Chocolate and Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

Due to the nasty ice storm we experienced this past week, school was canceled four days in a row for my son. That made for a very happy mommy and little sister...we miss Jake now that he's in kindergarten and know it will be even worse next year, when he goes all day! On that note, while it was fun having everyone home together, it did get a bit stir-crazy at times--both of my children have an ungodly amount of energy! As a diversion, I decided it would be fun to make cookies--the kids LOVE helping! Since we were pretty much stuck at home, I knew I had to work with what we had available in the cupboard. I immediately thought about making chocolate no-bake cookies, since I just bought a container of quick oats. I remember both my mom and grandma making these cookies when my sisters and I were little, however, I couldn't seem to find the recipe anywhere...I know it's in one of the homemade cookbooks (containing recipes from family and friends) I was given at one of my bridal showers! My kids were quickly growing impatient, so I did a quick search online and found countless versions of the recipe, the majority containing peanut butter. I was somewhat intrigued by the addition of peanut butter, because my mom and grandma had never used it in their recipe and my children could sit and eat peanut butter right out of the jar! The cookies were a huge hit with my kids and husband--they're super easy and will definitely satisfy your sweet tooth!

Chocolate and Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

1/2 cup butter or 1/2 cup margarine (I personally prefer margarine for this recipe!)
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
4 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3 cups dry quick-cooking oats
2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

Add the first four ingredients into a 2 1/2 to 3 quart sauce pan. Bring to a rolling boil and continue to boil for 60-90 seconds. Remove from heat and add the peanut butter, oats and vanilla. Using a tablespoon, spoon onto waxed paper and allow to cool for approximately 2 hours. Store in refrigerator.

(Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies)

Source: slightly adapted from original recipe on www.food.com

Snickerdoodles

I had mentioned in a previous post that my grandfather's health has been declining, but thankfully, he seems to be stable at the moment. His 80th birthday is this coming Tuesday, so my family threw him a surprise party last night. He was transferred to a rehabilitation facility on Friday and they allowed him to leave for a few hours--just enough time to allow us to get him out and about for a bit and remind him how much we all adore him! My grandfather is always telling stories about his childhood and has made mention on several occasions of certain things his Mom used to make when he was a young boy. He always raves about the peanut butter cookies I make (he says they taste just like the ones his Mom made) and has made mention of how his Mom used to make some type of butter cookie that he just loved, so I decided that I wanted to make him both the peanut butter cookies and these snickerdoodles. I found the recipe on Allrecipes--it was the top rated version and had over 2000 very positive reviews. Per several of the reviewers suggestions, I used butter-flavored Crisco and let me tell you...the cookies just melt in your mouth!

Snickerdoodles

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Note: I ended up having to use an extra tablespoon of both the sugar and cinnamon to roll the cookies in!

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Cream together butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar, the eggs and the vanilla. Blend in the flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls.

Mix the 2 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls of dough in mixture. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until set but not too hard. Remove immediately from baking sheets.

Source: Allrecipes

Easy Sugar Cookies

I give my husband a hard time about the sweets that he consumes, but I'll be the first to admit that cookies are my absolute weakness! I've been having some "behavioral issues" with my son (mostly temper tantrums) and I think a big part of the problem is the fact that he doesn't care to share my attention with his baby sister. I've really been trying to make a conscientious effort to find activities that he and I can do and cookies seemed like the perfect idea for today! I picked this recipe, because I don't believe I've ever made sugar cookies before (even though I love them!) and it seemed like a relatively easy recipe to make with my four year old. It also was a major bonus that this recipe was rated 4.5 out of 5 stars, based on over 1500 reviews on Allrecipes.com! These cookies were so buttery and had the perfect amount of "sweetness"...some sugar cookies are way too sweet for me and they were very simple to make!

Easy Sugar Cookies

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

Note: Several reviewers stated that unless the butter is completely softened, your batter will be too crumbly, so I would suggest making sure you keep that in mind! I set the butter out first thing this morning (it had been in the freezer) and went ahead and stuck it in the microwave to start melting it a bit, before I mixed it with the sugar.

Makes 3 dozen

Source: Allrecipes

Peanut Butter Cookies

We went to visit my grandparents yesterday and as usual, my grandmother refused to allow me to bring anything. Regardless of how much I beg, she always says the same thing..."when you're a grandmother, you'll understand". I absolutely adore them and am having a hard time dealing with the fact that they're getting older. I have so many wonderful memories--they used to pick my two sisters and myself up, treat us to dinner and then take us to a play at a local high school, followed by us spending the night at their house. It was alway such a treat! Anyway, I knew I wasn't going completely empty-handed, so I stayed up making batch, after batch of these peanut butter cookies...my "Popie's" favorite. (That's what we've always called my grandfather!) They always seem to enjoy when I bring them cookies--god love my grandmother, but I don't think she has much patience for baking. She recently told me that she put 48...yes, you heard me right...FORTY-EIGHT cookies on one cookie sheet and then was disappointed when she opened the oven to find that they were pretty much one big cookie. I get such a kick out of her and the way she does things...you'd have to know her to fully understand. I wanted to share this recipe, because this recipe was given to me, shortly before I got married, and the cookies are very good! I love a nice, crisp cookie and that's exactly what you will get!

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
1 cup shortening
1 cup peanut butter
2 eggs
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix sugar and shortening together in large mixing bowl. Add in peanut butter and mix until blended. Mix in eggs. Mix in flour, baking soda and salt and stir until thoroughly mixed. Drop by spoonful onto lightly greased cookie sheet and crisscross with fork. (I dip my fork in sugar, before crisscrossing!) Bake 9-11 minutes, until golden brown. Place on cooling rack and cool completely.

These were just a couple of the pictures I took yesterday...I love watching my own children interact with my grandparents!




Source: Erin N.

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe comes from Heidi (Tried-and-True Cooking with Heidi)--I saw it on her blog last month and have been itching to try these cookies! Never before had I heard of adding pudding mix to cookies, but you would not believe how much of a difference it makes!!! As Heidi mentions on her blog, they are soft, but not "cakey"--definitely worth trying!!! I'd be shocked if these cookies last much more than a few days around here!

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together the flour and baking soda, set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the instant pudding mix until blended. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips. Drop cookies by rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Edges should be golden brown. Makes 4 dozen

***Also, Happy Nurse's Day to any fellow nurses out there!*** My husband surprised me this afternoon with a card, balloon and some beautiful flowers...VERY sweet! My little guy wanted me to take a picture of him with the balloon :)


Source: Tried-and-True Cooking with Heidi

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

My husband and son have absolutely no self-control when it comes to "sweets"! I've been picking up more and more shifts at the hospital and I think it's a pretty safe assumption that they indulge plenty when I'm away! I've kind of given up with my husband--he's obviously going to do what he wants to do, but I'm concerned about my son's eating habits and try my hardest to encourage him to eat healthier foods when I'm home. By no means do I want to cut sweets out of his diet entirely, so I thought this would be a nice/"fair" alternative. Yes, I know they're still cookies and have shortening, sugar, etc, but they contain oatmeal and raisins, both of which are good for him :) These cookies were the best oatmeal raisin cookies I've EVER made and got a "thumbs up" from my little guy!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup shortening (I used butter-flavored Crisco)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3 cups quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup raisins

Directions:

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Beat all ingredients except oats, flour and raisins in a large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in oats, flour and raisins.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 9 to 11 minutes or until edges are golden brown and centers are light in color. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

*Makes about 3 dozen cookies*

Source: Betty Crocker Cookies and Bars

Oatmeal Butterscotch Toffee Chip Cookies

I knew I wanted to bring home some type of baked goods when I took the kids to visit my parents this week. Jake decided he wanted to help me make cookies for "Grandma and Grandpa", so I was all set to make the Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies I saw on "Tried-and-True Cooking with Heidi". I just happened to stumble across a similar recipe on Picky Palate, that also included toffee chips and since I had some left from when I made chocolate covered pretzels, I decided to go with that recipe. (I'm anxious to try Heidi's in the near future, though, as they look equally as good!) These cookies were to die for! The butterscotch and toffee were such a good combination--especially paired with the oatmeal!

Oatmeal Butterscotch Toffee Chip Cookies

2 sticks softened butter
¾ Cup sugar
¾ Cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ½ Cups flour
½ Cup quick oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 ½ Cups butterscotch chips
1 Cup toffee chip pieces

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer cream butter and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla until well combined. In a large bowl combine flour, oats, baking soda and salt. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with the butterscotch chips and toffee bits just until combined.


With a medium cookie scoop, scoop onto a silpat or parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 9 minutes or until cooked to your liking. Let cool for 5 minutes before removing.

Source: Picky Palate