Sugar Cookie Bars

To me, Valentines’ Day is a great excuse to go out for a one-on-one date with your man for a fabulous meal.  I try not to put the pressure on for a gift -- but I do put the pressure on for a good reservation ;-)  

So we all know how great those frosted, sprinkled, sugar cookies that you can buy in grocery stores are....they are kind of like cocaine.  These are worse.  They are gooey and soft and the buttercream frosting is amazing.  What I love about them is that the frosting can be dyed any color and decorated to represent any holiday or party theme.  Keep ‘em coming!!!

Sugar Cookie Bars (makes 18 bars)

The Curvy Carrot

For the cookie bars:

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

5 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For the frosting:

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

Pinch sea salt

4 cups confectioners’ sugar

5 tablespoons milk

Food coloring, as desired

Sprinkles, for garnish, optional

1. For the cookie bars: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. Line a rimmed 10 x 15-inch (or 9×9-inch brownie pan) with parchment paper; set aside.

3. In the bowl of your standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

4. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

5. Add the vanilla.

6. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda, mixing well.

7. Reduce the mixer speed to low, and slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture.  Mix until thoroughly combined.

8. Using a rubber spatula, evenly spread the cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheet (or brownie pan).

9. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.  (They should be light golden brown).

10.  Let cool completely.

11. For the frosting:  In the bowl of your standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

12. Add the vanilla and salt, mixing well.

13. Reduce the mixer speed to low and carefully add the confectioners’ sugar, one cup at a time.

14. Add the milk and mix until smooth.

15. Add your desired amount of food color (if using) and mix until incorporated.

16. Frost and decorate as desired onto the cookie bars.

Oatmeal Almond Crisps

Christmas baking is upon us all!  Honestly, I find all this baking ridiculously overwhelming....but then again....I’ve never claimed to be a baker.  I find baking to be a stressor whereas the opposite happens when I can get into the kitchen and make dinner or a savory treat -- I find that very relaxing.  

So -- when I am diving into the piles of cookie recipes I’ve collected over the years, I find myself counting ingredients and tossing the long recipes over my shoulder in disgust.  For that reason, this cookie recipe came to the top of my pile.  Short ingredient list? Check!  Ease of preparation? Check! Delicious? Double check!  My favorite thing about these babies is their lack of flour.  I love the texture as well -- almonds and oatmeal come together beautifully.  Not to mention they are the perfect crunch mate for coffee or tea!  

Oatmeal-Almond Crisps 

Martha Stewart

1/3 c. packed light brown sugar

1/4 c. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

1 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 c. rolled oats (not quick cooking)

1/2 c. sliced almonds

nonstick cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk brown sugar, butter, egg and vanilla until smooth.  Mix in oats and almonds.
3. Drop mixture by level tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart.  Spray the underside of a metal spatula with nonstick cooking spray, and use to flatten cookies into 2 1/2 -inch disks.
4. Bake until golden, 14 to 16 minutes.  Cool completely on baking sheets. (Handle with care; cookies are fragile.)

Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip Cookies

It’s been a long weekend of work for this girl and I need some chocolate and peanut butter in my life!!!!!!!  As many of you know, I’m a pharmacist by day and obsessive home cook/eater by night, so that means working every other weekend in the pharmacy.     

I love my job but these past few days were killer so I’m very much looking forward to a couple days off spent in the kitchen cooking up some eats to show off to all my ChowGals {and ChowGuys -- if you’re out there!}.  Hubs and some friends of ours are also going out to gorge ourselves at a local Brazillian steakhouse tonight -- you know the place where you have the red card/green card and as long as your card is flipped to green the waiters keep bringing you assorted sizzling meat....it’s pretty much any American’s dream...right?  So pumped!  

Ok so these cookies don’t really need an introduction or explanation, for they are glorious.  Just make them and take them to the face, already!  

Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 c. creamy peanut butter

1 large egg

1 c. sugar, plus more for sprinkling

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/4 tsp coarse salt

1/2 c. mini milk chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together peanut butter, egg, sugar, baking soda, vanilla and salt until combined.  Fold in chocolate chips with rubber spatula or wooden spoon.  
3. Using a 1 3/4 inch scoop, scoop dough onto prepared baking sheet, spacing 2 inches apart.  Using the lines of a fork, gently press down on each scoop in a crosshatch pattern.  Sprinkle with sugar and transfer to oven.  Bake until slightly puffed, 11 to 12 minutes.  Cookies will still be soft.  Cool for 5 minutes and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Funfetti Sandwich Cookies

Hey everyone!  Today is a special blogging day for me, as it is my 50th post!  I’ve been having so much fun sharing recipes and stories with you all and I want to pass on my appreciation by having a cookbook giveaway!  The cookbook is one of my favorites {and one of my favorite food categories}: Williams-Sonoma New Flavors for Appetizers.  This book is so great because it takes those well-known party appetizers and kicks them up a notch to make them fabulous.  Some of my favorites from this book include: slow-roasted pork tostaditas with pickled red onions, olives and feta marinated with lemon and ouzo, lobster rolls with bacon, tomato and caper mayo, and grilled figs with prosciutto and gorgonzola.  Not only are the recipes fabulous but the photography is amazing.  Also included in the prize are some really fun and playful cocktail napkins and matching disposable appetizer plates so you have everything you need for a little App Party!

All you have to do to enter to win the prize is comment on this post at the bottom of the page.  You can comment up until Sunday night at 9:00pm and the winner will be drawn at random and announced on the blog on Monday!  Good luck!

So, this being my 50th post and something I’m proud of, I decided to make these super fun and colorful Funfetti Sandwich Cookies.  They just look like a party!  {And they taste super great -- sweet and creamy with a little crunch from the sprinkles!}  

Funfetti Sandwich Cookies

from Yammies Noshery

2 sticks softened butter

1 1/4 c. sugar

2 tsp vanilla 

1 egg

2 c. cake flour

2/3 c. all purpose flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 c. colored sprinkles

more sprinkles for rolling

1. Beat butter and sugar on high for 5 minutes or until fluffy.  Add in vanilla and egg.  Beat until well combined.  Sift flours, baking soda and salt.  Mix to combine.  Stir in sprinkles.  Chill dough in fridge, 1-2 hours.  
2. Preheat oven to 375.  Take small piece of dough, dip in sprinkles, roll into a ball and place on baking sheet.  Repeat until sheet is filled.  Bake 7 minutes or until cookies puff up and are set.  Keep remaining dough chilled while baking.

Filling:

1/2 c. heavy cream 

1 tsp vanilla

2 c. powered sugar

2 sticks cold butter, chopped into small cubes

2 tbsp sprinkles

1. Beat cream and vanilla until slightly thickened.  Beat in the powdered sugar until thick and smooth.  Beat in about 1/4 of cold butter cubes tat a time on high speed.  Beat 10 minutes on high speed.  The filling will look weird but just keep at it!  Fold in sprinkles and spread on cookie and top with another.

MiniChow Brownie Sandwich Cookies with Cherry Buttercream Filling

In all my years of cooking, I’ve never felt 100% comfortable in the baking department.  Baking is a science, relying on precise measurements.  I’m one of those cooks that throws in a little of this and a little of that without measuring anything and rarely precisely following a recipe.  Not a good technique for baking....

So, I saw these delightful brownie cookies on Pinterest filled with a salted caramel filling.  I decided I wanted to make them a little more summery and make a cherry buttercream filling instead.  So I got out my measuring cups and spoons and got to work.  From the beginning I knew there was a problem.  My batter was a little runny for my liking.  The recipe said to rest the batter for 15 minutes and it would thicken up a little bit -- it did, PHEW!  I was back in business.  So I placed my teaspoonfuls of batter on the parchment and popped them in the oven.

I get a little nervous every time I put my finished work in the oven because this is usually where disaster happens -- but I said to myself, “Don’t look!  Just make the cherry buttercream, everything will be fine!”  Well, everything was not fine -- at all!  My cookies melted into one giant, thin cookie.  They were supposed to puff up and be super cute and crackly but instead I had a brownie cookie puddle.  I wanted to be dramatic and throw the entire thing in the trashcan, cookie sheet and all, screaming about how I need to take a baking class -- but a little gem popped into my head on how to fix this.  The cookie still tasted great, chewy on the inside and crispy on the outside.  So I took a shot glass and punched out mini cookies from the giant cookie.  I made some MiniChow sandwich cookies from this hideous disaster, and they were delicious!  

I’m anxious to see if you guys get the proper result from this recipe.  They are supposed to look like THIS.  Or if you have a disaster then just use my shot glass technique -- and please if you make this recipe and get good results, let me know!  

Brownie Sandwich Cookies with Cherry Buttercream Filling

from Bakers Royale

Brownie Cookie

12 oz. chocolate, chopped

3 tbsp butter

2 eggs

2/3 c. sugar

1 tsp vanilla extracted

1/4 c. all-purpose flour, sifted

1/4 tsp baking powder, sifted

Cherry Buttercream Filling

1 c. butter

2 c. confectioner sugar

1/4 c. cherry preserves {preferably one that has actually cherry chunks in it! }

To make cookies:

1. Place 7 oz of the chocolate and the butter in a saucepan over low heat and gently stir until melted and smooth, set aside.
2. Place the eggs, sugar and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat for 15 minutes or until pale and creamy.  Add in flour, baking powder, melted chocolate mixture, remaining 5 oz of chocolate and mix to combine.  Set aside to let stand for 10 minutes.  Spoon 2 tablespoonful of the mixture onto parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes or until puffed and cracked.  Allow to cool completely on trays.

To make cherry buttercream filling:

1. Place butter in a bowl and beat until creamed.  Add in confectioner sugar and beat until combined.  Add in cherry preserves and beat until combined.

To assemble: Spread desired amount of buttercream on the underside of each brownie cookie and place a second brownie cookie on top of frosting.