Dark Chocolate Chunk Skillet Cookie

My life has been a crazy blur these past few weeks.  Big changes at work (positive, exciting changes I should add), track meets, school activities, last minute tax preparation...you get the picture.  What better way to relax on an activity-free Saturday than with a cookie that you mix and cook right in the skillet.  Spoon a scoop of ice cream on top, pass out some spoons, and dig in.  Talk about a yummy treat to indulge in after a long busy week.  Go ahead, you deserve it!

Recipe adapted from: Sophistimom

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What you need:
1 stick 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup chocolate chunks


How to make it:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in an 8 inch cast iron skillet set over medium-low heat. Next, stir in sugars and vanilla and remove from heat. Let the mixture rest until the pan is warm, but no longer very hot, (about 5 minutes).
2. Crack an egg onto the butter and sugar mixture, and use a fork to whisk it well into the mixture. Place flour, baking soda, and salt on top, and very carefully stir into the mixture until smooth and well-mixed. Stir in chocolate chunks. Place in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until starting to turn golden on the top and around the edges, but soft in the center. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Dark Chocolate Chunk Skillet Cookie

Double Oat Breakfast Cookies

Thumbing through recipe cards last weekend while looking for my chocolate chip muffin recipe, I came across a recipe card that a dear friend of mine from Texas gave me about a year ago.  I used to babysit her two little munchkins and most mornings they would arrive at my house with these delicious looking cookie bars.  I finally gave in and asked her what she was sending with them and if I could have the recipe because they looked amazingly delicious.  A few mornings later she arrived with the kids and the recipe for the breakfast cookies and I stuck it in a recipe book, completely forgetting about it.  I was so excited to come across this forgotten card of yumminess and decided to make the cookies instead of the planned muffins that morning for breakfast.  Just picture the surprised looks on my boys' faces when I called them to the table for breakfast and served cookies to them on their plates.  I can proudly say I got the mom award that day.

These cookies taste incredible, they are filling and best of all...freezable!  After we were done with breakfast I put the remaining cookies in a zip lock freezer bag and put them in the freezer.  These are wonderful to eat straight out of the freezer with a hot cup of coffee or cold glass of milk.

My favorite recipes are the handwritten ones given to me from friends....

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What you need:

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1 1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup water

1 egg

1 tbsp vanilla

1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup oats

1 cup chocolate chips  (or your favorite chip, white chocolate, butterscotch, peanut butter, etc.)

3 cups cheerios 

*the cookies pictured above were made with 1/2 cup peanut butter chips and 1/2 cup white chocolate chips)

How to make them:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  In a large mixing bowl combine butter and peanut butter with electric mixer for 30 seconds.  Add sugar, baking soda and salt.  Beat until combined.  Beat in water, egg and vanilla for one minute.  Beat in flour, followed by the oatmeal until well combined.  Stir in chocolate chips and cheerios.  Drop by 1/4 cupfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges are slightly browned.  Let cool on pan for 3 minutes and then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.  

A few substitution suggestions:

*3/4 cup sugar and 1/2 cup splenda 

*1 cup all purpose flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat 

Double Oat Breakfast Cookies

Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are some pretty fantastic cookies.  I really enjoy trying out new recipes I find on the back of products, which is where I found this recipe, on the package of some Ghirardelli Premium Baking Chips.

The only thing I changed up was instead of two cups of the Milk Chocolate Chips I used one cup of the Milk Chocolate and one cup of some white chocolate chips I had on hand that needed to be used.  The combo of the white and milk chocolate was pretty yumtastic...just ask my kids!

PRINTABLE VERSION
the yummies:
2 1/4 cups unsifted flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate Chips
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2.  Stir flour with baking soda and salt; set aside.
3.  Beat butter with sugar and brown sugar at medium speed until creamy.
4.  Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed until incorporated.
5.  Gradually blend dry mixture into cream mixture. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts (if desired).
6.  Drop by tablespoons onto greased cookie sheets.
7.  Bake for 9-11 minutes or until golden brown.

Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate Chip Cookies

Nutella Pizza

If you're friends with me on Facebook, or you follow my blogs, you know all about my recent obsession with Nutella.  To quote Julie Powell, "Yum!"  It really is quite ridiculous because I do find myself eating it on everything.  Toast, homemade breads, on strawberries, with bananas....just right off the spoon.  Did I actually admit to that?  Actually, as I am reading what I am typing it sounds like I might be going a little overboard with my Nutella consumption and it possibly may be one of the contributing factors to my jeans being just a little too tight here lately.  Hmmmm.....

Now that you know all the background info, I am sure you can ONLY imagine the pure joy I felt when I ran across the idea for Nutella Pizza.  Thank you, THANK YOU Katerina, from Diethood , for posting this fabulous recipe!

It really is so simple to make and it will be gone before you know it.....

PRINTABLE VERSION
the basics:
your favorite pizza dough
1/2 cup of Nutella (or as much as you want!)
white chocolate chips
hazelnuts (I used almonds because that's what I had in my pantry)

making it:
1.  prepare your pizza dough and spread it as thin as you possibly can.
2.  put it on your baking sheet and bake at 400 for 10 minutes (or what your pizza dough instructions recommend)
3.  When the crust is baked, take it out of the oven and spread the Nutella over the crust and top with nuts and chocolate chips.
4.  Place back in the oven and bake for 5 more minutes.  (if you want the chips to melt, then crush them before placing them on the pizza)
5.  After five minutes take back out of the oven and let cool for a few minutes before slicing.

There you have it, Chocolate Pizza.  Try it, you'll love it!!

Nutella Pizza