Peanut Butter Cookies

I couldn't come up with a better name for these suckers because they are just so dang good. And simple. While I am no Betty Crocker, these cookies are better than the ones from the mix bags from the store. I had all the ingredients in my pantry too which makes them even better... and cheaper.

Ingredients

· 2 cups peanut butter, creamy or crunchy (or both!)

· 2 cups white sugar

· 2 eggs

  2 teaspoons baking soda

· 1 pinch salt

· 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1.    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the cookie sheets or use parchment paper.

2.    In a large bowl, stir peanut butter and sugar together until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the baking soda, salt, and vanilla. 

3. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place them 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. 

   4. Using the back of a fork, make a criss-cross pattern on the dough making sure not to press them flat.

    5.    Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

    MMM... just blogging about them makes me want to eat one. After they completely cool they will be hard enough to put in a storage container or load onto a tray. People (especially roommates:)) will love them! (if you're willing to share...)

UPDATE

I went home one weekend and my mom made these cookies but used a MEAT TENDERIZER to make the criss-cross print on the cookie. Say what?! It was pretty cool.

Yogurt Drops

Yogurt. You think you can only eat it one way... think again! I saw on pinterest (of course) several different people freezing yogurt drop-things. So I decided to try it and man they are tasty! I mean, they taste like yogurt but somehow freezing yogurt makes it better. These make the perfect snack!

For this you'll need:
Yogurt, whatever flavor, whatever brand.
A plastic zipper bag
A cup to hold said bag (not super important but much easier than holding it yourself and spooning in yogurt at the same time.)
A spoon
Scissors
A METAL pan/cookie sheet. (I tried glass and the drops were incredibly hard to get off)
And most importantly, a freezer.

Directions:

Place you bag inside your cup and make sure the edges of the bag go over the mouth of the cup.

Spoon your yogurt of choice into the bag.

Once you have the amount you want (I did about five heaping spoonfuls), remove the bag from the cup and gently press out the air and seal the bag. If your bag does not have a zipper, make sure and hold it securely at the top.

With scissor snip off a small bit of one of the bottom corners.

Squeeze (gently at first) the yogurt out on to your cookie sheet in quarter size drops (or bigger or smaller).

Once you have used up your yogurt in the bag, place in your freezer at a relatively level position and freeze for about an hour. Depending on the humidity it might take longer.

Some drops are easier to get off then others. Try using a fork or a butter knife, but only if you have to.

The most fantastic thing about these yogurt drops are that they are way cheaper than buying a package of them in the store and you aren't limited to one or two flavors. The downside is that you have to keep them relatively cold or they become sticky and melt. But if you eat them fast they won't! :)

But what's this??

Yeah, I did it. I put fruit in my yogurt drops. What are you going to do about it?

For these I took frozen fruits and coated them in yogurt (just in the original container. If you lose one it'll just be a surprise for later). Again, I placed them on the same metal baking sheet and froze for about an hour.

These are so addicting and not to mention healthy!

Maple Cookies

Happy day! I made a cookie that tastes like a pancake! Considering I could eat pancakes for every meal, this is a revelation. Not only do they taste good but they make my apartment smell AWESOME. So awesome that my picky-eater roommate came out of her room to try them (and she liked them!).
They tastes like breakfast yes, but I don't recommend eating them for breakfast. They are a little too sweet for that.  Serious Eats is the website from which these cookies from the heavens came from. The picture that they have posted is far prettier than mine turned out and I'm okay with that.

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda 1/2 teaspoon of ginger
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature (pull it out of the refrigerator and stick it in the microwave for 8ish seconds and its room temp)
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
3/4 cup maple syrup

Directions:
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and salt.
In a large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar together until fluffy (about 4 minutes)
Beat in the vanilla and egg until combined.
Add in the maple syrup and beat until combined.
In halves, add in the dry ingredients. Stir until just incorporated.
Cover bowl and refrigerate for an hour or until you're ready to bake, just not more than a day or two.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet (or 2) with parchment paper (it will save a lot of time with clean up and your cookies will come off easier but it isn't necessary.)
Drop dough by the tablespoon full on the baking sheet making sure to leave about two inches of room on either side.
Bake until golden brown along the edges, about 10 minutes. Let cool on the cookie sheet for another 10 minutes until moving to a cooling rack... or your mouth.

attempt one...

I'm a total goof and added baking powder instead of baking soda. They still taste delcious! but they aren't the right consistancy. I'll update later with a picture of the cookies with the right ingredients!

So much better!!!!

Personal Baked Oatmeal

I definitely did NOT like oatmeal until I had some about um... two days ago. Now, I'm obsessed. Not really. But I do enjoy it for breakfast. However, I'm always running late and if I'm not something is wrong. I need something with fewer calories than poptarts and just as tasty as the protein bars I usually eat as I'm running out the door.

About a week ago I found a blog called Sugar Free Mom and all of her recipes are way healthier than the traditional way. So these individual baked oatmeals are an adaption to her recipe.

Ingredients:
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups of apple sauce
5 cups of rolled oats
2 3/4 cup of soy milk (you can use whatever milk you like)
1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup flaxseed meal
3/4 cup honey
Assortment of toppings (i.e. strawberries, blueberries, raisins, nuts, chocolate chips, etc. Fruit can be either fresh or frozen.)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Mix eggs, vanilla, applesauce, and honey together in a large bowl.
Add in oats, salt, baking powder, flax, and cinnamon and mix well with wet mixture
Pour in milk and combine. It will look runny and that's okay!
Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. (I would recommend this over using cooking spray!)
Pour mixture into tin almost all the way up to the top of the liner.
Add toppings. Press them gently into the oat mix.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted and removed cleanly.

And taduh! You have delicious breakfast (or snacks)! Let them cool and serve or you can put them in an air tight container or zipper bag and refrigerate or freeze. To reheat, microwave for 30-60 seconds depending on the microwave.

The first batch that I made I used cooking spray (which is what the photo is of) and if you don't get every inch of that tin they are going to come out in pieces!