Hidden Mint Cookies

December 9, 2010

I first saw these cookies on Paula’s Home Cooking with Paula Deen. They’re so simple that once hear the recipe once, you’re ready to go. Their secret is that they use all pre-made ingredients. The work is all assembly and waiting for the yummy cookies to emerge from the oven! Hidden Mint Cookies are the ninth of my 25 Cookies of Christmas.

Ingredients

Cookies

  • 1 roll of refrigerated sugar cookie dough
  • 15 mint cookies (e.g., Girl Scout Thin Mints or Keebler Grasshoppers)
  • (optional) Chopped nuts for topping

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
  2. Grease cookie sheets.
  3. Slice sugar cookie dough into 30 ¼” slices.
  4. Layer 15 slices on the prepared cookie sheet.
  5. Top each slice with a mint cookie.
  6. Cover the mint cookie with another sugar cookie (so you essentially have a sandwich).
  7. Press the edges of the sugar cookies together on each sandwich so that the mint cookie is sealed inside.
  8. Sprinkle tops of cookies with chopped nuts, if desired.
  9. Bake for 12 minutes, or until edges are golden. Be sure not to overcook (as it dries out the hidden mint cookie).
  10. Allow cookies to cool completely. Store in a tightly covered container.

Variations

  • These cookies are a variation on the candy-stuffed cookies. If you don’t like the taste of mint cookies, substitute a snack-sized candy bar for the mint cookies.
  • If the sugar cookie dough is too soft to slice easily, put the roll in the freezer for 20 –30 minutes before slicing.

Time Required: 20 minutes

Servings: 15 cookies

Filed under Cookies

@newsfromtengrrl for 2010-12-08

December 8, 2010

Powered by Twitter Tools

Filed under news

Orange Cookies

December 8, 2010

Orange cookies, the eighth of my 25 Cookies of Christmas, are another family recipe, this time my mother’s mother’s recipe. The taste of these cookies always makes me smile—especially that orange frosting. Mmm.

Ingredients

Cookies

  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup shortening
  • 2 eggs, one at a time
  • 1 cup milk
  • 4 cups flour (More if orange is very juicy)
  • Juice from One orange, plus grated rind,
          or 1 cup orange juice and 2 tbsp orange rind
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp baking powder

Orange Powdered Sugar Frosting

  • 1½ cups powdered sugar
  • 2–3 tbsp orange juice
  • 1 tsp orange rind

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
  2. Grease and flour cookie sheets.
  3. Combine all ingredients. Batter will be thick.
  4. Drop cookies by spoonful onto prepared cookie sheet.
  5. Bake for 10 minutes.
  6. Allow cookies to cool completely.
  7. Combine powdered sugar with grated orange rind.
  8. Add orange juice, one tablespoon at a time until frosting is spreadable. Be careful not to use too much juice.
  9. Ice cooled cookies with frosting.

Time Required: 75 minutes

Servings: 10 dozen

Filed under Cookies

@newsfromtengrrl for 2010-12-07

December 7, 2010

  • 100 Most Popular Twitter Apps – oneforty http://hoki.es/dTBVVS #
  • Digital Comments in Microsoft Word | Classroom Solutions http://hoki.es/eJdTee #
  • Google Enters the E-Book Market at Last – Wired Campus – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/euifLh #
  • MPAA Sends Letter to Thousands of Colleges About Copyright Rules – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/elCwtb #
  • Document Design: Lessons Learned – ProfHacker – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/gZT96j #
  • Using OffiSync to Sync Microsoft Word with Google Docs – ProfHacker – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/gzsq0U #
  • An 11-Letter Word for Perfectionist? Starts With C (students collaborate to create crossword puzzles) – NYTimes.com http://hoki.es/eeXAdo #
  • Ten New Course Evaluation Questions | Bedford Bits: Ideas for Teaching Composition » http://hoki.es/igjiOW #

Powered by Twitter Tools

Filed under news

No-Bake Candy Cups

December 7, 2010

I learned the fun of candy making several years ago, when I took a Wilton candymaking class at the local Michael’s. Wilton Candy Melts make it easy to create simple candy and bark with nothing but a microwave. Here’s one combination I invented from the ingredients on hand when I wanted a fast treat. No-Bake Candy Cups are the seventh of my 25 Cookies of Christmas.

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds white Candy Melts
  • 1 cup peanut butter
  • 3 cups Rice Krispies
  • 2 cups peanuts

Directions

  1. Melt the Candy Melts in the microwave, according to the package directions.
  2. Spray two silicone mini-muffin pan lightly with nonstick spray.
  3. Stir peanut butter into the melted candy melts.
  4. Mix Rice Krispies and peanuts.
  5. Pour the candy mixture over the Rice Krispies and peanuts, stirring to combine.
  6. Spoon mixture into mini-muffin pan.
  7. Chill until solid and remove from pan. Once solid, candy should be fine at room temperature, but return to the refrigerator for storage if necessary.

Variations

  • Choose another color of Candy Melts if desired, but remember the peanut butter may change the color slightly.
  • Use chocolate Candy Melts and Cocoa Pebbles for Chocolate Candy Cups.
  • A silicone pan is ideal for this recipe, as you can push the formed candy out of the pan. Paper liners in a metal pan can work, but the paper may stick to the candy in places.

Filed under Candy, Cookies Tagged with , ,

@newsfromtengrrl for 2010-12-06

December 6, 2010

  • Discover more than 3 million Google eBooks from your choice of booksellers and devices | Official Google Blog: http://hoki.es/ffJkuX #
  • Google EBooks set to launch Monday morning : The Technology Chronicles http://hoki.es/go3NZT #
  • Thanks for the retweets to @skajder @DavidVibert @CarterGRoane. Glad you've found the news stories interesting. #
  • 'Hide/Seek' (and Remove): Censorship at the National Portrait Gallery – Inside Higher Ed http://hoki.es/fTujjW #
  • How to Fail in Grant Writing – Do Your Job Better – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/dYzz5H #
  • What's Next for Private Universities? Accountability – Commentary – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/icrmKw #
  • Today's Students Need Leadership Training Like Never Before – Commentary – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/hSf8Rq #
  • Why WikiLeaks Is Bad for Scholars – The Chronicle Review – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/i4NfHc #
  • Dropbox 1.0 Release Candidate Includes Selective Folder Syncing | Lifehacker » http://hoki.es/fiKo3z #
  • Facebook's Profile Redesign is Coming Later Today, But Here's How to Get it Now | Gizmodo » http://hoki.es/eS4dOh #
  • Facebook Launches New  Profile – HackCollege – Student-Powered Lifehacking http://hoki.es/hcjUDf #
  • Gay and lesbian teens are punished more at school, by police, study says | Washington Post » http://hoki.es/fz3h84 #
  • Figment.com Aims for Young Readers and Writers – NYTimes.com http://hoki.es/gBc1zP #

Powered by Twitter Tools

Filed under news

Original Girl Scout Cookies

December 6, 2010

In the early days, Girl Scouts raised money by baking and selling cookies—a sugar, shortbread cookie usually cut in the shape of a trefoil. Today there are two bakeries that supply all the cookies that are sold by Girl Scouts in the United States, but you can try one of the original recipes for cookies in your kitchen. Original Girl Scout Cookies are the sixth of my 25 Cookies of Christmas.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • Sugar for decoration

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
  2. Cream butter and sugar.
  3. Beat eggs and then add to butter and sugar.
  4. Add milk and vanilla, mixing well.
  5. Stir in the remaining dry ingredients.
  6. Chill at least 1 hour.
  7. Roll ⅛” thick on floured board.
  8. Cut into trefoil shapes with a cookie cutter.
  9. Place on ungreased baking sheet, sprinkle with sugar.
  10. Bake for 8 to10 minutes, or until edges are brown.

Variations

  • If you don’t have a trefoil cookie cutter, use whatever you have on hand. Traditionally, a round cookie cutter would be the best substitute.
  • Decorative sugar is the traditional topping, but any sugar or decorative sprinkle can work. Try cinnamon sugar or colored sugar if you prefer..

Time Required: 75 minutes

Servings: 6–7 dozen

Filed under Cookies Tagged with

@newsfromtengrrl for 2010-12-05

December 5, 2010

Powered by Twitter Tools

Filed under news

Blueberry Oat Bars

December 5, 2010

My mother loves blueberries. She starts nearly every day with a blueberry bagel smothered in blueberry preserves. When I found this simple recipe for blueberry cookies, I was pretty sure I found a new cookie she’d love. Blueberry Oat Bars are the fifth of my 25 Cookies of Christmas.

Ingredients

  • 1 pkg blueberry muffin mix
  • 1 cup quick oats
  • ⅓ cup brown sugar
  • 5 tbsp butter
  • ½ cup blueberry preserves

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
  2. Grease 8" square pan.
  3. Rinse and drain blueberries from muffin mix.
  4. Combine: dry muffin mix, oats, and sugar.
  5. Cut in butter.
  6. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of crumb mixture.
  7. Press the rest on bottom of greased 8 inch square pan.
  8. Gently fold blueberries into jam, and spoon over crumb mixture in pan.
  9. Sprinkle the remaining crumbs over jam and press lightly into berry mixture.
  10. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.
  11. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Variations

  • Create Cranberry Orange Oat Bars by substituting cranberry-orange muffin mix and orange marmalade.

Time Required: 35 minutes

Servings: 9–12 cookie bars

Filed under Cookies Tagged with ,

@newsfromtengrrl for 2010-12-04

December 4, 2010

Powered by Twitter Tools

Filed under news

← Older posts

Newer posts →