Late Night Baking

I spent the evening testing out some lovely new pans we were given as a wedding present, and oh my are they perfect! Here is the newest addition to the cake batter cookies recipe, yellow cake batter with a chocolate kiss. Simply delicious! 

Valentine's Day Cake Batter Cookies

Click here for the full recipe, just swap out the yellow cake mix with strawberry cake mix! 

Cake Batter Cookies

This is a great recipe because there are so many options! I have made it so many ways! Last week, I rolled them in shimmer sugar, and this week I added M&Ms. Any cake mix works too, so the options are literally limitless! 

Cake Batter Cookies

Ingredients:

1 box cake mix

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla 

1/4 cup flour

sprinkles, candies, or chocolate chips (optional)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine ingredients. If the mixture is too sticky, at a little extra flour. Form tablespoon size balls and place on lined cookie sheets. Bake 9-12 minutes. Enjoy! 

Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Bites

These are possibly the easiest dessert I have ever made & perfect for when you need to make lots of goodies for a party.

Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Bites

Ingredients: 

1 bag of mini pretzels (I prefer the waffle style)

1 Ghirardelli white chocolate baking bar

1 Ghirardelli chocolate baking bar

1 bag of caramel squares

 

Directions: Line pretzels on a microwave safe plate and place the caramels centered on each one. Microwave 30 to 45 seconds, just until they are soft. Gently place a pretzel on top of the caramels and slightly press down. Allow to cool completely. Line a baking sheet (or two) with wax paper.  Chop up the white chocolate into small pieces and place into a microwave safe bowl. In 15 second increments using the microwave, begin melting the white chocolate, stirring very well in between. Using a fork, dip the pretzels into the white chocolate and place on the lined cookie sheet. Allow to cool completely. Repeat the same melting process for the chocolate baking bar and dip the pretzels. Enjoy! 

Pumpkin Cake, Take Two

Remember my pumpkin cake? It got a little upgrade this week! With a little extra frosting and pecans I am pretty sure this is now a dessert Martha would be proud of...

The Easiest Pumpkin Cake Recipe Ever

Cream Cheese Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients: 

1 29oz can of pumpkin pure

2 boxes of Pillsbury moist supreme yellow cake mix

4 eggs

1 tub of cream cheese frosting

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350. Using an electric mixer, combine canned pumpkin, cake mix, and eggs. Pour the mixture into two greased pans. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Cool, ice, and enjoy!

Banana Bread

What do you do when your bananas all brown overnight and Halloween chocolate chips are on sale? Chocolate chip banana bread of course! 

Banana Bread:

Ingredients: 

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 medium bananas
2 eggs

1/2 cup butter

1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350. Mash bananas and cream with sugar, butter, and eggs. Once smooth, combine with flour and baking soda. If desired, fold in chocolate chips. Fill 2 greased bread pans about half way full. Bake for 40-45 minutes. If you don't plan on serving the banana bread right away, I'd bake it closer to 40 minutes to keep the inside moist. Enjoy! 

Owl Sugar Cookies

What do you do when you find pumpkin candy corn at the grocery store and an owl cookie cutter? Obviously make cookies! I feel like the pictures pretty much explain how to make them, but if you have any questions comment below! I cheated a bit and bought sugar cookie mix, but if you want to make them homemade, click here for my sugar cookie recipe. 

Owl Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients: 

1 batch of sugar cookie dough (boxed or homemade)

1 owl cookie cutter 

1 bag of candy corn

1 bag of M&Ms 

1 can of frosting (I used cream cheese frosting)

a bit of cinnamon and sugar for dusting

Blackberry Muffins

FINALLY! Blackberry season is here! Maisy (our shih tzu) and I spent the morning picking blackberries, unfortunately it has been so hot that selection wasn't too great...most had dried and shriveled up before they were even ready. But I was able to pick just enough to make a batch of muffins! Enjoy! 

Blackberry Muffins

makes 12 muffins

250 calories each

Ingredients:

              

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 cups fresh blackberries

Directions: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. Add eggs, mix well. Combine the flour, baking powder salt, and almond milk. Fold in blackberries. Fill greased muffins cups two-thirds full. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Serve warm. 

Christmas in June

The beginning of summer is here and of course that means bikinis, late nights, and beaches...but for me, it also means beginning my Christmas stock pile. Yup, that's right, I said it...Christmas. Last year, I only did personal projects and I barely finished on time. This year, I have decided to take on smaller projects because I have custom orders, personal gifts, and I want to have stock on hand to sell. Crazy? Yes. But I've been told I am crazy plenty of times before. I am all about handmade gifts, and I thought these ornaments would be the perfect little gift for anyone. More styles are coming, but I am loving the way the desserts are turning out! If you would like to purchase your own, feel free to email me at emilydilldenton@gmail.com! The large doughnut is $7.49 and the small pastry is $4.99 or get both for just $11.99! All ornaments come wrapped with a bow!

Fudge Brownie Cookies

Fudge Brownie Cookies:

makes 30 cookies

150 calories per cookie

Ingredients: 

1 package of Duncan Hines chewy fudge brownies (mix only)

1 12oz package Nestle Toll House semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 large egg

1/3 c. vegetable oil

2 tbsp. water

Directions: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine brownie mix, egg, vegetable oil, and water. Once combined, the mixture should have a cookie dough consistency. Fold in chocolate chips. Place slightly flattened tablespoons of dough onto a lined cookie sheet, they do not spread much so there isn't a need for much space in between cookies. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely before removing from the cookie sheet. Enjoy!

These are not only delicious, they are great when you are on a budget. I made this batch for under $5! 

Game Day Prep

To say I am obsessed with everything blue and orange would be an understatement! I have my game day outfit, my broncos bow, and delicious heart shaped cookies. These cookies were fantastic, super soft and the perfect amount of sweetness so obviously I have to share the recipe! 

Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup softened butter 

3/4 cups sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 can cream cheese icing 

sprinkles (optional)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until smooth. Add the egg and beat until fluffy, about two to three minutes. Add vanilla. Gradually add in dry mix. Shape into a ball and refrigerate for an hour. Once chilled, roll dough to a 1/4 inch thickness on a floured surface. Using a cookie cutter, create your desired shapes. Bake until cookies are just slightly golden brown around the edges, about 10-13 minutes. Remove from heat, cool completely, and decorate.

Cowboy Cookies

Pardon my language, but bloody hell I am addicted. By request from the boyfriend, I whipped up a batch of cowboy cookies this evening  and I can't stop eating them! Did I mention I made them with my new KITCHENAID!!! My parents were wonderful and surprised me with one! I never thought I would own one, and might I say, it looks beautiful in our kitchen! As delicious as this recipe is, I should probably keep it top secret. But it is the season of giving, so merry Christmas!

Cowboy Cookies:

Ingredients:

3 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 tablespoon baking soda

1 tablespoon cinnamon 

1 teaspoon salt

3 sticks softened butter

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

3 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 (7oz) bag sweetened coconut flakes

6 packets instant maple and brown sugar oatmeal

(I forgot to pick up oats at the store and I wasn't about to head out the day before Christmas eve to get more, so I made it work!)

4 cups chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups pecan pieces 

Directions: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Using an electric mixer, cream butter for approx. one minute. Slowly add white and brown sugar to the butter. Once thoroughly combined, add in eggs and vanilla. Slowly add dry mix to wet mix. Once combined, using the electric mixer, add coconut flakes and oatmeal. Using your hands, fold in chocolate chips and pecan pieces. (I attempted to use the Kitchenaid for this, but it got way too thick.) Create balls using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, do not flatten. Leave a good distance between cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet because they flatten quite a bit. Bake for 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes and remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!