Brown Butter Butterscotch Pretzel Cookies

I have a delicious cookie for you today. It's soft, thick, chewy, and crunchy. Because of the browned butter it totally tastes like caramel too! Make these! The recipe is over at Reality Daydream!

Funfetti Cake Mix Cookies

This month over at Reality Daydream I'm sharing these cute, easy, delicious cookies! You can change up the sprinkles to any color for any holiday so they can become a staple. Funfetti for the win!

Go get the recipe, and while you're over there, Beth does some amazing projects! Have a look around and get inspired to make something new and fun for your house, this wall is one of my favorites!

Big, Thick, Chewy, & SOFT Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have an addiction to chocolate chip cookies. Now I've found a recipe that I think is going to be hard to top! I was looking for a thick, chewy, SOFT cookie and I found it. These stay soft for over a week. its amazing!

I try and convince my kids that they want me to make them so I have an excuse. I used 2 kinds of chocolate chips and a tablespoon of vanilla to get as many yummy flavors as I could. I am going to go make another batch as soon as I finish typing. 

Big, Thick, Chewy, & Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup Butter, room temp
3/4 cup Brown Sugar, packed
1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
2 Eggs
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
2 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Cornstarch
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 3/4 cups Chocolate Chips, any variety

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the butter and sugars and beat until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs and vanilla and beat until well combined.

In a medium bow whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and baking powder. Turn your mixer to low and add in the flour mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Line a baking sheet with a silpat mat. Measure 1/4 cup of dough and form into thick circles.Bake for 9-11 minutes. The middle of the cookie should look a little under baked. 

Remove from the oven and let cool for a couple minutes on the cookie sheet and then move to a cooling rack. These are really good warm and really good at room temp so enjoy!

Recipe Slightly Adapted from: Life, Love, and Sugar

Hot Chocolate Cookies

This year, the treats I made for my neighbors included the Peppermint Bark Fudge I shared with you on Wednesday and these cookies. I don't think I've ever had so many people tell me they enjoyed something I've made as much as I have about these cookies, even my husband who professes to hate the flavor of cocoa liked these cookies!

They are a super soft, dark chocolate cookie, topped with 3 cute little marshmallows and a milk chocolate glaze that cuts through the richness of the cookie. It would be perfect with a glass of milk!

Hot Chocolate Cookies
Makes 45 cookies

Cookies
1/2 cup Butter
1 - 12oz bag Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1/2 cup Cocoa Powder
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 cups Brown Sugar
3 Eggs
1 teaspoon Chocolate Extract
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
135 Mini Marshmallows

Glaze
4 Tablespoons Butter, melted
1/4 cup Cocoa
1/4 cup Hot Water
1/2 teaspoon Chocolate Extract
1/2 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
2 cups Powdered Sugar

Cookies

In a small saucepan combine the butter and chocolate chips. Melt over medium-low heat until smooth. Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt until combined.

In the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla until well combined. Add in the chocolate/butter mixture, mix.

Slowly add the flour mixture into the chocolate. Beat until just combined. Cover and refrigerate for an hour or 2.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silpat mat. Using a small cookie scoop, about a tablespoon, roll into a ball and flatten a little bit, and place on the prepared cookie sheet.

Bake for about 8 minutes then remove from the oven and press 3 marshmallows on top of each cookie. Put back in the oven and bake for 2 more minutes. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes and then move to a cooling rack.

Glaze

In a small bowl mix together the melted butter, cocoa, hot water, and both extracts. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and whisk until smooth. Pour over your cooled cookies and top with sprinkles.

Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

For the last month I've been obsessed with finding some chewy cookie recipes. I've been making and eating cookies like its going out of style and its been delicious so far. Today's recipe is an amazing chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. They are soft, have the perfect amount of chocolate, and they are chewy, so chewy. And they're big enough that one is enough. You can have 2, I wont judge you, but they're big. Big, chewy, and amazing!

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
3/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Salt
3/4 cup Butter, melted & cooled
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
1 Tablespoon Honey
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
1 Egg
2 1/2 cups Old Fashioned Oats
2 cups Chocolate Chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt and set aside. 

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the butter and sugars. Beat for 1 minute on medium. Add in the honey, vanilla, and the egg. Scrape the bowl and add in the flour mixture. Mix to just combine. 

3. Add in the oats and the chocolate chips and mix until just combined again. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours. Using a 1/4 cup scoop place them on a cookie sheet and bake for 12- 14 minutes, until the center looks just set and not wet.

Recipe Source:  Just So Tasty

Churro Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

I'm posting today over at Reality Daydream today! I'm sharing cookies that are full of cinnamon sugar and are soft and chewy. With a big scoop of vanilla ice cream in between its a delicious summer dessert! Go get the recipe, You'll love it!!

Brown Sugar Cookies

I have some soft as pillow sugar cookies I'm sharing over at Sawdust with Embryos today. These are no ordinary sugar cookies. They are more rich because of the brown sugar, and they melt in your mouth. They are topped with a delicious sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting. Go get the recipe!

Cinnamon Dippers at Sawdust and Embryos

I'm guest posting over at Sawdust and Embryos today! Go over and get the recipe for these soft and sweet cinnamon dippers!

Chocolate Sugar Cookies and SRC

For the Secret Recipe Club this month I was assigned DailyDishRecipes.com. Its run by a lady named Nicole from St.Louis. She considers herself the Queen of Comfort Food and she likes easy recipes made from scratch! She has 5 kids and tries to make her picky eaters not so picky anymore. :)

She has several recipes I want to make but I'm always intrigued by something chocolate! I decided to make her Chocolate Sugar Cookies. They are sweet, soft, and something I'll be making again soon! I adapted them a little so I could shape them, but they are still essentially the same. Go over to Daily Dish Recipes and find something delicious to make!

Simple Chocolate Sugar Cookies
Recipe Adapted from: DailyDishRecipes.com

1 cup Butter, room temp
1 cup Granulated Sugar
1 Egg
1 1/2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
2 cups Flour
1/2 teaspoon Salt
3/4 cup Cocoa
1 cup White Chocolate Chips (Optional)

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the egg and vanilla and mix until combined. 

2. In a separate bowl whisk together the cocoa, flour, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge for an hour.

3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line your cookie sheets with silpat mats or parchment paper. Lightly flour your surface and roll out dough. Cut out shapes with desired cookie cutter and bake for 8-10 mintues.

An InLinkz Link-up

Caramel Popcorn Cookies and Secret Recipe Club

Have you ever heard of popcorn cookies? I hadn't. Well not until I was assigned the spectacular blog Food Babbles for the Secret Recipe Club this month. The authors name is Kate, she is a mom to 3 and she has lots of great people in her life who influence her cooking and baking, which is probably why all of her stuff is amazing!

I went on a search of her blog and found so many things to try, Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake, Cannoli Roulade, Dark Chocolate Espresso Chocolate Chip Brownies, and Lemon Curd Ice Cream, just to name a few. There are many many more recipes I will be going back to try!

I finally decided on these Caramel Popcorn Cookies because my Maycie's number one requested treat is caramel popcorn and I needed to do something different for my sake. As different as I thought this cookie would be it was delicious! Sweet, chewy, and caramel-y. I made them the way the recipe was written here and then I made a few changes to make them taste more caramel-y. Either way they are worth making, so go over to Food Babbles and check it out, you won't regret it!!

Caramel Popcorn Cookies
Recipe Adapted From: FoodBabbles.com

1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Butter, Room Temp
1 1/2 cups Caramel Popcorn, chopped and divided
1 large Egg
2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/8 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup Quick Oats

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat mats.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the brown sugar and butter on medium until light and fluffy. Add in 1/2 cup of the chopped popcorn and the egg. Beat until combined. Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon.

3. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add into the wet ingredients stir with your wooden spoon until just combined. Add in the quick oats and 1 cup of the chopped caramel popcorn and stir again until just combined.

4. Using a small cookie scoop put them on your prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet and then move to a wire rack to continue to cool.

An InLinkz Link-up

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Once upon a time I thought I had found my favorite chocolate chip cookie. Its this one from the Pioneer Woman. They weren't great right out of the oven but were better the next day. Then I found this recipe. Soft, chewy, sweet, and the perfect amount of chocolate chips. The best part is they stay as good as straight out of the oven for days, but they probably wont last that long. So for now, this is my favorite recipe. Please make these!!

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe Adapted From: ChewOutLoud.com

2 1/4 cups & 1 Tablespoon All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Salted Butter, at room temp
1 cup Brown Sugar, gently packed
1 - 3.4oz pkg White Chocolate Pudding
2 Large Eggs
1/2 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 cup Mini Chocolate Chips

1. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the brown sugar and butter. Beat on medium high until light and fluffy. Add the pudding and mix until just combined. Add in the eggs and vanilla. Beat until well combined.

3. Slowly add in the dry ingredients mixing on low until just combined. Add in the chocolate chips and mix until well distributed. Place saran wrap right on the dough pressing down gently to compact the cookie dough. Place in the fridge and chill for at least an hour. 

4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line the cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silpat mat. using a small cookie scoop make 1 inch balls and press a little. Bake for about 10 minutes, mine take 11. They may seem a little under done but thats ok. Make sure not to over bake. Let cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes then place on a cooling rack.

Biscoff Pinwheels and Secret Recipe Club

I am excited about my post for this months Secret Recipe Club! The blog I had this month was... Its Good To Be The Cook. Beth is the author of Its Good To Be The Cook, she's from just outside Philadelphia and has a degree in Communications(Film/Video). She grew up helping her mom prepare meals for her family and because of it she has a passion for cooking, eating, and traveling. She loves movies, baseball, and neddlepoint too! But she has so many great recipes on her blog that it was so hard to choose and you know me, I'm a sucker for a dessert so I picked her Cookie Butter Pinwheels. 

I was skeptical because how could making cookies with Crescent rolls be good, but I'm always up for trying something new, so I tried and I couldn't believe how easy it they were. And in the end how delicious they were. I mean who can say no to some Biscoff or Nutella. I made half of mine with Biscoff and half with Nutella. They were both delicious. The glaze on the Biscoff ones has cinnamon in it and the Nutella glaze doesn't. 

Go over to Its Good To Be The Cook and find something delicious for yourself!!

Biscoff Pinwheels
Recipe Source: Its Good To Be The Cook

1 regular can Crescent Rolls
1/2 cup Biscoff Spread or Nutella
1 cup Powdered Sugar
2 Tablespoons Milk
1/2 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon

1. Lay out a piece of saran wrap and unroll your crescent dough so its flat and press your seams together.

2. Spread the Biscoff or Nutella over the dough until its about a 1/4 inch from the edge. With the help of your saran wrap roll up your dough tightly, lengthwise. Leave the wrap around it and put it in the freezer for about an hour.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place parchment paper or a silpat mat on a cookie sheet. Unroll the saran wrap and slice the dough into 1/4 inch wide cookies. Place the cookies on the cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes, or until golden.

4. While the cookies are cooling make the glaze. Combine the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon, don't add the cinnamon if your cookies are made with Nutella. Whisk together and pour over your cookies. Let them set for about 20 minutes before eating.

An InLinkz Link-up

Cherry Crisp Cookie Pizza's & Secret Recipe Club

For the Secret Recipe Club this month I had Crumb. It is home to an awesome lady named Isabelle and she has a passion for food, writing, and photography. She loves to use fresh ingredients and make everything from scratch. 

I came upon this recipe and changed it a little cause it seems things have been crazy in October. But I know the recipe would've been better if I'd followed her recipe exactly.  She used pizza dough for her base, I used a sugar cookie. She used homemade raspberry filling, I used canned cherry pie filling. I did follow her crumb recipe and it was so sweet and crunchy.

Make my version and go check out her recipe and make the original. They are both delish!

Cherry Crisp Cookie Pizza's
Recipe Source: CrumbBlog.com

1 can Cherry Pie Filling
1 recipe Sugar Cookies

Crumble Topping
1 1/4 cups Quick Oats
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar, packed
1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Butter, softened

In a small bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add in the softened butter and mix until it is crumbly and set aside.

Roll out your sugar cookies and place on a silpat mat or parchment paper. Evenly spoon your cherry pie filling on the sugar cookie and sprinkle your crumble on top. Bake for the recommended time or until the edges turn golden brown.

Patriotic Cookies

The 4th of July is a holiday that I really enjoy. We get up at 5:30am and go see hot air balloons take off. Afterward we go to a parade and later we have a party at my Grandmas house and do fireworks. The last few years the holidays have gotten even better because our kids enjoy them too. They especially enjoy this holiday cause of all the fun and family.

I've also started to try a bunch of fun recipes. So over the next week or so I'll be sharing them with you so you'll have fun things to make at your 4th of July parties, starting out with this delicious cookie. Its easy but the effect is dramatic! People will be so impressed!

Patriotic Cookies
Recipe Source: Nestle.com

1- 16.5oz pkg refrigerated Chocolate Chip Cookie Bar Dough
1- 8 oz pkg Cream Cheese, at room temp
1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
24 Strawberries, sliced
3/4 cup Blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Between 2 pieces of parchment paper roll the cookie dough until its 1/4 inch thick. Refrigerate dough for 10 minutes. Remove the top piece of parchment paper. Using a 3-inch star cookie cutter cut the cookie dough. Transfer to an ungreased cookie sheet. Roll remaining dough to 1/4-inch thickness, refrigerate dough for 10 minutes, and cut additional stars.

3. Bake for about 10 or until golden brown. While the cookies are hot, reshape the edges of each star with knife. Let cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool completely.

4. Beat the cream cheese and sugar in small mixer bowl until fluffy. Spread onto cooled cookies. Place strawberry slices onto each cookie pointing outward. Put a dollop of the cream cheese mixture onto the strawberries and place about 5 blueberries in center of each cookie.

Devils Food Caramel Cookies

This is my first time participating in the Secret Recipe Club. I got assigned Miranda from Biting Life! I have been so excited to participate in this and was so excited to check out a blog I haven't been to before! Miranda not only makes recipes she finds other places but is also so creative she comes up with her own recipes! 

I went through so many of her recipes and finally decided to make something that not only sounded delicious but was so simple. Dark Chocolate Caramel Cookies. Its made with a cake mix and the only cake mix I had on hand was devils food cake so that's why my recipe has a different name. Go check out Biting Life and find something you want to make!

Devils Food Caramel Cookies
Recipe Source: BitingLife.com

1 - 9oz pkg Baking Caramels
1 box Devils Food Cake
2 Eggs
1/3 cup Vegetable Oil
1/4 cup Powdered Sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with a silpat mat or parchment paper. In a medium bowl mix the cake mix, oil, and eggs together until just combined. It will be really thick, you need it like that to cover the caramels.

2. Take a caramel and cover it with the dough, rolling into a ball. Roll the dough into the powered sugar and place on the prepared cookie sheet. The cookies don't spread out very much so you can fit 12 on a cookie sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes.

Ginger Cookies

I love ginger snaps but sometimes I wish they were more soft instead of hard and crunchy. When I found this recipe I was excited to try it. They were as good as I thought they would be. They are sweet, soft, and they don't have an overwhelming ginger flavor. I added white chocolate chips to soften the flavor a bit and they were just like I hoped they would be.

Ginger Cookies

Recipe Source: TheSweetsLife.com

4 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour 

3 teaspoons of Ground Ginger
2 teaspoons Baking Soda
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Ground Cloves
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 cups Shortening
2 cups Granulated Sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Molasses

1 bag White Chocolate Chips

3/4 cup Granulated Sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl combine flour, ginger, baking soda, ground cinnamon, cloves, and salt in a bowl. 

2. In the bowl of a mixture beat shortening in mixer for 30 seconds, until creamy. Add sugar and beat until combined. Add eggs and molasses, continuing mixing until combined. Slowly add flour mixture until it is all added. Pour the white chocolate chips into the bowl and mix with a wooden spoon.

3. Pour 3/4 cup sugar into a bowl. Shape dough into 1 1/2 inch balls and roll in the sugar. Place on cookie sheets and bake for 12-15 minutes.

I shared this at
Totally Tasty Tuesdays

S'more Whoopie Pies

You cant miss with a whoppie pie and s'mores are so simple and so delicious. Everything about these are soft and fluffy. The cookie has the taste and texture of a graham cracker. The chocolate is soft and the marshmallow is light, fluffy, and sweet. A delicious version of a s'more without having to make a fire!

S'more Whoopie Pies

Recipe Source: SweetPeasKitchen.com and CookiesandCups.com

Graham Cracker Whoopie

1 1/2 cups Graham Flour

3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Salt
4 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
4 Tablespoons Vegetable Shortening
1 cup packed Brown Sugar
2 large Eggs

1/2 cup Buttermilk
2 Tablespoons Milk
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon White Vinegar
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

Marshmallow Frosting

1/2 cup Butter, room temperature
1 cup Marshmallow Creme
2 cups Powdered Sugar
2 Tablespoons Milk

4 Hershey Chocolate Bars

Whoopie Cookies
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, and salt and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, shortening and brown sugar until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and the buttermilk and beat until combined.

3. In a measuring cup, combine the milk, baking soda, and vinegar. With your mixer on low and add half of the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Mix in the milk mixture. Add in the remaining flour mixture just until just combined. Add the vanilla and mix on medium speed for about 2 minutes, until combined.

4. Drop tablespoon sized dollops of the dough onto the baking sheets, about 2-inches apart. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the tops are firm. Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then move to a wire rack to cool completely.

Marshmallow Frosting
Mix butter and creme on medium speed until smooth. Slowly add in powdered sugar with mixer on low. Add in milk and turn speed up to medium and mix until all combined.

Melt chocolate Hershey bars on 50% power in 30 second increments stirring until melted.

Assembling the Pies
Spread a layer of chocolate the flat side of one of the cakes. Pipe marshmallow filling in the center onto another flat side of one of the cookies leaving room for it to spread out when they are sandwiched together. Repeat with the rest of the cakes and filling.

I shared this at
National S'mores Day {Recipe Round-Up}

Thin Mint Truffles

Mint truffles are my favorite. This is so easy its the yummiest truffle I've ever made. The original recipe calls for Thin Mints but I missed girl scout cookie season so I used Grasshopper cookies instead.

Thin Mint Truffles

Recipe Source: ConfessionsofaCookbookQueen.com

9oz box of Thin Mints or Grasshopper Cookies, finely crushed

4oz Cream Cheese, softened
Dark Chocolate Almond Bark or Candy Melts
Nonpareils

1. Pour crushed Thin Mints in a large bowl and add the cream cheese. Its pretty thick so I mixed it in my mixer and then made sure it was mixed really well with my hands until the cream cheese was no longer visible.

2. Roll into 1 inch balls, place on a wax paper lined baking sheet, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Melt almond bark or candy melts and using a toothpick, dip truffles completely and twirl to allow the excess to drip off. Place back on lined baking sheet and sprinkle with nonpareils before set. Refrigerate until firm. Makes about 24 truffles.

I shared this at
Sweets for a Saturday

Gingerbread Houses

The last recipe I posted was for some yummy chewy gingerbread men. This recipe is for the harder gingerbread to make your houses out of. It tastes really good and makes a fun family activity. 

I googled gingerbread house templates and found one I liked and this is what we made. Super simple, but I had to make a bunch so thats what we were going for. 

**These are best started 2 days before decorating because the dough needs to chill for several hours. Once baked the dough needs to dry out and then once the houses are put together the frosting needs to set before decorating.

Gingerbread Houses

Recipe Source: MelsKitchenCafe.com

7 cups Flour
2 teaspoons Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Ginger
1 teaspoon Cloves
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Allspice
1/3 cup Shortening
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 1/2 cup Molasses
2/3 cup Cold Water

1. Stir together dry ingredients and set aside. In a large bowl, use mixer to beat shortening, brown sugar and molasses until well combined. Stir in water. Beat in flour mixture gradually. When dough becomes stiff, work in remaining flour mixture with wooden spoon, mixing well. Wrap and chill dough several hours. 

2. Divide dough in thirds. Roll out onto a well floured surface to 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Carefully cut out with small pointed knife. Place pieces on a greased and floured cookie sheet and bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool on a cooling rack and let stand several hours to dry out. **Rolling the dough about 1/8-inch thick, we made 9 houses.

Icing:
3 Egg Whites at room temperature 

4 cups Powdered Sugar
1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar  

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until medium peaks form. Keep the bowl covered with a damp towel so that the icing does not get hard. Assemble the houses the night before decorating (they need at least 5-6 hours to set). Store extra frosting in the refrigerator wrapped in plastic wrap.

Gingerbread Men

This is the first Christmas we have really been able to do a lot of fun things since my oldest is 3 she is excited about it. So I have been trying to think of things to do with my kids and what is more Christmas as kid than decorating gingerbread men. These ones are thick and chewy and they taste delicious.

They did whatever they wanted to them and had a blast!

Gingerbread Men

Recipe Source: MelsKitchenCafe.com

3 cups Flour
3/4 cup Dark Brown Sugar, packed
3/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon Ground Cinnamon
1 Tablespoon Ground Ginger
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cloves
1/2 teaspoon Salt
12 Tablespoons Butter, room temperature, cut into 12 pieces
3/4 cup Molasses
2 Tablespoons Milk

1. With an electric mixer, stir together the flour, brown sugar, soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt at low speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Stop the mixer and add the butter pieces. Mix at medium-low speed until the mixture resembles fine meal, about 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low, gradually add the molasses and the milk. Mix until the dough is evenly moistened about 20 seconds. Increase the speed to medium and mix until thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds.

2. Scrape the dough out of the bowl and divide in half. Working with one portion at a time, roll the dough about a 1/4 inch thick between 2 large sheets of parchment paper. Leaving the dough sandwiched between the parchment paper, stack the dough on a baking sheet and freeze until firm, 15 to 20 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat liners.

4. Remove one dough sheet from the freezer and place on the counter. Peel off the top parchment or wax paper sheet. Gently cut the dough into gingerbread cookies, transferring the shapes to the prepared baking sheets  spacing them 3/4 inch apart. Set the scraps aside. Repeat with the remaining dough until the baking sheets are full. Dough scraps can be rolled and cut as many times as needed.

4. Bake the cookies until set in the centers and the dough barely retains and imprint when touched very gently with fingertip, about 9 minutes. Be careful not overbake! Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 2 minutes, then remove the cookies with a wide metal spatula to a wire rack. Cool to room temperature. Frost as desired.

5. Store soft gingerbread in a container or tin with a sheet of parchment paper between the cookie layers. Best eaten within one week.