Soft Chewy Molasses Cookies

I have been in full-blown Christmas cookie baking mode the last few days.....I have been making the dough, scooping it, and freezing it so that on Christmas Eve all I will have to do is pop the dough balls into the oven, bake and VOILA! A wide array of delicious cookies to bring to our Christmas Evening Festivities!

Along with the usual sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies (I have been told by many people "these chocolate chip cookies are the best I've ever had and where can they get the recipe?" and I usually say, "the back of the Toll House bag!" because that's the simple truth.....but I do tell them, as I always tell you all, that I chill the dough for at least three hours......so I'll say it again, please chill your cookie dough! Google the science of why!), I am also bringing the Double Chocolate Peppermint Crunch Cookies that I blogged the other day, and then these, Soft Chewy Molasses Cookies. They are really delicious and have that distinct gingerbread taste that we all love so much during the holidays.  I am all for a crisp gingersnap, but I really do prefer soft molasses cookies and this recipe definitely delivers flavor and chewiness all in one.

I scoured Pinterest looking for a recipe that didn't involve using shortening (aka Crisco, YUCK!).....it was hard to find....but I did! This recipe comes from the blog Great Grub, Delicious Treats. It is shortening-free and completely delectable!

And now my holiday baking is complete!

Here is Great Grub, Delicious Treat's recipe word for word:

 

Ingredients

• 1 cup organic sugar
• 3/4 cup butter softened
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1 egg cage free
• 2 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• Sugar for coating optional

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar, butter and molasses together.
3. Beat in egg until light and fluffy.
4. Mix in flour <I sifted my flour>, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, ginger, cloves and nutmeg together until well combined.
5. Cover dough and refrigerate for about an hour. This makes handling the dough much easier.
6. Roll dough into 1 - 1 1/2 in balls.
7. Roll each ball in sugar to coat.
   <And this is the time when I chill my cookie dough. Sometimes I chill it overnight, but you really should chill it for at least 1 to 3 hours. Google the science of why chilled cookies look and taste better>
8. Place on ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart.
9. Bake for 10-12 minutes. <I baked mine for 9 1/2 minutes>
10. Remove from oven and let sit for 1 minute before removing cookies and placing on wire rack to cool.
11. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Double Chocolate Peppermint Crunch Cookies

Every Christmas I scour Pinterest looking for fun Christmas cookies to bake and then blog for you, my friends and readers. These cookies caught my eye right away because of the candy canes and I know you will all love them! The kids helped me make them and they had a blast crushing all the candy canes!!! The verdict - 100% DELICIOUS!!! The soft crunch from the cooked candy canes was really yummy - and the peppermint extract in the dough had a great, subtle taste. We gave these cookies two big thumbs up! I will be bringing them to our family party on Christmas Even (I froze the rest of the dough in pre-scooped balls for convenience). 

***Two notes : 1. Please chill the dough for at least two hours. Chilling cookie dough makes a huge difference in how they bake (Google if if you want the science behind it). and 2. I used way more candy canes then the ingredients state. I put a cup of crushed candy canes in the dough, then I rolled the top of them in about 1/2 cup of crushed canes. When the cookies bake, the candy canes melt - they are delicious, but they do not look as pretty. So, if you care about presentation, sprinkle the baked cookies with extra pieces of crushed candy canes just before serving. They will most likely roll off, but they will look pretty! ;)

This recipe comes from the blog A Pumpkin & A Princess. Here it is word for word with my changes and notes in italics:

 

Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp peppermint extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate chunks
• 1/2 cup candy cane pieces (I used a total of 1 1/2 cups, plus more for sprinkling after they baked. See my note above***)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Beat butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and peppermint until light and fluffy.
3. In a large bowl stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
4. Slowly add flour mixture to butter mixture until well combined.
5. Stir in chocolate chunks. <I mixed in 1 cup of crushed candy canes>
6. Use cookie scoop to drop cookies onto ungreased baking sheet.
7. Press candy cane pieces on top. <I rolled the top of my dough balls in 1/2 cup of crushed candy canes>
8. <I chilled my cookie dough, like I ALWAYS do, for two hours before baking>
9. Bake 8 to 10 minutes.
10. Cool slightly then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. 
11. <Sprinkle with extra candy cane pieces before serving just for looks>

No Bake Nut Butter, Banana & Chocolate Krispie Treats

I REALLY wanted Rice Krispie treats today (yes, I said, "I," not "my kids," but, "I")......I have seen recipes like this on Pinterest before so I thought I would whip up my own version. I had some nice, ripe, brown bananas on the counter (I have to admit I'm always waiting for my bananas to get spotty because then I know I can start baking with them - they also make my smoothies taste better!).  I wanted to incorporate the banana into the treats.  So I threw a few things into my mini food processor (don't forget the vanilla and cinnamon! Yum!), added melted chocolate (always a good idea)....and just to be extra healthy, I threw in some protein packed hemp seeds (which if you haven't ever tried hemp seeds you really need to - they are so tiny and have a mild nutty flavor - they are almost undetectable in baked goods, smoothies and salads - which makes them easy to sneak into foods!).

Let me tell you, it's a miracle these even turned into treats because I was scarfing them like a mad woman straight from the mixing bowl - WOW!!! They are that yummy! Makes a great snack, makes an even better dessert (yes to these Krispie Treats and no to that huge bowl of ice cream!). Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 very ripe banana
1/2 cup peanut butter or any nut butter (I used 1/4 almond and 1/4 peanut....if allergies, use sunbutter)
2 Tbl coconut oil, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup chocolate chips
4-ish cups of Rice Krispies
2 Tbl hemp seeds, plus more for sprinkling, optional

Directions:

Place banana, nut butter, melted coconut, vanilla, salt, cinnamon and pure maple syrup in a food processor or blender. I used my mini-food processor and it was big enough. Blend ingredients until completely smooth.

In a microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips until they are completely smooth (check after a minute, stir, and then cook 30 seconds more).

Place banana mixture and melted chocolate chips into a large bowl. Add the Rice Krispies and hemp seeds, if using. Add until you like the consistency....mine were not super wet.  Stir until completely coated.

Use coconut oil to lightly grease an 8X8 square baking dish. Press Rice Krispie mixture into greased dish and flatten the top with a spoon. If you like you can sprinkle more hemp seeds on top. Place in the 'fridge for at least 30 minutes or until the treats are set. Turn the treats on to a clean cutting board and cut into squares. Enjoy!!

Cranberry Bliss Smoothie

I saw these beautiful, fresh cranberries in the grocery store and I knew I had to put them into a smoothie! I was a bit nervous the smoothie would be too tart, but the orange and very ripe banana evened the flavors out and the whole thing was actually quite sweet! Very yummy and a great way to give you body an immunity boost during cold and flu season!

1/3 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
1 medium orange, peeled
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1 ripe banana
1 cup of your favorite milk, I used an almond/coconut blend
1 Tbl honey (optional)
1 Tbl hemp seeds (optional)
Ice cubes

Place all ingredients into a high power blender. Blend until smooth. Add a couple of ice cubes if desired. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Blossoms with Hershey's Kisses

This recipe is definitely an "oldie" but it still reigns as a "goodie, goodie, goodie" in my book.  My boys were asked to bring in cookies for all the middle school teachers this week....I was about to make my go to chocolate chip cookies, but decided to be a little more festive and make these Peanut Butter Blossoms with Hershey's Kisses.  I'm not sure why this cookie is always associated with Christmastime, but it definitely brings up great memories for me as a child during the holidays.

I made the dough a day in advance (I do this often when I have the time and know I will be busy the night before the cookies actually need to be baked). But chilling your cookie dough for at least an hour (and in my case, one whole day) actually gives you a better tasting cookie. The science behind it has to do with the fat in the chilled cookie dough taking longer to melt while it's cooking...this helps the cookies to spread less during baking. Further, the cookies become more golden as they bake and their flavor more pronounced.  Doubts? Google it!

Anyway, I always chill my dough - it really does make the cookies taste better! 

This recipe is old school Betty Crocker- here it is word for word:

Ingredients

1/2  cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 egg 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Additional granulated sugar

About 36 Hershey's Kisses milk chocolates, unwrapped 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375F 

In large bowl, beat 1/2 cup granulated sugar, the brown sugar, peanut butter, butter and egg with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon, until well blended. Stir in flour, baking soda and baking powder until dough forms.
 

Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll in additional granulated sugar. On ungreased cookie sheets, place about 2 inches apart. 

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Immediately press 1 milk chocolate candy in center of each cookie. Remove from cookie sheets to cooling rack. 

Goat Cheese Polenta with Roasted Veggies

Have you checked out the blog Cookie & Kate yet? It really is an awesome place to find great vegetarian recipes - dinners, desserts, healthy, decadent....she does an awesome job creating a large variety of recipes. I subscribe to her posts and the day I got this one in my inbox I went to the store and made it the next evening. I just knew it would be delicious and it truly was.

I just love polenta so much - and when I saw there was goat cheese IN the polenta, I was sold. The roasted veggies (I used sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts) were amazingly delicious. And I was surprised that I really enjoyed egg as well (I cooked ours "fried over hard"). Two out of three of my kids gave this a big thumbs up (and really, I can't expect more than that since I have one who eats like a typical kid and two that are quite adventurous). This was a scrumptious vegetarian meal that was super filling.

Here is Cookie & Kate's recipe word for word (and make sure to explore her blog when you have a minute):

Ingredients:

Roasted vegetables

• About 2 pounds mixed vegetables, i.e. small butternut squash, red onion here, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, sweet potato, bell peppers <I used one peeled and cubed sweet potato, and Brussels>
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Fine sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Goat cheese polenta

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 leek, white parts only, thoroughly cleaned and chopped <this was my addition>
• ½ teaspoon fine-grain sea salt, to taste
• 3 to 4 cups water, according to package directions
• 1 cup corn polenta (also called grits)*
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 to 3 tablespoons mild salsa verde (homemade or store-bought)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled (about ½ cup crumbled)

Eggs, etc.

• 4 eggs, cooked as desired <I cooked mine "fried over hard" bc we don't like runny yolk>
• Finely sliced green onion, for garnish
• Additional salsa verde and/or hot sauce (I love Cholula)

Instructions

1. To roast the vegetables: Preheat the oven to 400°F. On a large, rimmed baking sheet, combine the vegetables with 2 tablespoons olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Toss until they are lightly coated in oil, then arrange the vegetables in a single layer across the pan. Bake for 25 to 40 minutes (timing will depend on your choice of vegetables), tossing halfway, until the vegetables are tender and deeply golden on the edges.
2. To cook the polenta: In a medium saucepan, warm 2 teaspoons olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the chopped bell pepper and ½ teaspoon salt <I added the leek with the peppers>. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pepper is tender, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the amount of water specified on your package of polenta, crank up the heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Pour in the polenta, whisk to combine, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until thickened, which can take as little as 5 minutes depending on your polenta, whisking often to remove any clumps. Remove the pot from the heat, and stir in the butter, salsa verde and freshly ground black pepper, to taste. Add additional salt, if necessary. Gently fold in the crumbled goat cheese, just until combined. Cover and set aside.
4. Cook your eggs as desired. Divide the grits and eggs into 4 bowls. Divide the vegetables into the bowls and finish them with a light sprinkle of green onion. Serve with additional salsa verde and/or hot sauce on the side.

Holiday Spiced Warm Almond Milk

I have never been a coffee drinker and over the years I have dabbled in tea.....I think I WANT to like tea more than I actually do.....and maybe I just want to also be holding a mug of something warm and toasty while everyone else sips their lattes and coffees. I do like warm chai lattes - but the truth is they are so caloric that I just don't drink them very often. Enter this super easy Holiday Spiced Warm Milk. It is inspired by a similar blend I tried this week at one of my favorite neighborhood organic grocers. It is satisfyingly warm on this brisk December morning, has all the flavors of the Christmas season, and has much less calories than a chai latte from Starbucks. My kids just tried it and they were in love. I probably should have doubled the recipe to make them a cup too.....next time, kids....this mug is for moi!

This glass of warm spiced milk is also full of health benefits. Protein and calcium from the almond milk, anti-inflammatory properties from the cinnamon, ginger & turmeric, and cardamom helps with digestion.  A little spice goes a long way....but the health (and flavor) benefits are great!

I drank mine with a Gingerbread Muffin (click for recipe).... a delicious mid-morning breakfast (and I think I might have another mug before bed tonight). Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk (or regular milk if you have an allergy)

1 Tbl raw honey or pure maple syrup

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp turmeric

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp ginger

Less than 1/8 tsp cardamon (optional) - just the tiniest pinch, as this has a strong flavor

Place all ingredients into a small saucepan. Warm over low heat until desired temperature.

Alternatively, place all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Drink cold or warm in the microwave. 

Enjoy!