Do Leprechauns taste like mint?

It's already March! What the...? Wasn't it just Christmas?

I guess that means it's time for another made-up holiday! I love these fake holidays, and St. Patrick's Day in particular is a favorite of mine.  First off, my name is Kelly (Irish). Second, I look really great in variations of green. All the obvious makings of a great holiday! 

The one St. Patty's downside? Leprechauns.  Those little buggers are creeptastic. It's the small hands and pointy ears. There is even a 1993 horror movie about them, due to their high-skeeze factor. It stars Jennifer Aniston, so you know it's a scary film.

Thankfully, I know of one sure way to overcome any fears of fake holidays and miniature men with small hands.  Sugar!

While perusing the local Target recently, I found these delicious looking dark chocolate mint m&m's.  Dark. Chocolate. Mint! Oh my, these little guys called to me.  I didn't really even think of what to put them in - just that I needed them.

Yesterday, when I was looking through my pantry right at these minty little darlings, I immediately thought of a St. Patty's cookie.

I began with my very favorite sugar cookie recipe stirred all up in one bowl:

Next, I threw some crushed chocolate sandwich cookies into that bowl of delicious:

Pre-packaged for lazy people

Followed closely by a bag of chocolate chips dumped right in:

No measuring, just a whole bag!

Finally, the minty-green star of our show makes it's best impression:

Bake those all up at 375-degrees for 10 minutes and....ta dahhhhh!!!

All of the St. Patrick's Day celebrating!!

Now go forth and celebrate all things minty green, St. Patrick, and even those sneaky little leprechauns!

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

1 egg

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

2 cups crushed chocolate sandwich cookies (like Oreos)

2 cups chocolate chips

1 bag dark chocolate mint m&m's

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease baking sheets.

2. Cream butter, white sugar and confectioners' sugar together until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the egg and the vanilla.

4. Sift the flour, baking soda, salt and cream of tartar together.

5. Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture and stir.

6. Add 2 cups of crushed chocolate sandwich cookies (I found mine pre-crushed in the ice cream toppings section of Target, but crushing your own would work brilliantly!) and fold in.

7. Add 2 cups (one 16oz. package) chocolate chips to the dough and stir them in.

8. Shape dough into 1-2" balls and place on the prepared baking sheets. 
9. Take 2-3 mint m&m's and press them into the dough balls.

10. Bake at 375 degrees F for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned.

S'more what??

Every. single. time. I say to my sweet husband, "I am making S'mores!" he immediately responds with,
"S'more what?!?"  

Yes. 

I married a third-grader.

Well, it turns out the joke's on him this time because these awesome{ly easy!} S'more cookies will never leave you wondering what could have been...instead you can taste that gooey, chocolate, marshmallow treat of summer anytime you want!

Here's your ridiculously simple line-up:

{Graham. Sugar cookie mix. Butter. Eggs}

I cannot believe I left out the STAR of this show! Rude!

**Sidenote**

Remember when the blogosphere went all cookie-butter CrAzY in 2011?? 

Speculoos Cookie Butter by Trader Joe's? 

Biscoff Cookie spread?!? 

As with most things on the interwebs, 

fickle foodie bloggers have already moved on- 

and these little gems are the "it girl" of 2012:

{Shown here wearing vanilla for Spring 2012
but also available in pink peppermint!}

I found my Mallow-Bits at Walmart, but they are also at just about any major grocery chain.

And now {drum-roll please} I present you with...

"S'more What?" Cookies

Ingredients:
- 1 pkg. sugar cookie mix {I used Betty's}
- 1 sleeve of Graham Crackers {I used low-fat cinnamon but regular is also great}
- 1 stick butter = 1/2 cup butter
- 2 eggs {I only pictured one, but had to add another later}
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 3 oz. {1 can} of Jet-puffed Mallow-bits by Kraft

What to do:

1. Grind up that sleeve of graham cracker crumbs in your food processor/blender/or by beating the crud outta them with a rolling pin like you thought about doing to that guy who dinged your car door at the grocery store...oh, only me??

{Anyone else deeply in love with their food processor??}

2.  Combine graham crumbs and dry sugar cookie mix in a large bowl until it looks like a sandy beach in Tahiti...ahhhh...these cookies are like vacation already!

{Looks more like a Fijian beach to me...}

3. Add those two eggs, and your melty, yummy butter to the dry cookie mixture and mix. mix. mix. This is your triceps workout for the day. You are welcome.

{Could literally swim in it}

4. Add the chips and Mallow-bits until well-incorporated.  Any other recipe would use the words "fold-in" but we know based on the aforementioned triceps workout that we do not need any stinkin' "folding"...we are MIXERS with our rock-hard arm muscles here folks!

{Mallow-bits photo bombing!}

5. Once incorporated eat a few spoonfuls to test place heaping tablespoons of dough on your parchment or greased cookie sheets, about 2-inches apart {these cookies do not spread nearly at all}.

{All lined up and ready to rock!}

6. Bake at 375-degrees for 8-12 minutes until the edges look light brown, but the tops are not gooey.  **NOTE** the Mallow-bits melt a little, but will harden back up once they are out of the oven.

{grrrrreat with hot cocoa or milk!}

Remove from the oven and let sit on the cookie sheets for 5-10 minutes to cool. 

These cookies will keep in a closed container for three or four days. 

{Like they will last that long!}

Chocolate and Toffee Chip Cookies

I was still unpacking boxes and I came across my chocolate cookbook… I wanted chocolate! I looked though my cookbooks and for online recipes and I just wasn’t inspired. Then I saw a bag of chocolate chips in the kitchen cabinet. I thought… “That’s it!" … I want chocolate chip cookies!!! However, just plain chocolate chip cookies simply would not do. These cookies had to be special because by now I really wanted chocolate! So I came up with this recipe and added the yummyness (I think I just invented a word) of English toffee chips to my chocolate chip cookies… Scrumptious!



 

Chocolate and Toffee Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, two sticks, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

½ cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon real vanilla extract

1 teaspoon aluminum free baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 - 8 oz package English toffee chips

1 - 10 oz package dark bittersweet chocolate chips (at least 60% cacao)

2 ½ cups flour*

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a stand mixer bowl, fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat until well incorporated. Add the vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, mix to thoroughly combine. Add the chips, stir until completely mixed. Add the flour and mix on low speed until completely incorporated. Do not over beat. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of batter onto an ungreased sheet pan. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the middle of the cookie is just set but still soft.

*High altitude adjustment. If you are baking at sea level, you may only need 2 cups of flour.

Crazy Week!

This is just a short post to let you know that I have not fallen off the face of the earth! I am very grateful to my friend and cohort, Debbie, for posting her Oatmeal Apple Bars, since there would have been a lot of dead air if she hadn't. And they are delicious and healthy too! I just can't get over that!

Some of the many cookies we decorated

Yesterday I had a wonderful visit from my friend Jessica from Sugar High 5280! She brought dozens of wonderful baked cookies in modified square and cupcake shapes. We spent the afternoon decorating! Fun! Well, I should say she spent the afternoon trying to teach me and I spent the afternoon making a mess! I did finally get a little better and I really enjoyed her techniques. I don't know that I will ever be able to make the grade on decorating cookies. It would take a lot of practice. I've been spending that practice time on baking and decorating cakes (which take much less fine detail). I might be able to find some time to pursue her passion...

I just really want to thank her for her generosity and patience! What a wonderful person!



Cupcakes were fun!



Painted flowers-too difficult!

 These are examples of our work. Bet you can guess which ones are mine! When we finished she left us all the cookies to enjoy! She said we could freeze them...do you think Mike or Bill will let that happen?

Shhhh!!!

That said, I did get some baking done today. I will have to just give you that teaser because I'm still working on the surprise. I think this one is really good (I hope). Check in tomorrow and I hope to have it ready for you!

Easy-Peasy Cookie Cake

Hi all!  

My name is Kelly, and I consider myself a "not-even-amateur" baker! 

I started baking in college and now it has become my stress-relief and is {perhaps} cheaper than therapy?

I am so honored to have been asked to contribute here on Kits Cakes.  

To even be considered among the rest of these real-life culinary queens is astounding! 

Along those same lines, I have to preface this post with the fact that I like things that are:

1. Yummy

2. Easy {and variable}

3. FAST!

This inaugural cookie cake post fits the bill!

I wish I could take complete credit for this recipe, but my girl Betty Crocker {and her amazing cookie mixes} should really get the kudos for this recipe mash-up.  As my husband would tell you, I am an "adventurous" baker in that I like to mix things up and see what happens! This cookie cake was created on a lazy Sunday afternoon when all I could find was a bag of sugar cookie mix and some other goodies hanging around in my pantry. Well, thank goodness this recipe didn't turn out badly, because it has been one of my go-to desserts ever since!

Your ingredient line-up looks like this:
- 1 bag or box of cookie mix*
- 1 Cup of graham cracker crumbs**
- 1 Cup {2 sticks} Butter
- Toppings ***

*{Any flavor will do, and I prefer Betty Crocker, but Target, and even Walmart make their own brands for cheap!}
**{I have also used Teddy Grahams, vanilla wafers, and even ginger snap crumbs in the place of graham cracker-just grind 'em right up in your food processor, blender, or even with a good pounding of your fists}
***{again, substitutions are endless- I have done chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, marshmallows, and even just icing as toppings!}

You all set with those {incredibly loose} guidelines?? 

Alright- let's BAKE!!

Set your oven to bake at 375-degrees

{Step 1}

Take your cookie mix of choice and combine with your cookie crumbs in a large glass bowl

Cookie mix + graham crumbs

{Step 2}

Melt two sticks of butter in the microwave {see FAST and EASY!} and add to your bowl of dry ingredients

Buttery Heaven!

{Step 3}

Mix the butter into the dry ingredients really well with a fork

Very delicious goop!

{Step 4}

Pour the mix into an UNGREASED 9x13 inch cake pan

This is where I pretend to use utensils

{Step 5} 

Smoosh the mixture down with a Spatula- because we NEVER use our hands for things like this right? Wrong!

Hands are perfect smooshing tools!

Now pop that baby into the oven to bake for 25 minutes 

{oven times may vary so check at the 23 minute mark to be sure there's no burning edges}.

While the cookie cake is in the oven, you can assemble the things you want to top it with.  

This time around I had a 16 oz. bag of chocolate chips {unpictured} and some chocolate-covered peanuts.  I put those chocolate-covered peanuts into a sandwich bag, grabbed my trusty rolling pin, and beat the deliciousness outta those little guys!

So Pretty

So YUMMY!

 25 minutes have passed {don't you just love internet time?!?} and the cookie cake is ready for toppings

{Step 6}

Pull that cake out, and pour the bag of chocolate chips onto the hot cake, being careful not to burn your fingers! After about 5 minutes of setting, slather the chocolate around on the cookie:

Liquid LOVE!

 {Step 7}

Throw those crushed-up chocolate-covered peanuts on top of the melty chocolate like so:

Right out of the sandwich bag is SO CLASSY!

It looks like miles of chocolate and peanuts!

 {Step 8}

Cool, cut, and devour!

**OF NOTE: This version did not require additional baking or toasting.  However, when I do a s'mores version, all of the baking techniques stay the same, but to get a nice, toasty marshmallow, you will need to add the marshmallows in the place of the chocolate-covered peanuts {on top of the slathered chocolate chips} and then place the whole dish back into the oven under the broiler for 10 SECONDS...any longer and you will have charred mallows. 

This is from experience :o)***

Happy Baking everyone, hope you'll come back again soon!