Tag: chocolate chips

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Snowballs

This time of the year peppermint is the star flavor in many beverages, candies and baked goods. And if you are a fan of the flavor, you are going to love today’s Snowball cookies. Snowballs, also known as Mexican Wedding Cookies and/or Russian Tea Cakes, are typically flavored with vanilla extract and have finely chopped pecans, but today’s version takes a festive approach with peppermint extract and chocolate chips for a Peppermint Chocolate Chip Snowball.

These buttery cookies will melt in your mouth and have you begging for a cup of hot cocoa. A few things to note, while I added 2 teaspoons of peppermint extract you could reduce it to 1 teaspoon. You will still get the peppermint flavor, but it won’t be as pronounced. Also, if you want to make the appearance of these cookies festive for the season you could add a few drops of red food coloring to give them a nice pink hue.

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Snowballs

  • Servings: 24 Cookies
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Ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, divided

2 teaspoons peppermint extract

2 cups flour

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lines 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl beat together the butter and 1/2 cup of the confectioners’ sugar with hand mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in the peppermint extract. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add in the flour and then the chocolate chips.

Scoop tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball and then place on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are a light golden brown.

Place the remaining cup of confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl.

Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes roll the cookies in the confectioners’ sugar to coat them. Return them to the wire rack to cool completely.

Once the cookies have completely cooled roll them in the confectioners’ sugar once again.

Store in an airtight container.

Recipe first appeared on Bead Yarn & Spatula

Sour Cream-Chocolate Chip Pound Cake (and a few other things!)

It’s been a bit quiet around here. Almost two months since my last post. Partly because this summer has been way too hot to turn my oven on to bake anything and because I was gone for about 10 days in late July / early August. I finally made it across the pond! I went to Barcelona for two days and then headed out on a Mediterranean cruise which made stops in Mallorca, Marseille, La Spezia (Florence), Civitavecchia (Rome) and Naples. Since I was on a cruise, I really didn’t get the opportunity to try a lot of the local food, but while in Marseille I did try a traditional cookie called a Navette (it wasn’t to my liking) and while in Lucca I enjoyed pizza and gelato (both were delish!).

And not food related whatsoever, but too beautiful not to share a few pics of the Mediterranean and a few sunrise and sunset pics from the ship. 

A few weeks after getting back I finally turned my oven on to bake something as I was planning to visit family and wanted to bring dessert. I opted to make a Sour Cream-Chocolate Chip Pound Cake that I had flagged in a cookbook quite some time ago but hadn’t gotten around to making. I really need to go through my cookbooks and see what else I have flagged that I haven’t made! Truthfully, I felt out of sorts while prepping the batter for the cake. It was almost like I was tripping over myself. Don’t get me wrong, I have been cooking for myself even though I wasn’t baking but I never realized that I had developed a rhythm of sorts while baking.

Thankfully, my out of sorts feeling didn’t translate into the cake… It turned out delicious! The recipe called for a cinnamon sugar topping which I thought to be a bit odd, but I went with it and am happy that I did. The cinnamon flavor really added to the flavor of the cake. You could taste it, but it wasn’t overpowering.

One thing to note, the flavor of this cake gets better with time. I suggest making it a day or two ahead of time and then wrapping it tightly to keep it fresh and let the flavors develop.

I think I am finally getting my baking legs back! I baked a Blueberry Crumb Cake that came out delish – although I did have to mix my dry ingredients twice. I flipped the measurements for salt & baking soda and added in more baking soda than the recipe called for and I didn’t want to end up with metallic soapy flavored cake. Maybe that isn’t a good example. I did bake up some treats (cookies and cheesecake brownie bites) last week along with a birthday cake that all came out perfect! I even decorated the cake… It’s been a while since I have done that. So, I guess I am getting back into the swing of things. Perfect timing to with Fall and the holidays just around the corner.

Sour Cream-Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup plus 4 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 3/4 stick (14 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

3/4 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 F. Spray a 9x5x3- inch loaf pan with baking spray then line with aluminum foil, leaving an overhang, then spry with additional baking spray. Set aside.

Cinnamon Sugar Topping- In a small bowl mix 2 tablespoons of the sugar with 1/4 teaspoon of the cinnamon and set aside.

In a large bowl beat the butter, vanilla extract and the remaining sugar together with a hand mixer on high speed until pale and fluffy. Reduce the speed to medium and add the eggs one at a time, beating after each. Beat in the sour cream, baking powder, baking soda, salt and the remaining cinnamon. Scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low, add in the flour until almost combined. Finally add in the chocolate chips and continue mixing on low until the batter is well combined.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles and then sprinkle the cinnamon sugar topping on top of the cake.

Bake in the preheated oven until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 70 – 75 minutes.

Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Then using the overhang lift the cake out of the pan and place on the wire rack to cool completely. Remove the foil and serve or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and leave at room temperature until ready to serve. For best flavor, let the cake sit for 1 day before serving.

Recipe from Elizabeth Alston’s Best Baking

Peanut Butter & Banana Chocolate Chip Bread

Some pairings just taste good together – like peanut butter and chocolate, peanut butter and banana and banana and chocolate – so I figured that three would taste just as good (or better) together. And that’s how I came up with this Peanut Butter & Banana Chocolate Chip Loaf.

Although, I was a little discouraged when I tasted the first loaf I made. It was a bit dense, and the banana flavor was overpowering. With my second loaf, I reduced the amount of flour in the batter and increased the amount of peanut butter. The loaf then ended up being super moist with an equal balance of peanut butter and banana flavor. Now some people who tried it tasted the banana more or the peanut butter more. I think that might be due to preference of one over the other. I was able to taste both.

Now, I would like to think this loaf is somewhat healthy since the bananas are a good source of potassium and the peanut butter protein, but I am sure some would beg to differ since there is sugar and chocolate chips in the loaf as well. But a little sweetness isn’t a bad thing sometimes. If you’re really trying to stick to any health-related New Year’s Resolutions though, you could omit the chocolate chips and use maple syrup in lieu of the sugar. In doing so though you will have to add a little extra flour to the batter to account for the extra liquid.

Peanut Butter & Banana Chocolate Chip Bread

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup light brown sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 F. Spray 9 x 5 loaf pan with baking spray and set aside.

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

In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar with a hand mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating until just combined. Add the vanilla extract. Stir in the mashed bananas and peanut butter until just combined.

With the mixer on low add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until combined.

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf ban and bake for 60-70 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for 15 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.

Recipe first appeared on Bead Yarn & Spatula.

Cannoli Cake

Happy Holidays! Are you in the throes of holiday baking and eating your way through more sweets than you would like to admit? Well, today I am bringing you a cake that you would be a nice addition to your holiday dessert table and to be honest is my favorite cake flavor… A Cannoli Cake! And it doesn’t skimp on the flavors and ingredients of the delicious handheld dessert… Ricotta and chocolate chips.

The cake itself is made with a French Vanilla box mix (I used a Duncan Hines mix) and the cannoli flavors comes from the filling made with ricotta cheese, cinnamon, three different extracts, confectioners’ sugar and of course chocolate chips. It’s all topped off with a mascarpone cheese frosting and sliced almonds and mini chocolate chips are used to decorate it. It sounds like a lot, but, trust me it’s not. All of the flavors/ingredients work well together and you won’t feel guilty for enjoying a slice because it’s just so good!

Cannoli Cake

Ingredients:

1 package French Vanilla Cake Mix, plus additional ingredients to prepare per packaging

Filling:

2 cups ricotta cheese

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon rum extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Frosting:

2 8oz. packages mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons almond extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons whole milk

1 cup sliced almonds

mini chocolate chips, for top of cake

Directions:

Prepare and bake cake mix per package directions using two 8-inch round baking pans sprayed with baking spray. Cool in pans for 10 minutes and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Make the filling: In a large bowl fold together the ricotta cheese, confectioners’ sugar, cinnamon, and all extracts until well incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips. Set aside.

Make the frosting: In another large bowl, using a hand mixer on medium speed, beat the mascarpone cheese, confectioners’ sugar, almond & vanilla extracts and milk until creamy.

Place one of the cake layers on a cake board or serving plate and spread 1 cup of the filling over it. Top with the other cake layer and spread the remaining frosting over the top of the cake within 1inch of the edge. Frost the sides and top edge of the cake with the frosting.

Press the almonds on the sides of the cake and the chocolate chips around the edge of the top of the cake.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Recipe from Taste of Home

Applesauce Brownies

Earlier this week I posted a recipe that used applesauce and whole wheat flour as two of its ingredients and today I am sharing another recipe with those two ingredients… A brownie recipe. Granted these brownies were more like snack cakes, but, were delicious nonetheless. And truth be told, that’s all that really matters.

After making the batter I poured it into an 8×8-inch pan I sprayed with baking spray. I’ve come to realize that greasing your pan isn’t enough when it comes to making brownies. The addition of flour in the baking spray ensure that the brownies will not stick the pan when removing them. I then sprinkled the top of the batter with a walnut, chocolate chip and sugar mixture.

Next, I baked them in a 350 F preheated oven for about 30 minutes and after letting the brownies cool in the pan for a few minutes…

I removed them from the pan so they could cool completely on a wire rack…

Before slicing and enjoying them. As I mentioned, the texture is definitely more cake-like than brownie, and yes, I know that cake-like brownies are a thing, but, having had and made cake-like brownies, these definitely were not reminiscent of that. The brownies themselves aren’t overly sweet so the chocolate chips in the topping is a welcomed sweetness as is the crunch from the walnuts.

Applesauce Brownies

  • Servings: 12 Brownies
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Ingredients:

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

6 tablespoons cocoa powder*

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

3/4 cup sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

3/4 unsweetened applesauce

1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Topping:

2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 chopped walnuts

1/4 chocolate chips (any type)

 

*I used a 50/50 combination of Hershey’s 100% Cacao / Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder. The original recipe called for King Arthur’s Triple Cocoa Powder

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease an 8×8 inch pan and set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and set aside.

In a large bowl combine the butter, cocoa powder, oil, sugar, eggs, applesauce and vanilla and using a hand mixer on medium speed beat the ingredients until well combined.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low until just combined.

Spread the batter in the prepared ban.

In a small bowl combined the ingredients for the topping and then sprinkle over the batter.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 – 35 minutes, or until the brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan and a cake tester inserted about 1-inch from the sides comes out clean.

Allow to cool in pan before slicing them.

Recipe from King Arthur Flour

S’more Brownie Bites

Happy National S’mores Day! Will you be enjoying the campfire treat today? Truth be told, I had my first actual s’more last year and I must admit it was pretty good. I am not a big marshmallow fan so I think that’s why I never tried one, also, I’ve never been camping. Although you don’t have to go camping to have a s’more. Last year friends and I made them for dessert after a BBQ by roasting the marshmallows over sterno gel chafing fuel. Believe it or not, it actually worked! For today’s s’more treat I made S’more Brownie Bites.

I started by making the brownie batter. I melted a stick of butter in a small saucepan and then added in mini chocolate chips and whisked it until it was melted and smooth. I transferred this a medium bowl and stirred in sugar, eggs and vanilla extract. Using a hand mixer I then beat in all-purpose flour. And finally I stirred in mini chocolate chips. Now, the recipe called for quinoa flour along with all-purpose flour. I decided to omit the quinoa flour and just used all-purpose flour. I honestly didn’t want to spend money on quinoa flour which I probably wouldn’t use again and it didn’t seem necessary to the outcome of the recipe. I even researched making my own quinoa flour, but, it just didn’t seem worth the time and effort. Sorry if I sound so negative, but, I’ve finally learned that tweaking a recipe to the ingredients you have on hand is obviously much easier but also builds one’s confidence in the kitchen and you truly learn what works and doesn’t work. Back in the day, I would avoid a recipe if it included an ingredient not readily available or a bit on the pricier side, but, now I look for ways to make the recipe work with what I have on hand.

Once the batter was ready, using a small cookie scoop, I filled a mini cupcake pan, which I lined with liners, with the batter. Next, I pressed three mini marshmallows into each of the brownie bites and then topped them with crushed graham crackers. Here’s my simple trick for crushing graham crackers… Break them up a little and add them to a quart-size Ziploc bag. Seal the bag, removing the air, and then using a rolling pin, roll the graham crackers to crush them to your desired consistency. I opted to leave the graham crackers with little pieces to give the tops of the brownie bites a little texture to them.

After baking in a 350 F preheated oven for about 12 minutes they were ready! One downfall of baking marshmallows is that they melt considerably, so removing the brownie bites from the pan wasn’t as easy as just removing basic cupcakes. I let them cool for a few minutes before removing them so that could have been part of the problem, but, I also didn’t want to remove them right out of the oven since I wanted the brownies to settle a little before removing them. Removing them too soon could have resulted in smooshed brownie bites. Regardless, they still tasted yummy! The extra mini chocolate chips in the batter really added another level chocolate goodness to the brownie part and the marshmallows were perfectly melted into the brownies.

 

S’more Brownie Bites

  • Servings: 24 Brownie Bites
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Ingredients:

3-4 large graham crackers, finely crushed

1 stick unsalted butter

1 ¼ cups mini chocolate chips

½ cup sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour*

Mini Marshmallows

*Original recipe called ½ cup all-purpose flour & ½ cup quinoa flour

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a mini cupcake pan with papers liners and set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Remove from the heat and add in ¾ cup of the mini chocolate chips. Whisk until the chocolate chips have melted and the mixture is smooth. Transfer to a medium bowl and whisk in the sugar, eggs and vanilla. Using a handheld mixer, gradually beat in the flour until the mixture is smooth and thick. Finally, whisk in the remaining ½ cup of mini chocolate chips.

Using a small cookie scoop, fill each paper line with the batter. Press 3 mini marshmallows into the center of the batter and then sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, the marshmallows will be puffed and lightly golden. Let cool for 20 minutes and enjoy!

Recipe From Food Network

Slow Cooker Sunday: Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

I’ve tried baking in my slow cooker a few times and I’ve had a few fails that didn’t make it to my blog and there have been a few that did make it, but, I’ll admit weren’t all that perfect – the cakes were a bit unevenly cooked or they fell apart. But, baking a cheesecake in my slow cooker seems to be a winner – thanks to two items, a 6-inch springform pan and a mini rack to place the pan on in the insert of my slow cooker.

I began by making the graham cracker crust and pressing into the bottom and up the sides of my springform pan.

I placed the rack inside the insert of my slow cooker and filled it with a 1/2 inch of water. FYI…It’s an OXO Good Grips Silicone Rack. I found it at my local Sur La Table, but, it’s also available at Williams-Sonoma and Amazon.

After making the batter I poured it into the springform pan and placed the pan on top of the rack. I covered the slow cooker and cooked the cheesecake on high for 2 hours. After 2 hours I turned the slow cooker off and let the cheesecake sit inside for an additional hour without uncovering it. I then removed it, let it cool completely and refrigerated it for at least 4 hours before serving.

One thing I did like about making a cheesecake in the slow cooker… it didn’t crack. I have yet to make a cheesecake in the oven that didn’t crack. And while this cheesecake was good I learned something about myself, I love texture in most foods but cheesecake. I prefer my cheesecake to be smooth and not have any crunch to it

 

Slow Cooker Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

Ingredients:

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (for 6-7 graham crackers)

1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon flour

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

 

Directions:

In a medium bowl whisk together the graham cracker crumbs, cocoa powder and half of the salt and then stir in the butter.

Press the crumbs in the bottom and about 1/2 inch up the sides of a 6-inch springform pan.

In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, sugar, flour and the remaining salt. Using a handheld mixer beat the mixture on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, then the vanilla and finally the sour cream. Make sure to beat the mixture well after each addition. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Place a rack in the insert of the slow cooker and fill with a 1/2-inch of water. Place the pan on the rack, cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Turn the slow cooker off and let stand, covered for an additional hour. Remove the cheesecake from the slow cooker and allow to cool completely and then refrigerate for at least four hours before serving.

Recipe from Slow Cooker Family Favorites

Sweets For Your Sweet

Are you thinking of making some homemade treats for your Valentine? Or, maybe something for yourself? Well, I have two quick and easy treats for just that… Matzo Crack & Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake Truffles.

For the Matzo Crack, you start off by making a simple toffee using butter and brown sugar. Which you then spread over matzo crackers that have been arranged in a single layer on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet. Pop it in the oven for about 10 minutes, remove and then spread a bag of chocolate chips – semi-sweet, milk or dark – over the bubbling toffee. Let it sit for a few minutes and then using an off-set spatula smooth the chocolate over the toffee. Sprinkle with seat salt (and nuts if you like) and refrigerate for about 45 minutes. Once the chocolate has hardened transfer to a cutting board and cut into pieces.

The truffles are just as easy… After making the filling – beat cream cheese, peanut butter, graham crumbs, sugar and peanuts together – roll it into 1-inch balls and freeze for about 10 minutes. Melt the chocolate and dip each of the balls in the chocolate, sprinkle with chopped peanuts and refrigerate until firm.

There you go… two quick, easy and delicious treats that you can enjoy this Valentine’s Day or any day!

Chocolate Toffee Matzo Crack

Ingredients:

4-5 lightly salted matzos

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 cup light brown sugar

12 ounce bag of chocolate chips – milk, semi-sweet or dark

Sea Salt

Favorite nuts, optional

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil – make sure the foil goes up and over the edges of the pan. Top the foil with parchment paper. Cover the paper with the matzo, cutting and piecing the pieces together.

Combine the butter and sugar in a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk until the mixture comes to a boil. Once the mixture comes to a boil cook for a few more minutes until it becomes foamy and thickened. The mixture may look like its separating, continues whisking and it will come together. Pour the toffee over the matzo and spread it into an even layer using an off-set spatula. Pop it in the oven and bake it for about 10 minutes, until the toffee is bubbling. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack

Scatter the chocolate chips over the hot toffee, let it sit for a few minutes and then using an off-set spatula spread the chocolate in an even layer over the toffee. Sprinkle with the sea salt and nuts (if using) and place in the refrigerator for about 45 minutes. Don’t let it stay in the refrigerator too long or it will be more difficult to cut.

Using the overhang aluminum foil transfer the matzo crack to a cutting board and cut it into pieces. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Recipe From Once Upon A Chef

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Truffles

  • Servings: About 28 Truffles
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Ingredients:

8oz. cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

3 tablespoons chopped peanuts, divided

8oz. semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into pieces

Directions:

Beat cream cheese in a large bowl until creamy. Add in the remaining ingredients, except the sugar, and continue beating until all ingredients have mixed together.

Roll the cream cheese mixture into 28 balls, using about a tablespoon of the mixture for each ball. Place on a waxed covered baking sheet and freeze for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate. You can melt it in the microwave or using a double boiler. Dip the cream cheese balls into the chocolate and transfer them back to the wax-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped peanuts and refrigerate until firm, about an hour.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Recipe from Kraft

Cookie Palooza: Peanut Butter Crinkles

It’s the first week of December! Are you even remotely ready for the holidays? Have you thought about what you are baking? If not, I am here to help this week. Welcome to my 2nd Cookie Palooza. A week full of cookies… Kicking it off are Peanut Butter Crinkles. A twist on the more popular Chocolate Crinkles.

Made with peanut butter – of course – and mini chocolate chips these cookies are rolled in granulated and confectioners’ sugar for a little extra sweetness prior to baking. If you’re craving more chocolate in your cookie opt to use regular size chocolate chips as opposed to the mini ones. You do get a chocolate taste with the mini ones, but, it’s more of a hint so little so that you wouldn’t miss it if you omitted them from the batter completely.

Peanut Butter Crinkles

  • Servings: 36 cookies
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Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup light brown sugar

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for dusting

Directions:

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk the dry ingredients – flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt – in a medium bowl.

In another bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar and peanut butter with a mixer until creamy on medium speed. Increase the speed to medium high and beat until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and continue beating until combined. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture, beat until well blended. Add the chocolate chips and beat until combined.

Put the granulated and confectioners’ sugar in separate bowls. Roll tablespoonful of dough into balls and then roll in the granulated sugar and then the confectioners’ sugar. Place on the prepared baking sheets 2 inches apart.

Bake 15 to 18 minutes, switching the pans halfway through, until the cookies are firm around edges and cracked on top. Let cool a few minutes on the baking sheets before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust the cookies with more confectioners’ sugar if desired.

Recipe from The Food Network

Chocolate Chip Muffins

It seems like I am on a muffin kick… Last week I brought you Blueberry Crumb Muffins and this week I am bringing you Chocolate Chip Muffins. The real reason why I made these muffins… I was going on a road trip and thought they would be a good snack/treat/breakfast for the road. When you have chocolate chips in a muffin they can be for anything I think. While this recipe was written for 12 servings (aka a cupcake size muffin) I opted to make 6 large ones as I didn’t want that many muffins for the road.

 

Chocolate Chip Muffins

  • Servings: 12 small or 6 large
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Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425F and line a muffin tin with liners and then spray it with baking or cooking spray. This is just in case the muffins bake onto the pan so you can easily remove them.

In a large bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, salt and chocolate chips, set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together the melted butter, sugar, eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Slowly add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and fold together until just combined.

Divide the batter among the muffin cups and bake at 425F for 5 minutes and then lower the oven to 375F and bake for another 12-15 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes and enjoy!

 

Recipe from Little Sweet Baker