Double Chocolate M&M Cookies

To be honest, I haven't actually eaten one of these cookies yet (I'm trying to conserve them since I "made them for the kids"). But what could be bad? Chocolate: good. More chocolate: good. Butter: good. M&M's: good. And true to form, my kids seem to love them!

Again, these are from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

*Makes between 2 and 3 dozen cookies (depending on how big you make them) *Emily's note: I didn't get this many cookies out of my batch, and didn't think I made them overly large.

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 ounces semisweet or milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut into eight pieces
3/4 cup M&M’s
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, place the chopped chocolate and the butter. Microwave for one minute at 50% power. Stir. Microwave again for one minute at 50% power and stir well. If the chocolate is not fully melted, continue microwaving in 30 second intervals at 50% power until the chocolate and butter are well combined (don’t overheat the chocolate or it can seize and turn hard and unusable). Let the mixture cool slightly, about 2-3 minutes until it is at room temperature or just slightly warm (but not hot).

In a large bowl (or in the bowl of an electric stand mixer), combine the chocolate mixture, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed until combined. Gradually mix in flour mixture on low speed. Fold in M&M’s with a wooden spoon (don’t use a mixer as the M&M’s will break into pieces and not stay whole).

Line baking sheets with parchment paper, silpat liners or lightly grease them with cooking spray. Drop dough onto baking sheets by tablespoonfuls (or use a cookie scoop) spacing them about 1 1/2 inches apart. If desired, place five or six M&M’s on top of the cookie dough balls (even perched slightly on the rounded sides). Bake the cookies until they have slightly flattened and there are a few cracks on the surface, about 13-14 minutes. The cookies will still be soft. Let the cookies sit for 2-3 minutes on the baking sheet before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely. These cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container for about 2 days. I freeze them between sheets of wax paper in a large tupperware container and they defrost beautifully at room temperature or for a few seconds in the microwave.

Rocky Mountain Cookies

I think these might be my new favorite cookies! They were super simple to throw together and I had everything I needed on hand. Also, this recipe made 4 dozen cookies (about 1 Tbsp dough each)-- except that I dropped one tray on the floor right out of the oven and they went splat. Probably better for my waistline anyway. :) Try these, you won't be disappointed.

This recipe comes from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened to room temperature
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
2 cups old-fashioned oats
2 cups crisp rice cereal (like Rice Krispies)
2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, cream together the sugars and butter until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat well. Add the flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder to the butter/sugar mixture. Mix. Fold in oats, cereal and chips. Drop tablespoonfuls of the cookie dough onto lightly greased or lined (with parchment or silicone liner) baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the cookies are lightly golden brown but still soft.

Recipe Source: from my friend, Mariann, via The Essential Mormon Cookbook

Soft Pretzel Bites & Hot Chorizo Dip

These two recipe were both winners. Caleb and I had this as a lunch/ snack today. The dip would be perfect to take to a party with tortilla chips, as well. And the pretzels, well, they would be perfect anytime. SO YUM!

These recipes came from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

Soft Pretzel Bites

*Note: if using active dry yeast, increase the yeast to 1 tablespoon. Proof the yeast in the warm water and sugar (let it bubble and foam – maybe about 5 minutes) before adding it to the flour and salt.

*Makes about 2 dozen pretzel bites

Dough:
2 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 cup (8 ounces) very warm water

Topping:
1/2 cup (4 ounces) warm water
2 tablespoons baking soda
Coarse salt (optional)
3 tablespoons butter, melted

In a large bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, place the flour, salt, sugar and yeast. Mix to just combine. Add the water and mix well, adding more flour, as needed, a bit at a time to form a soft, smooth dough that clears the sides and bottom of the bowl. Knead the dough, by hand or machine, for about 5 minutes, until it is soft, smooth and quite slack. The goal is to get a really soft dough that isn’t overly sticky. Lightly flour the dough and place it in a plastic bag; close the bag, leaving room for the dough to expand, and let it rest for 30 minutes or up to 60 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 500°F. Don’t be afraid of the high heat! This is what will help those pretzels to brown up perfectly and stay soft on the inside. Prepare two baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper or lightly greasing them.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface, and divide it into about four strips of equal length. Allow the pieces to rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes. While the dough is resting, combine the 1/2 cup warm water and the baking soda in a liquid measuring cup (deep enough to dip the pretzel bites into). Make sure the baking soda is thoroughly dissolved. Sometimes I have a hard time getting the baking soda completely dissolved, so I just lightly stir up the mixture right before adding each pretzel.

Cut each strip of dough into about 6-8 pieces, about 1 to 1 ½ inches in width. You don’t have to be completely exact, just eyeball it. Dip each pretzel bite in the baking soda solution (this will give the pretzels a nice, golden-brown color), and place them on the baking sheets. Sprinkle them lightly with coarse, kosher, or pretzel salt. Allow them to rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Bake the pretzels for 7-8 minutes or until they’re golden brown. Bake one sheet at a time – it won’t hurt the other pretzels to chill out for a little longer.

Remove the pretzels from the oven, and brush them thoroughly with the melted butter. Keep brushing the butter on until you’ve used it all up; it may seem like a lot, but that’s what gives these pretzels their ethereal taste. Eat the pretzels warm, or reheat them in an oven or microwave on low heat.

Recipe Source: adapted from this version

Hot Chorizo Dip

*Note: if you aren’t familiar with chorizo, it is a pork sausage that is usually cured and requires cooking prior to eating. The outer casing is easily (and should be!) removed prior to cooking. Chorizo is usually located by the other sausage-type meats in the meat section of the grocery store and it can range from mild to spicy so choose the flavor that suits your taste buds best! In a pinch, I’m guessing that another spicy-ish pork sausage would work in place of the chorizo.

*Makes about 2 cups

1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup minced yellow onion
8 ounces chorizo, casings removed and diced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk
8 ounce cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) medium cheddar cheese, grated
1 small can diced green chiles
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Add the diced chorizo and cook, breaking up the chorizo into smaller pieces if you like, until it is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Pour off all but one tablespoon of fat from the pan. Add the flour and stirring constantly, cook for 1-2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the milk and combine well. Cook over medium heat until the sauce is thick, about 4 minutes. Add the cream cheese to the pot in tablespoon-size pieces and stir to combine as the cream cheese melts. Reduce the heat to low and add the cheese 1/4 cup at a time, stirring until each addition is melted before adding more. Stir in the green chiles and the salt.

Serve warm in a bread bowl or with tortilla chips.

Recipe Source: adapted from Joy of Cooking

Baked Oatmeal

I have had this recipe queued for awhile waiting for a morning with time enough to actually get it made. Not that it takes very long, but most mornings my kids wake up and demand to eat immediately, which precludes a lot of breakfast prep and bake time. So yesterday, the opportunity presented itself, and I jumped at the chance. This recipe is really simple and tasty, but as I ate, I was struck by how versatile it is. I added some slivered almonds myself, and you could add any nut of your choice, or dried fruit. You could use maple or fruit syrup. This may seem a little evil, but you could put chocolate chips or even nutella on this. Caleb had made some homemade carmel, and he ate the leftovers with that today! The sky is the limit. I may even make it again Sunday morning after my run!

This recipe comes from my cousin-in-law, Cydney.

Mix together:

1/2 C. butter (melted) or olive oil (I, of course, used butter)

2/3 C. brown sugar

2 eggs, beaten

Add:

3 C. rolled oats

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 C. milk

Mix well. Pour into 9x13 in. dish. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes.

Variation: add 1-2 cups finely chopped nuts.