Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

I was rushing out the door on Christmas Eve to get to a friends house for dinner and realized that I had not taken a photo of this dip. I had to quickly snap a photo so I do apologize that the lighting is a bit off. But I can honestly tell you that this dip is just as good as it sounds and I don’t think the photo will take you away from wanting to make it. When I saw this on my Google Reader a few days before Christmas Eve, I was very thankful that I hadn’t quite finished my grocery shopping. I added all the ingredients to list so I could make it.

It tastes just like cookie dough! Serve it with Nilla wafers and graham crackers, or do as I do and eat it with a spoon. Before you start eating healthy when 2012 rolls around, make this dip for New Years Eve and let this be your last indulgence for a couple weeks.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip:

  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 8-ounce block of cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips, plus extra for sprinkling
  1. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the brown sugar until it dissolves and the mixture starts to bubble. Stir in vanilla and set aside to cool.
  2. In a separate bowl, cream the cream cheese and powdered sugar together for 60 seconds. With the mixer on low speed, add in brown sugar and butter mixture, then the salt. Mix until combined. Stir in the mini chocolate chips.
  3. Garnish with additional mini chocolate chips. Serve with animal crackers, Nilla wafers or graham crackers.

Source: Sing for your Supper

 

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

If you are going to make anything this holiday season; you must make these! I’ve always seen crinkle cookies but never made them. I was ready to make something new and try these and I am so glad I did. They are AMAZING! Soft and chocolaty and oh so good. You do have to plan a little ahead to make them. The dough requires to be refrigerated for at least 4 hours to set up. I ended up making the dough and got busy and wasn’t able to actually bake them for a couple days. There was no problem in letting the dough sit in the fridge for a couple days. So, if you are busy this week, make the dough and let it sit in the fridge till you are ready to roll and bake. The kids will love to roll the dough into a ball and into the powdered sugar. But be warned, it will be messy but that’s the fun part for the kids.

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies:

  • 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
  1. In a stand mixer, set with paddle attachment, or a hand mixer, cream together white sugar and butter.
  2. Beat in eggs one at a time, and then stir in the vanilla. Once mixed add the cocoa powder slowly making sure to mix very well.
  3. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the cocoa mixture. (The dough is very thick and sticky at this point)
  4. Cover the dough and chill for at least 4 hours or up to 3 days.
  5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line 2-3 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  6. Roll dough into one inch balls and place them on a plate (I used paper plates). Chill the cookies for 10-15 minutes just to firm them back up.
  7. In a bowl add the confectioner’s sugar. Roll each dough ball in the sugar making sure to coat the cookie as much as possible. Place the cookie balls onto the parchment lined cookie sheets.
  8. Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes until they are crackly and puffy. Do NOT over cook or they will get very hard. Once done, let stand on the cookie sheet for a minute before transferring to wire racks to cool.
  9. Store in an airtight container. For up to 5 days.

Source: Simply Love Food

Snickerdoodles

Snickerdoodles are a classic cookie that everyone loves. It’s easy to make and fun to eat or should I say fun to make and easy to eat? Either way they are the perfect cookie to make around the holiday’s; especially if you have kids. My kids love to roll the dough into a ball and roll it into the cinnamon sugar. We had a really good time in the kitchen baking these and I know you will too.

Snickerdoodles:

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp cream of tartar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 8 tbs (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
  • 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 tbs ground cinnamon
  1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. With electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter, shortening, and 1 1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy, 2 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing after each until well incorporated. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture, and mix until just combined.
  2. Combine cinnamon and remaining sugar in a bowl. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls with moistened hands (we found that we did not need to have wet hands) toss in cinnamon sugar to coat, then place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake each sheet separately until edges are light golden brown and centers are soft and puffy, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating each sheet halfway through baking. Cool 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Source: Americas Test Kitchen Holiday Cookies 2010

Holiday Baking

Between cooking and baking, family visiting (missing them already), Black Friday shopping, and decorating for Christmas, I am finally feeling like myself again. I’m ready to start thinking of all the baking I want to do for Christmas. While I gather all sorts of new things to make, I will give you a roundup of some really good recipes to make now. Happy Baking!

First up are these chocolaty brownies with a peppermint topping

Oreo Truffles

Jam Thumbprint Cookies

Holiday Biscotti (our favorite)

Candy Cane Kiss Cookies

Mint Patty Cupcakes

 

 

Pumpkin Cookies

Have I told you lately how much I love fall? I can’t get enough pumpkin and these soft pumpkin cookies are the best of the season! The cookies are super soft and have a cake-like texture. I was planning on putting a spice glaze on top, but when I tasted them I realized the hard glaze would ruin the texture of the cookies. Since discovering this recipe I’ve already whipped up several batches to give out. Everyone loves them and I know you will too.

As a side note: I will soon be posting what I have found to be the best Pumpkin Whoopie Pie recipe. Look for that on Friday.

Pumpkin Cookies:

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoons cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups chilled pumpkin puree (canned pumpkin)
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger and nutmeg. Set aside.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk the granulated sugar, the dark brown sugar, and the oil together. Add the pumpkin puree and whisk to combine thoroughly. Add the eggs and vanilla and whisk until combined.
  4. Gradually add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and whisk until completely combined.
  5. Use a small cookie scoop or a large spoon to drop a rounded, heaping tablespoon of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart.
  6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, making sure that the cookies are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cookie comes out clean. The cookies should be firm when touched. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool completely on a cooling rack.

Soft Sugar Cookies

Hi, did you forget about me? I haven’t forgotten about you! I’ve just been a tiny bit busy with my daughters cheerleading. We got through homecoming week and I am hoping to be able to breathe for a little bit. I like being busy but that also means not as much time in the kitchen as I hope. I am going to work hard to change that.

Now, onto these delicious cookies! I can’t begin to stress to you how awesome these are. They have become my favorite cookie. I have always loved the store- bought soft sugar cookies, but the icing usually is kinda eh. These cookies are much better than the store-bought kind. They have a lot more flavor and the icing is simply the best. One piece of advice I would give, is to use vanilla sugar instead of plain sugar. I found that using the vanilla sugar gives the cookies that extra punch of flavor. But don’t worry, if you don’t have vanilla beans stored in your sugar, you can use regular and they’ll still taste better than the store-bought.

Soft Sugar Cookies:

Cookies:

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

  • 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, at room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar (Vanilla)
  • 3 large eggs
  • 5 teaspoons vanilla extract
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt.  Set aside
  3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until soft and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Blend in the vanilla.
  4. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients mixing just until incorporated and evenly mixed.  Cover and chill the dough for 1 hour.
  5. When you are ready to bake the cookies, scoop a scant quarter cup of dough and roll into a ball.  Flatten the ball slightly and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining dough, spacing the cookies at least 2-3 inches apart.
  6. Bake about 10-12 minutes or just until set  (The edges should be no more than very lightly browned if at all).  Let cool on the baking sheet for several minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
 Frosting:
  • 5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
  • 1/3 cup (5 1/3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 7-8 tablespoon milk (plus more, as needed)
  • Food coloring (optional)
  • Sprinkles (optional)
  1. Place the confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl.  Add the melted butter, vanilla, and milk to the bowl and whisk until smooth.  Whisk in additional milk as necessary, 1 teaspoon at a time, until you reach your desired consistency.
  2. Tint with food coloring, if desired.  Use a spatula or spoon to frost the cooled cookies (If the frosting begins to thicken as you decorate, just continue to whisk in small amounts of milk to keep it workable).  Top with sprinkles if desired.  Store in an airtight container.

Source:  Sing for your supper who got it from Annie’s Eats, originally from Hostess With the Mostess

Giant Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you are looking for a big cookie with tons of chocolate flavor, then look no further. This cookie has it all! Dark chocolate mixed with semi-sweet chocolate chips. What more could a chocolate lover ask for? The cookie is really big and chewy in texture. Everything I want in a cookie. I’ve made it a couple times now and the second time I made it, I wanted to see if changing the size changed the texture. When I did that, I made sure to cut back the baking time by a couple minutes. Thankfully, the smaller cookies tasted just as good as the huge ones I made before. This recipe will become a favorite of yours and your loved ones. It won’t disappoint.

Giant Double Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Makes 12 very large cookies

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup dark cocoa powder
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 tsp. coarse salt
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 2 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar.  Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
  2. Blend in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed.  Mix in the cocoa powder until well blended.  Add the flour, salt and baking powder to the bowl and mix on low speed just until incorporated.  Fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula.  Transfer the dough to a work surface and knead briefly by hand to be sure the ingredients are well combined.
  3. Divide the dough into into 12 equal pieces (4 oz each). Roll each portion of dough into a ball and flatten just slightly into a disc. (The cookie does not spread out a lot)  Place on the prepared baking sheets, a few inches apart.  Bake 16-20 minutes.  Let cool on the baking sheets 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.