Sugar Cookie Bars

It's that time of year again! It seems around every holiday, everyone goes sugar cookie crazy and makes dozens upon dozens of cut out cookies, shaped appropriately for the holiday, and then frosts them in bright colors appropriate to the season. Don't get me wrong, I love baking and decorating sugar cookies right along with the next person, but I just don't like the mess of cleanup that comes with it. Plus I have a short attention span, so after about two cookies, I'm done. So going through all the baking prep for cookie decorating is kind of a waste for me, and we don't typically have decorated sugar cookies for holiday's unless someone else makes them for us.

I've finally found a way that we can enjoy the frosting coated sugar cookie without all of the effort. The Sugar Cookie Bar. This is a very dense bar that is basically sugar cookie dough pressed into a pan, baked, cooled and frosted. I was pretty excited to find this recipe over at Real Mom Kitchen because I just knew that this way we wouldn't be shunned from the sugar-cookie-at-holiday-time club. We could still enjoy our sugar cookies (well. you know.) like the rest of society. Even though we should have learned by now that you're supposed to break the mold and not be like everyone else.  

Eh. I guess we are anyways. Not many people get excited over decorating their sugar cookie BARS each holiday. I sense a new holiday tradition coming on...

Ingredients...

...1 c. butter

...1 c. sugar

...2 eggs

...1 tsp. vanilla

...2 1/2 c. flour

...1/2 tsp. salt

...1/4 tsp. baking soda

 

Directions...

 

Place butter in a medium sized bowl. Place in microwave for 1 minute, to melt slightly. Add sugar and wisk together until creamed. Add eggs in one at a time, wisking between each to completely combine. Lastly, wisk in vanilla, set aside. In a large bowl, stir together flour, salt and baking soda. Pour in wet ingredients and stir until everything is well incorporated. Lightly press dough into a well greased 9x13 pan and bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Let cool before frosting.

Neiman Marcus' $250 Cookie Recipe

I'm sure you've all heard the story behind the name of these cookies. It's an age old tale told over glasses of milk served with these cookies. Just in case though, here's my shortened version.

Woman enters resturant. Woman orders cookie. Woman gets charged $250 for said cookie. The end.

The real story is much more interesting. I'm just not a good storyteller. Which is sad considering that I'm a two year old teacher at a daycare. My poor students. I think I'll console myself though by telling you that it's not a true story. Just a myth. So I can be just a bad myth teller, right?

You can find this recipe just about anywhere. It's all over the internet and is included in most every cookbook on the shelves. The particular recipe that I referenced was found in a local hometown church cookbook. I had never had one of these cookies before, but figured I'd better make a batch to see what all the fuss was about and I must say that this is a really. good. cookie.

I don't know that I'd pay $250 for just one of these bad boys, but that's besides the point...

Ingredients...

...1 c. butter

...1 c. sugar

...1 c. brown sugar

...2 eggs

...1 tsp. vanilla

...2 c. flour

...2 1/2 c. blended oatmeal (place oatmeal in blender or food processor and process until it reaches a fine powder)

...1/2 tsp. salt

...1 tsp. baking powder

...1 tsp. baking soda

...12 oz. chocolate chips

...1/2 chocolate bar, grated (4 oz.)

...1 1/2 c. chopped nuts (I used cashews)

Directions...

Cream butter and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. In a large bowl, combine the flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Stir in wet mixture. Add chocolate chips, grated chocolate bar and nuts. Roll into balls and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes.

To see more great recipes, be sure to check out Mouthwatering Monday over at A Southern Fairy Tale!

Ranger Cookies

My grandma had the best cookie jar ever. I don't really know what constitutes a cookie jar as being the best, but I just loved hers. Maybe it was easy access. And that it was always full. It's a tough call. Anyways, since I was at her house pretty much daily growing up, I often got to make the decision on what cookie would fill the beloved cookie jar next.

These cookies, were never one of my suggestions.

Not because I didn't like them. That wasn't the case at all. I just preferred cookies with chocolate in them. And these were lacking that one detail. But whenever Grandma got tired of making the requested Chocolate Chip Cookies or Peanut Butter Cookies, she would sneak these in.

So I decided it was high time to make these myself, to fill the absouletly identical-to-Grandma's-Cookie-Jar that I recieved as a gift. I found the recipe in one of my copies of Taste of Home, which is no doubt where my Grandma originally got the recipe. She had every issue ever printed of Taste of Home. However, Grandma's version was (of course) better than what mine turned out. Her's were drier, which is a quality that I'm pretty sure that only this cookie wears well. I'm pretty sure that had I not substituted applesauce for butter, mine would have been dry as well. The applesauce, which is usually a hidden flavor when substituted in baking, actually stood out in this recipe, causing the cookies to taste slightly apple-y, which I didn't appreciate. So I'm still learning on the whole substitution thing...

Ingredients...

...1 c. shortening (as I mentioned, I substituted applesauce)
...1 c. sugar
...1 c. brown sugar
...2 eggs
...1 tsp. vanilla
...2 c. flour
...1 tsp. baking soda
...1/2 tsp. baking powder
...1/2 tsp. salt
...2 c. quick cooking oats
...2 c. Rice Krispies
...1 c. flaked cocounut (optional)

Directions...

In a large mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture and mix well. Add in oats and Rice Krispies (and coconut if you choose to use it). Drop by spoonfuls onto a greased baking sheet and bake at 350 for 7-9 minutes.

To see more great recipes, be sure to check out Slightly Indulgent Tuesday over at Simply Sugar & Gluten Free!

Pecan Tassies

This is yet another of my childhood favorites when it comes to Christmas candy! We used to make these every year growing up, but then in my teen years we stopped for some reason. And then I kind of forgot that they even existed until I stumbled upon a recipe a few months ago. I instantly bookmarked it, knowing that I was planning to recreate several of my grandma's candies this year. These little tassies are like a bite size pecan pie. So sweet and so yummy!

Ingredients...

...6 oz. cream cheese
...2 c. flour
...1 c. butter
...1 egg
...3/4 c. packed brown sugar
...1 T. butter, softened
...1 tsp. vanilla
...1/4 tsp. salt

...3/4 c. chopped pecans

Directions...

In a medium bowl, soften 1 c. butter and cream cheese. Stir in flour and mix with fork until ingredients are well combined (dough will be crumbly). Refrigerate for 1 hour, or overnight. Make balls from dough and flatten in the palm of your hands. Press into mini muffin tins. In a seperate medium bowl, cream together egg, 1 T. butter and brown sugar. Stir in vanilla, salt and pecans. Spoon mixture into crust in muffin tins, to about 3/4 full (to prevent bubbling over). Bake at 325 for 25 minutes. Let cool in tins before removing.

No Bake Cookies

This is the first recipe that I ever made on my own. It was actually my first 4-H project too :) Since then, I have not tired of this recipe. It's another one of those recipes that we made a lot growing up and so it just reminds me of my childhood everytime I make it! This would be a great recipe for your kids to help you out with...they will love helping to drop these onto the wax paper and mix in the ingredients. Just be sure to watch their little fingers or you may not have many left on the waxed paper at the end of the day! These would make a great addition to any candy and cookie platter...because while they are techinically called a cookie...couldn't they be considered a candy? I sure think so....

Mmmmmm!

Ingredients...

...1/2 cup milk
...1/2 cup butter
...2 cups sugar
...6 T. cocoa powder
...3 cups oatmeal (uncooked)
...1 heaping spoonful of peanut butter (not pictured)

Directions...

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring milk, butter, cocoa, sugar and peanut butter to a boil. Continue to let boil for 1 minute. After 1 minute of boiling, remove from heat and stir in oatmeal. Drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper and let cool until hardened.
To see more great holiday recipes, check out the Ultimate Recipe Swap going on over at Life as Mom!

Gingerbead Cookies

Happy Cookie Tuesday! This is one of those It-Wouldn't-be-Christmas-without-Them cookies. I've never really been a fan of gingerbread. It's just too spicy for me. But a lot of people like them and I will admit that the gingerbread man shape just makes me all warm and fuzzy inside! So here is a gingerbread recipe for you to make your little Christmas men with. These cookies are so moist and chewy (yes. I tried them. Despite my lifelong distaste.) and they have a nice amount of spice to them. I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy them :)

Ingredients...

...1 pkg. cook and serve butterscotch pudding
...1/2 cup applesauce (or butter, plain yogurt, or oil)
...1/2 cup packed brown sugar
...1 egg
...1 1/2 cups flour
...1/2 tsp. baking soda
...1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
...1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Directions...

In a medium bowl, stir together the dry pudding mix, applesauce and brown sugar until smooth. Add in flour, baking soda, ginger and cinnamon. Stir well until smooth and there are no lumps. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 1 hour. If you are planning to make gingerbread men, roll the dough until it is 1/8 of an inch thick on a well floured surface and use cutter to make your shapes. If not, then place 1 inch dough balls on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Happy Cookie Tuesday! These chocolate chip cookies are sure to please Santa when he comes shooting down your chimney in a few weeks! Don't be skeptical of the ingredient amounts in this recipe and scale them down. DON'T! I was really skeptical too, but I still made the recipe as written and they turned out beautifully! Chewy, delicious...everything a chocolate chip cookie should be! I chose to use the holiday swirl chips in this recipe as well, and that was a fun twist! They taste like white chocolate, which was a very tasty variation for this time of year! I hope your families and Santa enjoy these as much as I do!

Ingredients...

...3 1/2 cups flour
...1 t. baking powder
...1 t. baking soda
...1 t. salt
...1 cup butter, softened (you can also substitute unsweetened applesauce or plain yogurt to lessen fat and calorie content. I would have but I didn't have any of either on hand and was NOT going to the store for like the 5th time that day...)
...2 cups brown sugar
...6 T. white sugar
...2 eggs
...4 t. vanilla extract
...1 bag of chocolate chips

Directions...

In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt with a fork until well combined. Set aside, and in another large bowl cream together butter and sugars until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and stir until well combined. Stir wet mixture into flour mixture until well combined. The dough will be a little tougher than normal cookie dough, just work with it and be patient until everything is well combined. Fold in chocolate chips until well distributed. Roll dough into balls and place on cookie sheet (if you prefer a flatter cookie, flatten the balls as you place them on the baking sheet) and bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

To see more tasty recipes, check out Tasty Tuesday over at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam and at Tempt my Tummy Tuesday over at Blessed with Grace.

Cake Mix Cookies

Happy December! The Christmas season is officially upon us and I am having a blast with all of these Christmas recipes in the kitchen! Homemade cookies, candies, bars...all of it just screams Christmas to me! So, on every Tuesday from now until Christmas, I am going to share a different cookie recipe, so that way you and your family have a selection to choose from for Santa! Because we all know that you can't go to bed peacefully on Christmas Eve night without having that plate of cookies and glass of milk sitting out for Santa!

This week's cookie recipe seriously couldn't get any easier! Three ingredients and about a half hour of your time from start to finish and these cookies are done. And they're good too! So if you are a procrastinator, this is your last minute cookie for any occaison...Santa, a get together...or just a midnight craving :)

Ingredients...

...1 boxed cake mix
...1/2 cup oil (I substituted light sour cream. Applesauce or plain (or vanilla) yogurt would work as well)
...2 eggs

Directions...

Place all ingredients into a large bowl and mix well. Form dough into balls and bake at 350 for about 7 minutes. Let cool a few minutes before removing from cookie sheet.

I should note that my dough was still pretty runny and there was no way it was forming into balls. So I just dropped it on the cookie sheet by spoonfuls. They turned out just fine, but with a bit different consistency than other cake mix cookies I've tried in the past.

Head on over to The Finer Things in Life to check out the Dessert Edition of Finer Things Friday...yuuuummmmm!!

Peanut Butter Cookies

Let's talk cookies. Still-warm-from-the-oven, moist, soft, chewy cookies. Are you salivating yet? Good, because you are going to want to run to the kitchen, pull out all the ingredients for this fab peanut butter cookie and whip up a batch! They are just that delish! Not quite as good as my grandma made when I was a kid...but darn close. Ever since I went on that peanut butter stockpiling spree last week, it seems all I have been craving is peanut butter cookies. So when I finally had time to do a little baking on Saturday, they were the first thing I whipped up!

Ingredients...

...1 cup plain yogurt (to cut fat. Or else you can use 1 cup of butter, oil or applesauce)
...1 1/2 cups peanut butter (chunky or creamy. It's up to you. I used creamy.)
...3 cups flour
...1 cup white sugar
...1 cup packed brown sugar
...2 eggs
...1 tsp. baking powder
...1 1/2 tsp. baking soda


Directions...


In a medium bowl, cream together yogurt, peanut butter, eggs and sugars. In a larger, seperate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda. Stir in wet mixture from medium bowl until well combined. Form into 1" balls and place on greased cookie sheet. Flatten out balls with your palm or a fork. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Chocolate Crinkles

I love cookies. I especially love these cookies. I don't know what it is about them that makes them so dang delicious...but they are honestly one of my favorite cookies. And one that could always be found in my grandma's cookie jar. Which is maybe what creates their appeal...

The Ingredients...

...1 c. cocoa powder
...2 c. sugar
...1/2 c. oil
...4 eggs
...2 t. vanilla extract
...2 c. flour
...2 t. baking powder
...1/2 c. powdered sugar

Directions...

In a medium bowl, mix together cocoa, white sugar and oil. Beat in eggs one at a time and then stir in vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder and then stir into cocoa mixture. Cover dough and chill for at least 4 hours.

Preheat oven to 350* and grease cookie sheet. Roll dough into 1" balls and coat in powdered sugar. Bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. Let cool for one minute on cookie sheet, then transfer to cooling rack.

My Thoughts...

These are good! So good that I can't keep my hands off of them...which is baaad!

To see more great recipes check out the Recipe Swap over at Grocery Cart Challenge!