Valentine Cake Pops

I made Valentine cake pops for Travis' potluck this month. I love the way they taste, but they are a whole lotta work and and very time consuming! I did however learn a lesson about them; Next time I make them, I need to use a deeper container for the melting chocolate so that I can dip them all the way, which will make them look nicer and stay on the stick without sliding off. See, I need more opportunities to bake so I can figure these things out!

Valentine Cherry Chip Cookies

This weekend we had some friends over and I made some more cake mix cookies. They were rich, soft, chewy, and ridiculously easy...everything a cookie should be! And festive too of course!
Cherry Chip Cookies
1 box cherry chip cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 C oil
1 can cherry frosting
sprinkles

Mix ingredients and bake at 350 for 7-8 minutes. Cool, frost, and sprinkle.

Pretzels

A few months ago a friend suggested I make homemade pretzels, since they follow a similar process to the bagels I like to make. So I found this recipe online, from food network. The verdict? Super yummy! We are keeping this recipe! I didn't have any pretzel salt but we didn't mind a bit. Later I discovered reheating them with a little melted butter and honey was delicious too!

Soft Homemade Pretzels

1 1/2 C warm water
1 T sugar
2 tsp salt
1 package yeast
4 1/2 C flour
4 T butter, melted
veggie oil
10 C water
2/3 C baking soda
1 egg yolk beaten with 1 T water
pretzel salt

Combine water, sugar and salt in a stand mixer and sprinkle yeast on top. Allow to sit 5 minutes until it begins to foam. Add a cup of the flour and butter. Using the hook attachment, mix on low speed, adding the rest of the flour until well combined. Change to medium speed and leave it for 4-5 minutes, when the dough is smooth and pulls away from edges. Place dough in a bowl that has been well oiled with your veggie oil. Cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for 50-55 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450. Brush oil on large cookie sheet.

Bring the 10 C water and baking soda to a rolling boil in a large pot.

Turn the dough on a lightly oiled surface and divide into 8 pieces. Roll out each piece into a long rope. Shape them into pretzel shapes. (I actually found that when you boil them they come undone and were difficult to shape, so next time I'll be doing balls or sticks).

Place the pretzels in the boiling water one at a time for 30 seconds each. Remove and place on baking sheets. Brush each one with the egg mixture and sprinkle pretzel salt on top (I skipped this step altogether).

Bake until golden in color, about 12-14 minutes. Cool for a few minutes and enjoy!

Chocolate Filled Cupcakes

My grandparents gave me a cupcake plunger for Christmas. It takes out the centers of the cupcakes so you can fill them. I love it! I decided to put it to use the other night. We were invited to some neighbor's for dinner and when I asked if I could bring something, she said I could bring dessert (how did she know?!). Of course, I was happy to do so!

I cheated a little and used a butter pecan cake mix for the cupcakes and canned frosting. But I made my own chocolate filling with the some recipe I just used to dip my brownies a few weeks ago. They turned out super yummy. Although, I have to admit I'm a terrible frosting spreader. I need to work on that!

Cherry Macaroon Cookies

I wanted to make a sweet treat for Travis' potluck tomorrow and I found this recipe in my LionHouse Christmas book. These puppies are dynamite!!! I had one warm right out of the oven and it was super delish! I would recommend these to anyone who likes maraschino cherries and coconut. They were also perfect for the potluck because I only did one batch and it makes tons of cookies. Don't worry, I set some aside for us to keep!

Cherry Macaroon Cookies
1 1/2 C sugar
1 1/3 C shortening
2 eggs
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 tsp salt
3 1/2 C flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 cup chopped maraschino cherries
1 1/2 C flaked coconut

Preheat oven to 375. Cream sugar and shortening until light and fluffy. Add eggs, almond extract and salt, mix well. In a separate bowl, sit together flour, baking powder and baking soda. Add to creamed mixture. Stir in cherries and flaked coconut and mix well. Dough will be stiff. Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes until edges start to turn golden brown.

P.S. I also think these would be awesome if you added walnuts or maybe even white chocolate!

Cheese and Herb Shortbread Crisps

Today I made these savory shortbread crisps. I found this recipe on one of the blogs I like to follow. They were super easy to make and the taste sooo yummy! I am excited to have them with dinner tonight (homemade chicken noodle soup).
Cheese and Herb Shortbread Crisps

1/2 C soft butter
1 1/4 C grated cheese (I used a mix of cheddar, jack and moz)
3/4 C flour
2 tsp fresh chopped rosemary or basil (I didn't have any so I just added my dried basil)
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp garlic salt or just salt
dash of pepper

Beat butter until smooth. In another bowl, toss all other ingredients. Stir flour mixture into butter until a dough forms. Shape into a 9 inch log and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill for at least 2 hours, or freeze for 1. Preheat over to 325. Slice log into 1/4 inch rounds and place on a sprayed cookie sheet. Bake until golden on edges, about 20-22 minutes. Cool completely.

Mini Brownies

Travis asked me to make brownies for his 2nd graders. They've been working on earning a treat and brownies was the reward. So, I decided to avoid the whole cutting/serving mess and made them into mini brownies with my mini muffin pan. Then I dipped them in a dark chocolate glaze (the same one I used for my Boston cream pie a while back) and then pipped these cute little snowflakes on them. I think they turned out adorable and delicious!