Monster Cookies Filed under ( chocolate, Cookies, dessert, oatmeal, peanut butter )

My oven is broken, and it won't be fixed for a week. I. AM. DYING. Not only does it hamper my ability to cook regular meals for my family, but it's also broken during the biggest baking season of the year! If you listen very carefully, you'll hear my waistline sigh in relief. However it's being completely drowned out by my heart, soul and stomach, who are screaming in bitter protest. I'm not a huge baker, but this time of year I live for it. Lord, give me the strength to last the week.

Dramatics aside, I have to share with you one of my favorite cookies. The first time I tried these I was at my cousin's house. She keeps the dough, frozen in ready made blobs, ready to throw in the oven, how genius is that! I ate one fresh out of the oven, closed my eyes and sighed that it was the best cookie I had ever eaten. That hasn't changed, which is why it's a surprise to me that it's taken this long to make them again. This was actually a product of having way too many leftover M&M's from Halloween. These cookies seriously have everything in them, peanut butter, oatmeal, chocolate, raisins, no wonder they're my favorite!

Sigh, I'd like to post this recipe in honor of my broken oven, I can't wait to be reunited!

Monster C0okies
Paula Deen

Ingredients

3 eggs
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (12-ounce) jar creamy peanut butter
1 stick butter, softened
1/2 cup multi-colored chocolate candies
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup raisins, optional
2 teaspoons baking soda
4 1/2 cups quick-cooking oatmeal (not instant)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats.

In a very large mixing bowl, combine the eggs and sugars. Mix well. Add the salt, vanilla, peanut butter, and butter. Mix well. Stir in the chocolate candies, chocolate chips, raisins, if using, baking soda, and oatmeal. Drop by tablespoons 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Do not overbake. Let stand for about 3 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool. When cool, store in large resealable plastic bags.

Anadama Bread Filed under ( bread, oatmeal )

I'm going to admit a dirty secret to you. I'm not a fan of homemade bread-GASP! I know, I really hope we can all still be friends!

Don't get me wrong, I love a hot buttery slice of homemade bread right out of the oven as much as the next person. But, when it comes to using homemade bread on a regular, day to day basis, mainly sandwiches, I just don't like it. Usually the bread is too dense, or dry, or crumbly. It sits in your esophagus for days since it doesn't seem to absorb any liquid. Not a fan. BUT, a few weeks ago, my friend Kelley had a playgroup involving all sorts of peanut butter sandwiches (emulating the peanut butter place in NY, for those of you that have heard about it). The sandwiches were great, but my favorite part was the soft, nutty and flavorful homemade bread she made it on. So, after hours of begging, crying, pleading and stomping (okay, none of that happened), she gave me the recipe.

It's her dad's recipe and it's delicious! The best part about it is that it makes killer sandwiches. I kid you not, I was just looking for an excuse to make a sandwich every chance I got. It's soft and wholesome and slightly sweet from the molasses. This batch also makes three loaves, and I'm told that it freezes really well, so knock yourself out!

Do any of you have a homemade bread that you love? I've become crazy about baking bread lately, so let me know where the recipe is and I'll try it!

Anadama Bread
By Kelley and her Dad!

Ingredients

1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup cornmeal
2 cups boiling water
2 tsp salt
1/2 cup molasses
2 cups warm water
2 tsp oil
2 pkges or 2 tbs yeast
5-7 cups flour

Directions

Put oatmeal, corn meal, salt and boiling water in a big bowl, and stir until everything is wet. Wait twenty minutes.

Add molasses, oil and warm water to the bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the top of the mixture. Stir until all the yeast is wet. Add 5 cups of flour to the mix, one at a time, and stir. Add additional flour (probably between 1 and 2 cups) a little at a time until dough sticks together but is not sticky (the dough is still a bit sticky to me, so don't worry too much about that).

Let ball sit for 20-30 minutes. Punch it down and knead it one more time.

Cut ball of dough into thirds, and make a loaf out of each. Place in a greased bread pan and let sit for 30 minutes.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies with Homemade Cinnamon Chips Filed under ( applesauce, cinnamon, Cookies, dessert, oatmeal )

A few weekends ago our family had the funnest day going apple picking at an orchard nearby. We rode a haywagon, tasted some delicious apple fritters and danced to the music playing on the nearby stage. It really doesn't get better then that, does it? But since then I have been doing everything I can to use up our entire box of apples so they don't go to waste.

I saw this recipe on Maria's blog at Two Peas and Their Pod. I am such a fan of Maria's food, I'm always so excited to try her recipes. The only downside to these cookies was that I could not find cinnamon chips, ANYWHERE! I was just about to admit defeat until my genius friend Alissa gave me the idea of making my own. All is takes is melting white chocolate bark or candy chips with a whole bunch of cinnamon and piping them in the shape of chips. The only think I would do different is add more cinnamon for some stronger tasting chips, but otherwise they were so fun, and just delicious in the cookies!



Homemade Cinnamon Chips

Ingredients

1 bag of Wilton White Chocolate Melts (or almond bark)
Ground cinnamon, to your taste (I used 3-4 tablespoons)

Directions

Melt White Chocolate. Add cinnamon to desired taste and mix thoroughly. Fill piping bag, or ziplock bag with snipped tip. On wax paper, pipe small chips using a circular motion. Allow at least a half hour to dry and cool. Store in a cool, dry place.

I don't think I'll ever declare a favorite cookie, but these definitely go in my top ten, they're like an apple pie in cookie form, and they make your house smell like heaven!

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies
By Maria at Two Peas and Their Pod

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Pinch of fresh nutmeg
Pinch of all spice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
4 T unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup applesauce
1 apple, diced (I used Granny Smith)
1 1/4 cup oats-not quick cooking
3/4 cup cinnamon chips

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, all spice, and cinnamon. Whisk until combined.

3. In the bowl of a mixer combine the butter and sugars until smooth. Add in the egg and vanilla. Mix until combined.

4. With the mixer on low, add in the applesauce and diced apple. Mix until well combined.

5. On low, slowly add in the flour mixture. Don't over mix. Mix just until the flour mixture disappears.

6. Stir in the oats and cinnamon chips. Drop rounded tablespoons of the cookie dough onto the cookie sheet. Place the cookies 2 inches apart.

7. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes. When set, transfer them to a cooling rack.

False Alarm! Gonna Celebrate with Some Cookies! Filed under ( chocolate, Cookies, dessert, light recipes, oatmeal )

If you could see me right now, I would look a bit like this!
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Why? Because life went ahead and handed me a complete freebie today. When I woke up this morning, my beloved camera wasn't working, and the prognosis was not looking good. And my other equally beloved point-and-shoot camera (along with three months worth of pictures) was lost, hopelessly lost, trust me, I had called and looked EVERYWHERE. There was heartbreak, there were tears, and there may have also been irrational ebay bidding, along with ebay panic, and then utter ebay relief to find that i had been outbid at the last minute.

But then miracles happened, and not one, but BOTH of my cameras were restored to me by the end of the day. There was relief, there were more tears (so I love my cameras okay), and then there were cookies. How else does a foodie celebrate if not with food? Thank you all for your sweet comments at my post below, but I can't even tell you how happy I am to not have to take a break after all!



I found these gems at Gina's Skinny Taste, a wonderful blog with light recipes, especially conducive to those doing Weight Watchers. Now I'm all about cooking and eating healthy, but when it comes to dessert, I'm a purist. I don't think dessert should be messed with, just eat the dang brownie! But if you were to serve me these cookies without ever mentioning that they were light, I don't think I'd ever know. They're chewy, they're sweet, they are loaded with chocolate and my whole family LOVED them! Like a good girl, I had two, but I could have eaten these babies all night. Check out the recipe here!


Don't you love the plate? My parents sent it for my birthday a few days ago, I think I should be allowed to use it for at least a month, don't you? :)