Dark Chocolate Chippers {gluten-free & dairy-free}

So I went through this phase of gluten-free baking.  Is a week considered a phase?  Anyways, it was very short-lived because I tried... and tried again... and every recipe flopped.  I did have one successful recipe and its these little dark chocolate chippers!  Also, when I say successful, I can't take any credit for the recipe because I didn't change a single thing from the way Gina prepared them.  

In case you're not convinced, this batch of cookies was gone instantly. AND no one knew they were gluten-free!    

Oh and the other reason I loved this recipe... it makes a nice little batch (10 cookies to be exact) so you aren't left with dozens and dozens of cookies.

As for gluten-free baking, I'm not giving up quite yet.... and if you have any suggestions, please share!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

The kindness, love and support I've felt over the past week as a result of the bake sale has truly been amazing.  Spending hours upon hours baking this past weekend for a great cause made me one happy gal.  I'll be taking orders through June 28th in case you'd like to get some sweet treats or send a gift to someone! 

**Note:  I've pushed the order deadline back to June 28th as a result of my move to Colorado.  I apologize for the change in dates but I thought it was best for my sanity :) 

Seeing all of the orders come in has also been part of the fun.  The most popular item to-date is the Sweet & Salty Cookies (with caramel, pretzels and chocolate chips) but these peanut butter chunk cookies have also been a hit!  Surprisingly, of all of the cookie recipes I've shared, this recipe has seemed to slip through the cracks.  A thick peanut butter cookie loaded with chocolate chunks AND semi-sweet chips.  Doesn't get much better than that... 

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin Top Cookies with Maple Glaze

I have just the recipe to include in your Easter Sunday brunch!  Since this is a cross between a cookie and a muffin, that makes it perfectly acceptable to serve in the AM.  You could skip the glaze but I highly suggest you don't make that mistake.  

I originally didn't have plans to glaze these cookies.  But then I saw Annie's Eats top her banana scones with brown butter glaze.  Genius.  Well, guess what?  I made that glaze, and sadly, it just didn't turn out the way I had hoped.   Then I thought of banana chocolate chip pancakes covered in maple syrup -- a maple glaze was just what these cookies needed! 

Coconut Rice Krispie Treat Cookies

 

Happy Birthday, Sarah!  Sending lots of love from Columbus!

 

Sarah and I have shared a lot over the years.  Aside from the obvious blonde hair and blue eyes...

 

We are both proud alumni of Miami of Ohio (Go Redhawks!)...

 

where we were both members of Pi Beta Phi (angel sis for life)...

 

where we also happily lived in the best house on campus, Hoedown.

 

Sarah went on to live in Chicago and a few years later, I joined her in the windy city!

 

 BUT, we still share a strong LOVE for Ohio State football (O-H...!) and our Columbus roots.

 

Although there are a few hundred miles between us now, we still share things like recipes, restaurant reviews AND an obsession with all things coconut.  Which brings me to these cookies...

 

If you recall, I had lots of leftover rice krispie treat scraps from my cut-outs last week.  Seeing as I didn't want them to go to waste, I began brainstorming.  The Coconut Rice Krispie Treat cookie was born.  These are so insanely chewy from the ground oats, coconut and rice krispie treat bits.  I was pretty proud of myself for coming up with this concoction and knew the only person who would appreciate a coconut packed cookie as much as I do, is Sarah :)

 

**Note:  I realize most people don't have chopped up rice krispie treats laying around.  Soooo you can either make a batch OR buy the pre-made rice krispie treats at the store.  Whole Foods even sells them in the bakery if you're against the whole processed foods things.

 

Lemon Glazed Sugar Cookies

I have one last Valentine's Day treat to share with you!  Apparently, I was big on the sprinkles and cut-out cookies this year.  These little bites are a great way to switch things up amongst all of the rich, chocolate treats associated with Valentine's Day!   Light and refreshing, bursting with lemon flavor. 

I used the Lofthouse recipe for the sugar cookie and the glaze from the Lemon Drop Cookies.  The Lofthouse recipe makes a boatload so I halved the batch (actually divided it by 3; changes noted below) and used a small heart cut-out, perfect for a two-bite cookie.  These also package up very nicely because the glaze hardens after you let them set for a few hours. 

Dark Chocolate Dried Cherry Shortbread Cookies

Its rare that I make a cookie as simple as shortbread.  However, last weekend I was baking treats for Valentine's Day and really wanted to use these adorable "XOXO" cookie cutters that I found.  (By the way, save yourself the trouble -- this was the most impossible cookie cutter to use).  As you can see, none of the "X's" or "O's" made it to the baking sheet!  Anyways, I didn't want to make sugar cookies since  I just made them.  So.... I decided on shortbread studded with dried cherries.  best.idea.ever.  I finished them off with a dip in dark chocolate.  Some got a full coat of chocolate -- I highly suggest this as well.



 

Sugar Cookie Sandwiches with Buttercream Filling

Happy Friday!  Since Valentine's Day is less than a week away, I'll leave you with the perfect sweet treat to share with all of the loves of your life.  

 

The sugar cookie recipe is actually the Lofthouse recipe that Molly posted when she used to blog... (miss you, Teen!).    My favorite buttercream frosting is in the center underneath those pretty, hot pink sprinkles.  Molly surprised me with those sprinkles last weekend and I'm obsessed! 

 

More Valentine's treats to share with you on Monday.  Have a great weekend!



Caramel, Pretzel and Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

I feel like these cookies don't even need an explanation -- they are thick and chewy and the perfect combination of sweet and salty.  Sweetness from the caramel and chocolate, salty goodness from the pretzels and a sprinkling of sea salt on top. 

 

If you dig this combo, here's a few more recipes for you:

Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookies with Sea Salt

Soft Batch White Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pistachios and Sea Salt

White Chocolate and Pretzel Peanut Butter Cookies



Chocolate Cut-Out Sugar Cookies

Its the week before Christmas and I finally got around to making a batch of cut-out cookies.  To me, the holiday season would not be complete without making a batch of these cookies.  I went a different route this year and used a chocolate dough. 

Rather than icing the cookies, I dipped half in white chocolate and just sprinkled some with white sprinkles.  I'm really digging the black and white going on in these pictures.  Hopefully you'll have time to make these in the next few days -- the recipe is a keeper!

Peppermint Crunch Chocolate Chip Sugar Cookies

 

I have been on a baking spree.  Its literally been non-stop but I've loved every minute of it!  I like to try out new cookies every holiday season and these made it onto the cookie list this year.  I love how they turned out.  They are so festive with their peppermint flavor and decor!  I like peppermint but can't stand when it is overpowering.  The scant 1/4 teaspoon used in this recipe is just right because you get enough peppermint flavor from the peppermint crunch on top!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Scotchies & The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap

 

 

**Please disregard the less than impressive photography in this post.  :)

 

Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies will always remind my of my childhood.  These were always one of my mom's favorite cookies to make and we loved them.  I love the original recipe so much but I also love to experiment and switch things up.  Butterscotch combined with creamy peanut butter and honey roasted peanuts = a winning combination!

 

I made these for the "Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap" this year.  I was so excited to share one of my favorite recipes with fellow bloggers -- New South Food Company, Adventures of the Yankee Kitchen Ninja and Home Cooking Memories were the recipients of my cookies.  Hope you enjoyed!! :)

Below is a little description of how the whole swap worked!

"The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap brings together food bloggers from around the world in celebration of all things scrumptious. The premise is this: sign up. Receive the addresses of three other food bloggers. Send each of them one dozen delicious homemade cookies. Receive three different boxes of scrumptious cookies from other bloggers. Post your cookie recipe on your blog. See everyone else’s cookie recipes.

This year we are even more excited to be partnering with Cookies for Kids' Cancer, a national non-profit organization committed to funding new therapies used in the fight against pediatric cancer, which claims the lives of more children in the US than any other disease. By participating in this cookie swap you are not only contributing to the food blogger community, but also supporting a great cause."

I also received a dozen delicious cookies from three different bloggers -- Cherry Chocolate Chip Jubilee Jumbles from Teaspoon of Spice, Soft Ginger Chewies from Little House, Big Heart and Cowgirl Cookies from Pink Tiger in the Kitchen.

I am so happy I decided to participate in the cookie swap this year and am already looking forward to next year!

Chewy Sugar Cookies

Whenever I think of holiday baking, I think of cut-out sugar cookies.  Although I love the process of rolling out and icing cut-out cookies, sometimes there just isn't enough time!  In this case, Molly and I were making a huge batch of sugar cookies for an organization in the Columbus area.  Rather than icing hundreds of cookies, we decided to roll them in various sprinkles.  The inspiration?  Well I discovered that, over time, I've collected about 20 varieties of red and green sprinkles.  What can I say? I just love sprinkles -- they make everything better!  Anyways, I think these turned out so cute and obviously very festive!

In case you're wondering about the cookie, these have a nice crunch on the outside (with added crunch from the sprinkles!) but still nice and chewy on the inside.  I used mostly vanilla extract with just a hint of almond extract -- don't skip the almond!  I'm actually not a fan of sugar cookies made with only almond extract but I love the flavor that it adds to these cookies.

Holiday Cookie Recipe Round-up

I had so much fun going through all of my old cookie posts.  I feel like I don't even need to look for new recipes to make this year because I rediscovered so many of my old favorites.  Hopefully you'll find some inspiration here for your upcoming holiday gatherings!

 

Chocolate Espresso Snowcap Cookies

White Chocolate Chip Cinnamon & Sugar Cookies

 

Simple flavors but the cinnamon combined with white chocolate is just right. Although I tend to prefer a thick, puffy cookie, these were thin but still soft and chewy.  They are similar to the white chocolate chip snickerdoodles I shared with you all a while back, but these reminded me more of a sugar cookie.

 

Dark Chocolate Chunk Ginger Cookies

 

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, let the holiday baking begin!  I actually made these for Thanksgiving but they are perfect for the holiday season.  I hope to share many great cookie recipes over the next few weeks to help you build your cookie tray. Its obviously very important to show up to the cookie exchange with the best treats ;)

 

I have actually made these twice in the past few weeks and everyone has loved them.  You obviously have to be a fan of a ginger cookie.  These would also be great with white chocolate chips or a combination of both!

 

A little tip for you as you bake up dozens and dozens of cookies over the next few weeks.  I am frequently asked how my cookies stay so thick -- there is nothing worse than a super flat cookie.  I refrigerate my cookie dough every time (for at least 2 hours).  If flat cookies are your thing... then you can skip this step :)

 

Pumpkin "7-Layer" Magic Bars

 

This past weekend my mom gave me the task of making dessert for a family lunch.  On the menu was a baked potato bar and turkey chili.  The perfect Fall lunch if you ask me so we had to have the perfect Fall dessert.  I can be very indecisive when it comes to menu planning -- especially deciding on desserts.  I sifted through all of my recipes and shared a few options with my mom.  She picked these... I was hesitant...  BUT I'm so glad I let her pick.  These were top notch. 

 

I feel like a broken record but, I'll say it one more time, I am obsessed with pumpkin and all of the flavors of Fall.  Pumpkin, apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves -- all of these flavors come together in this "magic bar".  I even decided to use gingersnaps as the base instead of a graham cracker crust -- so happy I did! 







Chocolate Chip, Pistachio & Cranberry Cookies

Its been quite a while since my last post.  Its not that I haven't been baking, I just haven't been focusing on the blog.  I've actually been baking quite a bit!  Since I know I still have a few followers checking back for updates, I decided I'd share some of the goodies that I've been making.  Also, thank you to Julie for sharing my pumpkin blondies with her readers in her post today!

Now about these cookies.  The flavor combination of nuts, dried fruit and chocolate is spot on and the sprinkling of sea salt on top is the perfect final touch!  I have made more batches than I can count and they have become one of my favorite cookies. 

Toffee "Cookie Butter" Cookies

Have you all tried Trader Joe's Cookie Butter?  I had heard rave reviews about this stuff.  It is described as a "deliciously unusual spread reminiscent of gingerbread and made with crushed biscuits". I'll clarify for you -- you know those amazing little biscuit cookies you get on Delta flights (aka Biscoff cookies)?  This spread tastes exactly like it.

My thoughts on "Cookie Butter" -- the flavor is amazing.  I love gingerbread.  I had a problem with the texture -- it was almost too smooth for me.  When I first dug in, I was comparing it to peanut butter (which I prefer crunchy).  Since I did love the flavor, I decided it would be perfect in a cookie.  A cookie with toffee bits.  

I was right so right.  Cookie Butter + Toffee Bits = Perfection.

Almond Joy Cookies

These cookies put a little spin on your traditional chocolate chip variety -- taking flavors from an Almond Joy.  If you love coconut as much as I do, you will love these.  The moisture from the shredded coconut creates a soft and chewy texture.  I'm already thinking of other chocolate chip "candy bar" cookies that I can make -- next up, I think a Snicker's cookie is in order.

White Chocolate Chip Snickerdoodles

I hope everyone had a great weekend!  I had plans to make cookies for someone on Saturday morning but didn't have a particular recipe in mind.  Luckily, I have a friend who is equally obsessed with baking and always seems to find the best recipes.  A text from her suggesting the white chocolate filled snickerdoodles from Cookies & Cups was all I needed -- no need sort through the 500 recipes that I have starred in my google reader (phew).  Note to self, recipe organization could use some serious work.

Speaking of, Annie's Eats has a great post on how she organizes her recipes -- very helpful, now just need to sit down and do it!

Back to the cookies, I ended up making a basic snickerdoodle recipe and adding white chocolate chips -- eliminating the stuffing process and saving me a little time.  Win.  They turned out perfect, nice and crisp on the outside but super soft on the inside -- just the way I like 'em!