Being at our daughter’s house last week, I began to look for simple desserts since my son-in-law had informed me before I got there that I was expected to make at least 3 of them while there. This one caught my eye since it would be simple, not many food items to purchase and even the 3 year old would love it. To change it up, feel free to change out the Oreo cookies for Double Delight Oreo Peanut Butter & Chocolate cookies.
1 (5.9 oz) package chocolate instant pudding mix
2 cups milk
1 (3 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 (8 oz) container Cool Whip
16 double stuffed cream-filled chocolate Oreo cookies, crushed (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup chopped pecans (optional)
Whisk together the chocolate instant pudding mix and 2 cups milk for 2 mins. Cover pudding and chill 5 min.
Stir together cream cheese and Cool Whip; blend well.
Place 1 cup crushed cookies in an 8 cup bowl. Spread half of cream cheese mixture over crushed cookies; sprinkle with half of pecans if using. Spread all of the pudding evenly over top; spread remaining cream cheese mixture evenly over pudding. Sprinkle with remaining cookies and pecans. Chill for about 2-4 hours until ready to serve.
Category: Cookies
Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies
A few days ago I read on a blog called, Two Chums about substituting some of the butter in chocolate chip cookies with cream cheese for a moist chewy cookie. I had to try it so today I made my regular chocolate chip cookie (if you make the one on the package of chocolate chips, the only difference is that I use half unsalted butter and half Crisco which gives you a much more fluffy cookie) using 1 stick unsalted butter, 4 tables Crisco and 4 Tables softened cream cheese. I always only use 1 large egg instead of 2. The cookies are so soft and chewy.
Plus a little cream cheese flavor, which always is a plus! Try it and see what you think. Will look forward to hearing your thoughts.
Super Bowl Whoopie Pies
Since Whoopie Pies are one of the best inventions EVER, I decided that they would make a great dessert for the Super Bowl Party. So I just made chocolate whoopee pies and made the frosting in the navy blue and green of the Seahawks for between the cookies. I just ate 3 of them. Hopefully there will be some left for Sunday. They are easy to wrap individually in Saran and then in a baggie to stay fresh for Sunday. Very easy make-ahead dessert.
1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teas vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 cup baking cocoa
1 1/2 teas baking soda
1/2 teas baking powder
1/2 teas salt
1 cup milk
Filling
1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow creme
1/2 cup shortening
1 teas vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 400. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition.
Drop dough by tablespoonful (I used a medium size cookie scoop) 2″ apart onto greased baking sheet. (again, I use a coated sheet, so if you use them, do not grease the sheet) Bake 6-8 min or until set and tests done.
Remove from pans onto paper towels or wire racks to cool completely.
For Filling
In a large bowl, beat marshmallow cream and shortening until blended. Beat in vanilla and powdered sugar until smooth. I add food coloring to a little milk and beat into mixture. Spread on the bottom of half of the cookies and then top with the other half. Wrap in plastic and keep in sealed container for up to 3 days.
Makes about 2 1/2 dz.
Old Fashioned Whoopie Pies
I began making these back in the late 70’s. When Jason, my oldest son went off to A & M, I remember sending a shoebox full of these to him. Apparently lots of moms did that and they came to be known as shoebox cookies. This recipe came from a niece, who use to ask me to make them when she came over. She loved them so much, she ended up writing the recipe in my old spiral notebook that I still have today.
Combine the following in a big mixing bowl:
2 cups sugar
1 cup Crisco (I used 1/2 cup Crisco and 1 stick butter)
2 eggs, room temp
1 cup buttermilk
2 teas vanilla
4 cups flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 teas salt
2 teas baking soda dissolved in 1 cup hot water.
Mix all ingredients above until thoroughly mixed well. Drop by tables onto baking sheet. (I didn’t grease mine as it is coated, if you are not using a coated sheet of parchment paper, I would lightly grease the baking sheet.)
Bake at 400 for about 8-10 min. Cookies have a cake like consistency so when almost completely firm to the touch, take out. Do not over bake.
Cook on paper towels or cookie racks and make frosting.
Beat 2 egg whites which are at room temp; add 4 tables flour, 2 teas vanilla and 2 cups powdered sugar.
Mix well and add 4 table milk, 1 cup Crisco (once again, I used 1/2 cup Crisco and 1/2 cup butter) and 2 cups more powdered sugar.
When cookies are completely cool, frost the bottom of a cookie and top with a 2nd cookie, making them a Whoopie Pie.
Delicious and easy to mail. Keep covered in container or freeze in bags.
Nutella Crinkle Cookies
I got a little obsessed this Christmas with cookies. I’m usually more of a candy and pie person, but for some reason, I kept finding these different recipes that just yelled out for me to make them. When we were in Italy, I came to love Nutella anything. I would have eaten liver or seaweed if it was dipped in Nutella. This was the first recipe that I had seen for Nutella cookies, so here it is; my new favorite cookie.
1 jar (13 oz) Nutella
1/4 cup shortening
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teas vanilla
3 cups flour
2 teas baking powder
1/2 teas salt
1/3 cup milk
2 1/2 cups hazelnuts, toasted, divided
1/2 cup powdered sugar
In a large bowl, cream the Nutella, shortening and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. About 4 minutes. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, mixing well after each addition. Fold in 1/2 cup hazelnuts. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 min or until firm.
Finely chop remaining hazelnuts. Place hazelnuts and powdered sugar in a bowl and stir to combine. Roll dough into 1″ balls and roll ion powdered sugar-nut mixture. Place 1″ apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 for 10-12 min or until set and surface is cracked. Cool for 1 min before removing from pan.
Yield: 6-7 dozen
Red Velvet Cookies (Thank you Duncan Hines)
This is an infomercial! I thought since most of us are in a time crunch, but are still desiring to bake Christmas cookies, this would come in handy. I have heard of the cookies made from cake mixes, but until two nights ago, I had never really liked the ones that I had tasted. A friend came by with snickerdoodles which were awesome. When I told Peggy how good they were, she said, “glad you liked them, I made them from a cake mix”. I was shocked. So today, I stopped and bought a Duncan Hines Red Velvet cake mix and am making the cookie recipe on the side of their box. Am making one little change. I am making them into thumbprint cookies and filling the indention with my cream cheese frosting. Am so excited that I can whip up a batch of cookies that taste like homemade, in less than 5 min…I thought it would be fun to color the cream cheese frosting green so, wa-la, Christmas cookies that taste like red velvet and it was really so easy. The picture below is a plate of the original directions on Duncan Hines, each ball dipped in Powdered sugar, the ones on the outside are the ones I ended up just baking as balls and then added colored cream cheese frosting and sprinkles. Merry Christmas from my heart to yours…tkbakesalot
If you happen to have a box of red velvet cake mix that doesn’t have the recipe on the side, here it is:
1 box red velvet cake mix
6 tables softened butter
2 eggs
Mix until well blended with mixer on low to medium speed. Drop 1″ balls into powdered sugar and onto lightly greased cookie sheet if you are not using Parchment paper or coated cookie sheets. Bake at 375 for about 9-10 min. If you use the cream cheese frosting, do not roll the balls in the powdered sugar. Just drop the balls onto the cookie sheet and using a Thumbie or your thumb, make an indention in the center of each cookie. The indention will almost disappear when cookies are baked, but don’t worry about that. Fill in with frosting of your choice.
Cherry Thumbprints with White chocolate Frosting
This is the second year I have participated in the Food Blogger’s Cookie Swap where you send a dozen cookies to 3 different food bloggers. This was the recipe I sent this year. I love anything with cherries and these cookies will now be made each Christmas season at our house. You can experiment with different toppings, such as using chocolate kisses or m&m’, but I love to fill the thumbprint with white chocolate frosting.
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter,
1/2 teas salt
1 tables maraschino cherry juice, (I use a little more)
1/2 teas almond extract
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries (I dry them on a paper towel to absorb some of the juice first)
In a medium size bowl, blend together the sugar, butter, salt, cherry liquid and almond extract. Beat for 3 min until the butter is fluffy.
Add flour to mixture until just mixed well. DO not over mix the flour.
Add chopped cherries and blend in well with wooden spoon. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or over night in covered bowl.
Preheat oven to 350 and remove dough from fridge. All the dough to sit for 30 min. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and scoop out dough with a scoop or teaspoon. You will have between 24 and 30 cookies.
Roll dough in a ball and place about 2″ apart on cookie sheet. Using Thumbie or your thumb, make an indention in the center or each ball. Bake for about 9-10 min or until edges are slightly golden brown. Remove and allow to cool on racks. While cookies are cooling, make the frosting.
Frosting
6 oz white chocolate chips
2 cups powdered sugar
5 oz softened butter
1 teas almond extract
3 tables heavy cream or milk ( do not add all at once, but 1 tables at a time) Remember you are going to be adding the cherry juice also, so you want to leave “room” for adding the juice, so frosting won’t be too runny.
Enough cherry juice from maraschino cherries to get frosting to consistency that you can use in a frosting press, or bag with star tip.
Melt the white chocolate chips with 1 oz of the butter in microwave. On 50% power. Stir until all chips are melted and add to the powdered sugar, rest of the butter, milk (or cream) and cherry juice and extract. Beat until frosting is consistency of placing in
pastry bag and using star tip, press about 1/2 teas frosting in center indention of each cookie. 
Pumpkin Spice Cake
A sweet friend of mine, Susie, sent me this cake recipe the other day and I just made it today. I have to say that it is the best and most moist pumpkin cake I have had. I added Brown Sugar Frosting to it and served it to friends who came over tonight for dessert. Scrumptious!!!! So easy and best pumpkin spice cake ever!!!!
1 box Duncan Hines Spice Cake Mix
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
1/2 cup oil
2 teas cinnamon
3 eggs, room temp
1 small package vanilla instant pudding
1/2 cup water
Mix all ingredients in mixing bowl and beat for about 2 minutes. Pour into a greased and floured Bundt pan for about 45 min or until cake tests done.
Let stand for about 15 minutes and then invert onto serving platter.
Frosting:
1 cup light brown sugar
5 tables butter
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 teas vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt butter with brown sugar and cream, stirring constantly. When mixture begins to boil, pour over powdered sugar and mix until no lumps remain. Add vanilla and if needed, 1 tables at a time, thin with whipping cream until mixture is right for pouring over the cake. Frosting will harden quickly so pour quickly over the cake.
German Chocolate Thumbprints
At church today our teacher in our Sunday School class was talking about how spoiled his kids were and told us that “IF” (and believe me he doesn’t) but “IF” he believed in reincarnation, he would want to come back as one of his children. I started to think about that and realized that it would be great to come back as one of our grandchildren. We had lunch today with our 10 yr old grandson and I got him in trouble by handing him a giant Hershey bar as soon as we sat down. Of course he immediately unwrapped it and began to chomp away on it before his dad saw it and fussed at him for eating it before having something “healthy”. I don’t think you can qualify Mexican food as “healthy” but since all Sevy had had all day was donuts and now candy, I guess the Mexican food was a little better than what he had eaten all day. All this to say that when you think about how we Baby Boomers totally spoil our grandkids, it would be great to come back as one of them. But since we won’t be coming back as anyone or anything, I think I will just go ahead and eat all the chocolate I can now.
Hence the recipe…
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 table shortening
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tables strong coffee (brewed)
1 teas vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tables baking cocoa
1 teas baking powder
1/4 teas salt
Filling:
3/4 cup flaked coconut
3/4 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts)
1 teas vanilla
4 to 6 tables sweetened condensed milk (Eagle Brand)
Drizzle:
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tables shortening
Preheat oven to 350.
In a microwave, melt chips and shortening; stir until smooth. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, coffee, vanilla and melted chocolate mixture. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.
Roll into 1 inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Using a Thumbie (which you can by on Etsy for $5.00 in the chocolatecastles store), make an indention in the center of each ball. Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes or until firm. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Meanwhile, for filling, in a small bowl, combine the coconut, pecans and vanilla. Stir in enough of the sweetened milk to form a stiff mixture. Fill cooled cookies with filling (about a teas each). Melt chocolate chips and the shortening for the drizzle and then drizzle over the cookies. Store in an airtight container.
Yield: about 4 dozen
S’More Cookies*
Mr. Smarty Pants made his point that he was tired of running back and forth to get baking items for me when he brought this home this weekend. I put it beside the 25 lb sack of sugar that he made me buy and told him that I had had enough of his smart alec suggestions, that unless I got the desire to make 100 dz hot tamales, he can just march right back to the store and buy my butter flavored Crisco, which I’m sure is much more healthy than the bucket of lard. So while I wait for him to get back with my Crisco to make these cookies, I don’t want him to know that I am actually using the lard to make pie crusts. I don’t want to give him the satisfaction. It truly makes great pie crusts but when people comment and tell you that that is the best pie crusts EVER, I just never quite have the nerve to tell them why. When people hear the word “lard” they think immediate heart attack. So it will be my little secret. I just tell them it is an old family recipe.
These cookies are so munchable (is that a word)?
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup Crisco
1 3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temp
1 tables vanilla
\2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups firmly packed graham-cracker crumbs
3/4 teas baking powder
3/4 teas baking soda
1/2 teas salt
1 ( 11.5 oz) bag semisweet chocolate chunks
1 1/4 cups marshmallow bits *Jet-puffed Mallow Bits)
1 sleeve (about 9) crackers, broken into small pieces
preheat oven to 375. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, combine butter and brown sugar. Beat at medium speed with mixer until creamy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, graham-cracker crumbs, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating until well combined. Beat in chocolate chunks and marshmallow bits. Beat in graham crackers, beating just until combined.
Drop cookies by rounded tablespoon , 2″ apart onto prepared baking pan. Garnish tops of cookies with additional marshmallow bits, if desired.
Bake for 10 min or until lightly browned. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 min before removing to wire racks to completely cool.
Makes about 4 dozen
*taken from Southern Lady, Oct 2013
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Chocolate Castles 