Flower Sugar Cookies with Sour Cream Icing

These are the cookies I grew up with my entire life.  My mom would make these once a month for us.  She loved them plain, and I loved them with icing.  I'm finding on pinterest the recipe is being called "Swig Sugar Cookies".  I've never heard of Swigs, but my Mom grew up in the area where Swigs is, so maybe she got it from them.  I have no idea.  All I know is that this recipe is my personal favorite sugar cookie recipe that I have on my blog.  Seriously, they are amazing!!

Credit-Vintage Revival

Ingredients

1 C. Butter, room temp.

3/4 C. Vegetable Oil

1 1/4 C. Granulated Sugar

3/4 C. Powdered Sugar

2 Tbs. Water

2 Eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1/2 tsp. Cream of Tartar

1/2 tsp. Vanilla

5 1/2 C. All Purpose Flour

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Credit-Vintage Revivals

Cream together butter, oil, sugar, and vanilla.  Add the eggs.  Mix in the dry ingredients on low, and add the water.  Add the butter and mix on medium until everything is combined.

Grease your cookie sheet, and get a plate that has 1/4 C. of Sugar dumped on top. Then roll your cookies into golf ball size balls.  Place on the cookie sheet, and then grab a glass cup.  Using the bottom of your glass firmly press into the sugar/salt mixture on your plate.  Using the bottom of the glass press on the top of the cookie until it flattens to about 1/2in and resembles a flower because the sides will break apart.  Do this with every cookie re-dipping your glass into the sugar and salt each time.

Bake for 8 minutes or until the bottom of your cookies are just lightly browned.  Serve plain or with sour cream icing.  (The Swig cookies you serve cold, I've never tried it but I bet it would be amazing!)

Sour Cream Icing

Ingredients

1/2 C. Butter, room temp.

1 2lb Bag Powdered Sugar (yes entire bag)

1 tsp. Salt

1/4 C. Whole Milk

Food Coloring of your choice

Directions

Mix all ingredients together adding the milk slowly until you get to the consistency you want.  Spread onto cooled cookies or cold cookies.  Enjoy!!

Gingerbread Men Cookies

Every Christmas Eve Aunt Jilly brings 2 cookies to the party to frost with the niece's and nephews.  I bring cut out sugar cookies, and gingerbread men cookies.  Then I bring all different types of frosting, in all different colors, and an array of sprinkles.  We have so much fun decorating the cookies for Santa, and then leaving them out with a glass of milk for him to eat when he comes.  It's so fun to see each of the children big and small get into their decorating, and be so proud of what they have done.

My cut out sugar cookie recipe is one of my most popular recipes and you can find it on the side of the blog, but this is the gingerbread men recipe that I use, so you'll have that too in case your family wants to start this tradition if your home.  Happy Holidays!!

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup (6 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces and softened slightly
¾ cup molasses
2 tablespoons milk

Directions

In a standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, stir together flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt and baking soda at low speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Stop mixer and add butter pieces; mix at medium-low speed until mixture is sandy and resembles fine meal, about 1½ minutes. Reduce speed to low and, with mixer running, gradually add molasses and milk; mix until dough is evenly moistened, about 20 seconds. Increase speed to medium and mix until thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds.

 

Scrape dough onto work surface; divide in half. Working with one portion of dough at a time, roll ¼-inch thick between two large sheets of parchment paper. Leaving dough sandwiched between parchment layers, stack on cookie sheet and freeze until firm, 15 to 20 minutes. (Alternatively, refrigerate dough 2 hours or overnight.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Remove one dough sheet from freezer; place on work surface. Peel off top parchment sheet and lay it back in place. Flip dough over; peel off and discard second parchment layer. Cut dough into gingerbread people or round cookies, transferring shapes to parchment-line cookie sheets, spacing them ¾-inch apart. Repeat with remaining dough until cookie sheets are full. Bake cookies until set in centers and dough barely retains imprint when touched very gently with fingertip, 8 to 11 minutes, rotating cookie sheet from front to back halfway through baking time. Do not overbake. Cook cookies on sheets 2 minutes, then remove with wide spatula to wire rack; cool to room temperature.

Repeat until all dough is gone.

Once cookies are cool, decorate with royal icing, if desired. or as I do it, just put icing into tip squeeze containers and decorate.  Enjoy!

Homemade Lofthouse Cookies

I had a lady tell me that her son's favorite cookies are Lofthouse cookies from the store, but he has a severe nut allergy so they're no longer able to buy the cookies from the store (they are made in a place that makes things with nuts.)  She was so thrilled when I instagramed a picture of my Lofthouse cookies last night and instantly emailed me and said, "I NEED YOUR RECIPE!!"  It's little things like that, that make coming up with recipes worth while.  I was so excited that I could make a little 9 year old boy happy.  I can't wait to hear all about his reaction when she surprises him this weekend with cookies!

For all of you that love lofthouse cookies, but would like to make your own here it is!!  The Homemade Lofthouse Sugar Cookie "Copycat" Recipe....

Ingredients
1 boxed White Cake mix
1 small Vanilla pudding package
3 Tbs. Sour Cream
1/3 C. Canola Oil
1 tsp. Vanilla
2/3 C. Flour

Directions
Your dough is going to be thick, so don't be surprised. 

Heat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  (YES, you have to use parchment paper or a baking mat for this recipe. It's MANDATORY!)

Roll dough into little balls and place on your baking sheet.  Then take a cup and smash the ball down until it's about 1/2 inch thick. 

Bake in the oven for 10 minutes, no longer; just so they have set up.  Remove from oven and let sit on the baking sheet for 1 min. and then transfer to cooling rack.  You want to make sure you don't cook longer than 10 min. because you don't want the bottom to brown or the top to brown.  The great thing about Lofthouse cookies is that they are soft and white and moist and fluffy, not crisp on the bottom.  The 10 min. will make sure the entire cookie is as soft as the original Lofthouse.

Once the cookie has cooled frost with whatever frosting recipe is your favorite.  If you are going for the Lofthouse frosting you are going to make a simple buttercream.  I like cream cheese frosting, but you choose whatever you like.  Enjoy!

Coconut Macaroons

These are the most delicious and most easy cookie in the world!  If you make them, I promise you'll be hooked.   You should probably double the recipe just to be prepared.

Ingredients

1 14oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk

1 14oz Bag sweetened Flaked Coconut

2 tsp. Vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix all ingredients together in a mixer.  Place pastry paper on a cookie sheet and spoon cookies onto the cookie sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are slightly browned all over.  Cool and eat!

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I love a good cookie, but for me it has to be the RIGHT cookie.  I personally like my cookies, what I like to call; the 50/50.  I like 50% chewy and 50% thick.  I have a different chocolate chip recipe that is a HUGE hit with people in Utah, but this recipe that I have come up with for me is my personal favorite.  If you like thick, chewy in the middle, and a slight crunch on the outside, try my Buffo's Chocolate Chip cookies click here.

This is the recipe for my Chocolate Chunk Cookies...

Ingredients

2 C. Cake Flour

1 2/3 C. Bread Flour

1 1/4 tsp. Baking Soda

1 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

1 1/2 tsp. Coarse Salt

2 1/2 sticks unsalted Butter

1 C. Sugar

1 1/4 C. Packed Brown Sugar

2 Eggs

2 1/2 tsp. Vanilla

2-3 Large Hershey Bars

Directions

In a mixer Cream butter and sugar together until creamy and light, about 5 minutes.  

Sift all the dry ingredients together and set aside.

To the butter mixture add the eggs, and vanilla.  Mix until combined.  Slowly add your dry ingredients and mix until well combined.

With a grater, grate 1 hershey bar.  With the 2nd and 1/2 of the 3rd hershey bars, break into pieces and  place in a ziploc bag.  Then get a mallet, rolling pin, whatever you have and beat the heck out of them to break them into pieces.  (This is a great way to get aggression out.)  :) 

Mix the grated chocolate and chocolate chunks into the dough.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place parchment paper on your cookie sheets and scoop cookies onto cookie sheet.  Bake for 8-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Enjoy!!

Andes Mint Cookies

We had a cookie exchange with my friends, and this was one of the cookies that was brought.  It was absolutely to die for, so of course I made my friend give me her recipe and all of you get to benefit from that!  Here is one of the BEST cookies you will give this Christmas!

 Ingredients

1 Devil's Food Cake Mix
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1 package of Andes Mints

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs together. 

Drop spoonfuls of dough onto baking sheet. 

Bake for 6-9 minutes. Don't cook any longer than that! You don't want them to be overdone!

Take sheet out of oven and while the cookies are still very hot, place an Andes Mint on top of each cookie. In about 5 minutes, the mint will be melted. Take a spoon and smooth out each mint like frosting.  Enjoy!

Sugar Cookie Bars

I've noticed a lot of sugar cookie bar recipes, but they make a huge amount.  Since I am always just baking for my husband and me, I came up with my own recipe in a small size.  Instead of a cookie sheet pan, this fits in a 9x13 baking dish.  Perfect for just a few.

Ingredients

1/2 C. Butter

1 C. Sugar

2 Eggs

2 tsp. Vanilla

2 1/2 C. Flour

1/2 tsp. Salt

1/4 tsp. Baking Soda

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a mixer cream butter, sugar, and vanilla.  Beat eggs, and add. Mix well.  Slowly add your dry ingredients until well incorporated.

Line a 9x13 baking dish with parchment paper and spread out your dough so it's about 1/4 inch thick.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the top is very lightly golden.  Let cool and frost.

Cream Cheese Icing

1/2 C. Butter

4oz. Cream Cheese

1 tsp. Vanilla

Pinch of Salt

2-4 C. Powdered Sugar

1/2 Tbsp. Milk

Mix all ingredients together until creamy.  Add food coloring if desired.

Meringue Swirl Cookies

The theme for this month in my mind anyway, is Mother's and Color's.  That being said, I wanted to give you a cookie that would be colorful, bright, and delicious, and double as a great gift for your Mom on Mother's Day.  Done up in a darling package with all the ribbons and bows to go along with it and you could do it!  Sounds easy enough right?

Well I know giving food as gifts is one of my most favorite things to give because I can package it super cute.  It's also one of my favorite gifts to receive.  It always means a lot to me when someone has taken time from their busy schedule and made me a treat to enjoy.  I just think that is so thoughtful.  It's like getting dinner from a friend, it's so nice, unexpected, and means so much to my heart.

Okay, so this cookie is a cookie that I saw in my Living Magazine this month.  I saw it, made it, and about died at how easy and delicious it truly was.  So now I am giving the recipe to all of you, so you can enjoy it as much as I did!

Ingredients

3 Large Egg Whites, room temp.

3/4 cup Sugar

2 tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract or the seeds from 1 Vanilla Bean

Large Pinch of Salt

Large Pinch of Cream of Tartar

1 tsp. freshly ground orange zest

Gel-Paste Food Coloring in Orange or Yellow

Directions
Preheat oven to 200 degrees

Combine egge whites and sugar in a heat proof bowl.  Add Vanilla.  Set bowl over a pot of simmering water, and stir until sugar dissolves and mixture is warm.  About 3 minutes.  Add salt and cream or tartar.

Remove from heat and beat with an electric hand mixer until stiff, glossy, peaks form and the meringue is mostly cooled.  About 7 minutes.  Beat in zest.

Using a small paint brush, brush 3 strokes of the gel paste food coloring lengthwise in a pastry bag.  Have the pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch round tip (I use Ateco #805).  Fill the bag with meringue and pipe in a circular motion until 1 3/4 inch circular shapes.  Pipe them on cookie sheets lined with pastry paper 2 inches a part.  To finish the swirl, apply less pressure and swirl the tip in a circular motion.

Bake meringues until crisp on the outside but still soft and moist in the middle, about 1 hour and 15 min.  Remove from oven and immediately place on a cooling rack.  Don't package until completely cooled.

Cake Batter Cookies

These cookies are super fast, super easy, and extremely delicious.  I swear, every time I make them I eat every last one of them!  They are so yummy!  And with only 3 ingredients, what more could you ask for?!

Ingredients
1 Rainbow Chip Box of Cake Mix
1/2 cup Canola Oil
2 Eggs

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixer, mix all ingredients together until a sticky dough is formed.

Take 2 cookie sheets and line them with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Place a spoonful of dough on the cookie sheets until full.

Place in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes and then remove and place on cooling rack.  Once completely cooled you can frost, or just eat them plain.  Yummy!

Peanut Butter Cup Cake mix Cookies

Yes you did hear me right.  Peanut Butter Cups in a box of cake mix with some other ingredients to make the most delicious, moist, and chocolatey cookie ever!  I think you're going to love these.  You just have to restrain yourself from eating the bag of mini unwrapped Reese's Peanut Butter Cups!!

Ingredients
1 Box Chocolate Cake Mix
2 Eggs
1/3 C. Canola Oil
1 8oz Bag Reese's Mini's

Directions
Preheat oven to 350

With your mixer beat the cake mix, eggs, and oil, until well combined.

Pour in entire bag of Reese's and mix on low. You want them to break up just a little but get mixed in really well.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place a spoonful 2" a part until the baking sheet is full.

 Bake for 8-9 minutes and then cool completely on a cooling rack.  Enjoy!!

Best Roll Out Sugar Cookie Recipe Ever

Best Roll Out Sugar Cookies

I have at least 4 sugar cookie recipes that I use on a regular basis.  I'm not a big cookie eater, but I'm a huge cookie baker.  One cookie that I love though, and that I will eat the entire batch of, is sugar cookies.  I have recipes that I have created with sour cream, some with almond extract, some with lemon oil, some with cream of tarter, and all of them with sugar.  I just love sugar cookies, and I think  you really need to experiment and make about 5 different recipes to find the one that is just perfect for you.

I know on this blog I have a few of my sugar cookie recipes.  I like sour cream for drop cookies, but this recipe is my favorite for "roll out" sugar cookies.  The cookies that you make, and then saran wrap and place in the refrigerator to get hard, all that good stuff.  This is just my favorite. 

I am the cookie lady sometimes at church for the little kids, and I always try to get to be the  cookie lady around a Holiday so I can make these sugar cookies and cut them into fun hearts for Valentine's, Pumpkins for Halloween, Clovers for St. Patty's and so on.  I promise your kids will love them, and if you love sugar cookies like me you will love these as well.  I will also post my icing that I use with almost every sugar cookie patch because I think it's just so dang good.  

Okay onto the Best Sugar Cookie Ever...Roll Out Version....

I just made these for our Christmas Party

Ingredients for cookies

1 1/2 cups sifted Powdered Sugar

1 cup unsalted Butter at room temperature

1 large Egg at room temperature

1 1/2 tsp. pure Vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. Almond extract (optional, but it really is going to make this cookie recipe)

2 1/2 cups all sifted Flour (plus more for rolling out and cutting.)

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. Cream of Tarter

Icing Ingredients

1 lb. bag Powdered Sugar

3/4 cube Butter at room temperature

1 box (8oz) of Cream Cheese at room temperature

Tbs. of Milk (you are just going to slowly add 1 Tbs. at a time until you get your desired consistency).

1 tsp. pure Vanilla extract

Directions for Cookies

My Valentine's Day Cookies

In a mixer cream together your sugar, almond, vanilla, and butter until smooth and pale.  Mix in egg. Sift all your dry ingredients and slowly incorporate them into the cookie dough until well combined.  You are trying to form the dough into a ball that doesn't stick to the sides of your mixer.  You still want a little moistness, but not sticky.  If it is too sticky just add a spoonful of Flour until you get it to your desired consistency.

Once the dough is formed.  Separate into 2 sections.  Wrap each half in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for overnight or at least 6 hours.

After your cookies have sat in the refrigerator, pull them out and let them sit on your counter for about 15 minutes.  Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Take 2 cookie sheets and line them with parchment paper.  Coat the top of the parchment lightly with non-stick cooking spray.

On your counter sprinkle out about 1/3 cup of flour.  Unwrap one of your cookie dough's and place it in the center of the flour.  Sprinkle a little more flour on top.  Then take your rolling pin and coat that with flour.  You are now ready to roll out your dough.  I like to roll mine out to about 1/4-1/3 inch in height before I start cutting my cookies.  You make them as thick or thin as you would like. 

Plain old Circle cookie cutter with Neon Icing

Use your cookie cutters and cut out the shapes you want.  Place your cut cookies on the parchment paper cookie sheet and place in the oven for 7-8 minutes or until the edges are just turning very slightly golden.  When you pull them out they might look underdone but I promise that they are.

Remove from cookie sheet and place on a cooling rack until completely cooled.  Repeat until all the cookie dough is used. 

**Just a tip, if you don't want to use all the dough, this dough freezes great.  I will freeze it up to 3 months in my freezer and then I know I have cookies on hand in case any company comes over**

Directions for Frosting
In a mixing bowl mix together butter, cream cheese, and vanilla.  Slowly add your powdered sugar until it is all in there.  You can add Tbs. of milk in with each addition of more powdered sugar.  Once all the powdered sugar is in, make sure it is the consistency you want, and if it's too think add more milk, if it's not thick enough add some more sugar.  Mix with a hand mixer until all the clumps are out and it tastes like you want. 

From here, I separate my frosting into 3-4 different bowls and make 3-4 different colors of frosting.  I love using my Neon gel food coloring and I normally will make pink, blue, and green.  Just fun colors that you can use with anything.  Then frost your cooled cookies, add sprinkles if you want and enjoy!

Peanut Butter, Oatmeal, and Chocolate Chip Cookies

I'm not a big cookie fan.  Now that being said, I make amazing cookies if I don't say so myself, but I just never get into eating, but I will tell you that any Oatmeal cookies I will gobble right up.  With that in mind, I was craving a cookie today and I needed something that I would eat.  I took my regular peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies and added some Oats, so that I would love them.  This is what came out, and the results are truly delicious!

Ingredients
1/2 cup Butter, softened
1 cup Sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. Vanilla
3/4 cup Peanut Butter
3/4 cup Flour
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 1/2 cup Oats
3/4 cup Milk Chocolate Chips

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees

Cream your butter, sugar, and vanilla together.  Add the egg.  Stir in the Peanut Butter until everything is looking smooth and creamy.

Combine all your dry ingredients in a separate bowl, whisk together to get light, and slowly add to mixture 1/2 cup at a time, until well incorporated. 

Mix in your Oats and then once those are mixed in well, add your chocolate chips and just mix until they're combined.

Grease a 9x13 cookie sheet and place a spoonful of the dough 12 times on the pan.  (I always place pastry paper down on my cookie sheet and spray it with pam before I place my cookies)

 Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.  Enjoy!

Cowboy Cookies

I absolutely love Cowboy cookies.  This is coming from a girl that isn't a big cookie eater.  Like I have said before, I can bake one killer cookie, but I've never been big on eating them.  Not with these sweet treats!  I'll suck Cowboy cookies down.  They are a mix of just about everything in your pantry, they have a bite to them, they are chewy, and in my mind they are just the perfect cookie.  If you're looking for that one true perfect cookie to dip into you tall glass of ice cold milk, this is it my friends.  Welcome to the Country....

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats (not instant or quick-cooking)
1/2 cup Milk Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup White Chocolate Chips
3/4 cup walnuts (optional)
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
Vegetable-oil cooking spray

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Into a bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and both sugars until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to medium. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture, beating until just incorporated. Beat in oats, chocolate, walnuts, and coconut until just combined.

Coat baking sheets with cooking spray; line with parchment, and spray parchment. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice-cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop dough onto prepared sheets, about 3 inches apart.

Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges of cookies begin to brown, 16 to 18 minutes. Transfer sheets to wire racks to cool 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. Cookies can be stored up to 3 days at room temperature in airtight containers

Big and Soft Brown Sugar Cookies with Maple Icing

 I have been on a cookie kick this evening.  My hubby and I had a date night baking cookie which was a blast.  This particular cookie reminded that fall is right around the corner and I suddenly got excited.  This is going to make the perfect fall cookie, that will go like hot cakes as soon as they get out of the oven.  Just make sure to get that nummy drizzle on if you can! Enjoy!!

Ingredients

FOR THE COOKIES:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup dark Karo syrup
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 cup flour
FOR THE ICING:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon maple extract
2 tablespoons dark karo syrup
1 tablespoon milk

Directions

FOR THE COOKIES:
In a large bowl, beat together the butter, Karo, sugar and egg until very light and fluffy. Add the remaining ingredients and beat together until well mixed. Roll into golf-ball sized balls. Place 3 cookies on each cookie sheet and bake in an oven preheated to 375 degrees for 10-13 minutes, or just until the edges of the cookies are golden brown.

FOR THE ICING:
Whisk all ingredients together until smooth. Spoon into a ziploc baggies. Snip off the corner of the bag and pipe onto slightly warm cookies. Allow to set for 20-30 minutes before packaging up cookies.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup creamy (Do not use freshly ground.  I recommend JIF)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups Ghiradelli Millk Chocolate Chips (they come in a silver and blue bag)



Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter, peanut butter and vanilla in large bowl until well blended. Beat in both sugars. Scrape down sides of bowl. Stir half of dry ingredients into mixture. Add eggs 1 at a time, stirring well after each addition. Mix in remaining dry ingredients.

For each cookie, roll 1 heaping tablespoonful of dough into 1-2 inch ball. Arrange dough balls 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Using back of fork, flatten dough balls and form crosshatch design on tops. Bake cookies until dry on top and golden brown on bottom, about 14 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets 5 minutes. Using metal spatula, transfer cookies to racks and cool completely.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies

 I have a cute little hubby that LOVES peanut butter.  Every day when he leaves for school, he leaves with a homemade lunch from me.  That lunch always includes some concoction of a peanut butter sandwich.  I swear he could eat them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  He just loves the stuff.  I love these cookies because they are made with the real peanut butter in the center and not a reese's cup like a lot of melty cookies that I find.  I got so sick of people wrapping the dough around a PB cup that I had to come up with one that I knew I would eat.  So after a few tries I got it, and the rest is history.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup sugar (plus more for dipping)

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)

1 cup JIF creamy peanut butter (divided)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 large egg

3/4 cups powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Combine the 1st 4 ingredients in a bowl with a whisk, and set aside.

In your mixer, combine sugars, butter, 1/4 cup peanut butter, and vanilla until fluffy.  Add the eggs until fluffy and light and then add the dry ingredients.  Mix well.  Set your dough aside.

Stir together remaining 3/4 cup peanut butter and powdered sugar until smooth. Roll into 1-inch balls.

 Break off 1 tbs ball of dough. Make an indentation and press peanut butter inside. Cover with another 1 tbs ball of dough and press together.

 Dip the cookie in sugar.

 

Place cookies on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Use the bottom of a drinking glass to make cookies flatter .

Bake cookies at 375 degrees for 9-10 minutes or until set.

White Chocolate, Butterscotch Heaven

I am going to pat myself on the back right now because I really am an excellent cookie maker.  I don't know if many of you have tried the famous "Buffo's Chocolate Chip Cookies" that I came up with, but they are good.  They are so good that a cookie company in Salt Lake City featured them on their menu as cookie of the day.  I also think I'm pretty good because I'm not a big cookie eater.  I became so good at making cookies because every person around me loves cookies.  They're easy to make and delicious according to my family and friends, so I just keep coming up with more and more cookie recipes.  This recipe is my husband's favorite by far.  He doesn't really enjoy milk chocolate, but he loves white chocolate, so this cookie is for him.

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1 cup firmly packed Brown sugar
1/2 cup butter softened
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs

1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. almond extract
3 cups flour
1/2 bag butterscotch chips
1/2 bag white chocolate chips
(Sometimes for an extra treat I will add 1/2 cup of shredded coconut to the recipe which just makes it even more heavenly.  It's totally optional though.)

Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixer combine together sugars, butter, shortening, and vanilla until creamy.
Add eggs and almond extract and beat until fluffy.
Add all the dry ingredients, and mix until the dough is tacky, but doesn't stick to your fingers.  You want it semi sticky but not so much that it doesn't stay together or form a ball without coming off your fingers.  (If it is too sticky add a little more flour a spoonful at a time until you get it to the tacky stage.)
Add the chips and mix on low until well combined.

On a cookie sheet lay down pastry paper and lightly spray with Pam, or grease a cookie sheet.  To make the balls for the cookies, I just get a spoon and scoop a little bit up and make a ball about 1 inch high and 1 1/2 inches wide.  If you want your cookies to look perfectly round and pretty use a cookie scoop.  I like mine to look like just scoops of dough with rough edges and what not, but you do what you want.  Place about 2 inches a part on your cookie sheet and bake for 8 minutes or until they are just slightly turning golden on top.

Coconut Balls

I absolutely love coconut balls.  I think they're great for parties, Christmas, and Valentine's day.  They are super delicious and buttery and they completely melt in your mouth.  You can do lots of fun things with these.  You can dip them in chocolate and then sprinkle coconut, ice them, or roll them in nuts.  Whatever makes you happy go for it!  They are good just about any way you make them.

Ingredients
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar, plus more for dusting
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter with 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar until fluffy. Mix in flour and salt until they're just combined. Stir in coconut.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on a baking sheet. Bake until just starting to brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Roll the warm cookies in confectioners' sugar; let cool completely.

Coconut Macaroons...Need I say more?

So I know I have been on a sugar kick today, but I'm craving it like you would not believe.  These are probably my most favorite cookie on the planet.  Here ya go!

 Ingredients:

2/3 C. Flour

5 1/2 C. Flaked Coconut

1/4 tsp. Salt

1 14oz. Can Sweet and Condensed Milk

2 tsp. Vanilla

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil. 

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, coconut and salt. Stir in the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla using your hands until well blended. Use an ice cream scoop to drop dough onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about golf ball size. 

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until coconut is toasted.

All Organic-No Bake Cookies

I just made these tonight and they are super fast and delicious!! Plus it has the flax seed that my peanut butter rolls do, so it makes them that much healthier. They also have carob which is a substitute for cocoa if you were wondering.

No Bake Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients

6 Tbs. Soy Milk
2/3 C. Honey
2 Heaping Tbs. Carob Powder (You can find in any natural food section of grocery store)
3 tsp. Vanilla
2/3 C. Natural Peanut Butter
1/4 C. Ground Flax Seed
2 C. Rolled Oats

Put first 5 ingredients in a sauce pan and melt. Add last 3 ingredients. Mix together and let cool for a minute. Drop into balls on wax paper. Let them harden and enjoy!!