the comfort of COOKIES!

***UPDATE*** Prayers are being answered! I received news this evening that the homes of my relatives were spared!!! Hallelujah! My great uncle is still hospitalized, but is off the critical list. My cousin, who at first we had heard had multiple leg fractures....but after finally receiving an X-ray was told she has no broken bones, just really banged up. Praise God. I am so thankful they have homes to return to. But so many do not. The wheels are in motion to HELP in a big way. I will keep you posted! I would not want you to miss out on how YOU could help Joplin. I cannot give thanks enough your outpouring of kindness and concern.

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First of all I just need to say..... THANK YOU! Bless you all for the out pouring of concern and prayer for my family, in Joplin, Missouri. I am not a news watcher so when I saw Kristens status on facebook I GASPED, because this is what I saw. I called my mom, who lives in Florida, she had also not heard the news...this set us on a trail of phone calls to find out the scoop.

Here's whole scoop, or what I know of the scoop anyway. Brief background.....my maternal Grandfather grew up in Carthage, Missouri which is a neighboring town to Joplin. The man bled Missouri. He loved his childhood home, but he loved my Grandmother more and after meeting in the Marines during WWII they moved back to her home town of Grand Rapids, Mi. My Grandfathers whole family besides one brother remained in Missouri. (7 siblings) The family has spread out over the years. Many are in the Jefferson City area and then of course Carthage and Joplin areas too. We used to visit often as kids, and they would come to Michigan every summer. But as the years trudge forward the ties that bound us all together, my Grandfather and his siblings, have died or gotten older. The cousins have not been very good at keeping in touch, or visiting each other.

Until now............

My Grandfather was the oldest son. He's the dapper one in the sweater.

At this point, I am getting all information via my mom. My Great Aunt Dorothy, was 96, and in the nursing home that was hit. She did not survive. My Uncle Dub was found buried under rubble and is hospitalized. My mom's cousin their daughter was also buried in rubble, but had her cell phone and had enough whits about her to call for help, and talk them to her. She is in hospitalized with multiple leg injuries. As far as I know they lost their homes, and all their possessions....that is not confirmed, that is how the news has trickled down to us. I contacted a cousin, but have not heard back. Cousin if you are reading....I'd like to hear from you Luv. What can we do? I know some of you, readers, facebook friends, twitter followers, have wanted to help monetarily. I am inquiring about that. So I will let you know, as soon as I know and then I will set up an account.

Yesterday I felt so helpless. So frustrated that we haven't kept in better touch. How does this happen? So what does one do, or should I say, what do I do when I don't know what else to do? I bake, and pray......I also pulled some weeds. It was therapeutic.

Cookie anyone?

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

printable at Tasty Kitchen

My son says these are the best cookies ever. All I know is they helped this gal get through the day yesterday.

Hugs, I can't thank you enough....I will keep ya'll updated as to how we can help.

Love you all!

I heart SUGAR COOKIES

I have the BEST sugar cookie recipe. It's Kenny's sisters. It's my kids favorite sugar cookie. They beg me to make these sugar cookies. I have tried many sugar cookie recipes and I will have to agree, this one is the best. It's full of flavor, and it melts in your mouth. I have tasted many sugar cookies that just feel flat in the flavor department, but not this one. Buttery, rich, with a hint of vanilla.

I do need to warn you that this dough is quite soft. You will want to work fast when rolling it out, because if you work with it too much, it will get sticky and become hard to work with.

Don't let me scare you, if my 12yr old daughter can handle this dough, I am sure you can too.


Sugar Cookies

printable recipe

1 cup softened butter (2 sticks)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup powdered sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 1/4-1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Icing

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1 drop lemon juice

1 tablespoon corn syrup

Cream together sugars and butter. On low speed gradually add the vegetable oil. Cream until smooth.

Ok, you should add eggs one at a time. That's what the printable directions say to do. I was feeling hyper and in a hurry so I added the eggs and vanilla all together and mixed until creamed together.


In separate mixing bowl or large measuring cup, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cream of tartar. Gradually add to the butter mixture.


Mix on medium for approximately 5 minutes. If dough seems too sticky add an additional 1/4 cup flour. Dough tends to be soft, so restrain yourself from wanting to add even more flour.


Separate into 2-4 sections, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum 2 hours. I refrigerated mine over night.


Dig through your cookie cutters and find the appropriate cutter for the holiday. I have a whole bucket of cookies cutters. Thanks to my garage sale loving Aunt who has made quite a collection for me with her finds. Thanks Aunt Barb.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove a section of dough from frig and generously dust counter top with flour.


Make sure you give your dough a flip so that it is covered with flour on both sides. This dough is very tender and as it starts to warm up will get sticky and hard to handle. So you kind of need to move fast....or at least not at snail speed.

Roll dough out to about 1/4 inch.

If dough starts to crack....

just give it a pat with your fingers and that will make it feel better.

Cut out the chosen shapes. You might want to use a spatula to transfer dough to lined baking sheets. Place them at least 2" apart on sheet, giving them room to grow while baking.

Bake for 8-10 minutes in a 375 degree oven. Don't over bake. Cookies will poof up a bit, but you don't want them to brown on top, just barely browned around the bottom edge.

Now squish your dough back into a ball and start over until dough is used up. If dough feels like it has gotten too sticky, toss in a zip-loc bag and put back in frig, grab the next section of dough. This dough freezes well too. Freeze in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Take out of freezer and let rest on counter for 15 minutes or so before rolling out to cut cookies.

Here you can see the pan on the left I gave cookies enough space and the pan on the right got a little bit too cozy with each other.

Now it's time to ice your cookies. Oh I am a master at this. As you can see from the cookie that looks like it encountered a drive by shooting. YIKES!

I am not even going to attempt to tell you how to decorate a cookie. Because I stink at it. So if you want to make some really beautiful artsy cool cookies then go see I am Baker.

Because here are mine above, and hers below.

BAh hahahaha BAhAHAH ahaha HA!

I know it's hysterical that I even attempted to show you my decorated cookies.

Look at that. Perfect-A-mundo!

And these she did for a wedding.

And these so detailed, and romantic.

And these were done by a 41 year old lacking in the department of cookie decorating skills.

Egads. My kids did a better job at decorating than me.

I will say these cookies are, in the words of my father, scrump-dilly-icious! So whether you have a knack for decorating or not, I can promise you they will taste delicious. I actually left half of mine unfrosted. They are great for dunking.

I love you Amanda, but can I just say...you stink! I mean that in love. How do you do these cookies with little whipper snappers running here and there, and then one on the way. The patience of Job, I tell ya!

I am Baker has a gift, a true talent, plus she is one of the nicest people I know.

GO check out her site to see her beautiful creations and incredibly delicious sweet treats!

XOXOXO

Granola Cookies

Don't let this cookie fool ya. It's chocked full of goodness, but not lacking in the caramelly, and chewy department. I make these babies big. That way one is enough. I like to play tricks on my mind. Make cookies bigger then I can say I only ate one, when really one equals three.

I use my homemade granola, but you can use any granola you like. Store bought, homemade, what ever floats your boat.

These are a thin cookie. Chewy. Slightly browned, on the verge of burnt around the edges. This gives them a distinct salty caramel flavor. Perfect for dunkin' in your javaJO, or milk.

Granola Cookies

printable recipe

1 cup butter softened

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups granola crushed

1 cup old fashioned oats

1 cup rice crispy cereal

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup golden raisins

preheat oven to 350 degrees

-Using your mixer cream butter, add sugars and vanilla, beat until smooth and creamy.

- Add one egg at a time, mix on medium speed for 1-2 minutes.

- Mix flour, baking powder, and baking soda together in separate bowl, then gradually add dry ingredients to butter mixture, until combined.

- Add in granola, oats, rice cereal, nuts and raisins. This will get thick, and hard to stir, make sure you take the time to incorporate add ins well. Feel free to add more nuts or dried fruits. Or to change the flavors to your liking. (dried cherries, blueberries, apples, walnuts, almonds...the skies the limit)

-Drop large spoonfuls, approximately 1/4 cup for giant cookies, onto parchment lined baking sheets. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 14-17 minutes. When edges are browned and the middle doesn't appear doughy at all, remove from oven and let cool on cookie sheet, before removing.

Makes 12-16 large cookies.

Granola Cookies are a great way to get lots of vitamins and fiber into my kiddos, and they don't even know what hit them! They're a great after school snack. You could also slip them in baggies and stick them in your freezer for lunch boxes.

Did I tell you my Kenny bought me a new freezer? Isn't that romantic? He knows how to make his gal go GAh-gAH....... No really, I went GAh-gaH. Like the Loon that I am, I sold my freezer on a whim at my girlfriend Caths garage sale....what was I thinking? I've been grumbling about it ever since. But not anymore I am freezing everything...stocken up, bein' thrifty, or whatever you want to call it. I just like saying, "Oh yeah we've got another one in the freezer...just a second I've got to run to my NEW freezer.....Hey yeh there's some in the freeZOR." You want to see it? Yeh...K, cool.

TA-DAH!

Isn't she luverly?

I'm attempting to cut back on the goodies. So far so good today. But you can have at.

Go! Shoo-shoo...go bake some of these and eat one for me.

Thanks, You're awesome!

NO-bake COOKies

What to do on a dreary day.....make cookies of course! Chocolate No Bake Drop cookies are quick and so easy my ten year old son can make them! The fact that oatmeal is on the ingredient list makes me feel like these are "healthy" cookies therefore I can partake of many. Unfortunately, because of my skewed sense of nutrition, my mid section looks like a no bake cookie these days only in the blond version. Now with that picture in your mind, I am sure your appetite is at it's peak to make cookies.....in the words of my eight year old "sow-wee".

No Bake Cookies

printable recipe

1 stick butter cut into cubes

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy) or Nutella

3 cups oatmeal

1/2 cup chopped nuts optional

Add butter, sugar, cocoa powder, salt and milk to saucepan.

There's my boy, his wife is gonna thank me someday. Over medium heat bring ingredients to a boil, stirring continuously. Cook for one minute, making sure that all the butter is completely melted, and then remove from heat. Should be smooth and fudgy.

Now you need to choose sides....Nutella or Peanut Butter. Traditionally no-bake cookies are made with peanut butter, but because of this families unusual bent towards ALL things Nutella, I add Nutella on occasion. It makes them decadent and rich....oooh so good.

Pick your poison!

Add vanilla and stir to combine. Add 1/2 cup Peanut Butter or Nutella using spatula stir until smooth. I've found that the Nutella needs a bit more elbow grease to get a smooth consistency, but it's worth it!

Add 3 cups of oatmeal. Any type of oatmeal will do (other than instant). I use old fashioned Quaker Oats.

Stir until chocolate has completely covered the oatmeal.

Drop by the spoonful onto waxed or parchment paper. Allow 30 minutes to cool and let cookies set up fully.

I wanted to show you two different scenarios. As you see the top pictured cookie is softer and is not as set up as the bottom pictured cookie. This comes from the initial cooking of the fudge, the second batch I cooked the fudge a bit longer and they set up faster. The taste wasn't any different, but the texture was not quite as creamy and soft as the first batch. They all were eaten just the same, apparently I was the only one that noted the difference. I just wanted to share it with you. However the second firmer batch did photograph better, so go figure!


NOTE: These cookies are EXTREMELY addicting. If you are able to wait the 30 minutes for them to set up and cool before you actually eat one,then well....I just don't know what to say other than.....that's odd.

I would tell you that these are great for your kiddos lunchboxes, but ours rarely ever last till the next day.

Enjoy!

death by CHOCOLATE chip cookies

I realize that there are a million ways to bake a chocolate chip cookie, and you probably all have your own favorite recipe, and most likely you won't be interested in trying a new one.

But just in case you don't and you are and maybe possibly you are having a hormonal seizure like I was this evening and you need chocolate chip cookies or your head will explode.

I felt sort of like Cookie Monster today...after watching three different sporting events and an afternoon of my oldest daughter and her friend turning our house into a bubble gum factory for their science project. I was wandering around saying, "me need coookie". I whipped out a batch of one of our favorite cookie recipes. Ate too many. Now I feel sick. Now I wish I had more self control when it comes to cookies...because I think I actually might die..or barf. Now I am walking around saying, "Why did I do that, I am never eating another chocolate chip cookie again. Not ever, ever...."

At least for a week.

Some of my best recipes have come from nurses. This is one of them. Norma was one of my husbands favorite nurses at his first job out of residency. He loved her, and her cookies. And she was sweet enough to share the recipe with me, all those years ago.

Now I hope you enjoy it too!

Norma's Chocolate Chip Cookies

printable recipe

1 cup butter softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 cups flour

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup vegetable oil

24 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

6 oz. milk chocolate chunks

1 cup chopped pecans optional

preheat oven to 325 degrees

1. cream butter and sugars

2. add egg, mix well and scrape down sides of bowl

3. add vanilla, mixing well again

4. mix flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda in a separate bowl

5. alternate adding vegetable oil and flour to butter mixture. Mix well and scrape down sides of bowl a couple times

6. fold in chocolate and pecans

7. spoon (I use a melon baller) onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper, bake for 8-10 minutes. NOTE: do not over bake. Take out of oven as soon as cookies start to brown slightly around edge. They will appear undone, let cool on cookie sheet, then remove.

Be sure to enjoy these cookies while they are warm. That's how I prefer all cookies, but these especially!

Now for your viewing pleasure. "Death by Chocolate Chip Cookies" the photo montage.