Lovin' From the Oven

$100 Olive Garden Gift Card Giveaway & Review

2012-02-21T08:02:00.000-08:00

I ventured out to Olive Garden to try their new $12.95 dinner special a couple of days ago. I say the word "venture" because the closest Olive Garden to me is 20 miles away.

When we got there we noticed people were overflowing outside of the main entrance, and the parking lot was completely full. The estimated wait time for us was an hour and a half. As incredibly crowded as it was, the hostess greeted us with a smile and let us know that we were welcome to sit in the bar area for a full-service menu since it was on a first come first served basis (meaning we wouldn't have to wait as long for a table if we didn't mind sitting at the bar). We gladly took a table in the bar area within a matter of seconds.

As I looked around, I saw families and people of all ages dining together. Friends were meeting up for drinks, kids were laughing while running around one another, and grandparents sat patiently waiting for a table. The bartender quickly approached us and was happy to serve us even though we weren't planning on ordering any alcoholic beverages. I ordered the 3 Course Italian Dinner for $12.95 with the garden fresh salad, Creamy Parmesan Portobello Mushroom Fettuccine, and Dark Chocolate Cake for dessert--not to mention the never-ending breadsticks that come with your meal.

They have quite an extensive menu, so check out Olivegarden.com to check it out and find a restaurant near you.

My salad was enough for two and my entree was delicious and filling; I even had enough leftover to eat for lunch the next day! The waitress packed my leftovers in a microwavable container and put extra breadsticks to-go in an oven-heating bag. How easy can they make my life?

For dessert, the bartender gave me both the chocolate cake and strawberry cream cake for to try, even though I ordered just one. Now THAT'S what I call great service! The smaller portion was perfect after a huge meal.

Overall, the dinner special has plenty of options to choose from-whether you want soup or a salad, vegetables or meat, and chocolate or vanilla. It can be accommodated to everyone's tastes. Want to see all the delicious options available with Olive Garden's 3 Course Italian Dinner? Just visit Olivegarden.com/specials.

Not only is your meal customizable, but it's affordable as well. At most other restaurants, the entree alone would cost you around $15. At Olive Garden, you get an appetizer, main meal, AND dessert for less!
Now, it's your turn to go out and try Olive Garden's $12.95 3 Course Italian Dinner special, it's going on through 3/18! I'm going to be giving a $100 Olive Garden gift card to one lucky reader, courtesy of Olive Garden and BlogHer. To be entered for a chance to win, just leave me a comment telling me if you prefer the entree or the dessert!

Rules:
No duplicate comments.
This sweepstakes runs from 2/21/12 - 3/18/12.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
a) Leave a comment (see question above in bold)
b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older.
Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.
You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.

Also, visit the Olive Garden page on BlogHer.com to check out the other blogger reviews and more chances to win!

Thin Mint Stuffed Chocolate Cookies

2012-02-20T02:27:00.000-08:00

I was sent some chocolate from Chuao Chocolatier and gladly used them to make these cookies.

Why have I never used chocolate discs before? They're so much better than chocolate chips.

I was walking to dinner the other day and a little girl standing across the street from me yelled, "GIRL SCOUT COOKIESSS!" at the top of her lungs. Bless her heart. If she hadn't yelled so loud, I wouldn't be eating a Samoa right now. Girl scout cookie season really does creep up on you in the best possible way. Too bad it doesn't last forever.

As if having a girl scout cookie in my hand wasn't good enough, I had to bake them into another cookie. Soft chocolate-y dough on the outside with a crunchy minty center. Yup, just like the one time I made Oreo stuffed chocolate chip cookies. Cookies in cookies are pretty much the greatest concoction ever. Don't believe me? Try for yourself.

Recipe from Visions of Sugar Plum, which makes approximately 32 cookies.

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted (I used discs, but feel free to use whatever you have on hand)
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder
2 cups all purpose flour
32 thin chocolate mint cookies

Cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in melted chocolate, eggs, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder and salt until well combined.
Gradually mix in the cocoa powder and flour until just combined. Chill dough in refrigerator for at least an hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Take about 2 teaspoons of the cookie dough and flatten in the palm of your hand. Place the mint cookie on top of the flattened dough. Flatten another piece of the dough and place it on top of the mint cookie. Fold and pinch together the sides so that the cookie is completely covered, making an even layer of cookie dough around the thin mint. Repeat process with remaining cookies.
Place on cookie sheets, spacing about an inch apart. Bake 10-12 minutes, or until set, and slightly crisp. Cool 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool.

**NOTE: It doesn't have to be Girl Scout Season for you to make these cookies. Keebler makes a version that can be bought year round at your local grocery store called "Grasshoppers."

Still in need of more chocolate? Chuao Chocolatier also sent me these chocopods. They're the perfect bite sized dessert on the go.

These have caramelized honeycomb pieces in dark chocolate. They have a ton of different flavors, including firecracker (dark chocolate with chipotle, salt, and popping candy), coffee & anise, and leche. YUM!

Overnight Yeasted Waffles

2012-02-16T20:19:00.000-08:00

You think those look good? Wait til you see how I served them...

See the little specks of cinnamon?

You guys... I did it. I gave in and bought a waffle maker. With the limited space in my kitchen and the abundance of appliances I already have, I couldn't hold out any longer. You see, one of the hotels we stay at during our layovers gives us a free hot breakfast-- waffles included. After eating their waffles twice a week, I got a little greedy and decided that I needed to have fresh waffles at home.

Half an hour of research and two day prime shipping later, this beauty arrived at my door:

I love it because it can stand upright, saving counter space and making it easy to put away. What's even better is that I don't even have to grease the surface prior to pouring in the batter. The waffles just pop out on their own, no residue left behind. I got it from Amazon and you can find it here: Proctor-Silex 26500Y Durable Belgian Waffle Baker. No, this isn't an ad.. this is just a girl expressing her love for an appliance that makes her life so darn easy.

My first recipe that I chose to try out was this one from Erin's Food Files. I have a Costco sized pack of yeast and I figured it was about time to open it up and get over my fear of those little creatures. Man, does yeast make the batter smell. The results were great, but the smell of the yeast was a bit overpowering for me. Oh well, that just means I get to experiment more with different waffle recipes!

P.S. This recipe is awesome for guests because you make it the night before and store it in the fridge until you're ready to use the next morning. I got 5 waffles from this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 3/4 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Mix together the flour, sugar, yeast, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Beat in the milk, eggs, oil, and vanilla until thoroughly combined.
Cover the batter loosely with plastic wrap and chill overnight or up to 24 hours.
Make sure you give the batter a quick stir before using the next morning.
Pour about 3/4 cup batter onto waffle iron and close lid quickly; do not open until done. When done, use a fork to help life the waffle out cleanly. Repeat until the batter is finished.

Sangria

2012-02-13T00:08:00.000-08:00

First of all, let me just say that I am not a drinker. As a matter of fact, I've only finished one drink in my lifetime and felt extremely sick afterward (actually, it was probably because I had bad fish right before). Since then, I only take sips every now and then of my DB's drink. Liquor is just not my thing. It tastes bad, doesn't make me feel good, and it's just a ton of empty calories. I say, save the calories for a red velvet cupcake!

The three drinks that I will make an exception for are Japanese beer, champagne sherbet ice cream floats, and my DB's grandma's sangria. When I first moved up to Berkeley, I had a craving for sangria so I decided to give it a go.

Although this one was good, it wasn't my DB's grandma's. I added more fruit and backed down on the liquor, but the recipe is mainly from AllRecipes.

Ingredients

1/4 cup brandy
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup frozen lemonade concentrate
1/3 cup orange juice
1 (750 milliliter) bottle dry red wine
1/4 cup triple sec
1 lemon, sliced into rounds
1 orange, sliced into rounds
1 lime, sliced into rounds
1 apple, diced
1/4 cup white sugar
2 cups carbonated water

Directions

In a large pitcher or bowl, mix together the brandy, lemon juice, lemonade concentrate, orange juice, red wine, triple sec, and sugar. Float slices of lemon, orange and lime in the mixture. Refrigerate overnight for best flavor. For a fizzy sangria, add club soda just before serving.

Red Velvet Rice Crispy Treats

2012-02-10T15:16:00.000-08:00

Hi friends! Here's something red for the Valentine's day coming up. It's something really easy for those tight on time. It's also something that won't break the piggy bank, but it's a nice and thoughtful gift for the ones you care about.

The red velvet flavor wasn't very strong with 1/2 cup of mix, so I added a bit more to take it up a notch. You could also add heart sprinkles on the top when you're done to make it even more lovey-dovey, but I'm good with just the redness of the rice crispies.

Happy Valentine's Day!

1 (10.5 oz) bag of mini marshmallows
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 - 3/4 cup red velvet cake mix
6 cups rice crispies cereal
sprinkles for topping (optional for that extra pizazz!-- which I didn't add because these babies were just for me)

Melt butter and mini marshmallows over low heat. When the marshmallows are completely melted, mix in the vanilla and red velvet cake mix.
Remove from heat and carefully stir in the rice crispies until evenly coated.
Pour the batter into a lined or greased 13"x9" pan and press down.
Wait until cooled and cut to serve.

Salsa Chicken and Black Bean Soup

2012-02-06T22:01:00.000-08:00

Man, I can't believe it's already February. I feel like these months are going faster and faster as we move on. Shoot... that means Valentine's Day is coming up soon. Anyone have any ideas for what to do for my DB? Don't worry-- he's too busy reading law school books to read my blog, so he'll never know! :) We're not really big on Valentine's Day, so no need for extravagance.

Here's another crockpot recipe to add to your list. It's filled with protein to keep your stomach happy and extremely easy to make. I mean, aren't all crockpot recipes extremely easy to make? Next time, I'd add a squeeze of lime into my bowl to top it off. From Crockpot 365.

Ingredients

1 pound chicken (I used frozen breast tenderloins)
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup frozen corn
1 jar prepared salsa (16 oz)
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 cup sour cream (to stir in at the end)
shredded cheddar cheese, avocado slices, cilantro (all optional)

Directions

Add the black beans to the crockpot. Put the chicken on top, then add the broth and salsa. Pour in the corn and mushrooms, and add the cumin. Stir, but don't disturb the beans-- let them stay at the bottom of the pot.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.
If you'd like to thicken the broth, you can use your immersible blender (I love that thing) to blend a bit of the beans and chicken. If you don't have one, scoop out 2 cups of the soup and carefully blend in your traditional blender. Stir the mixture back into the crockpot.
Stir in the 1/2 cup of sour cream before serving, and garnish with shredded cheese, avocado slices. and cilantro, if using.

Molasses Spice Cookies

2012-01-31T06:28:00.000-08:00

Good morning! I'm currently on a 4 day trip for work and it's been filled with terrible luck. On the way to work, I was stuck in HOURS of traffic and got rear ended. Then, I go home in LA for my long layover and my mom's car gets backed into while we're eating lunch. Can you believe it? People these days... Get off your cell phones and pay attention to what you're doing! We're not playing bumper cars here.

I've never really been a fan of molasses cookies. I always thought the taste was a little too strong. For some reason, I decided to give it another shot and bake a batch. I'm sure glad I stumbled across this recipe from Always With Butter because I will never look at a molasses cookie the same way again! The molasses was subtle, the cookie was chewy for days, and it wasn't too sweet-- meaning I could eat five of them in a sitting on not even notice it.

3/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar, plus additional for rolling
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup molasses
2 1/4 cup flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg

Preheat oven to 375.
Cream together the butter and both sugars. Mix in the egg, vanilla, and molasses.
Stir in the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg.
Roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls and roll in sugar. Drop onto baking sheet, at least two inches apart.
Bake for 11 minutes.

Tuna Caesar Salad

2012-01-26T20:20:00.000-08:00

You know those days when you don't have enough time for anything? Well, here's something quick to whip up (assuming you like eating vegetables). This really is a no brainer meal, meant for the nights or days that you don't want to wash a million dishes. The tuna is loaded with protein to keep you full until the next meal. For once... something without a stick of butter! Hey, I can be healthy, sometimes.

1 head of romaine lettuce, washed and chopped
1 can of tuna, drained
1/2 avocado, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
1 tablespoon freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 lemon wedge, squeezed
2 tablespoons caesar salad dressing (more or less, according to your liking)

Toss all of the ingredients together in a mixing bowl until evenly coated.

Baked Apples

2012-01-23T02:03:00.000-08:00

After a day of long flight delays, all I want to do is eat a bowl of ice cream topped with warm baked apples. Something about freshly baked apples just comforts the soul-- and that's exactly what I need. San Francisco's weather has been kicking my butt lately. All I wanted to do was get home in time so that I can visit my bestie tomorrow, but nope... apparently mother nature had other plans for me.

I'm really bummed that I won't be going to Utah since I'm long overdue for a visit and I miss my BFF so darn much. Plus, I had a bunch of baked goods to bring with me. Bahhh excuse my ranting. A 5 hour work day turned into 16 and I'm a bit tired.

I'll get right to the point: Baked Apples. Warm. Cinnamon-y. Simple. Just as good eaten with a fork as it is served with ice cream. Bam.

Ingredients

3 fuji apples, peeled and thinly sliced
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cornstarch
juice of half a lemon
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 420 degrees.
Mix all of the ingredients (except for the last) together in a bowl until apples are evenly coated. Cube the butter and scatter on top of the apples.
Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Chocolate Marshmallow Cake

2012-01-17T23:44:00.000-08:00

Planning a Disney World trip is by far harder than any other trip I've planned. New York, I can do. Seattle, a breeze... but out of all the options in Orlando? Whoa mama! Talk about overload. I've already spent hours researching different hotels around the area in a budget price range. I have yet to find one that has it all. Bummer. Until then, I'll catch up on my Desperate Housewives; I'm only on season three!

How cute is this cake? I love the look of the marshmallow topping with the light fudge layer on top. Heck, I could eat the chocolate-y topped marshmallows on its own. Overall, the cake is extremely moist and very sweet. I'm talking overload sweet. If you can't handle eating spoonfuls of sugar, then I'd only recommend eating a bite instead of a whole piece. I mean, you've still got to try it! Recipe from Made.

1 cup boiling water
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla
Chocolate Satin Frosting (see recipe below)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Boil the water and keep it simmering.
Mix the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the eggs, buttermilk, oil and vanilla and beat together.
Add the 1 cup boiling water and carefully stir until the water is mixed in; beat for 1 1/2 minutes.
Pour the batter into the 13x9 pan. Bake at 350 for 35-38 minutes.
Make the frosting while the cake is baking. When the cake is done, pour the warm frosting over the hot cake.

CHOCOLATE SATIN FROSTING

1/2 cup butter
6 Tbl buttermilk (or use 6 Tbl milk mixed with 1 tsp vinegar)
4 Tbl cocoa powder1 (16 oz) box powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups marshmallows (optional)

Cook the butter, buttermilk, and cocoa in a medium saucepan. Stir constantly, just until it comes to a boil. Remove the pan from the heat.
Add the powdered sugar and vanilla, and beat with a wooden spoon until frosting is nearly smooth (remember to stir every now and then while the cake bakes).
Put the marshmallows on top, then evenly pour the warm frosting over everything. Cool to room temperature before serving

Chicken Bacon Pasta

2012-01-13T05:00:00.000-08:00

I'm having Disneyland withdrawals. So naturally, what do I do? Start planning a trip for a Disney World trip in May! My DB and I have never been, so it'll be a fun celebration after my DB's first year of law school. I started researching hotels and trip plans, and my goodness.. there's a lot to plan! Does anyone have any tips on hotels to stay at or places I must see/eat while in Orlando? Or any tips on how to save on admission? Thanks in advance!

Here's an easy weekday meal that takes 20 minutes to prepare. You can never have enough pasta recipes in your life. True story. In all honesty, the cream cheese makes the pasta quite heavy.. a little too heavy for me. That's coming from a girl that'd be fine with a bit of butter and parmesan cheese on her pasta. Recipe from Plain Chicken.

Ingredients

1/2 pound bacon, cooked and roughly chopped
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 pound penne pasta
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup cream cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 whole eggs
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
2 grilled chicken breast, sliced

Directions

Cook the pasta according to the package directions.
Heat heavy cream and cream cheese in a small saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth. Remove from heat.
Add the parmesan cheese, eggs, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and pepper and whisk until blended.
Drain pasta (reserving 1/2 cup of hot water) and return to pot. Immediately add the sauce and gently fold until the pasta is coated. The hot pasta will cook the eggs. Stir in the bacon, and add some reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce. Serve with grilled chicken.

Mango Pineapple Smoothie

2012-01-11T10:37:00.000-08:00

Good morning! There's nothing like a smoothie to kickstart your day. Well, besides coffee. I know we're far away from summer, but that doesn't mean we can't pretend that the hot weather is still here. Even though I'll have to drink my smoothie wearing three layers of clothes and wrapped in two blankets, it'll be worth it.

I got my ingredients from Trader Joe's. They have the best frozen fruit year round. Again, this recipe is rough. Just play with the ingredients until you get your desired taste. Enjoy!

1 cup frozen pineapple
1 1/2 cups frozen mango pieces
1 cup vanilla yogurt
1/3 cup milk
2 teaspoons sugar
a couple of ice cubes

Throw all your ingredients in a blender and blend away! Taste and adjust to your liking by adding more milk/ice cubes/sugar/whatever floats you boat.

PS! I got an Iphone for Christmas from the DB and now have jumped on the Instagram bandwagon. Feel free to follow me on there @kimberlywyn. I can guarantee lots of food pictures. :)

Crockpot Chicken Adobo

2012-01-08T18:56:00.000-08:00

Man oh man oh man oh man. While making this recipe, I realized that I'm afraid of something else in my life... a fully uncooked chicken. I'm terrified of it. I don't even know where to start. How do people deal with the skinning, the emptying, the pulling, all the extra stuff? My mom cooks meat all the time and nothing phases her. Eyeballs? Gone. Beaks? More flavor. I have no idea how she does it. She's a miracle worker.

I, for one, have cooked my first and last whole chicken. The prepping process took me over half an hour. Is that normal? I'll be sticking to my precut chicken breasts from now on. I'm really not meant for the cooking world.

Aside from the chicken parts, this recipe was full of flavor. It had a kick to each bite with quite a bit of tart. My favorite parts of the dish were the cooked onions and carrots. Recipe from who else, but Crockpot365!

3 to 5 pounds of chicken meat (I used a whole chicken. Next time I will use boneless pieces.)
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots
1 large yellow onion, sliced in rings

Directions

Marinate the chicken overnight in the refrigerator with the salt, pepper, soy sauce, garlic, and vinegar.
In the morning, dump the chicken on top of the carrots and onions in the crockpot. Make sure the crockpot is big enough for your chicken!
Cook on low for 7-8 hours, or on high for 4-5. Make sure the chicken is thoroughly cooked before serving.

Banana Almond Pancakes Topped with Nutella

2012-01-03T21:35:00.000-08:00

2012! How has your new year kicked off so far? I'm not one for new year resolutions, but how about more posts this year than last year? I can work with that.

I started this year with a fresh stack of flapjacks, so it only makes sense to share with you a pancake recipe. As always, I had browning bananas on the kitchen counter and had to find a use for them. Since I wasn't planning on eating them soon, I tossed them into a pancake batter and slathered them with Nutella. These pancakes are great for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or any meal in between! They turned out to be a little on the flatter side, but the taste was spot on. The recipe makes approximately 12 pancakes.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup almond meal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the topping

1 tablespoon nutella
half a banana, sliced
a pinch of sliced almonds

Directions

Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
Add the bananas, buttermilk, eggs, honey, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract to the dry mixture and stir until just moistened. A couple of clumps are okay!
Scoop the batter by 1/3 cup onto a pan over medium heat. Once bubbles start to appear, carefully flip the pancake and let the other side cook for another minute or two.
Spread your desired toppings on top of the pancakes and eat away!

P.S. Have you ever used this stuff? It's one of the greatest things I've ever stumbled upon I hardly use buttermilk, so I end up throwing a lot of the fresh carton in the trash. It's such a waste! With this, I can have buttermilk on hand at all times, without having to worry about an expiration date (well, right away, anyway).

You just mix this powder with some water and voi-la! You've got some buttermilk for baking.

2011 Recap and a Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T09:32:00.000-08:00

As I did last year, I'm recapping my favorite desserts from each month in 2011 (which is probably not going to help your new year's resolution). Enjoy!

January: Cinnamon Roll Cake. Tons of butter = ultimate satisfaction.

February: Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies. Cookies inside of cookies.

March: Nutella Cheesecake Gooey Cake Bars . Hearty bars. My kind of dessert.

April: Buttermilk Biscuits. A lot of work, but the result is fluffy piece of buttery goodness!

May: Star Wars Brownie Roll Out Cookies. Hmmmm. I need to use these again.

June: Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins with a Cheerios Streusel. Cheerios party!

July: From Scratch Funfetti Cupcakes. No words needed.

August: Cake Batter Bars. I would say this is my favorite recipe of all of 2011. That's quite a statement, so if you haven't tried them yet, get on the cake batter bandwagon!

September: White Chocolate S'mores Gooey Cake Bars. Condensed milk MAKES this dessert.

Also from September: Nutella Puppy Chow. So I cheated and chose two from September. Since this doesn't require an oven, it didn't count.

October: S'mores Brownies. Tired of seeing s'mores yet?

November: Peanut Butter Blondies with Chocolate Sunflower Seeds. The ultimate soft bar.

December: Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies. One of my favorite cookies.. and I don't even care for peanut butter!

Actually, December was filled with great cookies, so check the archives out!

This year has been an enormous year of growth for my blog and me, and I look forward to seeing you all in 2012! Thanks for you continued support throughout the years. Wishing you all a safe and happy new year!

Day 12: Chocolate Oreo Cookies

2011-12-24T00:07:00.000-08:00

Day 12 of my 12 days of cookies: Hurray! We made it to the end. Thanks for following along this month with my never ending cookie posts. Since my Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookies were such a hit, I had to end the 12 days of cookies with another recipe that ended up being one of my favorites.. the chocolate version!

I saw these Oreos while walking through the cookie aisle in Target and had to get them because 1. they were on sale and 2. they were decorated with winter designs. I'm such a sucker for themed food.

You know that the last cookie of the 12 days has to be a good one. This one lives up to all my expectations and then some. I loved seeing a bit of the red cream peeking out of the cookies; it's so festive! This is yet another chewy cookie that has a bit of a crunch from the Oreos. Recipe slightly adapted from Brown Eyed Baker, so you know it's good.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season celebrating it with the people that you love. Merry Christmas!

Ingredients

2½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup dutch processed cocoa
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped Oreo cookies

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Cream together the butter and sugars. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract.
Gradually stir in the flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder until just blended.
Fold in the chocolate chips and oreo pieces.
Drop cookie dough by 2 tablespoons (or larger if you want bigger cookies) and bake for 8-10 minutes.
When out of the oven, let sit on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack.

Day 11: Peanut Butter & Nutella Swirl Cookies

2011-12-22T14:53:00.000-08:00

Day 11 of my 12 days of cookies: I admit, there's a whole lot of peanut butter going on in this year's 12 days of cookies. Why? Perhaps those two giant sized family pack of Skippy at Costco was a bit too much for two people. Whoops.

I made these a while ago when I went wine tasting and everyone loved them. Maybe one day peanut butter and Nutella cookies will replace the cheese and crackers in wine tasting. If that were the case, I'd definitely go wine tasting a lot more. These cookies were sturdy, thick, and soft. They also had a bit of a crumb texture, but it's just the right amount. Try not to swirl the Nutella in completely.. you want ribbons of it going through the dough. Recipe from Delightful Bitefuls.

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
Approx. 1/4 cup Nutella

Directions

Preheat oven to 350° F.
Cream together butter, peanut butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla. Gradually add the flour, baking soda and salt. Drizzle Nutella on top of the dough then swirl it through the dough with a butter knife.
Refrigerate the dough for 15 minutes. Roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls and use a fork to gently flatten the balls and create a criss-cross pattern. P
Bake for 7-10 minutes.

Day 10: Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-12-20T11:10:00.000-08:00

I'm spending all day today putting together my annual holiday basket. I found the cutest boxes and wrapping from Crate and Barrel to put everything in. I'm going to have to lug everything with me back home since I'm only going to be home for such a short period of time that I don't have time to bake there. Let's hope I baked some sturdy cookies!

Day 10 of my 12 days of cookies: Chocolate on top of chocolate on top of chocolate... sometimes that's all a girl needs in life. I was asked to bake cookies for a friend's birthday and the only request was... you guessed it, chocolate. Since all my favorite cookies are made with a mixture of melting regular chocolate with dark cocoa powder, I figured this one fit the bill perfectly. The cookies had a flaky outside layer and a chewy inner layer. The amont of chocolate was enough to satisfy any chocolate craving. Recipe slightly adapted from Sweet and Savory Tooth.

2 2/3 cups (16 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder (I used Hershey's dark)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cold egg
2 teaspoon vanilla

Heat oven to 325 degrees.
Melt 2/3 cup of the chocolate chips in the microwave by heating in increments of 30 seconds and stirring in between. Set aside.
Cream together the butter and both sugars. Stir in the melted chocolate chips. Add in the egg and vanilla.
Add the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt) to the chocolate mixture until just incorporated.
Fold in the remaining 2 cups chocolate chips.
Scoop tablespoon sized dough onto baking sheets.
Bake for about 11 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

Day 9: Peanut Butter White Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-12-19T11:37:00.000-08:00

Day 9 of my 12 days of cookies: I truly think that any cookie made with peanut butter is impossible to screw up. The peanut butter gives the cookie such a wonderful texture that it's hard for anyone to decline. I mean, just look at that last picture. How moist and chewy can a cookie get? The original recipe called for peanut butter and chocolate chips, but I substituted white chocolate chips instead. I was getting a little tired of the semisweet chocolate and peanut butter combo and wanted to change things up a bit. Adapted from Sugar Cooking.

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup white chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat together the butter, peanut butter, and sugars. Stir in the egg, vanilla, and milk.
Gradually mix in the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt) into the wet mixture.
Stir in the white chocolate chips.
Drop by tablespoons onto baking sheet and flatten slightly.Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.

Day 8: Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

2011-12-17T10:43:00.000-08:00

Day 8 of my 12 days of cookies: To me, pumpkin isn't just for Thanksgiving. It's a year round kind of thing. I wish there were pumpkin lattes and pumpkin bread at coffee shops all the time, but since there isn't, I'll just have to keep the pumpkin flowing all year long by myself. Naturally, I love snickerdoodles and I love pumpkin, so combining the two made sense in my head. That leaves you with a gorgeous, fluffy cookie with an ever so slight hint of pumpkin. Adding the pecan on top just completes the holiday touch. Make sure to flatten the cookies slightly because they don't spread much.

Can you believe we're only a week from Christmas? It's coming up fast! I still need to get into the Christmas spirit.. *working on finding it*. Recipe From Amy Bites.

For the cookies:

3¾ cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the coating:

½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground ginger
Dash of allspice

Topping (optional):

Approximately 48 pecans (one for each cookie)

Directions:

Cream butter and sugars together. Blend in the pumpkin, egg, and vanilla.
Add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg) to the wet mixture. Mix until just incorporated.
Cover and chill for at least an hour.
Preheat the oven to 350.
Mix the coating ingredients together and set aside.
Scoop the dough into 2 tablespoons sized balls and roll in the coating mixture. Place a pecan on top of the ball dough. Use the bottom of a flat, heavy glass to gently flatten the dough. Repeat for all the cookies.
Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Day 7: Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-12-15T09:35:00.000-08:00

Whoo hoo! We have officially crossed the half way mark with ten days left to spare. That means there will be five posts in the next ten days. Are you ready for it? Have you started your holiday baking? I'll be doing all my holiday baking up north since I'll be working over the holidays, but I'll be flying everything home next week. Just because I'm not home for Christmas doesn't mean I can't deliver my annual holiday sweets!

Day 7 of my 12 days of cookies: Here's another simple recipe that's been fancied up a bit. The extra 5 minutes that you take to brown the butter really alters the taste of a normal chocolate chip cookie. The dough really held its shape during baking and didn't flatten out much, so use a cookie scooper to make your cookies uniform. The taste was great, but the texture itself was a bit harder than I'd like my cookies to be. Recipe from In the Little Red House.

Ingredients

2 sticks of butter (1 cup)
1/2 cup white sugar
1 3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3 c all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 lb chocolate chips/chunks
1 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Brown the butter by heating in a pan over medium heat and stir continuously. The butter will foam up. After foam subsides, small brown flecks will start to appear in bottom of pan.Continue stirring, until butter has reached a nice brown color.Turn the heat all the way down.Pour into a bowl and and refrigerate until solid again.
Cream the brown butter after it has solidified and the sugars. Mix in the eggs and vanilla.
Stir in the dry ingredients: flour, soda and salt into the wet mixture. Fold in the chocolate and pecans.
Scoop dough into tablespoon sized balls and bake for 11-13 minutes.

Day 6: Chewy Nutella Cookies

2011-12-12T06:30:00.000-08:00

Day 6 of my 12 days of cookies: Yes, I am still working on my two Costco sized jars of Nutella. No complaints here! I'm "rationing" it more than I am "working" on it. Nutella is a gift from the Gods... the hazelnut Gods. They bake so well into desserts that I couldn't have a 12 days of cookies without having something Nutella on the list.

These cookies stayed chewy for days after being baked. They didn't thin out too much and remained sturdy, despite the fact that they were so soft. They crackled on the top and baked uniformly, having the same consistency from the middle to the edge. Recipe from Erin's Food Files.

Ingredients:

½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
½ cup Nutella
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 ½ cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.
Cream butter with both sugars until light and fluffy. Stir in the egg, vanilla, and Nutella.
Add the flour, baking soda, and salt into the wet mixture until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Drop the dough by tablespoons onto baking sheet and bake for 6-7 minutes.

Day 5: Toffee Blondies

2011-12-11T07:00:00.000-08:00

My 12 days of cookies remind me every year that it's that time to watch Love Actually, The Holiday, and Elf. Those three movies are on my must list for every Christmas. Do you have any favorites that you love? I'm also looking forward to New Years Eve, which comes out December 9th. The whole month of December should be dedicated to Christmas movies, cuddling, and eating baked goods. Bears get to hibernate, why don't we? :)

Day 5 of my 12 days of cookies: If you've been following my past 12 days of cookies, then you must know that it's never 12 days of cookies; there's always a bar or two thrown into the mix. Bars are just as good as cookies since they're easy to eat, not a hassle to serve, and a cinch to whip up.

These toffee blondies disappeared the moment I took them out of the oven. I cut them into small pieces so that I could feed more people. It was fine since the bars were so dense to begin with. One small serving is enough to satisfy the average person's sweet tooth. Note that I said average... for those like me who crave sweets 24 hours a day, you can handle more than a little sliver. Recipe is ever so slightly adapted from Just a Taste.

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
2 large eggs
1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons salt
¾ cup toffee bits, divided
1/3 cup white chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil.
Whisk the melted butter and both sugars together until smooth. Add in the eggs and vanilla.
Stir in the flour and salt just until moistened. Fold in a ½ cup of the toffee bits.Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with the back of a spoon.Sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup of toffee bits over the top of the batter.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.Let the pan cool completely before removing and cutting.

Day 4: Mocha Almond Fudge Cookies

2011-12-09T07:22:00.000-08:00

Day 4 of my 12 days of cookies: Sometimes chocolate just isn't enough for us no matter how much of it we have. That's when my good friend coffee comes in. Not only does coffee bring out the chocolate flavor, but it gives you an additional boost to keep you going throughout your day. I never used to drink coffee, but I find myself adding a little more to my daily routine each year. My only peeve about coffee is that it stains your teeth! What a bummer.

Good and effective instant coffee is hard to come by (I don't own a coffee maker), so imagine my surprise when I actually discovered one that was strong enough to keep my DB alert throughout finals week. This one is from Trader Joe's and really stood out in the cookie after baking. Other instant coffee powders that I've used in the past seem to dissolve in the oven, but not this baby!

These cookies were bold. They definitely aren't for the light hearted. The almond adds a great texture to a somewhat fudgy cookie. Make sure not to over bake them or you'll end up with cakey cookies! Recipe from How Sweet Eats.

Ingredients

1 cup butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 tablespoons instant coffee powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cup chopped almonds
1 cup chocolate chips

Directions

First roast the chopped almonds and cinnamon in a pan over low to medium heat for about ten minutes, rotating every now and then. Set aside.
Cream together the butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
Add in the flour, cocoa powder, coffee powder, baking soda, and salt.
Gently fold in the chocolate chips and almonds. Refrigerate dough for at least two hours.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough into tablespoon-sized balls and bake on sheet for 8-10 minutes.

Day 3: S'mores Bar Cookies

2011-12-07T17:30:00.000-08:00

I went out today and bought my Christmas cards to send out. That's my favorite part of the holidays.. using a ton of stamps and putting old school envelopes in the mailbox! Do you send out Christmas/Hanukkah cards?

Day 3 of my 12 days of cookies: Since my last s'mores cookie bars was such a hit, here's another variation that's just as good. The only thing that I shouldn't have done is use cinnamon graham crackers.. it really offsets the taste of the s'mores. Stick to the plain graham crackers no matter how much better the cinnamon one truly is.

What I loved the most is that the cookie baked perfectly into the shape of the graham cracker after cutting it. The graham cracker does soften while in the oven, but it still has a bit of a crispy bite. You can add more than one chocolate piece on top of each cookie if you like your s'more chocolate ratio to outweigh the marshmallow and graham cracker. Recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ingredients

11 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 ½ cups flour
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup mini marshmallows
3 regular sized Hershey’s bars, broken into pieces
1-2 packages graham crackers, broken into squares

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line baking pans with parchment paper. I used one 11x17 pan and one 9x13 pan but you can really use any sized pans you want.
Lay out graham crackers side by side on the pans as close as possible (they should be touching).For thicker cookies, use less graham crackers and more dough.
Cream together the butter and both sugars. Add the eggs and vanilla.
Gradually mix in the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, sea salt and cinnamon.
Fold in the chocolate chips and marshmallows. Chill dough in refrigerator for 1 hour.
Place rounded tablespoons of dough on graham crackers about 1 – 1 ½ inches apart. Use your fingertips to slightly press down.
Bake for 5 minutes then remove from oven to press Hershey’s bar pieces on to the top.
Bake for and additional 5 – 7 more minutes or until dough is beginning to turn golden brown at the edges. Make sure cookies are completely cool before cutting, otherwise you'll end up with a doughy mess!