am not blaming it on the cookies, I am blaming it on the foot traffic.  It was almost non-existent.  We probably had about a total of 6 people come by.  They all bought something,  but not nearly enough for me to get rid of all my junk.

Chocolate cream cheese cake..the cupcake version

At the request of my husband I tried this delicious recipe in cupcake form...... I got to say,  not impressed.   Although,  most of my failure can probably be attributed to my inability to fill cupcake cups correctly!   I just don't know what it is,  I can never bring myself to STOP! 

The result was not that disasterous as it could have been,  they are after all eatable, just not perfect! 

I'm going to redeem myself and make a cake or some cookies,  STAT!

Wilton Holiday Cookie Contest

Wilton's Holiday Cookie Contest is going on right now. Mind you there is no baking involved at all, all you have to do is "share your favorite childhood Christmas cookie memory, family cookiemaking tradition, cookie baking tips you've counted on for years, and fun ways you've packaged or presented your holiday cookies."

But don't quit your day job yet! While the prizes won't pay your bills, they'll make your baking experience a bit more enjoyable. Twenty winners will receive "...a fabulous cookie exchange prize package worth $160. " So what are you waiting for?! Go enter! The deadline is October 23rd, 2009.

Ah memories....but which one to share??

chocolate cream cheese cake

It doesn't get any better than this! The best of both worlds; chocolate AND cheese cake...It was love at first bite.....

A lady from work gave me the recipe and I tried it this weekend. I have to say, the best chocolate cake I have ever had. Even I could not manage to mess it up, and believe you me, there were many chances where this recipe could have been sent straight to the trash can but to my surprise, the cake came out perfectly baked and moist. YUM! The icing....delish! it was like eating a silky creamy piece of chocolate. I gave a Big piece to my neighbor, but I admit it, it was "I" who did the most damage.....

But enough, here's the recipe:

Cake:

1 box of chocolate cake mix (the one I tried was Pillsbury Devil's food cake, but you can use pretty much any brand)

Follow the directions on the box

Mix:

2 Pkg (8oz ea) cream cheese

2/3 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/4 tsp. salt

Mix all together until smooth (there is really no exact science, you'll know when to stop)

Put half of the cake mix on bottom of 13"x 9" pan (I actually used a bunt cake mold).

Spoon on cream cheese filling.

Pour the remaining batter on top of the cream cheese filling.

Take a knife and swirl through like a marble cake.

Bake at 350 for about 35-45minutes (you know your oven best!)

Now for the piece of resistance......

Chocolate Fudge Butter Cream Frosting:

1/3 cup butter

1/8 tsp salt

3 squares 1oz ea. unsweetened chocolate melted

3-4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup of milk (use a small can of canned evaporated milk instead for added silkiness)

1-1/2 tsp. vanilla

And enjoy!

Hello, is this thing on?!

Now that I have the Cyber mic I seem to have developed stage fright! But I digress...

Welcome to Cookie Parlor! As you might have already guessed by the name we, and by "we" I mean mainly me since I have the mic, will be talking, eating, and baking cookies. YUM!

So stay tuned, I am currently working on some "spookie" recipes just in time for Halloween!

Are you scared yet?