Sweet Sundae Cookies

Posted on May 30, 2013 by Lorinda

Party cookies – that’s what these are! Fun and festive, with a surprise in the middle…perfect for any celebration.

It took a couple of batches and the inevitable screw-ups for the finished product to match what I had envisioned during my 3:00 am “voilà” moment. I can tell you that no matter how cute you think the cookies would look with cherry stems poking out of the top, don’t buy cherries with the stems on, because they:

Dry up when they bake, and get very crispy. Not attractive!
Don’t pull out. The whole cherry comes with the stem. So unless you plan on holding the cookie by the stem and popping the entire thing in your mouth, then pulling the stem out between your teeth, it isn’t going to work for you.
Make it impossible to dip in the chocolate, so you have to ~~smear smear it on with your finger~~ pipe it on. Not the look you want.
Cost a freaking fortune. Seriously – I paid $5.00 for a small jar that had a dozen cherries in it. This cookie recipe makes 6 dozen. Even I can do that math!

Oh, the variations you can try! I made some rolled in finely chopped peanuts, plain with peanuts on top, rolled in sprinkles, and plain with sprinkles on top. I topped them with red Sixlets, but M&Ms or Skittles would be fine, too.

Left to right: topped with sprinkles, rolled in sprinkles, topped with peanuts

For my first batch I made a simple pink frosting out of powdered sugar and maraschino cherry juice, which was good, but it took a while to harden, and I tend to get impatient, so I used Wilton Candy Melts for my second batch. Much better; they were easy to melt, easy to dip the cookies into, and dried almost immediately. Sweet!

Here’s the cookie dough recipe. It’s basically my shortbread recipe with an extra teaspoon of half & half to make it a little easier to wrap around the cherry.

Sweet Sundae Cookies

Author: The Rowdy Baker

This is a big recipe, making about 6 dozen cookies.

Ingredients

2 cups butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon milk or half & half
4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt
(2 ea) 16 oz jars of maraschino cherries, drained and blotted dry
Sprinkles and chopped peanuts, if desired

Instructions

Heat the oven to 350 F.
In a large bowl, combine butter and powdered sugar. Beat until light and fluffy.
Add egg yolks and milk or half & half, and blend well. (If using a stand mixer, you may want to switch to the dough hook at this point.)
Add flour, cornstarch, and salt. Stir just until the mixture forms a smooth dough.
Using a size 60 scoop (or a level tablespoon) scoop out dough and roll it into a ball.
Press a cavity in the middle of the ball using your finger or a wooden spoon handle.
Place cherry in the cavity and press dough up and over the cherry. Roll it gently in the palms of your hands to completely enclose the cherry.
Roll in sprinkles or finely chopped peanuts if desired.
Place on baking sheet, 1-2 inches apart, and bake for approximately 14 minutes, or until you see a little golden brown around the bottom edge.
Cool on a rack.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Ready?

L to R: scooped, rolled into ball, cavity, cherry added, rolled into ball, covered with nuts.

The next step is to dip the cooled cookies in pink Candy Melts. I melt mine in a glass bowl in the microwave, beginning with 30 seconds and then switching to 15 second intervals, stirring well each time. Dip about halfway down, let the excess drip off, and then set upright on a baking sheet or plate.

CHOCOLATE TOPPING

1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
3.5 ounces good quality dark chocolate
1/2 plus 2 tablespoons cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt both chocolates in a small bowl in the microwave, beginning with 30 seconds and then switching to 15 second intervals, stirring well each time. Heat just until melted.
Add 1/2 cup of the whipping cream and stir until completely blended.
Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Stir.
Dip the top of one of the cookies in the chocolate. If the chocolate sticks to the pink candy melts, it’s just right. If it’s too thick to stick well, add the remaining cream 1 tablespoon at a time. The chocolate mixture should be thin but not runny.
If the chocolate starts to harden as you’re dipping the cookies, put it in the microwave for 10 seconds and stir well.

After dipping cookies in the chocolate, sprinkle with chopped nuts or sprinkles and add a red candy on the top. Allow to sit at room temperature until firm.

Dip the tops in chocolate, add sprinkles and a candy topper.

Ta Da!

I’d like to stay and chat, but I have a little cleaning up to do. The dog already took care of the sprinkles and chunks of dough on the floor (when will I ever learn to put the guard on my mixer?) but for the sake of sanitation, I’d probably better take care of the counters myself. Know what? It was totally worth it! I love, love, love these cookies.

Fly on the Wall – May

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Lorinda

Wow, the last month went by quickly! It’s time for Fly on the Wall again – a chance for you to see what’s really going on in the homes of 13 bloggers when they think no one is looking. As a fly on the wall in our homes, you’ll be privy to the dirt (in my case, figurative and literal) that others never see. Quick…someone’s getting ready to open the door. Get ready to zip inside!

Babies – we have babies! Out of ten eggs under our broody hen, seven hatched. And you, my little fly friend, are missing a huge opportunity. The brooder box is very fragrant right now, because Mama gets really annoyed when I try to clean it out!

Six are little Buff Orpingtons, but one was a green egg, which makes it half Buff and half Araucana. The little misfit has sergeant stripes on its wings – so cute! Can’t play with them because Hoochie Mama freaks out and stomps all over them, trying to scoot them under her wings. Wish they could stay little and cute. And oh, I wish they could all be girls, since roos will ~~get nuked~~ go to “Freezer Boot Camp” this Fall.

Speaking of chickens, I just have to tell you…cleaning out the coop is a BIG job. I shoveled it out last time, so The Man got the duty this time. You’re a fly, right? So you’d probably feel right at home buzzing around this guy:

Isn’t this your long-lost cousin?

I’m a ham. I have many humiliating examples I can produce to prove this, but believe me…it’s a fact. So when I was asked to be the “Zonk” for our “Let’s Make a Deal” tea for Homemaker’s Club, I was very pleased to put on my flowered dress and dorky hat, and – padded from boobs to bum, with front tooth blacked out – become “Daisy May.” I don’t know why anyone chose what was behind the curtain, because it was usually me, in a housedress sweeping dirt under a rug with (fake) cigarette hanging from my mouth, pruning a dead tree (and sharing some of my wine with it), in a lounge chair at the “beach” in my mumu, or playing “Clementine” on the guitar. Fun times!

Oh my darlin’…oh my darlin’…

I settled on “Clementine” because everyone knows that song, and I wanted them to sing along. But I also realized the my father had left me a real legacy when he sang songs to us around the campfire; I have a lot of “hillbilly” type songs filed away in my brain. Some of them start with catchy lyrics like “There’s a pappy at the gate with a loaded 38” and “Slap her down again, Pa – slap her down again.” It made me sad, made me smile, and made me wish I’d taught these old songs to my children. I guess that’s what grandchildren are for!

You were hanging out here during the 10th annual World Naked Gardening Day. Did you see anything interesting? Uh…no. Huh uh. I have been known to weed topless in the back garden just because it feels awesome and no one can see me, but naked is too scary. Yikes.

Gardening did get done, however. The beautiful weather led to hopes of an early Summer. We have a short season (usually can’t plant most things until Memorial Day) so this was very exciting. Many things went into the dirt with high hopes and crossed fingers. Just in case you’re curious, THIS is what my arm looks like when I take my gardening gloves off!

A common occurrence here in the summer!

So just when I was feeling hopeful, THIS happened.

May? Really?

Bet you’re glad you were safely stuck to my wall, huh? We had five minutes of heavy rain and hail at the same time, blowing sideways at what I would determine was hurricane force. Accompanied by thunder, lightning, and barking dogs. Seriously scary stuff. There will probably be no fruit in our little orchard this year – the stupid hail tore off blossoms and some of the new leaves. Other than that, most of the newly planted garden wasn’t affected. Except for some of the strawberries. And the celery. And the basil.

“He Who Shall Not Be Named On Facebook” was here for a brief visit. I love my son, but the butthead has a real fascination with letting our yellow lab on the couch and petting him vigorously – with fur flying everywhere. He made a modest attempt at scooping some of it up this time (for a change) but instead of putting it in the garbage he made poor Otis a toupee and laughed uproariously. Idiot. Don’t tell him, but I know what he’s getting for Christmas. I’m brushing Otis regularly and saving all his hair, and I’m going to make him a pillow! I think that’s only fair.

Poor Otis and his “toupee”

He is not amused.

Yesterday was another ladies’ luncheon. There was a cake baking contest and my S’mores cake took first place. Did I mention that only three of us entered? Still…it’s a yummy cake, and worth posting a recipe. For the 3 layer version, you can go to my original post at Yummy Northwest S’mores Cake

2 layer S’mores Cake (after the judges tried a piece.)

S'mores Cake

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (I used peanut oil)
1 cup hot coffee
1 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 recipe Graham Cracker Layer
1 recipe Chocolate Ganache
1 recipe Marshmallow Frosting

Instructions

Make one recipe Graham Cracker Layer (see below)
Heat the oven to 350 F.
Grease and flour two 9-inch round pans. (I use parchment on the bottom of the pan and spray it and the sides of the pan with Baker's Joy.)
Divide the graham cracker mixture evenly into both pans, reserving 2 tablespoons for decorating the cake if desired. Press firmly.
In a large mixing bowl, sift together dry ingredients.
Add oil, coffee and milk and mix at medium speed for 2 minutes.
Add the eggs and vanilla, and beat for 2 more minutes. Expect the batter to be thin.
Pour into prepared pans. Bake for about 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle.
***While cake is baking, make your ganache! See below for the recipe.***
Cool in pans on racks for 15 minutes and then turn out and cool completely on racks.
To assemble, place one cake on a plate or cake board, graham cracker side up. Spread with ganache. Place the second layer over the first, graham cracker side down. Frost sides with ganache and pipe around the top and bottom.
Fill the top with marshmallow frosting (see recipe below) and sprinkle with reserved graham cracker mixture.
Decorate with marshmallows, Hershey bars, and pieces of graham cracker if you wish.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

GRAHAM CRACKER LAYER
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped (optional)

Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl

Pouring cake batter over graham cracker layer.

CHOCOLATE GANACHE
16 ounces good quality dark chocolate (don’t use chocolate chips!)
2 cups whipping cream, preferably ultra-pasteurized

Chop chocolate into very small pieces and place in a medium bowl.
Heat cream in a small pan until it just begins to boil, and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for a couple of minutes and then stir gently until blended.
Let the ganache sit at room temperature, stirring occasionally, until it thickens to spreading consistency. This will probably take at least 2 hours. The longer it sits the thicker it gets! If it gets too thick, you can place the bowl in a larger bowl of warm water and stir gently. Don’t ever add liquids to ganache!

MARSHMALLOW FROSTING
2 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup

In medium bowl, beat egg whites, salt, and vanilla at medium speed until foamy.
Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating at high speed until soft peaks form and sugar is dissolved.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring corn syrup just to a boil. Holding the pan high above the egg mixture, pour in a very thin stream, beating at highest speed until frosting is thick.
If you make this ahead, keep it lightly covered until needed.

Pouring a thin stream of boiling corn syrup into egg mixture.

I actually left for the luncheon with an almost clean kitchen. Unheard of. Usually I cover every surface with dishes and pans, but I made a valiant effort to clean up after myself this time. Of course, there were those pesky chocolate cake batter spatters from cupboard to floor, and a few assorted bowls and measuring cups, but all in all it was amazing, since I was finishing the cake and baking croissants at 5:30 AM. BEFORE COFFEE! A tidy kitchen made for a more pleasant homecoming after the luncheon, but spoiled my whole “look at what a freakin’ mess I make” photo shoot idea. Next time!

I’ll leave you with these “before” and “after” action shots of The Man:

BEFORE BREAKFAST

AFTER BREAKFAST!

Yep, he’s a keeper!

Well…if you hurry into the kitchen there are probably still some sticky bits on the countertop for your pleasure. Oh, who am I kidding? There’s no rush; it’s not going to get cleaned until tomorrow anyhow. When you’re through, please buzz over to these other blogs and check out what THEY have on THEIR counters.

Baking In a Tornado
Stacy Sews and Schools
Just a Little Nutty
Menopausal Mother
The Sadder But Wiser Girl
The Momisodes
Follow Me Home
Moore Organized Mayhem
Hypnotic Bard
Tiny Steps Mommy
Spatulas on Parade
Mom Rants and Comfy Pants

Lemon Ginger Tea Cookies

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Lorinda

Lemon Ginger Tea Cookies

How on earth do I describe these cookies? They’re basic, light, and a little ordinary looking. They’re soft on the inside (but not exactly cake-like) and crusty on the outside. When you bite into them it takes a moment to discover the tiny bits of candied ginger and lemon peel, but then the flavors pop.

Personally, I don’t like crumbs in my tea, so I don’t indulge in dunking, but if you are a “dunker”, these cookies are for you!

Blogs right now will be few and far between, I’m afraid. Gardening season is upon me and I have an enormous vegetable garden, so even though I won’t quit baking, the posts will probably be brief and pithy. (Don’t you just love that word? Pithy, pithy, pithy.) I’m sure you will survive a few months without my rambling!

This recipe calls for sour cream. Since we live in the hills and I can’t just run to the store when I’m missing a key ingredient, I’ve learned to adapt. If you find yourself in the same position, a cup of evaporated milk (straight from the can) with a tablespoon of vinegar and a tablespoon of lemon juice stirred in and left to sit for 15 minutes worked perfectly. Your call!

Lemon Ginger Tea Cookies

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Makes 4 to 5 dozen

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
1½ cups sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons grated lemon peel (about 3 large lemons)
2 tablespoons crystallized ginger (chopped into small bits)
4¾ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup sour cream
½ cup sugar in a small bowl for coating balls of dough.
ICING:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
milk (or water) - enough to thin to drizzling consistency

Instructions

Heat oven to 375 F.
Lightly grease (or use parchment) baking sheets.
Cream together the butter and sugar.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well between each.
Add lemon juice, vanilla, lemon peel, and ginger. Beat well.
In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and ginger.
Beginning with the flour and ending with the sour cream, add alternately, approximately one third of each mixture at a time.
If you prefer to roll the cookie dough out and cut it with a round cookie cutter, refrigerate for an hour, then roll ¼" thick and sprinkle with sugar. Otherwise:
Drop dough by rounded teaspoons (or a small scoop) into sugar. Turn to coat, then - using your hands - roll into a ball. Put on the cookie sheet and press with the bottom of a glass to flatten a bit. Repeat, leaving 2 inches between cookies.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until just showing a little golden brown around the bottom edge.
Cool cookies on a rack until cool, and drizzle with icing if desired.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Keep them in an airtight container, or they’ll dry out quickly.

Tossing the dough in sugar, ready to roll into a ball and bake.

Pressing balls of sugared dough before baking.

That’s it! Make a cuppa, put your feet up, and enjoy.

Maple Pecan Spiral Bread

Posted on April 28, 2013 by Lorinda

My love affair with maple just got wilder and more obsessive. Torrid, even! It knows no bounds, respects no limits, takes no prisoners. There…every cliché I could come up with at the moment. (Sorry, Mr. Bass. You tried to teach me better.) I truly have no self-control when it comes to maple.

Here is a tempting loaf of white bread with sweet swirls of maple and toasted pecans. Toasting the pecans is what really takes the flavor over the top, and is such an easy thing to do. You can use your oven, but I just put them in a skillet on the stove at medium low for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until the fragrance drives me crazy. They’re done at that point, but you might need to test them to be absolutely sure. Actually, you might need to test them a few times!

toasting the pecans in a ceramic skillet.

Although this bread is delightful just as it is, I recommend trying it toasted. Yum! It also makes scrumptious French Toast. Making a spiral bread is easy, and very attractive, but I wanted to try a layered bread because I envisioned stripes of maple pecan instead of a spiral. I don’t know why…sometimes I just have to do what the little voices in my head tell me to do.

Maple Pecan Bread – the layered version.

Here’s the recipe in all its glory. I would like to mention that the filling calls for one tablespoon of Mapleine (a maple flavoring.) If you have ~~plebian~~ controllable maple cravings, this is the perfect amount to give your bread a pleasant maple flavor. Frankly, that’s like adding a precise jigger of vodka to a Bloody Mary. Adequate, but a little more is always better! I usually add a bit more (to both mixtures!)

Maple Pecan Spiral Bread

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Makes two loaves. Hide one. Trust me! Hide one.

Ingredients

1 package active dry yeast
1¾ cups hot water
½ cup sugar
1½ teaspoons salt
¼ cup butter, softened (you may use oil if you prefer)
5½ - 6 cups all purpose white flour
MAPLE FILLING:
1½ cup toasted pecans, finely chopped (please don't skip the toasting step!)
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon Mapleine

Instructions

Test the yeast by adding it to ¼ cup warm (not hot) water and a pinch of sugar in a small bowl. (Note: this water and sugar is in addition to the amounts listed above.) Stir lightly and set aside for 10 minutes. If it doesn't bubble and rise up, try again with another package of yeast.
In a large bowl (a stand mixer is best) combine the hot water, sugar, salt, and butter. Stir well.
Add 3 cups of the flour and stir.
When your yeast mixture is bubbly, pour it into the flour mixture and mix well.
Gradually beat in the remaining flour until the dough comes cleanly away from the sides of the bowl.
Knead until smooth (about 8 minutes by hand, 5 minutes if using a dough hook.)
Place dough in a large oiled bowl. Cover and set aside in a warm spot to rise just until doubled - about 1 hour.
While the dough is rising, Make the maple filling by combining the toasted pecans, brown sugar, white sugar, flour, and Mapleine in a small bowl. (To make sure it's well mixed, use your hands!) Set aside.
Grease or spray (I like Baker's Joy) two bread pans.
Punch down the dough and let it stand for 5 minutes. Divide into 2 equal parts and, working with one at a time, roll out to a rectangle, approximately 12"x7", with a short edge towards you.
Lightly brush (or spray) the dough with water. (This will help keep it from developing air pockets.)
Cover generously with maple mixture and pat down firmly. Beginning with the short end, roll away from yourself. Don't worry if a little filling comes out the sides. Turn the seam to the bottom and pinch both sides to close. Set the dough seam down in prepared bread pan. Repeat with the other piece of dough. If you have leftover filling, put it in an airtight container - it's wonderful on hot cereal or as a streusel topping for muffins.
Cover loaves with a dishtowel and let them rise until almost doubled - approximately 1 hour.
Heat oven to 375F.
Bake loaves for 40-45 minutes, until they're a rich golden brown. Let cool slightly, then turn out onto a rack to finish cooling. I like to butter the crust a little while the loaf is still warm.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Adding the yeast.

Dough is kneaded.

Rolling up the dough.

and…in the pan to rise!

Dig in!

To make layered bread, follow the recipe until step #10. After you divide your dough into two parts, roll each part into a 8″x16″ rectangle. Cut four pieces, each 8″x4″. Put one piece into the prepared pan, Lightly brush (or spray) with water, cover it with a layer of maple filling, and repeat, twice, with the fourth piece of dough on the top. Tuck the sides down gently, and allow to rise as usual. After baking, turn them out right away onto a rack. If you let them cool in the pans, the gooey sides will stick. Be gentle, and let them rest on their sides to cool completely.

Cutting strips of dough for a layered effect.

Dough, filling, dough, filling…etc.

I’ll admit it’s not the most attractive bread I’ve ever seen (maybe we can just call it “rustic”, ok?) but the slices themselves are very pretty!

Funny looking from the side!

Now I’m imagining the maple filling in cinnamon rolls, with a maple frosting. Oh oh…I barely get the kitchen clean from one baking spree and another is already building. Stand back – I’m going in there!

Fly on the Wall – April

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Lorinda

Are you interested in seeing what other people do at home when they think no one is watching? Every month a group of bloggers give you a glimpse on “Fly on the Wall”. Here’s mine – hope you’ll read through to the bottom, where you’ll get the links for the other 11 blogs!

Cookies, cookies, cookies. Every surface was covered with cookies in different stages, because I somehow decided that hitting 1,000 “likes” on my Rowdy Baker Facebook page meant I should make 1,000 cookies. I thought I’d have plenty of time, but a sweet blogger pimped me out a bit and the last 50 “likes” happened very quickly.

Do I need to tell you I didn’t make 1,000 cookies? Not even close. I think I hit 250, which was still pretty impressive, since they were large rolled cookies (what was I thinking?) and I added icing and put names on some of them before I pooped out. If you don’t see your name it’s because it’s off to the side and I cropped the photo. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

Keep your fuzzy little fly butt off my cookies!!!

I was doing the happy dance when I hit 1,000 but The Man was less impressed. I believe he just grunted “yeah?” (such a charmer) so I didn’t share my bottle of champagne with him. I was a little sorry about that the next morning. I will say he perked up a bit and showed some enthusiasm when he realized the photos were done and the cookies were fair game.

Baking in a Tornado posted a comment on her Facebook page about ironing, which immediately took me back to my childhood. I spent a lot of time ironing since Mom worked and it seemed like everything in our house was pressed. When I was younger and less skilled I ironed handkerchiefs, dishtowels, sheets, and pillowcases. As I grew older I was trusted with actual clothing, including nightgowns. Yes, nightgowns. I can tell you right now that you should NOT use a hot iron on a sheer gown. Nope.

What my mother taught me – and I think of this every time I iron anything – was to go slowly and spend more time smoothing than ironing. It takes less time to do it right than to go back and try to remove a crease in the wrong spot.

Heads up! This is more than a tip about ironing; it’s very wise, and applies to so many circumstances. I need to remember to smooth things over so I don’t say the wrong thing. I need to learn to think before I speak because it’s a lot harder (or impossible) to backpedal and take back wrong or hurtful words. Sometimes you just can’t iron out those creases.

Smooth, smooth, smooth!

I have messes everywhere. Little bits of paper cover the dining room table and floor as I wrap the stems of almost 100 paper flowers for my Homemaker’s Club spring tea. A small group of us made the flowers, but ran out of oompf before the stems were wrapped, and we wanted some daisies too, so…I volunteered. I don’t mind – it’s actually kind of fun, but with my short attention span I just do a few and then get bored and walk away. That’s okay; we like eating in our recliners. I should just give up and call it a craft table.

Making messes…it’s what I do.

Leftover oatmeal usually goes to the chickens. Somehow I always make way too much! (They love it, and I love to indulge them a bit.) But today I looked at that oatmeal and then looked at the bag of dark chocolate-covered raisins, and experimented. Though my method of adding and mixing defied the rules, and the dough seemed heavy and sticky, it made really nice, puffy, cake-like cookies with slightly chewy bottoms and plump chocolate raisins peeking out.

I should have added the whole bag, but ~~a lot~~ some of them spilled out…into my mouth.

Leftover Oatmeal Cookies with chocolate covered raisins!

Cooked Oatmeal Cookies (with chocolate raisins)

Author: The Rowdy Baker

I made these cookies with leftover oatmeal, which had raisins and cinnamon in it. Add a little cinnamon if you like.

Ingredients

2 cups cooked oatmeal ("Quick" or "Old-Fashioned". Just follow the cooking instructions)
½ cup coconut oil, softened but not melted
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate covered raisins (or more!)

Instructions

Heat oven to 350 F.
Lightly grease cookie sheet.
In a large bowl combine the cooked oatmeal, coconut oil, brown sugar, white sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix well with an electric mixer - about 2 minutes.
Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt and add to cookie mixture. Mix well.
Stir in the chocolate covered raisins.
Scoop onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving an inch between cookies; they won't spread much.
Bake 12-14 minutes, or until the bottoms are golden brown. Cool on a rack.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Mix everything but the dry ingredients together.

Add the chocolate covered raisins. Oh, go ahead…dump in the whole bag!

Our young rooster has finally found a home. I take him to town tomorrow to rendezvous with his new owner. She has a brand new chicken coop and has even rounded up a few hot babes for my randy roo. He should be in heaven. He’s been bullied by our old rooster for months, and now will be cock of the walk. Here he is, running from Big Red!

Run, Rooster, run!!!

While you’ve been rubbing your legs together on my wall, I’ve been out working with The Man to get our greenhouse ready. New dirt, compost, and straw to (hopefully) keep the weeds at bay…it’s a thing of beauty. And we didn’t kill each other. This is a big plus, because we DO NOT WORK WELL TOGETHER. We have a lower garden and an upper garden, and I try to always be in the one where he isn’t. Today I wasn’t raking out the dirt “correctly” so I gave up and screened compost instead. He wasn’t pulling off the flakes of straw neatly and butting them up against each other…grrr…so he gave up and went to cut cardboard. See? We’ve got it all worked out. Separate corners.

Yep…you just stay there, and no one will get hurt!

Proud Mama alert! My daughter Brenna just started her own blog, and I expect nothing but amazing posts in the future. She’s a wonderful writer, cook, mother, and photographer, and has a wicked humor to boot. I’m setting your bar high, Honey! Go give her some love, my friends. Click on the picture of my (ahem) beautiful grandbabies to see her introduction. Nut Without a Shell

Here is a list of links to eleven wonderful bloggers who played along this month. Please buzz over to their house and visit!

Boston Cream Pies

Posted on April 13, 2013 by Lorinda

I adore a good Boston Cream Pie. I make a lot of cakes that are lavishly iced, but the cake itself is actually my favorite part. A Boston Cream Pie is really a cake (I know – go figure!) with layers of custard filling, and chocolate ganache only on the top of the cake. Now that’s the perfect cake!

For fun I made individual sized cakes which, for once, turned out just as I imagined them. Whew! The gals in my book club were my guinea pigs, and seemed to really like them, so these are crowd-tested for you. I did one thing that probably wasn’t necessary, and added a chocolate-hazelnut crust on the bottom. It tasted good, but added a little bit of crumb/mess factor that I could have done without. A layer of chocolate cake in the middle would have been lovely though. Maybe next time!

I liked the tall, stately look with three layers, but you could also spread the batter in a larger pan, cut the circles out and then cut them in half for a shorter version with two layers of cake and just one layer of custard. They’d be easier to cut, serve, and eat, but not quite as impressive. And you know that food bloggers don’t bake just to produce delicious goodies…we’re always trying to WOW people! Either way, you will find them tasty and beautiful. And did I mention tempting?

The yellow cake recipe is something you’ll use often, so I wanted to keep it simple. If you choose to add the chocolate crust, here’s how you do it:

CHOCOLATE CRUST
2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs. (I love “Famous Chocolate Wafers” by Nabisco)
1/2 cup hazelnuts, ground
3 tablespoons butter, melted
Combine well and press firmly on the parchment in the bottom of the pan before pouring in the cake batter. When the cake is baked, it’s easiest to cut your shapes directly from the pan instead of turning the cake out onto a rack.
Hint: a food processor makes it simple to grind up the cookies and the hazelnuts!

Pouring cake batter over the chocolate crust.

THE CAKE

I used a 12″x2″ round cake pan, which was just barely big enough. A 13″x9″x2 rectangular pan would hold the same amount of batter. You could also use two 9″x2″ round pans.

Luscious Yellow Cake

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Ingredients

¾ cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs, room temperature
3 cups cake flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1¼ cup milk

Instructions

Heat oven to 350 F.
Grease the bottom of a 12"x2" round pan, or two 9"x2" round pans, or one 13"x9"x2" rectangular pan. Line with parchment and spray the parchment with a flour based cooking spray (like Baker's Joy).
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until it is light and fluffy.
Add the vanilla. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each egg.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Sift it once more.
Add the flour mixture and milk alternately to the butter mixture, beginning with the flour and ending with the milk. Beat well after each addition, being careful to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Beat for two minutes.
Pour into pan(s) and bake until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center of the cake. If you are using a 12" round pan, it may take 45-50 minutes. If you are using two 9"x2" round pans, check after 30 minutes.
Cool on a rack for 10-15 minutes and then turn the pans over to remove the cakes. Allow them to cool before decorating.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

While the cake is baking, make your custard filling. This way it will have a chance to chill before you use it.

VANILLA CUSTARD FILLING
2 1/4 cups milk
1 vanilla bean, split and cut into 1 inch sections
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, room temperature)
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla

In a large saucepan on medium heat, bring the milk and vanilla bean almost to a boil. It should be bubbling slightly. Reduce the heat to low for 10 minutes. The milk should be hot so the vanilla will flavor it, but not boiling.
In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt.
Using a large mixing bowl, mix the eggs until they get foamy looking and turn a lighter color.
On low speed, mix in the sugar mixture.
With a slotted spoon, remove the pieces of vanilla bean from the milk and discard.
Pour approximately one-fourth of the hot milk into the egg mixture and beat on low briefly, until combined. Immediately pour it back into the pan with the rest of the milk and start stirring!
Turn the heat up to medium and stir constantly (or use a whisk) until thick and is bubbling.
Remove from heat and add the butter and vanilla.
Pour the mixture into a bowl and stir occasionally for 10-15 minutes. Cover the surface with waxed paper and put it in the refrigerator to chill.

Whip those eggs!

Vanilla filling…thick and bubbly.

While your cake cools and your filling chills, make the chocolate ganache for the topping.

I usually make my ganache by the traditional method of chopping the chocolate and adding the hot cream to it little by little. This time I tried melting the chocolate first, and it turned out just as good and saved me from having to clean a knife and cutting board. Hey – every little bit helps when you hate to do dishes!

EASY CHOCOLATE GANACHE
5 ounces dark chocolate (don’t use chips…quality counts!)
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Melt the chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave, using 15 second intervals and stirring each time.
In a small pan on medium heat, heat the cream just until it starts to boil.
Pour half of the cream into the chocolate and stir gently. A whisk or a rubber spatula work well.
Pour the other half of the hot cream into the bowl and stir gently until it is smooth and well combined. Set aside.

ASSEMBLY
Because I used the chocolate crust, I left the cake in the pan while I cut the circles using a tube fashioned out of plastic from my (out of control) craft room. You could also use a sturdy cardboard tube cut from a roll of gift wrap. You may have to get inventive. I know you can do it! Anything tubular that is open at the top so you can push the cake back out if necessary. I had to give a few stubborn cakes a nudge with the end of a wooden spoon.

Cut out all of the little cakes you can (I got about 20) and save the scraps. I’ll show you why later.

Cutting the cake towers out with a plastic tube.

Thinly slice the brown top off of each cake and put it in your scrap pile. Cut the remaining cake into thirds. Place the bottom piece in a cupcake wrapper or on a plate and put a blob of vanilla cream filling on it. You want enough to squish out the sides just a little when you press the next layer on. So…cake, filling, cake, filling, cake. Pour a small spoonful of ganache on the top and spread carefully to the edges. If it drips down the side a little, that’s just fine. It’s artistic, not sloppy!

Little cut-out cakes before trimming and slicing.

Slicing layers

And a layer of ganache. Yep, this is messy business!

Repeat until you’re out of little cakes. Aren’t they pretty?

Now you have cake scraps, leftover custard, and hopefully a little ganache. Layer them all with some whipped cream and maybe a sliced banana, and TA DA! Trifle.

Trifle!

So to recap…you have three things to do. Bake a cake, make a custard, and create a ganache. (Or if you like the chocolate crust idea, make that four things.) Assembling these puppies is the easiest part. For those of you who are tight for time, you could definitely use a yellow cake mix and a box of vanilla pudding mix (make it with cream, not milk, for a richer filling) and it will be just fine. You’ll miss a little bit of homemade flavor, but people will still scarf it up.

Have fun with these! Just think of the possibilities. You could: bake the cake in jelly roll pans and then cut out fun shaped layers with cookie cutters, put a layer of chocolate cake in the middle, or go all out and make them neapolitan with chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla cake layers, spread a little raspberry or strawberry jam between the layers, or…whatever else you come up with.

These make me want to have a tea party!

Truffles – Three Ways

Posted on March 29, 2013 by Lorinda

I don’t always bake. Sometimes I like to make big messes that don’t involve flour!

A truffle is basically glorified ganache, enhanced with lots of butter. That’s what makes it melt on your tongue, with the satisfying taste of rich chocolate.

I made truffles last night and tried dipping them, molding them, and piping them. By far the easiest method was piping. You can pipe them, let them set, and then roll them in powdered sugar or cocoa for an easy and impressive treat, but I added a bit of peppermint extract to a third of the mixture and then piped it into mini cupcake liners. After chilling in the refrigerator, they popped right out of the liners and into my mouth – a perfect Frango mint.

Melt-in-your-mouth Frangos!

Dipping them was ~~messy~~ easy. I chilled the truffle mixture and used my smallest cookie scoop for a domed appearance, dipped them in melted chocolate, and drizzled the tops. Then, because I wanted them to look elegant, I painted the drizzle with gold dust. (Yes, it’s edible!)

Dipping the truffle in melted chocolate.

A touch of gold…

Elegant – until you have to lick the chocolate off your fingers…

I wanted to make a truffle-filled chocolate egg for Easter. It would have been fine if I’d used a plastic chocolate mold, but I was too lazy to go dig through the Easter decorations (and no, for the first time in 40 years I didn’t decorate the house this Easter. I promise it will never happen again) so I tried to get away with a metal mold. Huh uh…don’t do it!

Fill the molds ALMOST full – then top with melted chocolate. Chill.

It should have been simple: paint the mold with melted chocolate, chill, fill the centers with truffle mixture, cover with more chocolate, and chill again. When the molds are turned over, the eggs plop out on the counter, ready to be decorated. Mine didn’t plop. Here’s ONE that turned out nicely.

A truffle filled Easter Egg.

It takes a lot of chocolate and two sticks of butter for this recipe, but you won’t regret making these!

Dark Chocolate Truffles

Author: The Rowdy Baker

If you prefer not to use the Kahlua, just add 3 more tablespoons of cream.

Ingredients

⅓ cup heavy cream
½ cup sugar
3 tablespoons Kahlua
1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional)
3 tablespoons corn syrup
14 ounces good quality dark chocolate, chopped fine
1 cup butter

Instructions

Put the cream, sugar, Kahlua, and espresso powder in a medium pan and bring to a boil. Stir in the corn syrup and remove from the heat.
Add the finely chopped chocolate in about 5 additions, stirring gently each time, until all of the chocolate is melted. Set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, whip the butter well.
When the chocolate is the same temperature as the butter (don't get impatient here; this is critical...warm chocolate will melt the butter) gradually stir the chocolate into the butter, mixing well.
At this point you may pipe the mixture onto waxed paper, or let it set a bit for molding and dipping.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Now I’m going to go clean up my mess. It looks like a chocolate factory exploded in my kitchen!

Carrot Cake for All!

Posted on March 26, 2013 by Lorinda

Everyone has their favorite carrot cake recipe, and this is mine! That is – it’s my favorite, but I didn’t create this recipe. It was given to me years ago by a co-worker, who got it from a friend in Alaska, who…well…you get the picture.

It’s filled with goodies, giving it a delightful texture, and is very simple to make. It won best of class at the state Grange baking competition a few years ago, even though I (GASP) substituted a buttercream icing for the traditional cream cheese version. It works equally well as a layer cake, a sheet cake, or cupcakes. You just can’t fail if you follow this recipe!

Carrot Cake

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Ingredients

2 cups plus 1 T all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1¼ cups oil
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups grated carrot
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained well
½ cup raisins
1 cup nuts, chopped (walnuts or pecans)

Instructions

Heat oven to 325 F.
In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients together well.
Add the oil and beat for 2 minutes.
Add the eggs and vanilla, beat for 2 minutes.
Stir in carrots, pineapple, raisins and nuts.
Pour into a greased and floured 13x9" pan. (Or you may use two 9" cake pans.)
Bake for approximately one hour, (shorter for two 9" pans) or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Cool well before icing.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Cream Cheese Frosting:

6 oz. cream cheese
3 tablespoons milk or cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound powdered sugar
1/2 cup coconut (optional)
3/4 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Combine cream cheese, milk and vanilla. Beat for 2-3 minutes. Add salt and powdered sugar. Beat well. Stir in coconut and chopped pecans. Spread on cooled cake. Store any remainder in the refrigerator.

I’m keeping this blog short and sweet, because I have another idea just waiting to be tested and blogged…maybe tomorrow!

If you haven’t checked it out yet, and you’re not a teetotaler, please visit my Easter Beer Hunt blog. Easter Beer Hunt!

Chocolate Walnut Drops

Posted on March 23, 2013 by Lorinda

Chocolate Walnut Drops – waiting while I pour a cup of coffee.

Grandma Elsie specialized in cookies. I never knew her to bake anything that used yeast, but BOY could she bake cookies. To this day, my six favorite cookie recipes came from Grandma. The only trick was, you had to grab one or two right away before Grandpa lit up a cigar. No one ate day old cookies at their place – at least, not twice! That cigar smoke could permeate anything, and had no trouble getting through plastic wrap or foil.

That was actually a shame in this instance, since the cookies I’m going to show you today actually get softer and ~~moister~~ ~~more moist~~ moister with age.

After fifty or sixty years of baking you’d think she’d have her recipes memorized (she could play complicated piano pieces from memory, for crying out loud) but no – she’d get out her little metal recipe box and follow it step by step, measuring carefully with all of her ingredients organized and ready to go before she started. Obviously, baking techniques are not genetic.

Mmm mmm, love these babies!

I just baked her Chocolate Walnut Drop Cookies last night for a baking competition at the grange, along with some Perfect Dinner Rolls. See my last baking blog for the roll recipe. The rolls won best of class (that’s better than blue…it’s the coveted purple ribbon) so they’re going on to state competition. The cookies, however, were “too dry, and the frosting overwhelmed them. Not enough flavor.” Seriously? Of course they’re dry; they’re cookies, not brownies or cake! Biting through the frosting to get to the cookie is the best part. Pffft.

That’s okay – you win some, you lose some. They’re still one of my favorites. See what you think!

Chocolate Drop Cookies

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Makes about 24 cookies. These cookies age well, if they get the chance! Just keep them in an airtight container.

Ingredients

2 one-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate
½ cup milk
½ cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1½ cup flour
1½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts
Icing:
1 square unsweetened chocolate
4-6 tablespoons cream
1½ cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla
(Chopped walnuts to sprinkle over icing, if desired)

Instructions

Heat oven to 375 F.
Melt 2 squares unsweetened chocolate with ½ cup milk. (Microwave is fine.) Stir well and allow to cool slightly.
Cream the butter and brown sugar well.
Add egg and beat well.
Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.
Add the dry ingredients and the chocolate mixture alternately to the creamed mixture, beginning with the dry ingredients and ending with the chocolate mixture.
Add the vanilla and nuts.
Drop by heaping teaspoonful (or small cookie scoop) onto lightly greased baking sheet.
Bake for approximately 10-12 minutes. Cool on a rack. (Don't overcook or they will be dry. Try checking with a toothpick if you're not sure they're done.)
ICING:
Melt the chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave.
Add 4 tablespoons cream, the powdered sugar, and the vanilla.
Stir to combine.
Add enough remaining cream to make icing easily spreadable.
Spread on the cookies and top with chopped walnuts.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Cream the butter and brown sugar together well.

Alternate adding dry ingredients and wet ingredients.

Carefully measure the vanilla (bwa ha ha) and add the chopped nuts.

Scoop ’em onto a lightly greased baking sheet.

Baked and ready to be frosted.

I really really wanted to post this blog with a picture of a blue ribbon. Sigh. I’m not a sore loser – no sir. Huh uh.

Fly on the Wall for March

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Lorinda

Here we go again! Every month a group of bloggers gets together to give you little snippets of what life is really like in their house when no one’s watching. (Except for you – because you’re actually a little fly on the wall…out of reach of the flyswatter, hopefully!)

Here’s your chance to see what went on in two households, as I spend three weeks visiting my daughter in California and get to meet my new grandson for the first time. When you are through with this blog, please check out the links below for more dirt!

Even if you’ve been doing your calisthenics, a fly can only travel about six miles in a day, so you probably just hung out at my house while I was in California. If so, this is what you would have seen:
The whole Deadwood series.
The whole Lonesome Dove series.
The whole Streets of Laredo series.
The whole Dead Man’s Walk series.

You also probably got to listen to a lot of fascinating phone conversations, because The Man talks on the phone more than most adolescent girls. You now know more about hunting than you ever, ever wanted to know. And conspiracy theories.

In the meantime, however, your relatives in California were chilling on the wall at my daughter Brenna’s house, where it is much more entertaining.

March 1st finds us scurrying out the door on our way to the Dr. Seuss breakfast at the girls’ elementary school. Taunee is in jammies (because it’s also pajama day) but Sophie is rocking a new outfit, complete with a furry vest. Yes indeed, we hit the mall yesterday – a big treat for me, since I live up in the hills, far from any decent shopping.

You won’t have long to wait. We’ll be back soon to load the “Better than Crack Brownies (though to be politically correct, at school Sophie calls them Better than Crackle Brownies) and jugs of milk into the car for Sophie’s class, to celebrate her birthday. Those 4th graders will go through two pans of brownies and almost two gallons of milk!

The house is decorated for tonight’s slumber party. Sophie and I made lots of hot pink and black paper roses to go with her pink and black zebra theme.

Just a few of MANY flowers we made.

I hope you brought your little fly ear protection. Five girls can make a LOT of noise during a slumber party. Here’s a link to my blog, if you’re dying to know how to make a zebra cake! Sophie’s Zebra Party

“Eema” (that would be me) and Taunee. Wonder where she gets her goofiness from…

You may have noticed that Taunee is a source of constant entertainment. Here are a few of the things you’ve heard already:

Brenna: “Taunee, what’s that blue stuff in your hair?”
Taunee: “I don’t know – what’s it taste like?”

Taunee is in her nightgown. The dog is sniffing her butt and she’s giggling.
Brenna: “Taun, don’t let the dog do that!”
Taunee: “Whaaaat? I LIKE it.”

Baby, screaming loudly
Taunee: “He sounds like a fire drill!”

And in the “Things You Don’t Expect to Hear” category:

Taunee: “Did you put an apple in my lunch?”
Brenna: “No. They were too big and you wouldn’t have time to eat anything else.”
Taunee: “Awwwwwww.”
Brenna: “But I did pack you grapes and a Cutie”
Taunee: “Yay!”
Brenna: “And I didn’t pack you any chocolate today”
Taunee: “THANK you!”

In explanation, she OD’d on chocolate recently and learned that it was better going down than it was coming up. For now, she’s a no-chocolate girl. So I’m guessing that she’ll eat all the jelly beans this Easter and her big sister, Sophie, will get to eat all the Cadbury Mini Eggs. Score, Soph!!!

I’m annoyed that I live in an area of the country that doesn’t have a food specialty. You know…a thing. In the Redding area, olives are big. Instead of wine, you can go to an olive tasting. If they had martini tastings to go with the olives, I’d be one happy woman.

Here’s the best part, though. Friday is always tri-tip day. It seems like every business has their own barbecues set up outside, slow roasting beef all day. This produces a little chunk of heaven that is wrapped in foil and (for a price) sent home with you. It’s oh, so good. Brenna made some twice-baked potatoes and I made a salad, and we were all in a food coma by 8pm.

I know I look a little crazed. But if you were on a “plant based diet” that you blew off while on vacation, you’d be excited about all this beef too!

Sophie taught herself the “Cup Song” from Pitch Perfect in one night. Oh, to have that kind of memory and retention again. The song is stuck in my head – probably forever. She also amazed and delighted the admiring crowd (us) by performing the tripod and singing the Star Spangled Banner at the same time. Repeatedly.

Bet you can’t do it!

And as for baby Mack?

He was not amused! Brenna, however, sports the orange mustache without a whimper.

Brenna’s voice called down the hall: “Chris?” My mother instincts were immediately on alert by the tone – especially since the second and third calls were higher pitched and louder. Chris went running. A few moments later, Brenna came into the kitchen, looking a wee bit shaken. A little SNAKE had just been slithering around in her bathroom sink. What the… I don’t want to know how that could happen, but I was grateful that there was only a day left before I flew back home, and I waited to take a shower until I was safely back in my own bathroom. I’m not afraid of snakes, but in the sink? Huh-uh. No way.

Ugh. They say THIS is the worst part. Somehow I doubt that.

And now, I’m home again. See all the stuff on the tray? Can you guess what I get to do tomorrow? Ugh. I had a very casual doctor, and put off this whole colonoscopy business for years without getting lectured. But now I have a new doctor, and somehow I find myself bustled into this clinic and that, having all the tests I’ve been avoiding forever.

I have my fears about this. I’m terrified of anesthesia – not just that I might not wake back up, but that if I do there’s no telling what I might say. I’ve thought of so many inappropriate things I could spill my guts about that now I’ve practically guaranteed it’ll happen, and the medical staff will probably be laughing with friends over drinks tomorrow night, saying “You’ll never guess what this woman said today…”

Thinking happy thoughts. Thinking of my happy place. Puppies. Babies. Recipes.

Whew. That lovely procedure is over. I’m home – a little shaky, violated, but glad to have that behind (heh heh) me. Lovely nurses, a hysterically funny anesthesiologist, warm blankets, and a delicious lunch afterwards. Not to mention a sweet power nap! Yes, I could do that again.

And on this cheery note, I’ll pass on the recipe for Sophie’s favorite cookie. We made them while I was visiting, and the whole batch disappeared almost immediately. I’m sure you’ve all had these, but if you think about it, they look like something a fly would LOVE.

“Cow Pies”, also known as “Boiled Cookies”

Cow Pies

Author: The Rowdy Baker

Serves: 24

I love to use chunky peanut butter, and sometimes add chopped peanuts with the oats. The recipe makes about 24, but trust me - you'll probably want to double it!

Ingredients

2 cups sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
½ cup butter
½ cup milk
1 pinch salt
½ cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups quick oats

Instructions

In a large saucepan, combine sugar, cocoa, butter, and milk. Bring to a rolling boil and then let the mixture boil for one minute, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat and add a pinch of salt and the peanut butter. Stir until well blended.
Stir in vanilla and oats.
Drop by large teaspoons (or use a scoop!) onto waxed paper to cool.

Wordpress Recipe Plugin by EasyRecipe

Fly away and check out these great blogs!

Baking In a Tornado
Stacy Sews and Schools
My Brain on Kids
Just a Little Nutty
Menopausal Mother
The Sadder But Wiser Girl
The Momisodes
Follow Me Home
Moore Organized Mayhem
Finding Felicity
Caramel Living