TWD-Coconut Butter Thins

When I read the recipe I knew this was going to be a cookie I would like, possibly love. I love lime. I love coconut. And add some macadamia nuts to it and you have a little piece of heaven. 

The dough was very easy to make and rolled out perfectly in a gallon-sized freezer bag. After a little time in the fridge they baked up perfectly. Some of them seemed to brown more than others so when I make them again I think I will reduce the baking time. When they came out of the oven I felt they were missing something though. They were kind of dull looking so I decided to do a lime glaze for the top of the cookie with some powdered sugar, lime juice and lime zest. It added another level of freshness to the cookie for me.

The only complaint I have was that I couldn't taste the coriander at all. Maybe my "pinch" was too small. I was intrigued by that ingredient and hoped it would manifest itself more in the final result. 

I shared these cookies with my parents, sister and her husband, my hubby and kiddos and got great reviews. Everyone loved them. My dad requested a copy of the recipe. These will go into the rotation of great cookie recipes at the Hasler house.

If you are interested in the recipe, head on over to Jayne of The Barefoot Kitchen Witch. Thanks for the great pick! We loved these cookies.

Happy Baking!

Crunchy Munchy Bumpy Cookies

Funny name...I know. This recipe is one of my childhood favorites. I have fond memories of eating them on long road trips and making them on Sunday afternoons. They are a funny combination of ingredients. People often times ask what's in them because they can't quite figure it out. I think the "surprise" ingredient is rice krispies cereal. They give the cookies a soft crunch and make them irresistible. Because they have carrots in them my 10-year-old told my younger kids that they were healthy. Ha! Healthy they are not, but tasty they are. 

It has been a while since I last made them so yesterday, the girlies and I made them together. They had a great time as did I. When we frosted them I told the girls that one of my favorite parts of making Crunchy Munchy Bumpy Cookies was eating the icing that had dripped off of the cookies and onto the wax paper underneath. They loved that idea and immediately started tasting. 

Crunchy Munchy Bumpy Cookies

3/4 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup OJ
1 tsp vanilla
1 c flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 c grated carrots
1 12-oz package chocolate chips
2 cups oats
1 1/2 cups rice krispies
1/2 cup raisins

Directions:
Cream butter and sugar together.   Add egg, juice and vanilla.   Sift dry ingredients and add to butter/sugar mixture.   Add carrots, chocolate chips, oats, rice krispies and raisins.   Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.   Cool some and then frost with thick glaze made from powdered sugar and orange juice.

Happy Baking and Eating!

Blueberry Crumb Cake TWD

I got to make this wonderful crumb cake! It was very simple to make and took well with the frozen blueberries which are much less expensive (whew!). The recipe calls for a few tablespoons of flour on the blueberries and toss. I'm not sure why this is important - either it allows the blueberries to mix in without leaving a blue/black/purple mess on the batter and keeps the contrast between the cake and berries OR it allows the blueberries to kind of jell like a roux. Either way this was a delicious cake which I enjoyed very much - my kids however wanted chocolate frosting slathered on a box cake and were less than thrilled at this "cake," but that left more for me and some to share with neighbors.

If you'd like a chance to make this treat you can check it out at Befuddlement along with other seriously delicious looking things! Thanks Sihan for picking this delightful breakfast cake!

Treasure Island Cookies

I made these a few weeks ago and they were delicious. Thought I would share.



I found these on allrecipes

Ingredients
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
7/8 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar. Beat in the egg then stir in the vanilla. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients. Mix in the chocolate chips, coconut and pecans. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place the cookies 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

TWD: French Yogurt Cake

Okay, Tuesdays with Dorie fans...here is this weeks post. It was a lovely cake called French Yogurt Cake with Marmalade Glaze (we aren't marmalade lovers so I skipped that part). The description of this cake stated that it was fool proof and that ever woman in france makes this common cake.
This cake was a delight to make. It was super easy and quite delicious. The lemon zest added to the cake was refreshing. The cake called for ground almonds which made for a speckled batter.



I served the cake for Sunday dessert which meant that I didn't get any pictures of it sliced and with the goodies on top because of lighting and we finished the cake off before morning pictures could be taken. I skipped the lemon marmalade and served it with whipped cream and raspberry sauce. I considered making a lemon syrup, but I didn't have enough fresh lemon juice. It was delicious with the sweetened whipped cream and raspberries, but I might try fresh strawberries next time. I also think it would be good with chocolate mousse and fresh strawberries. All in all it is a great basic cake that you could change up fillings or toppings, especially if you baked it in a round pan. Others who made this dessert suggested using a lemon curd which I think would be fabulous.

If you want to try this recipe head on over to My Cookbook Addiction.

TWD: Lemon Cup Custard

I was so excited to make this dessert! I love lemon and I enjoy custard, I knew it would be a hit. The ingredients are minimal (milk, lemon, egg, and sugar), just my kind of recipe! Unfortunately, I let my egg curdle!! We had finished a delicious Sunday dinner and I had looked forward to custard all day, only to be dispointed by my mistake! I was hoping to make the custard again before posting, but was unable to. I bombed it, but plan to try my hand at it again at a later date. For incredible pictures of a great Lemon Cup Custard (for some reason I can't upload my picture), as well as the recipe, check out The Way the Cookie Crumbles. Better luck in your custard making!

Key lime cookies

I have made so much dark chocolate stuff lately, I just needed to "balance my diet"!! Ha!! Ok, but seriously, I just needed something different. Spring is here in Florida! So, here's what I came up with:

Key Lime White Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 pouch sugar cookie mix, made as directed with 1 stick butter and 1 egg

+ 1/2 package white chocolate chips

Key Lime Drizzle

1 1/2 tsps fresh lime zest

1 T softened butter

1 1/2 T fresh lime juice

2/3 c powdered sugar

Directions:

Mix white chocolate chips into sugar cookie mix. Bake as directed. I got about 25 good size cookies out of mine. Cool completely. (You may need to sneak one nice warm un-limified cookie.)

Mix ingredients for drizzle. You may need to add a few tablespoons of powdered sugar to get a good consistency. Spoon drizzle into a ziplock bag and snip a tiny hole in one corner. Pipe onto cookies, then allow drizzle to set up. Enjoy!! Maybe these cookies will bring spring to you a little sooner!

Hooked...

I am totally hooked on baking bread right now. Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day is wonderful! Look what came out of my oven on Sunday night! It looks (and tastes) like a loaf of bread I would pay $5 for at a good bakery. And the best part, it is so easy. The basic recipe has been a huge hit at our house. I have yet to venture out to try variations or any of the other doughs but hope to do so in the next week or so. If you like bread with a crusty outside and a nice crumb inside this is a must-have book in my opinion. I am currently using the library's copy and am anxiously awaiting my own copy to arrive in the mail. 

Celestial Confections: Chocolate Armagnac Cake

Yay!  Its my turn again for Tuesdays with Dorie!  This weeks choice was picked by Lyb at And Then I do the Dishes.   I was a little surprised by the use of 12 moist plump prunes in this decadent chocolate cake.  I made a few subs.  I used grapejuice and brandy extract instead of the Armagnac.  I could totally taste the prunes in this.  However, I gave some to my neighbors and they had no idea it had prunes in it. (I think I just knew it was there and couldn't get over it.) The prunes didn't stop me from eating it.  It was super-yummy.  

Just for kicks, I conducted a "round 2" and I made a few other subs.  I used prune baby food (so I wouldn't have bits of prune) and brandy extract, but also added orange marmalade and added some fresh orange zest to the glaze.  I preferred round 2 just because I love all things chocolate orange.  They were both great though!

This picture was so hard on Jesse.  He was waiting with his fork in hand while I took pictures and he kept asking if I was done yet so he could dig in.