Molasses Brown Sugar Cookies

I loved these cookies. Like ate-a-lot-when-they-came-out-of-the-oven loved them. And some more after that. And more tonight. With the fall coming in, these are the perfect take to a neighbor gift. I am usually a sucker for peanut butter and chocolate anything, but these cookies rival that! The sweet molasses and brown sugar combine to make one killer cookie!

Molasses Brown Sugar Cookies
Printable Version

8 Tbs. butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 egg whites
1/4 cup molasses
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/3 cup granulated sugar, for rolling

In a large bowl, with a handheld electric mixer or using an electric stand mixer, beat together the butter, brown sugar, egg whites and molasses. In a medium bowl, stir together the flours, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and ginger. Add the dry ingredients to the molasses mixture and mix until combined. Cover and chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the granulated sugar in a shallow dish. Form the dough into 1 1/2-tablespoon sized balls and roll each one in the sugar. Place 2 inches apart on lightly greased or lined baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes until the tops are crackly and the edges are set. Don’t overbake or they will lose their chewy texture. Remove the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes about 30 cookies.
Recipe from Melskitchencafe.com

Honey Nut Chex Treats

Sometimes my husband is the creative cook in our house. You see, I am a recipe-follower. I make changes here and there to suit our favorite flavors, but I am not good at just making up new recipes. He is constantly cooking new dishes that I love. This dessert came to him late one night, and it was a quick, amazing-ly delicious treat. I think the key in the Honey Nut flavor...it adds another layer of SUGAR...and we all love sugar!

Honey Nut Chex Treats
Printable Version

6 cups Honey Nut Chex
40 large marshmallows
1 stick butter
¼ cup coconut
¼ cup milk chocolate chips

Prepare a 9x13 inch pan by spraying with pam. Melt butter in a large saucepan on medium heat, add marshmallows. Cook until melted. Turn off heat and add chex, stir to combine. After marshmallows are fully incorporated, stir in coconut and chocolate chips.
Allow to cool and cut into 20 squares.

Makes 20 treats

Smashed Sweet Potatoe Cakes

O, potatoes, we love potatoes. Russet, yukon golds, sweet. Give us any type and we will chow them down. My hubbs is always thinking of new ways to prepare them, so I decided to get creative myself. These were right up our alley, and nice change from our usual. They are creamy on the inside, crispy on the outside, and extra sweet with a little kick from the spices.

Smashed Sweet Potato Cakes
Printable Version

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 5 rounds.
3  Tbs.  light brown sugar
1 tsp.  kosher salt
1 tsp.  ground cumin
1 tsp.  chili powder
1 tsp. paprika
½  tsp. onion powder
½ tsp.  chipotle chili powder
½ tsp. minced garlic
dash of black pepper

Place rounds on a cooking sheet, brush with olive oil on tops and bottom. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes, the smash. I used the bottom of a bowl, and if the potato stuck to the bottom I used a spatula to lightly slip it off. Mix all of the spices together and top the smashed sweet potatoes with a thin layer. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until topping is cooked.

Serves 4.
Recipe adapted from www.dlynz.com

Grilled Chicken Sands with Spicy Aioli Mayo

We are suckers for a good sandwich. I would say we eat a grilled sandwich at least once a week in the summer. This chicken was juicy and flavorful, and the aioli was a hit! My husband loved the spicy kick it gave the sandwich, and the lime pop at the end made for quite the palate party:)

Grilled Chicken Sandwiches with Spicy Aioli Mayo

Printable Version

2 chicken breasts

1 pkg Good Seasons Italian dressing

1/2 c. olive oil

juice of 1 lemon

1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Sriracha
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lime, zested and juiced
Kosher salt

Marinate chicken in italian dressing packet, olive oil, and lemon juice for at least 2 hours. Meanwhile, mix remaining ingredients together in a bowl.
Get your sandwich fixings together...toasted buns, tomatoes, avacado, tomato and lettuce were our choices. Grill chicken 3 minutes each side, or until cooked through.
Spread buns with aioli, place chicken on bun, and top with your fixings. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Michael Symon
Serves 2.

Smores Cookies

I couldn’t stop. I REALLY couldn’t stop eating them! Doughy deliciousness on top of perfect crunchy cracker. I liked these hot, cold, and right in between. Thank you for introducing me to these Amanda!

Smore’s Cookies
Printable version

11 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 ½ cups flour
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cup mini marshmallows
3 regular sized Hershey’s bars, broken into pieces
1-2 packages graham crackers, broken into squares

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, sea salt and cinnamon to combine. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter with white and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined.
Add the flour mixture to the butter mixer and combine on low speed.
Fold in the chocolate chips and marshmallows. Chill dough in refrigerator for 1 hour to overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 11x17 baking pan with parchment paper.
Lay out graham crackers side by side on the pans as close as possible (they should be touching). I used 16 graham cracker squares. You may have to add or remove graham crackers according to how much dough you have. If you want your cookies thicker you will use more dough and less graham crackers.

Place tablespoons of dough on graham crackers about 1 – 1 ½ inches apart. I averaged about 2  tablespoons of dough per graham cracker square as seen in the picture above. Press down slightly with fingertips.

Bake for 5 minutes then remove from oven to press Hershey’s bar pieces on to the top. You can place as many pieces or as little as you want depending how much chocolate flavor you want.

Bake for 5 – 7 more minutes or until dough is beginning to turn golden brown at the edges. Remove to a wire rack to cool. For clean cutting make sure cookies are completely cool and cut with a sharp knife.

Recipe from The girl who ate everything
Makes 16-20 cookies

Chick Fil A Nuggets

We love chicken. If you regularly follow my blog, you definitely know this about us. We eat it at least 4 times a week. One of our go-to meals is Chick Fil A Sandwiches, so when I found this recipe for nuggets I figured I better give it a try. Let me tell you, this pickle juice marinade is straight from heaven. It makes your chicken be the most moist, juiciest chicken on the planet, with a hint of dill. Now, we aren’t big pickle fans, but please don’t skip this step! It makes these nuggets pop with flavor in your mouth. Literally, my mouth is watering as I type this. Too bad it is 9:30am or else I might be sneaking some right now:)

Chick Fil A Nuggets
Printable Version
2 large chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup dill pickle juice
1 egg
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon malted milk powder
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce:
1 Tablespoon yellow mustard
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 Tablespoons honey
2 tsp. bbq sauce (I used sweet baby rays)
2 tsp. sour cream or greek yogurt

Spicy Dipping sauce:
1 Tbs. franks hot sauce
1 Tbs. sour cream
1 Tbs. ranch dressing

Whisk together egg, milk and pickle juice, and pour into a large ziplock bag or bowl. Add chicken pieces and marinate in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours.
Combine flours, paprika, malted milk powder, powdered sugar, baking soda, dry mustard, salt and pepper in a large ziplock bag. Shake to combine. Remove chicken from the marinade and add into the bag. Shake to coat the chicken completely.
Heat oil in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat (6 or 7 out of 10.) Test the oil by dropping in a bit of the flour mixture. If it sizzles, the oil is ready, if it pops, lower the temperature a bit.
Gently place chicken pieces into the oil with tongs. Cook the chicken for 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown on one side. Turn the chicken over and allow to cook for 3-4 more minutes. Remove to a paper-towel lined plate.
Stir together the honey mustard dipping sauce ingredients. In a seperate bowl, stir together the spicy dipping sauce ingredients. Serve with the hot chicken bites.

Serves 2.