Banana Fudge Brownies

Weekly (and I mean weekly) I find myself with 1-2 overly ripe bananas. If you're thinking, "Well, Stephanie... buy less bananas..." I will inform you that it doesn't matter if I buy 4 or 10... I still have 1-2 left. Who knows. So anyway, the bananas. Well done. Ripe. Almost rotten. Sometimes they get thrown out, sometimes they get frozen, sometimes they get baked! Into brownies.

I wasn't sure if I'd love these because I tend to be a total purist with my brownies but these were amazingly delicious. I actually brought them to school and fed them to my students as a special treat for them after they finished the NJ-ASK and they were all happy to enjoy this semi-healthy but totally delicious treat. I somewhat regretted sharing them with them.. because, you know... less for me ::wink wink::

Source:  Alida's Kitchen

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups packed brown sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1 cup mashed overripe bananas (2-3, depending on size)
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Cooking spray

Directions:

1- Preheat oven to 350*F. Spray a 13x9-inch baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.
2-In a large bowl, whisk flour, brown sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt.
3-In a medium bowl, stir bananas, milk, oil, and vanilla until well-blended.
4-Add banana mixture to flour mixture, gently stirring until just combined. Add chocolate chips, folding gently.
5-Pour batter into prepared baking pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (Be careful not to over bake, otherwise the brownie may not be as fudgy). 

6-Move pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into squares to serve.

Texas Fudge Cake

As a true Northeastern girl I haven't ventured into the south much. I've been to Virginia, and Florida (but does that count as "the south"?), and... that might be about it! So when it comes to Texas fudge cake, I have no idea if this is authentic, or if people in Texas really eat a lot of fudge cake, but if they don't- they should. Because this recipe is good stuff! I made if for Easter (yes... and I'm just sharing it now) and loved it! I really think it's a great recipe for entertaining because it can be made a day or so ahead of time and it really holds up well. John and I sampled from this cake for the whole week after Easter and it was still moist and delicious. I like how the frosting is more of a crackly/fudgy topping and not a thick traditional frosting. It kind of reminded me of a brownie more than a cake, but a hybrid of brownie-cake can never be a bad thing!

Source: Cassie Craves

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
5 tablespoons cocoa
1 cup water
2 cups sifted flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 batch frosting (recipe follows)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees with rack in the center of the oven. Butter and flour a 9 x 13 metal pan.
2. In a medium saucepan combine the butter, cocoa, and water. Bring to a boil.
3. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda.
4. Pour the hot ingredients into the the dry ingredients. Stir well with a wooden spoon.
5. Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla. Stir until the batter is smooth.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and place it in the oven. Bake for 25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Remove the cake from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool. Immediately make the frosting and pour the frosting over the warm cake. Spread the frosting evenly and let the cake cool before serving.

Frosting

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
3 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons cocoa
Dash salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar

1. In a medium saucepan combine the butter, milk, cocoa, salt, and vanilla. Bring to a boil.
2. Place the powdered sugar in a large bowl. Pour the hot ingredients over the powdered sugar and beat with a wooden spoon until the frosting is smooth.

Brownie Bottom Delights

First off, don't make fun of my name for these. I've told you before that coming up with creative names for my recipes is my downfall. I'm descriptive, but I'm not creative. See- these have brownies on the bottom, and they truly are delightful, so... brownie bottom delights it is! Anyway, let's get on track, I know you're more interested in the recipe and less interested in my babble, I understand.

 I made these over a month ago for a family gathering. I had seen recipes like this all over pinterest but I didn't follow any in particular, rather just went for it based off the pictures I had seen. I did two versions- mini muffin tins and a 8x8 pan since this makes a lot. Next time I'd just do a 9x13 pan and call it a day. They all stuck to the mini muffin tins even though I greased the pan excessively and it drove me insane, so in the future these will be made as pictured above. Note I said "in the future"- these will be made often for gatherings. In fact I'm 99% sure these will be gracing my dessert table for Thanksgiving- they are sinfully good!

Ingredients:
1 box brownie mix, prepared as directed
1 batch chocolate chip cookie dough
1 bag mini Reese's peanut butter cups

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- Pour the brownie batter to the bottom of the 9x13 dish (greased very well).
3- Top with the mini pb cups (you can chop them up or leave them whole).
4- Dalloop the cookie batter over top.
5- Bake 25-30 minutes or until the top is golden, the bottom and sides are firm, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (That might be hard to do since it'll likely go in a pb cup and come out melty, I just kind of judged by color and lack of "wiggle" to the brownies).
6- Allow to cool completely before serving.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pudding Cake

I love get togethers. I'm a big fan of having somewhere to go, having something to do, and most importantly having a reason to bake something I would otherwise never make. Like this cake. This delicious, delicious, delicious cake. You see, the last thing I need is a big cake like this sitting around in my house. Because you know what will happen? I will eat it- all of it- and maybe share a tiny corner with John. So really that doesn't work. Recently my uncle had a birthday to celebrate and I quickly volunteered to bring the cake. My uncle is not picky and will eat anything (except peanut butter- weird...) so I had plenty of options to work with. I finally settled on this recipe because of the cream cheese layer. It was reminiscent of cheesecake, his ultimate favorite, but not as heavy and dense as a cheesecake.

When all was said and done this recipe was divine. We all ate it and loved it. My cake doesn't have the perfectly aligned layers as the original recipe's picture shows, but hey- I'm just your average home cook! I am not claiming to be a master chef 'round here! What I am claiming though is that I can make one mean dessert- and this was unreal. Try it- now- right now- go- run- go make a cake!

Source: Taste of Home

Ingredients:

1 tube (16-1/2 ounces) refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 carton (12 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided
3 cups cold 2% milk
1 package (3.9 ounces) instant chocolate pudding mix
1 package (3.4 ounces) instant vanilla pudding mix
Chocolate chips

Directions
1- Let cookie dough stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes to soften. Press into an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 14-16 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack.

2- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Fold in 1-3/4 cups whipped topping. Spread over crust.
3- In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mixes for 2 minutes. Spread over cream cheese layer. Top with remaining whipped topping and chocolate chips.

4- Allow to sit in the fridge overnight or at least 8 hours.

Peanut Butter Smores Bars

It's funny how big of a role food plays in my life. Really it's a HUGE aspect of my daily activity. Between my love of cooking, my love of blogging, the basic human need to eat, and now making homemade baby food for Landon, it seems that food is overtaking my life. Ironically food has also rekindled an old friendship of mine from my high school days. My friend Natalie and I started messaging one another about cooking on facebook a little over a year ago after 8 years of no contact and our message thread is now over 7,000 messages. Yes, 7,000. No, they're not all about food, but I'd say 6,959 of them mention food. We're not obsessed. Not one bit.

Anyway, one day I realized that for all our talk about food we never actually ate one another's food! Whenever we got together we'd go out to eat so really we needed to get together once and cook. We met up on Memorial Day and each brought various components for a picnic. One of the things I brought were these bars. I think the picture really sells them, but incase you need convincing, these were extremely good. I never use marshmallow fluff but I really should- it's so fun and mushy-gushy. Yum! Try these- there's not one thing I can say except "Make these and make them now!"

Source: Adapted from The Sweet Life

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
16 peanut butter cups, regular sized
1 1/2 cup marshmallow fluff

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350. Spray the bottom of an 8x8 dish with cooking spray. Combine the butter, oil, and sugars in mixing bowl. Stir well. Once stirred, mix in the egg and vanilla.
2- Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and graham cracker crumbs. Mix into the butter mixture, stirring well.
3- Spread 2/3 of the cookie batter into the dish, pushing down well and spreading evenly.
4- Lay the peanut butter cups in even spacing over the cookie dough, pressing gently into the cookie. Top with the fluff, spreading evenly. Top with the remaining cookie dough. Using a rubber spatula spread the cookie dough over the top of the fluff (it's ok if it doesn't cover it perfectly).
5- Bake 30 minutes. Allow to cool at least 2 hours to set, then slice and remove from the pan.

Cinnamon-Chocolate Nachos

I'm home on maternity leave until September which has been the biggest blessing. I love that my main responsibility is to take care of my son. I love waking up and knowing that as long as I feed, change, and love my baby I accomplished my tasks. Yet, while I feed, change, and love my little man there are countless hours of time spent alone, without another adult to talk to. For someone as social as I am that can get a bit... boring. Enter the TV. Now, many of you are well acquainted with TV. You might even have one or two (or six...) in your house. I was never much of a TV watcher. It just doesn't hold my interest. Lately though, it's my BFF. I still don't sit down and watch a TV show too often but I do like it on for background noise. I like to hear other adult voices in the house, it makes the day go by faster. The other day while I was watching my umpteenth hour of television I saw Melissa d'Arabian making cinnamon nachos and I almost died. Literally. Ok, maybe not literally.

I made these the other night to celebrate a job well done for John and I. What did we do well, you ask? Well... we got to Sunday night, the house was clean decent, the dishes were done, the baby was bathed and sleeping, and it wasn't midnight. SCORE. They came out so delicious I seriously wanted the plate to never end. John and I sat in silence, shoving these in our faces, smiling, and fighting over the last chip. (I gave it to John... I'm so sweet). I modified this a lot from the original because I liked the idea of keeping the chocolate as a dip instead of pouring it on top. I also didn't feel this needed whipped cream- it was definitely sweet enough. The best part of this is that you can make it really quickly using common ingredients. I can't wait to make this again- it's perfect for nights when you want dessert but don't have anything in the house!

Source: Heavily adapted from Melissa d'Arabian

Ingredients:
4 small flour tortillas
2 tbsp butter
Cinnamon sugar (or mixture of equal parts cinnamon and sugar)
3 tbsp chocolate chips
1 tbsp heavy cream

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 450.
2- Melt the butter. Brush the butter over both sides of the tortillas.
3- Sprinkle cinnamon sugar to taste on both sides of the tortilla.
4- Cut into fourths. Place on a silicone bake mat or a cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick spray (or parchment paper). Bake 10 minutes, flipping halfway through.
5- Remove chips from the oven. Melt the chocolate and cream together in the microwave.
6- Serve immediately.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake Cookies

Do you remember when I posted this recipe for cake batter cookies? Well, I posted it almost a year ago and it is the recipe that gets me the most hits on Google, Pinterest, and various other sources. I guess it's safe to say we love some cake batter cookies 'round here! With that said, right after I had the baby my mom came over with various groceries. One of the ingredients that found its way into my cabinet was a box of chocolate cake mix. Well, hello there cake mix, we'll be good friends...

I kept saying that as soon as I could "get it together" the first thing I was baking was chocolate cake batter cookies with peanut butter chips. The other day Landon was being a perfect little baby and I decided to tempt fate be brave and try to bake while the little bug napped. Luckily for me I basically finished making these just as he was waking up. The whole time I was feeding the baby I was staring at these cookies on the cooling racks, salivating, dying to try one. By the time he finished eating I basically ran to the counter to try them. They were so stinkin' delicious. They taste almost like brownies crossed with cookies. Can there be anything better? Nope.

Source: Adapted from All Recipes

Ingredients:
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup peanut butter chips
1/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:
1- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2-In a medium bowl, stir together the cake mix and baking powder. Add eggs and oil, then mix until well blended. (It was a bit crumbly for me so I used my hands to really mix it well- it's not as smooth as typical dough.)
 3-Stir in peanut butter and chocolate chips. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
4- Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven.  Allow cookies to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Cup Blondies

I tend to brag about the area I live in to my family and friends who live near where I grew up. You see, I grew up in an area that had all of the basic restaurants, lots of pizza places, etc. But it lacked (and still does) diversity. I can go out for Indian, Middle Eastern, Thai, Japanese, Italian, or really anything you can imagine and be at a restaurant within 5-10 minutes of leaving my house. We also have tons of Italian delis/markets. I just love my area! (And yes... because of food... you shouldn't be surprised...)

However, there's one store we're missing. Trader Joe's. I LOVE Trader Joe's, but the closest one is about 20-25 minutes away and I just rarely go. Every time I go I spend a ton of money and stock up on all types of stuff. I also tend to buy way too many impulse buys at Trader Joe's. My latest? A little tub of mini peanut butter cups. It was definitely one of those "I'm pregnant and you can't stop me! I can buy a tub of candy and not feel guilty!" moments. Well, the fact of the matter is even 8 months pregnant I don't NEED a tub of peanut butter cups so I decided to make something using them. Something John would eat. Something that would prevent me from housing a whole tub of candy. These blondies were perfect. They were really good too. We both liked them. Next time though I'd add more peanut butter. I like a bold peanut butter taste and didn't feel it came through enough, but that could be just me! A great base recipe though, especially since in a week we'll all have lots of Halloween candy hanging around.

Source: The Cooking Nurse

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 cup peanut butter, crunchy or smooth
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
2 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/4 cup chocolate chips
4 peanut butter cups, chopped, or 1/2-3/4 cup mini peanut butter cups

Directions:
1- Preheat over to 375. Spray a 9x9 square baking dish with spray.
2- In a large bowl combine flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt. Stir and set aside.
3- In a separate bowl combine the peanut butter, butter, milk, vanilla, and eggs. Stir well to combine
4- Pour the wet into the dry, mixing well until evenly incorporated. Don't over stir.
5- Add the chocolate chips, stir, and pour into the baking dish. Top with the peanut butter cups. Bake 19-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with slightly moist crumbs.
6- Cool in the pan on a wire rack, then cut and serve.

Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Brittle

This stuff is to die for. Seriously, it's addicting. Be warned.

Now that we got that over with, I've had this many times over the past 6 years. My friend Kristen makes this often for events and I am always excited when I know this delicious dessert will be making an appearance. It's just so amazing. Think about it- chocolate? Check. Peanut butter? Check. Sweet AND salty? Check. It has all the marks of an amazing treat and truly is a crowd pleaser. I took this to a family gathering and it was a huge hit with everyone. I was glad I saved a few pieces for myself at home because I've been thinking about it all week and slowly picking at the few pieces I left myself. I even threatened John when he tried to take one of my last two pieces.

...I do have to say though, I like it better when Kristen makes it ::wink wink:: Luckily for me I work with her and live across the street... so I'm sure I'll have it many more times in my life!

Source: Every Day with Rachel Ray

Ingredients:

Saltine crackers (a little over 1 sleeve)

2 sticks (8 oz) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 12oz bag chocolate chips

1 cup creamy peanut butter

Coarse salt

Directions:

1- Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, covering the bottom and sides. Place a layer of crackers on the sheet, breaking as needed to cover the surface; set aside.

2- In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the sugar and 2 tablespoons water. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat and cook undisturbed until the caramel mixture is light golden and registers 255° on a candy thermometer, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool for 1 minute. Stir in the vanilla and quickly pour over the crackers, using a spatula to spread evenly. Bake for 8 minutes.

3- Remove the brittle from the oven and sprinkle with the chocolate chips. Bake just until the chocolate starts to melt, about 2 minutes, then spread the chocolate evenly and let the brittle cool for 5 minutes.

4- Meanwhile, melt the peanut butter in the saucepan over low heat; drizzle across the chocolate and, using the handle of a spoon, swirl the chocolate and peanut butter. Sprinkle with salt.

5- Let the brittle cool for 1 hour, then refrigerate until set, at least 2 hours. Break into pieces to serve.

Crunchy Crispy Cookies

Baking has taken a back seat this summer. Between the heat (which has been unreal) to the pregnancy fatigue (which has also been unreal) baking has become a hobby from my past. A few nights ago I wanted cookies. NOW. And not just cookies, homemade cookies. So I hobbled walked into the kitchen and got to work. After making a couple original cookie recipes I have become quite confident in my abilities to throw things together and see what happens.  These came out awesome! I think the texture at first can be a bit surprising, you can definitely "feel" the rice krispies in the cookie in each bite. They have a subtle peanut butter hint to them with chocolate chips in each bite. Definitely a fun twist on the traditional chocolate chip cookie- give it a shot!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
1 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup chunky peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup rice krispies
1 cup flour
3/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- In a large bowl stir the chunky peanut butter into the melted butter while it's still hot, stirring well. Add the sugars and mix.
3- Stir in the egg, vanilla, and salt. Mix until well incorporated.
4- Mix in the rice krispies and flour until well incorporated, stir in the chocolate chips.
5- Scoop by the tablespoon onto a greased cookie sheet or a silpat lined sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes, until golden on the edges. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Baked Chocolate Doughnuts

Important question of the day: is it "doughnuts" or "donuts"? Who knows... I'm pretty sure it's the first, so I'm going with it. Dunkin' Donuts has ruined the spelling for all of us. Today is national doughnut day, believe it or not. Who knew such a thing existed? I didn't until the radio informed me of it this morning! Luckily I had a doughnut recipe ready to go.

I made these for a bake sale and they were a big hit. I mean, they're chocolate doughnuts with chocolate fudge drizzle, really how bad can it be? I am such a fan of baked doughnuts, they are much more cake-like than traditional fried doughnuts, but to me that's a positive thing. If you still don't have a doughnut pan you need to get one, they are cheap and you'll find plenty of times to use it!

Source: Slightly adapted from Real Mom Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup cake flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup chocolate chips
Sprinkles

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 325.
2- Combine the first 5 ingredients in a bowl. Stir well.
3- Stir in the milk, egg, oil, and vanilla until well combined.
4- Transfer the batter to a large zipper bag (cut one tip off) or piping bag. Pipe the batter into greased doughnut pans, filling 2/3 of the way.
5- Bake 8-10 minutes.
6- Allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes than transfer to a wire rack.
7- Once cooled, melt the chocolate chips. Pour the melted chocolate into a zipper bag (cut one tip off) or piping bag. Pipe a drizzle of chocolate over the doughnuts. Cover with sprinkles.

Double Fudge Brownies

I can't make brownies. I just can't. I try, but if they don't come from a box I just fail at making brownies. They are often raw, and if they're not raw they're burnt. Brownies are my archenemy. I am impatient- I cut into them too soon, often before they are set. I just can't master them!

For some reason I decided I need to try to make brownies again for Easter. My amazing family was bringing the desserts, but I wanted to have some small dessert to contribute to my dinner, so I found this simple recipe. I was so skeptical about them. I really thought they weren't going to work out, but I made them a day in advance and let them sit covered over night. I sliced them the following day, and Ta-DAAAA! Beautifully, fully cooked brownies. I didn't get a good picture of these bad boys (thanks to the 30 things I had cooking that day) but I couldn't not my post my first successful brownie experience. Everyone loved these, so maybe brownies and I won't be enemies much longer...

Source: Very Best Baking

Ingredients:

2 cups chocolate chips, divided
1 stick butter
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cup flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp baking soda

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350- grease a 9x13 pan.
1- In a medium saucepan melt the butter. Add 1 cup of chocolate chips and stir well, until melted. Remove from heat.
2- Set aside and allow to cool for about 5 minutes. Break in the eggs, stirring well after each egg.
3- Stir in the flour, granulated sugar, vanilla, and baking soda. Once well combined add in the other cup of chocolate chips.
4- Pour into the greased pan. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted on the center comes back slightly sticky (you may hit a chocolate chip, so test a few times to make sure it's done and not just melted chocolate chips your hitting).
5- Once it's done, place the tin on a wired rack to cool. Top with a sprinkling of additional chocolate chips while still hot, if desired.

Fudge Striped Shortbread Cookies

One thing that reminds me of childhood is summer. I remember my swimming pool- spinning in circles and staring up at the trees and leaves that hung high above, the branches gently arching over the water, and spinning until I fell over from dizziness. I remember watching the blues and greens swirl into a tie-dye of colors. I remember rushing outside to my sand box and playing on the swings. I remember learning that if I kicked off the old tree just right on my tire swing I didn't need someone to push me. I remember laying in my hammock and feeling at ease. The days would turn into nights, and I'd curl up on a lounge chair by the pool with a book, a blanket, and my cat. These were the best days of my childhood.  I long for my old house, and my old pool, and my old tire swing- and as I write this I am literally getting teary from the happy memories.

When I took these pictures for the blog, I was looking at the colors in the picture above and my memories from childhood hit me. The background in the above picture is the tree lining behind my house, but the way the sun and the leaves swirled took me back to a happy time and place in my life. I knew that even if the story didn't directly relate it needed to be told.

I don't know about you, but another fond memory of childhood is those Keebler Fudge Striped cookies, you know, the circle ones? I used to love to stick my finger through the hole and wear it like a ring, eating gently around the sides to see how close I could get before it broke. I was always a bit strange... But anyhoo, these cookies are so so so so so good. They are soft and delicate, the chocolate lightly contrasts the butter cookie. They aren't exactly like the round "ring" cookies of my childhood, but they are well worth the time to make them. They are lovely. As is childhood. And summer.

Is it June yet?

Source:  Eat, Live, Run

Ingredients:
2 sticks butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup good quality semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1- Preheat oven to 350.
2- Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the flour, salt, and vanilla until a dough forms.
3- Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for 30-60 minutes (I did 30 and mine spread to circles- I'd do 60 minutes if you want it to hold a more rectangular shape like the original linked above).
4- After chilling, roll dough into a log shape and slice into 1/2 inch cookies. Place on a lined cookie sheet and bake 20 minutes.
5- Cool completely.
6- Melt the semisweet chocolate. Pour the chocolate into a large zipper bag and cut off the edge. Gently drizzle the chocolate over the cookies. Cool completely and allow chocolate to harden.

Yields about 2 dozen cookies

Chocolate Chip Waffles

Breakfast in my house isn't really a big to-do. If I'm being honest with you, I just ate a handful of Ritz crackers and I'm calling it breakfast. John is playing video games downstairs, and presumably he ate a bowl of cereal. We just aren't huge breakfast people. As a child I hated all things breakfast related. The only way my mom could get me to eat any food before school was to feed me pizza (Ellio's to be specific) or chicken nuggets. I've said it before, but my poor mom- I was impossible.

I became aware of how weird I was in second grade. My second grade teacher, Mrs. Cook, used to line us up for gym by asking questions like, "If your favorite color is blue, line up." Well... one day Mrs. Cook decided to get all fancy and ask what we had for breakfast. I sat there, smiling, completely unaware of how weird I was. She called the standards- fruit, cereal, toast, bagels, pancakes, etc. And yet, with everyone on line, there was one child still sitting. ME. So she asked, "Stephanie, what did you have for breakfast?" I simply replied, "Pizza." I mean... who doesn't eat pizza for breakfast, right?! Oh, well... I quickly learned how wrong I was. But I wasn't a liar- I didn't get on line with the cereal kids- I waited. And Mrs. Cook learned to adapt. She then added "pizza" to her list so I didn't always have to be last. Now looking at this interaction through the eyes of a teacher I know two things for sure. 1- Mrs. Cook was a great teacher. 2- I was surely talked about in the faculty room that day during lunch.

I've come a long way since my pizza days, I mostly eat fruit and nuts or fruit and a granola bar... but sometimes I get all fancy shmancy and actually make breakfast. I made these waffles Valentine's Day weekend for my valentine. They were delicious. Actually, they were the perfect texture. Crisp and light. I would love them even without the chocolate chips. I actually liked them so much I didn't use any syrup- I felt they were nice and sweet alone. A must try- that is, if you're not eating pizza for breakfast. ::wink wink::

Source: Cooking Light

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp. butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
1 large egg white
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:
1- Preheat your waffle iron. Coat with cooking spray.
2- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Stir and set aside.
3- In another bowl beat together the egg yolk, butter, and milk. Stir into flour mixture.
4- In a small bowl beat together the egg white and sugar until stiff peaks form (you can use a stand mixer if you prefer). Fold into batter.
5- Fold in the chocolate chips.
6- Spoon about 1/2 cup batter and cook according to your waffle irons directions, about 3-5 minutes, depending on your waffle iron.
7- Serve hot.

Perfect Party Cookies

When you find something you love, truly deeply love, it can become all consuming. I am an extremely passionate person and I tend to get obsessed with things that hold meaning to me. Blogging is truly my passion and has become something that is all consuming for me. Not in a bad way, I mean I still socialize and shower and stuff, but I spend a lot of time blogging/researching/cooking/etc. It's my release. As a child I loved to write and took great pleasure from writing. As I grew older I set that part of me aside because I knew I didn't want to write books, and I figured if you didn't write books then you weren't a writer. It was through this blog that my love for writing rekindled. I can be myself- I can write my quirky thoughts just as they appear in my brain, and I can release some of my creative energy.

Aside from the writing aspect of this blog there is the obvious part- the food. While I like to dream that you come here for my little paragraphs at the top, I know most people skip to the recipes- and that's ok too. I try my best to come up with new recipes, ultimately trying to make up a good portion of what I put on this blog. Baking has been an area where I did NOT get creative. Sure I'd throw some chocolate chips in a recipe that didn't call for them (I am wild like that...) but I didn't mess with the quantities of ingredients because baking is science. Yet, one night I literally bounced off the couch and decided I was going to make up my own cookie recipe. I just started tossing things together, hopping around my little 2 by 4 of a kitchen, and then proudly proclaimed to John that "this was going to make the prettiest garbage!" because I was sure they wouldn't turn out.

Well... well well well... they turned out. They are amazing! And I'm not just saying that because it's my first original cookie recipe. I'm saying that because they are so firm and sturdy, yet soft in the center. They are pretty and colorful, and chocolatey, and cake-battery, and just delectable. Also since I'm lazy I didn't feel like pulling out my Kitchen Aide mixer (those things are so heavy... I'm amazed I still have 10 toes) so I used my laziness to come up with a recipe I could mix by hand... and here it is. I really am proud of this recipe, perhaps more proud than any other here, because it's truly my own. I've made at least 100 original recipes on this blog, but this one took me out of my comfort zone and it worked out so nicely. If you try these PLEASE don't be shy- comment, and tell me how they go. I'm like a proud mama letting her baby ducklings out to the pond for the first time... and I'm hoping they float rather than sink. So make these, they are excellent, and then tell me how it went. K? K.

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 cup yellow boxed cake mix
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup butter, melted, and slightly cooled
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup chocolate chips
4 tbsp. colored sprinkles

Directions:
1- In a large bowl sift together the flour, cake mix, and baking soda. Set aside.
2- In a bowl, beat together the melted butter, egg yolk, egg, and vanilla until slightly creamy. Add the sugars and stir well.
3- Add the flour mixture, stir until well combined.
4- Stir in the chocolate chips and sprinkles.
5- Refrigerate for 30 minutes (the dough will be very runny).
6- Preheat oven to 350.
7- Once dough is chilled, scoop heaping tablespoons worth of dough onto greased cookie sheets. The dough should be slightly smaller than a golf ball. Keep dough cool until it goes in the oven.
8- Bake 12-15 minutes, until the edges are golden and the center sets.
9- Cool for 5 minutes on the sheet, then place on a cooling rack to cool.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today is the last day to enter my "favorite things" giveaway. The contest ends at MIDNIGHT. So what are you waiting for? Enter here. ( CONTEST ENDED- WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON MONDAY ON THE BLOG)

Food blogging is a funny little subsection of the world. You make "friends" and you form connections. Ironically, a couple years ago, a blogger I "knew" from blogging contacted me and said she just found out that she worked with my husband. It was so funny and such a small world. After that event Cathy and I would send goodies to one another through John. One of the goodies I received were these cookies. It must have been almost two years ago that I received these cookies but I have never stopped thinking about them. I don't know what took me so long to get around to making them but I'm so glad I did. They are goooooood. I love the added crunch from the oatmeal, and really peanut butter and chocolate are always a winning combination. I am so glad I finally made these because they were delicious and I will absolutely be making them again (and again... and again...)

Source: Cathy's Kitchen Journey

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter 
1/2 cup white sugar 
1/3 cup packed brown sugar 
1 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy will both work) 
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 
1 egg 
1 cup all-purpose flour 
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1/4 teaspoon salt 
1/2 cup rolled oats 
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F (175° C).
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, white sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Stir in the peanut butter, vanilla and egg until well blended. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; stir into the batter just until moistened. Mix in the oats and chocolate chips until evenly distributed. Drop by tablespoonfuls on to lightly greased cookie sheets.(Flatten the cookies because these don’t spread.)
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until the edges start to brown. Cool on cookie sheets for about 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Brownie Pie

Look. Let's get real for a minute. Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and if you are even halfway alive you are aware that the world (and certainly the blogosphere) is exploding with pink, red, and hearts. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not a hater of Valentine's Day, I'm not making an intentional boycott of all things heart shaped here on Stephanie Cooks, I'm just getting to the real meaning of the day: CHOCOLATE. John learned early on to save the flowers and go straight for the milky chocolate goodness.

I made this dessert for my mother's birthday and I am willing to bet it was my biggest hit yet. My family raved and raved about this, and I must say I understand why. The brownie layer was dense, fudgy, and chocolate rich. The peanut butter mousse was a light contrast to the dense brownie. Paired together it was like I died and went to heaven.

One bit of advice. Use a deep pie crust. I did, and I still couldn't fit all of the peanut butter mousse on top. Which means I have a nice container full of this stuff to use up... get ready, I'm sure I'll come up with a way. OH and if you're not sick of me, one MORE bit of advice- make this for your Valentine. Show someone you love them with this. Nothing says "I love you" like rich fattening desserts... believe me on this one.

Source: Slightly adapted from What's Cookin' Chicago?

Ingredients:
1 deep dish pie crust (I used a frozen one)
1 15.5 oz. brownie mix
1/4 cup peanut butter chips
1/3 cup canola oil
3 tablespoons water
1 egg
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1 container (8 oz.) whipped topping

Directions:
1- Heat oven to 350.
2- In a large bowl combine the brownie mix, egg, oil, water, and peanut butter chips. Stir well to combine and until completely incorporated.
3- Pour into pie crust, bake for 35-40 minutes, until cooked through. (Cover pie crust with tin foil after 20 minutes if it starts to burn)
4- Cool for 20 minutes, then refrigerate for an hour.
5- In a stand mixer combine the cream cheese, peanut butter, and powdered sugar. Beat until completely incorporated.
6- Fold in the whipped topping, until completely combined.
7- Top the brownie with peanut butter mousse and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving. Serve cold.

Cake Batter Cookies

Remember when I posted this cake batter bark? Well if you don't you should REALLY check it out- it's so stinkin' good. That recipe called for a teaspoon and change of cake mix, leaving me with a big (almost) full box of cake mix. Of all the things to stress about in life this certainly did not top my list- I can always find a use for cake mix.

Enter these cookies. My husband has a bit of a cookie problem and eats them faster than anyone I know, so keeping cookies in the house is never a problem for me because they are often gone before I go to get some. These cookies were exactly as I expected- delicious with a subtly cakey vanillay taste. (Do you notice I like to add the letter "y" to words? Who knows... let's just go with the flow on this one.) I liked how soft and fluffy they were and the chocolate added a nice contrast to the mix. You can get crafty here and use any flavor cake mix you want- I used yellow- but whatever you have will work.

Source: All Recipes

Ingredients:
1 box cake mix
1 tsp. baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions: 
1- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2-In a medium bowl, stir together the cake mix and baking powder. Add eggs and oil, then mix until well blended. (It was a bit crumbly for me so I used my hands to really mix it well- it's not as smooth as typical dough.)
 3-Stir in chocolate chips, or your choice of additions. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
4- Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven.  Allow cookies to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

**Today begins my final facebook fan page blog giveaway, and it's by far the one I'm most excited to be giving. Make sure you follow my fan page here, hit "like" and answer the question of the day. Contest ends at midnight tomorrow (Friday, January 14)!**

Now that that's out of the way, can we get to that dip up there?! Yes, puh-lease, let's.

I made this dip years and years ago to take to a friend's house and I remember thinking "This is what people rave about?! This stuff?! Really?!" I loved the idea- I really did- but the taste was wrong to me. It tasted too much like cheesecake to call itself cookie dough dip. And yet, years later, I still have longed to try it again but a little differently. I thought of options- pudding, less cream cheese, more sugar... hmmm, what to do...  Enter Cool Whip.

I made this for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. It was a hit at both locations and people were eating it like crazy. I personally ate my weight in dip, and someone else's weight in dip too. But hey, my pants still button (barely...) so who cares, bring on the dip!!

For me the Cool Whip is essential. It makes it lighter and fluffier, it cuts the cream cheese taste, and it makes my soul cry out in joy. If you like that cheesecake taste, hey- leave the Cool Whip out- it's up to you. But me, yeah, I use it.

Source: Adapted from Food.com

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 8oz. package cream cheese
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips, plus more for topping
1/2 tub Cool Whip

Directions:
1. In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the brown sugar over medium heat. Stir continuously, until the brown sugar dissolves.
2- Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla.
3- Beat the cream cheese and confectioners' sugar for 1 minute.
4- Stir in the cooled butter mixture and beat again for another minute.
5- Stir in the chocolate chips. 
6- Fold in the Cool Whip until evenly dispersed. 
7- Pour into a bowl. Top with additional chocolate chips, if desired.
8- Refrigerate at least 1 hour. Remove from fridge at least 15 minutes before serving.
9- Serve with assorted small cookies (Nilla Wafers, Teddy Grahams, animal crackers, etc.)

Mini Chocolate Chip Pecan Loaf Cakes

This year for Christmas I made a list of wish items... and all of them involved the kitchen. Donut pans, an immersion blender, mini loaf pans... the list goes on. Oh- I also requested that cute little pink cupcake stand in the picture- why not, right?! My mom got me the mini loaf pan (among many other great items) and I immediately got to work on coming up with a mini loaf cake recipe.

John recently went snowboarding and I decided to make these little loaves for him to take with him for him and his friends. They received nothing but praise according to John. (One of his friends who always makes anti-marriage jokes even said, "Maybe marriage isn't so bad" after tasting one of these. Now THAT'S a compliment!) I tasted just a bite of one, to make sure I wasn't poisoning his friends, and I was quite pleased with the results. They were soft and fluffy. I loved the combo of the chocolate and pecans. And best of all, in the mini loaf pan you can make little individual servings. Instant portion control my friends. Who says I'm not being mindful of New Year's resolutions?

Source: Adapted from The Amateur Gourmet

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
2/3 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
3 large eggs
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup chocolate chip

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1- Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a mini loaf pan (8 slots) or a regular loaf pan.

2- Using a whisk, whisk together the sugar and yogurt. Add the eggs, one at a time, and whisk until completely combined.

3- 3. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry mixture into the wet and mix until just combined.

4. Using a spatula, fold in the melted butter a little at a time. Fold in the chocolate chips and pecans.

5. 5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. If using a mini loaf pan, bake 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. If using a regular loaf pan bake 50-55 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

6. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool to room temperature, right side up. 

Directions: