Homemade Oreos

I saw this one and thought, no it's not possible.  Could you really make an Oreo.  Needless to say I was intrigued and wanted to try it.  Our oldest has a volleyball tournament and it is our turn to bring the snacks.  So a perfect opportunity to try it out.  The recipe comes from Homemade Oreos by My Baking Addiction.  After reading the recipe, I was a little confused.  It called for 1 to 1 1/2 cups sugar and then said see recipe notes.  Looking at the notes there was no reference to the sugar.  So I followed the blog to the original recipe and finally found the instructions.  The original poster recommended using the full 1 1/2 cups sugar for a sweeter cookie.  But to have a more authentic Oreo flavor she recommends only using 1 cup.  So I went with the 1 cup but I listed the full amount in the recipe.  So here goes.

Ingredients:
For the chocolate wafers:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa (I used regular Nestle's Cocoa)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 to 1 1/2 cups sugar (see above note)
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room-temperature
1 egg

For the filling:
1/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract (I also used clear vanilla extract)
Optional - Gel dye

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2.  In a food processor, or bowl of electric mixer, thoroughly mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar.  While pulsing, or on low speed, add the butter, and then the egg.  Continue processing or mixing until dough comes together in a mass.

3.  Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.  (I rolled the dough into balls and then flattened with a glass dipped in sugar).  Bake for 9 minutes, rotating once for even baking.  Let cookies cool for 3 minutes on cookie sheet, then remove to cooling rack.

4.  To make the cream, place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and a low speed, gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla.  Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2 to 3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.  (Optional:  Blend in a tiny bit of gel dye until you reach the desired color.)

5.  To assemble the cookies, in a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch round tip, pipe teaspoon-size blobs of cream into the center of one cookie.  Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream.  Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie.

Now for the results.  I loved that I could blend all the ingredients in the food processor and it came together perfectly.  The dough is thick, so it was easy to scoop and roll.  Since it was thick, it did not stick to the bottom of the glass like some of the other cookies I have made recently.  I stuck with the 9 minute baking time.  The cookies will look soft, but they firm up as they cool.  I was a little worried about the filling.  Since there is not a lot of liquid in it, I did not think it would get creamy.  But it did.  Be sure to beat it for the full 2 to 3 minutes.  And I was so surprised at the taste.  It tasted just like Oreo filling.  The filling is thick, so it is a little difficult to pipe.  But I think piping was easier than it would be to spread.  Once the cookies were finished, we had to taste test a few and they are great.  I asked my daughter if she thought they tasted like Oreos, and she said that they were a little softer than the original, but very good.  I will definitely be making these again.  They were quick and easy to make and assemble.

Shirley Temple Cupcakes

Since today (when I started this post) is Fat Tuesday, I thought I would make something a little decadent.  When I read the recipe for Shirley Temple Cupcakes they were for a gluten-free version.  Since I don't have gluten-free flour, I just used regular all purpose flour.  Also when I made this recipe I didn't have any 7-up on hand, but I did have a can of diet 7-up so I decided to use that.  The taste of the final product was great, so I can only imagine that regular 7-up would make them even better.  So here is the recipe.

Ingredients:
For the cupcake
1 1/2 cups plus 1 Tbsp all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup 7-up, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp maraschino cherry juice
Several drops red food coloring

For the Frosting:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large pinch fine sea salt
2 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tbsp maraschino cherry juice
12 maraschino cherries, patted dry with paper towel.

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and put cupcake liners in muffin tin, should make 12 cupcakes.
2.  In large mixing bowl whisk together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder and salt.
3.  In bowl of an electric mixer, with paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium high speed for two minutes or until light and fluffy.
4.  Scrape down sides of bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well and scraping down the bowl after each addition.
5.  Turn the mixer to low and add half of the flour mixture, then the 7-Up and finally the rest of the flour mixture.
6.  Add the vanilla extract and mix.  Scrape the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl well to ensure all the ingredients are fully incorporated.  (The batter will be thick).
7.  Take 1/2 cup of batter and put in a small bowl.  Add the remaining 1 Tbsp flour, the maraschino cherry juice, and enough red food coloring to turn the batter red.  Stir well.  Divide the red mixture evenly between the cupcake cups (I used a small cookie scoop and then flattened the mixture).

8.  Gently spoon the remaining batter on top of the red batter trying not to mix the two colors.

9.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the tops of the cupcakes are slightly springy and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

After the cupcakes have cooled completely, prepare the frosting.

1.  In a mixing bowl of an electric mixer, with paddle attachment, beat the butter and salt on high speed until creamy.
2.  Sift in the confectioners sugar and mix on low until fully combined.
3.  Add the vanilla, lemon juice, and maraschino cherry juice.  Mix to combine.  (I had to add extra cherry juice to make the frosting smooth enough to spread).

I thought these cupcakes tasted good and looked pretty.  I don't usually make cupcakes from scratch (I like using a cake mix).  So I thought it was a lot of steps to get the two layers, especially since it only makes 12 cupcakes.  The cake part is dense but you can taste the lemon/lime of the 7-up and the cherry.  The frosting is also really good with a nice cherry flavor with the hint of lemon.  I think I would make them again for a special occasion, but not as an everyday treat (too much work).

4.  Frost cupcakes and top with a maraschino cherry.

Tea Cake Cookies

These were a first for me.  My husband works for the school and they occasionally ask me to bake things, usually cookies or a dessert for the office party.  This time they wanted Tea Cake cookies.  I had never had them before and did not have a recipe.  So one of the ladies baked a batch and sent them home with my husband along with the recipe.  They were okay, but not very sweet and kind of hard.  So I did a little Google research and found out they should be soft and buttery.  So I compared the recipe I had to ones online and decided to add a little more butter in hopes they would come out better.  And they did.  They are soft and sweet, but not too sweet.  And the dough is really good too.  So here is the recipe that I used.

Ingredients:

1 cup butter (2 sticks)

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

4 Tbsp milk

3/4 tsp salt

3 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2.  Cream the butter and sugar together.
3.  Mix in the egg, vanilla, and milk.
4.  Combine flour, salt, and baking powder together.  Gradually add to the creamed mixture.

5.  Lightly grease cookie sheet (I use parchment paper).  Either drop by teaspoon and flatten for round cookie, or chill for one hour and roll out for cut-out cookies.

6.  Bake for 8-10 minutes.  Let rest on baking sheet for one minute before transferring to cooling rack.
Makes approximately 4 dozen cookies.  Store in an airtight container.

The dough will be soft.  I used a drinking glass dipped in sugar to flatten the cookies.  Since the dough is soft, it sticks to the bottom of the glass even with the sugar.  I used an offset spatula to help remove them when they would stick.  I think on the next batch I will try rolling the dough balls in sugar and then flattening.

These cookies are light and sweet.  They will still be a little soft after baking, but they will firm up as they cool.  They passed the kid test, and hopefully they will pass the teacher test tomorrow.  (My husband is taking them to work tomorrow for a teacher workday treat.)

Chocolate Mint Bars

After a trip to the grocery store at the end of last week, I finally have all the ingredients to make this next treat.  I have been looking forward to it ever since I saw it on Pinterest.  These Chocolate Mint Bars looked so good, I could hardly wait.  Be sure to read her story before you start, because she changed the recipe a little and you might like it better that way.  I followed the recipe, with a few little tweaks that I will explain as we go.

Here are the ingredients:

Bottom Chocolate Layer

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
• 2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
• 1/2 cup flour, optional

Middle Mint Frosting

• 2 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1 Tbsp cream
• 1 tsp peppermint extract
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• green food coloring, optional

Top chocolate layer

• 2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted

Directions:

Bottom Chocolate Layer:

1. In a bowl, beat the eggs.
2. Add the melted butter and sugar.
3. Mix in the peppermint and melted chocolate.
4. Stir in the flour if you want a brownie layer (omit for a denser chocolate layer)
5. Pour the chocolate batter into a greased 9-inch pan.
6. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes.  If you do the flour-less version, check after 15 minutes.  Don't over bake them because they will set as they cool.
7. Cool at least 30 minutes.

Here are my notes on this layer:  I decided to go with the flour, to see how it would turn out.  I don't have a 9in pan, so I used a glass 9x11 Pyrex casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray.

Middle Mint Frosting:

1. Blend all the ingredients well.
2. If desired, stir in several drops of green food coloring.
3. Spread the mint frosting on the cooled baked chocolate layer.
4. Place in the refrigerator to chill for five minutes.

Notes:  Since I used a bigger pan, I decided to double the ingredients for this layer to make sure there would be enough filling.  I mixed with a hand mixer and found that it was very dry.  I ended up added about an extra tablespoon of cream (I just poured some in until it was creamy enough).  

Top Chocolate Layer:

1. Mix the melted chocolate and butter well.
2. Once the middle mint frosting is firm, spread the butter-chocolate mixture over the top. 
3. Place in the refrigerator to chill for five minutes.
4. Cut the chocolate mint bars into strips or squares, as desired.
5. Store the chocolate in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

Notes:  Again, since my pan was bigger I doubled the amount of chocolate to 4 squares.  I did not double the butter and only used the two tablespoons.  I have made other desserts with chocolate toppings and a one to one ratio of butter to chocolate seemed like a lot to me.  I placed the chocolate and the butter together in the microwave and melted it there.  Stirred till smooth and poured it over the frosting layer.  You have to be careful when you spread it because it melts the frosting a little as you go.  But I think it covered pretty well.  I did have to refrigerate it longer than five minutes for it to be firm.

Now for the taste.  These bars are delicious.  She describes it like an Andes mint, and I think it tastes similar as well.  I liked the brownie-like layer on the bottom, but I might have to try it without flour as well.  They are very minty.  One change I might make next time would be to use semi-sweet chocolate on top.  The unsweetened chocolate has kind of an after taste with the mint, but I think that is just my personal preference.  Everyone that tasted them as is, thought they were great.

Jell-o Foam

There's not a real title for this dessert, but my kids love it.  Remember in the 80's when Jell-o came out with the Jell-o layers.  It was so cool with a jello layer on the bottom and then a middle semi solid layer and then the foamy stuff on top.  Well I wanted my daughters to get the same experience, so I looked for a recipe online.  Kraft foods has a similar recipe called Jell-o 1 2 3 dessert.  I tried it out and it makes two layers.  The solid layer on the bottom and then the foamy layer on top.  My daughters really like the foamy layer the best and wanted a dessert that was just that.  So all I did was change one thing and voila all foam.  I love this recipe because it is quick to put together and it sets up in only 20 minutes.  Plus it only takes 2 ingredients (plus ice and water) and my daughters can make it by themselves.

Here are the Ingredients:
1 pkg (4-serving size) any flavor gelatin (I use the generic but it works with any kind even sugar free)
3/4 cup boiling water
ice cubes
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 cup frozen whipped topping (again I use the generic and I use 1/2 the container for the 1/2 cup)

Directions:
1.  Dissolve dry gelatin mix in boiling water in bowl.  Add enough ice cubes to cold water to measure      1-1/4 cups;  add to gelatin mixture.  Add to blender; cover and blend for 30 seconds.

2.  Add frozen whipped topping; cover.  Blend until smooth.

3.  Pour evenly into 4 or 5 dessert cups (I like tall ones for impact).  Refrigerate at least 20 minutes or until set.  Store leftover dessert in refrigerator.

Once the mixture is set, then top it with the leftover whipped topping and enjoy.  

As you can see from the picture, it separated a little.  That has never happened before.  I think I rushed this batch because I was trying to get it ready in time for dinner.  Also, last time I made it I put the dissolved gelatin in the blender and then added the cold water.  Not sure if that makes a difference.  I will try it that way next time I make it again.

White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread Cookies

Happy Valentine's Day.  My husband and I don't really celebrate Valentine's day, but I'm usually busy making cupcakes or cookies for one of our children's classes.  Somehow this year, I managed to not have anyone to bake for.  So I saw this recipe and thought I would try it out.  Our daughters love cherries and I had some leftover from the previous cupcakes (I bought too jars in case I needed to make a second batch).  These White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread cookies came from another Pinterest search.  They looked really scrumptious.  I made a few notes to the original recipe with thoughts I had while I was baking them.

Here are the Ingredients:

1/2 Cup maraschino cherries, drained and finely chopped (I also put them in my little processor)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup cold butter
12 ounces white chocolate baking squares with cocoa butter, finely chopped (I used white chocolate chips and chopped them in the processor as well)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 drops red food coloring (optional - I didn't use any)
2 teaspoons shortening
white nonpareils and/or red edible glitter (optional - I just used red colored sugar sprinkles)

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Spread cherries on paper towels to drain well.

2.  In a large bowl, combine flour and sugar.  Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs.  Stir in drained cherries and 4 ounces (2/3 cup) of the chopped chocolate.  Stir in almond extract and, if desired food coloring.  Knead mixture until it forms a smooth ball.

(I didn't have a pastry blender, so I tried it with a fork.  The butter was way to hard, so I dumped everything into my food processor and pulsed it until the butter was combined.  Then I added the cherries and white chocolate and pulsed until it started sticking together.  I then dumped it into a bowl and kneaded it a little to form the ball.)

3.  Shape dough into 3/4 inch balls.  Place balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet (I always use parchment paper).  Using the bottom of a drinking glass dipped in sugar, flatten balls to 1-1/2 inch rounds.

(I tried using a melon baller for the dough, but found it easier to just use a teaspoon.  The dough holds together well, so it was easy to shape and roll.  When I flattened with the glass, I had lots of sticking.  Even with the sugar they still stuck.  It took a long time to peel each cookie off the bottom of the glass.  I will have to come up with a better way to flatten them.)

4.  Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until centers are set.  Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet.  Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool.

5.  In a small saucepan, combine remaining 8 ounces of white chocolate and the shortening.  Cook and stir over low heat until melted.  Dip half of each cookie into chocolate, allowing excess to drip off.  If desired, roll dipped edge in nonpareils and or edible glitter.  Place cookies on waxed paper until chocolate is set.  Makes about 60.  (I didn't have the time to melt the chocolate on the stove top, so I just put it in the microwave.  It melted fine, I put it in for 30 seconds at a time and stirred until it was completely melted.)

Storage:  Layer cookies between waxed paper in an airtight container.  Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Now for my thoughts:  these cookies are delicious.  Since they are shortbread, they are not super sweet, but the added white chocolate makes them just right.  The prep was a little time consuming.  I ended up chopping all the chocolate and then realized, I really only needed to chop the 4 ounces that was going in the cookies.  Also, I wish that I would have thought to use the food processor sooner, rather than trying the fork method first.  But once they were baked, cooled, and dipped, they were great.  There will be do need for storage at our house.  

I took a plate of what was left to our Pediatrician's office (since it seems like we are there once a week) and they thought they were fantastic.

Cut-out heart Cupcakes

I found this recipe several weeks ago and have been anxiously waiting for Valentine's day to get closer so that I could make it.  We had a church bake sale today and I was so excited to get to make these cupcakes for it.  This recipe came from Glorious Treats Sweet Heart Cupcakes.  Her pictures are so much better than mine, so check it out.  I am not a photography and my pictures do not do these cupcakes the justice they deserve.  But I will say that were much easier to make than I expected.  Sometimes when I see a cute idea and then try it, it doesn't always come out the way I had hoped.  But these cupcakes came out great.  Here's the recipe and the directions.

First start out by making your favorite chocolate cupcakes.  I used a box, because I haven't found a scratch recipe that comes out right for me.  Feel free to use whatever you like.  Once the cupcakes have cooled, make the Maraschino Cherry Frosting below.

Maraschino Cherry Frosting


1 cup (2 sticks) butter
4 cups powdered sugar
4 Tablespoons maraschino cherry juice
1/2 cup finely chopped maraschino cherries (I used a small food processor to chop)

Directions:
1.  In the bowl of an electric mixer beat butter until smooth.
2.  With the mixer running, add 2 cups of powdered sugar, one cup at a time.
3.  Add 4 tablespoons maraschino cherry juice, one tablespoon at a time.
4.  Continue beating, and add the remaining 2 cups powdered sugar, and chopped cherries.  If desired, add a drop of pink food coloring.
5.  Beat until fully combined.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Note:  When I made the icing, I was a little worried because it was still dry after I added the cherry juice.  But once I added the chopped cherries, it was perfect.


Heart Cutout Cupcake Assembly


1.  Use a serrated knife to cut the top off the cupcake, using the top of the cupcake liner as a guide.  (For cupcakes that are uneven, start on the high side and cut down, it made it much easier.)

2.  Use a small heart cookie cutter to cut out a heart shape from the cupcake dome.

3.  Spread frosting onto the cupcake base, in a mounded shape.

4.  If desired, sprinkle the cupcake dome with powdered sugar.  Place top back on cupcake and press down a bit.  (I sprinkled mine and the next day the sugar had dissolved into the cupcake).

I was worried that the tops would break when I cut out the heart.  Out of all 24 cupcakes, I only had one break.  I also only had one that was too low to cut the top off.  For that one, I iced it and then placed one of the other cutout hearts on top as decoration.  These cupcakes were so good.  The maraschino cherry frosting is divine.  It's not too sweet, but the cherries make it delicious.  I will be using this frosting a lot.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Fudge

Yes, I said Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Fudge.  I had high hopes for this recipe.  Again I saw it on Pinterest and wanted to try it out.  I love cookie dough and had hoped that this would taste as good.  I followed the ingredients from the recipe, but I used a slightly different technique.

Here are the ingredients:

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup heavy cream 

1/4 cup milk

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Coat an 8x8-inch pan with butter (or cooking spray).  Set aside.

Add both sugars, the cream, milk, corn syrup, salt, and butter to a 3-qt saucepan, stirring to combine.  

Set over medium heat and cook and stir until the mixture begins to boil. Once it starts to boil, clip on your candy thermometer (be sure that it isn't touching the bottom of the pan).  Cook the fudge without stirring until it reaches soft-ball stage on your thermometer.  This will take about 10 minutes or so.  Once it reaches soft-ball stage (about 242 degrees F), remove the pan from heat.  Whisk in the flour.

Let it cool until it reaches about 120 degrees.  When the fudge has cooled, transfer it to the bowl of your stand mixer or a large bowl if using a hand mixer.  Fit the mixer with the paddle attachment, beat it for a few minutes.  It will start to thicken.  When it does, add in the vanilla extract.  Keep beating for another 4 minutes or so until it loses its gloss.  (You will notice a change in the color and consistency when that happens).  It will start to look like cookie dough.

Transfer the fudge to the prepared 8x8 pan and spread it into an even layer with an offset spatula.  Sprinkle with the chocolate chips and press them gently into the top of the fudge.

Let the fudge set for uncovered at least 2 hours.  Cut into squares and wrap.  Store in a cool place. (Does not need to be stored in the refrigerator.)

Now for the taste.   I was hoping for a more cookie dough taste.  But it was good.  It is very rich, but not overly sweet.  My daughters liked it.  

Lemon Lime Crinkle Cookies

Yesterday was a busy day here in our world, our son got a new wheelchair.  It is going to take some getting used to, but I think it will last longer than his old one.  Now on to the dessert.  I was in the mood for something sweet but not really chocolate, so I found this recipe on .  It is a great place to find new ideas.  But be careful, once you start it can get a little addicting.  The recipe is  Lemon Crinkle Cookies by Laura Brennan.  I thought it looked like an easy recipe that wouldn't take very long to put together.  But I had a problem, no lemons.  So I decided to improvise and use some limes that I had left over from another project (homemade Cherry Limeade like Sonic's).  The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of lemon zest.  I hate zesting.  I have tried everything to get the necessary amount of zest for different recipes and it seems like I would have to zest an entire basket of fruit just to get 1 teaspoon. I even got a fancy zester for Christmas and that didn't help.  So I have to preface this recipe with the fact that I did not use the called for amount of zest.  Oh well I think they still came out pretty good.

Here are the ingredients:

½ cups Butter, softened

1 C. Sugar

1 t. Vanilla Extract

1 Egg

2 T. Lime Zest

½  T. Fresh Lime Juice

½  T. Lemon Juice

¼ t. Salt

¼ t. Baking Powder

⅛ t. Baking Soda

1 ½ C. Flour

½ C. Powdered Sugar

I modified the original recipe by using lime zest instead of lemon and half lime juice instead of all lemon.  I would have used all lime to make them Lime Crinkle Cookies, but when I squeezed the limes they didn't have enough juice.  So I added enough lemon juice to make up 1 tablespoon as called for in the original.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease light colored baking sheets with non stick cooking spray and set aside. (I like to use parchment paper instead of greased cookie sheets)

In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, zest and juice. Scrape sides and mix again. Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Pour powdered sugar into a medium bowl. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and press lightly to flatten slightly and repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte {not melty or shiny}. I found 10 minutes was perfect. Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Makes between 2 and 3 dozen cookies depending on the size.

The cookies will be soft when you take them out of the oven.  Once they cool they will firm up.  Now for the taste.  I thought they turned out really good.  Not too sweet or too tangy.  There was a nice hint of lime and the lemon wasn't too overpowering.  The recipe only makes a small batch so I made smaller cookies so that there would be more.  Plus if the cookies are small I don't feel too bad when I eat a lot of them.  This is certainly a recipe I will make again.  The flavor was fresh and sweet.

Oh Lollipop!

Today's adventure is lollipops.  I am trying to get in the Valentine's Day mood and thought that if they were easy enough my daughter could take them to her class for Valentine's day.
As like all good things, it started with a Google search for homemade lollipops.  I looked at a few and decided on one that looked "easy".  I have tried making lollipops before, but they didn't harden properly and stayed sticky.  I think part of the problem might have been that we live in Texas and it was an exceptionally hot and humid day.  So we will see if these turn out better.
Let me preface this recipe with a warning:  BOILING SUGAR IS VERY HOT!  IT WILL BURN IF YOU GET IT ON YOUR SKIN!
Okay I said it, so be prepared.  Make sure that you have everything ready before you start boiling. Because once the sugar is ready, you don't have much time.  I will admit that I'm not very good at reading directions.  I usually read the ingredient list and then look at the pictures (if there are pictures).  But with hot sugar, you do have to be prepared.  I have been lucky and only had one boil over, but it was a HUGE disaster.  I had a giant pot of hot sticky goo that I didn't know what to do with.  I couldn't pour it down the drain or pour it in the trash can.  Finally I found an old jar and poured it in that.  Luckily this is a small recipe, so you shouldn't have to worry about boiling over if you use a large pot.  So here goes, good luck.

What you need:

•  a large pot (mine was 3 quarts, but I think I could have used at 2 quart)
•  a candy thermometer that clips to the pan
• spoon or whisk
• lollipop molds or a cookie sheet (make sure molds are heat proof or you will ruin them, trust me I know from experience on that one)
• lollipop sticks (I have seen people use coffee stirrers)               
• cooking spray

Now for the ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup corn syrup
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon flavoring
• food coloring if desired

Okay now for the directions.  Remember get everything ready before you start cooking the sugar.

1.  Spray your molds with cooking spray (or spray a cookie sheet to make free form lollipops)   

2.  Place sticks in molds, have sticks handy for free-form.

3.  Put sugar, corn syrup, and water into your cooking pot and stir together.

4.  Cook and stir on medium to medium high heat until mixture begins to boil.  (When the sugar starts to boil it will rise up the pot.  Don't worry it will go back down.  That's why you need a large pot so it doesn't boil over.)

5.  Once the mixture starts to boil, stop stirring and attach your thermometer.

6.  Continue boiling at medium high heat without stirring until the temperature reaches hard crack stage.  For my thermometer that was about 305 degrees F.  The temp may vary depending on altitude.

7.  Once you reach Hard Crack temperature, remove the sugar from the heat and quickly add your flavoring and coloring (if desired).  The mixture with bubble and foam a little when you add it, but don't worry.

8.  Work quickly after you remove it from the heat and pour it into your prepared molds.  If you are going for the free form version.  Pour small pools onto your greased cookie sheet.  (I have tried this and it works better on the back of the cookie sheet).  Then quickly add your sticks.  

9.  Let the lollipops cool and then unmold.    You can break off the strings and beads that dripped during the pouring.    

So how did they turn out you ask, well pretty good.  They hardened nicely and came out of their molds easily.  The flavor was a little to faint, so I think on the next batch I will add a little more.  I only have extracts, and I think oils give a better flavor.  But I am just using what I have, so I will try adding a little more.    This batch made 10 molded lollipops.  I made 5 roses (in the picture), 2 bears and 3 happy faces.  The happy faces are a little large for my taste, so I think I will ditch that one and just stick to the other two.  I will definitely make more.

Change of Plans

Okay, my goal was to bake and then give.  Well I still want to give, but because of having 4 kids and not knowing what each day will bring, I've decided to shift gears a little.  My new plan is to try a new dessert each day (as often as I can) and then give away the results.  There are so many recipes out there that I want to try that it shouldn't be hard to find one for each day.  So here goes.

Dessert Denied.
I had my cookies bagged and ready to go.  My son goes to school at noon, so I was going to head out to deliver after he got on the bus.  But at 11:00am I got a call from the school.  It was the nurse saying that one of our daughters was running a fever.  Well there went my afternoon.  My plans had been thwarted by the evil stomach virus.  So dessert deliveries will have to wait a few days until everyone is healthy again.  I will keep you posted.

Today is a two for one since I didn't get a chance to post yesterday.
First up is Saturday and Volleyball Cookies.

Yesterday I took cookies to our daughter's volleyball team.  It was kind of a cop-out because I wasn't really taking them to someone to say thank you or anything like that.  We were going to be spending the whole day at a volleyball tournament, so I knew that I wouldn't get a chance to take cookies/desserts any where.  The girls and parents liked them.  I will do better next time.

Now for today.

                                     

I had made these football cookies (it is Super Bowl Sunday after all) to take to a friend at church, but I forgot them at home when I took the kids to Sunday School. 

 I work part-time for our church as the Director of Religious Education.  Yesterday while we were at the volleyball tournament, I remembered that I needed to get the soup pot out for our Souper Bowl of Caring collection.  Well we didn't get home until almost 5:00pm and our daughter had a band concert last night as well.  So we were only home for a few minutes to change before heading to the school for the concert.  Because of all that I didn't get to the church with the soup pot.  This morning when I took the kids to Sunday School, one of teachers told me that Zeke (a really wonderful man at our church) had taken care of the Souper Bowl collection and left the money for me.  Well I thought about those cookies I had forgotten and realized I had a better recipient.  

I had to teach the Confirmation Session after church, so on my way to the Session I stopped my the house and picked up the cookies.  After the session I went back to the church to drop off the books and noticed that Zeke's truck was there.  He was there with one of our Men's groups setting up for our Pancake Supper.  I went over and delivered the cookies to him and told him thank you for covering for me with the collection.  (This was not the first time he had helped me out).  He said thanks and said that he would share them with the other men setting up for the dinner.  

Even this is only day 3 of my project, I find myself making a list of all the people that I want to thank with Desserts.  Hopefully I will be able to keep it up for a whole 365 days.

Well I did it and here are the cookies I delivered.  I was very nervous.  It is hard stepping outside of your comfort zone.  It is much easier to just sit at home and eat the cookies, rather than take them to someone not sure of how they will react.  I knew they would be appreciative, but I didn't want them to make a big deal about it or ask a lot of questions as to why I was bringing them.  And thankfully they did neither.  I am proud of myself.  I put it off till after my son went to school, and then I had to feed the baby.  Well then it started to rain, so I could have wimped out, but I didn't.  I just put the baby in the car and went.  I did have to check out an obligatory movie, so it didn't look like I just went there to deliver cookies.  They were very happy to get them and all the ladies working there thought they tasted great.  So day one is done and I survived.  We have a busy day tomorrow, so I made enough cookies for today, tomorrow, and Sunday.
Here's to many more days of Dessert Deliveries.

I had an Aha moment today.  I was baking cookies for our daughters band concert fundraiser and the mail woman drove up.  I thought about how I would love to give her some cookies for delivering our mail everyday, even on rainy days like today.  I thought about how I had thought about it at Christmas, but was too busy making goodies for all the teachers and co-workers.  Why can't I give her cookies today, why does it have to be a holiday.  So that's what made me think of this.  Why don't I start a blog where each day I give cookies, or some other dessert to someone new.  I have lots of neighbors I have never met and people all over our little town that I would like to thank or get to know.
We live in such a secluded world where we only communicate via email or on twitter or Facebook.  So why not go out and meet someone new and give them something sweet to eat.  Yes this will be a little outside my comfort zone, but that is part of growing as an adult to challenge oneself to try new things.  So now I have to find a place to start.  I need 4 dozen cookies for the concert, so who to take the leftovers too.  I will ponder that thought while I eat a cookie.
.....
Several hours later (it was a good cookie), plus I had to take care of my children.  I have decided where to start.  It will have to wait until tomorrow, because the place I want to go is closed already.  But after much deliberation, I think I should start with the place that helped me the most when we first moved here.  Let me explain a little.  We live in a small town (only 3500 people).  My husband is from here and we moved back after our first child was born to be closer to family.  I didn't know anyone but my husband and his family members that still live here.  We only had one car, which he would take to work while I stayed home with our daughter.  So the only places I could go were places that I could walk to.  So I started walking to our public library.  I could check out books and movies.  As our daughter got older, we started attending story time.  It was there that I met some of my now close friends, other moms.  The library was my first connection that I made here and it helped me to branch out and meet new people.  So I think that it is only fitting that I start there.  So tomorrow after my son goes to school, my youngest and I will walk over and deliver some cookies.  I will post a picture of the dessert I deliver and let you know how it goes.
Here's to day one of many.