Red Velvet Cake Cookies

Made these for a cookie exchange at work and they were a HUGE hit. Warning, don't commit to making 7 dozen of them...it's just too much. A couple dozen is doable, but you WILL dye your hands red...and you will consume a good deal of red velvet cake batter...

Hope y'all enjoy!

Ingredients:

For the cookies

• 1 box red velvet cake mix (I used Duncan Hines)
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the cheesecake filling

• 4 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

For the cookies

1. In your mixer, combine the cake mix and flour. 
2. Add the eggs, oil, and vanilla and mix until smooth (I found it worked better if I added all of the wet ingredients at once rather than individually). The dough WILL be oily. 
3. Turn the dough out onto plastic wrap, wrap well, and refrigerate for at least two hours (I left mine overnight).

For the cream cheese frosting filling

1. In your mixer, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Mix until smooth. 
2. Using a spoon, scoop out teaspoon sized balls of cheesecake filling and place on a plate. (I found it worked best to just put dollops onto a plate, don’t try to make them into balls just yet). 
3. Place plate in the freezer and freeze for at least two hours (again, I left mine overnight).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray, or line it with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.

To assemble the cookies:

1. Take a chunk of red velvet cookie dough and flatten in your hands. 
2. Place a ball of cheesecake filling in the center and wrap the cookie dough around the filling. (If the dough starts to crack when you're wrapping it around the filling, don't freak out. If you just sort of cup the dough between both your palms, it will pull it back together). 
3. Gently roll into a ball and place on prepared baking sheet. Leave at least two inches between the cookies as the will flatten and spread.

Bake cookies for 11-13 minutes or until they begin to crackle. Let them cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Melt white chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl or over a double-boiler (…or in a baggie…). Drizzle the white chocolate over the cooled cookies. Let the cookies set until the chocolate hardens.

Serve and enjoy!

Adapted from HERE

Thanksgiving!

Today’s recipes don’t come to you from Ms. Claire…or even the box. But they come from two very important ladies just the same – Alana’s Mom and Gran’momma.

If you haven’t noticed, Thanksgiving is just around the corner. As such, this post is full of some of our favorite Thanksgiving recipes: Gran’momma’s Cornbread Dressing, Spinach Tarts, and Apple Pie Cupcakes.

Enjoy, and Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

Gran’momma’s Cornbread Dressing

From Alana: “This recipe lives in Mom’s recipe book, written on a piece of paper ripped from Gran’momma’s old ‘Doodle Pad.’ It’s not even a full recipe – there isn’t a list of ingredients, half of the writing has faded away, and the instructions include steps like ‘Have Daddy make the cornbread’…it’s a family treasure. There are more memories in that little piece of paper than I could fit in years of photo albums and videos – my little brother crumbling cornbread, Momma singing Simon and Garfunkel’s ‘Scarborough Fair’ every year when she adds in the sage (she also ALWAYS says she’s added too much chicken broth…she never has), mushing everything up with our hands (clean hands, always clean hands), constantly worrying that we didn’t pick a big enough bowl to mix it in… It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without those moments. And it definitely wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without this recipe.”

From Alana’s Mom: “I am pretty sure I don’t say “I think I put too much in” every single time!” (She’s wrong. She does)

So, in an effort to share the magic of Thanksgiving with all of our readers, here’s the fully assembled recipe.

Ingredients

• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 2 to 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 pone cornbread, crumbled (about 6 cups)
• 4 slices of “slightly stale” white bread, torn in bits*
• 1.5 cups of Pepperidge Farms Herb Seasoned stuffing
• 1 bundle of green onions, chopped
• 1 small handful of chicken bouillon granules
• 1 pinch of sage (no more than 1 tsp)
• 3 teaspoons of poultry seasoning
• ½ teaspoon of pepper
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 3 cups of chicken broth (or more until pouring consistency)
• 2 large eggs, beaten

*left over biscuits or rolls will work, they probably do not need to be stale, but I

think we would have leftover bread that was stale so we put it in the dressing (Alana’s mom)

Instructions

Heat oven to 450*F. Spray 13/9 inch pan with Pam. 

Prepare the cornbread according to package directions - we use Martha White. The consistency should resemble this somewhat:

 Bake the cornbread and let cool. I made two small pones, but one large will work, too.

Chop the onions and celery

In a small skillet, cook and stir onion and celery in butter until cooked down and tender.

In a very big bowl, combine cooked celery mixture, 

crumbled cornbread, bread, 

PF Herb stuffing, 

uncooked green onions, chicken bouillon granules, sage, poultry seasoning, and S/P. Mix well.

Add chicken broth and eggs to the cornbread mixture 

and mix well. The dressing should be "pouring consistency."

Bake at 450* for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Spinach Tarts

From Alana: “I can’t remember when we started making these. I think it was a new recipe we tried on a whim on year. Whenever it was, they instantly became a classic. If these don’t make an appearance at Thanksgiving, there’s a riot. You think I’m joking, but I had to make these things on the fly one year because people threw a fit when I said I wasn’t bringing them. I don’t think they would have let me come to dinner without them. Also, they HAVE to have the tiny turkeys on top. Heaven help you if you forget the turkeys…”

Now, you don’t have to include the turkeys if you don’t want to. As a matter of fact, if you don’t want to have to do it EVERY TIME YOU MAKE THEM, maybe don’t include them…like ever.

Ingredients

• 1 box Pillsbury pie crusts (comes with 2 crusts)
• 1 10 oz package frozen, chopped spinach
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 tbsp chopped onion
• 1/4  tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper
• 1/4 c butter, melted
• 1 c Romano cheese, shredded

*I made a triple recipe...so the picture is a bit misleading

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 350*F and spray a mini-muffin tin with non-stick spray.

Using a small, round or flower shaped cookie cutter, cut out enough circles to fill the tins and press into cups.

In a medium bowl, microwave the spinach according to package instructions. Once cooked, cool then drain and press the spinach, removing as much liquid as possible.Combine the spinach ,egg, butter, onion, salt, pepper, and cheese.

Fill each cup with about a tablespoon of the spinach mixture and top with turkeys.

Bake 25-30 min til crusts are golden brown and cheese is melted.

Apple Pie Cupcakes

This is a new addition to our Thanksgiving tradition. It’s a nice break from the pie-monotony you tend to get. And who doesn’t love fried apples? The recipe is included HERE as a separate link under Ms. Claire's Cupcake Corner. Enjoy!

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

Hello out there, Ms. Claire readers!!  For those of you who’ve been wondering where Ms. Claire went….She went on vacation to somewhere w.a.y. warmer than Northwest Arkansas, but she missed everyone too much, so now she back!!  Yay!!  And she’s got multiple recipes to post tonight!!  She’s also got some quick fixes for people like us (her proxies who are busy saving the world one advertisement and one ninth grader at a time) who are busy CONSTANTLY!! Check out our new crockpot page for tons of quick and easy recipes to keep the hungry natives from being restless. J

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies:

What you’ll need:

·        1 cup all-purpose flour

·        ½ tsp. baking powder

·        ½ tsp. salt

·        ½ tsp. baking soda

·        ½ cup butter or shortening (we used butter)

·        ½ cup granulated shugar

·        ½ cup firmly packed brown sugar

·        1 egg

·        1 tsp. vanilla

·        1 cup quick rolled oats (we used Quaker)

·        1 cup angel flake coconut

What you’ll need to do:

Mix flour, baking soda, and salt. 

Cream butter and sugar.  Add egg and vanilla.  Beat Well.

Add flour mixture in four parts.  Beat until smooth each time.

Mix in rolled oats and coconuts.

Drop by spoonful onto ungreased baking sheets.

Sprinkle with additional coconut and bake on 350 degrees for 9-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Although these treats were not as delicious as our last tropical escapade, they were quite delicious.  If you cook them the full nine minutes, they get a little crispy, so our advice is to back it down to seven or eight minutes to get a nice gooey cookie.  We also commented on how they weren't quite as coconutty as we'd hoped they'd be, so if you're a big coconut fan, you might try adding a few more flakes than the recipe calls for. :)   

Until next time!! Also!  Be on the lookout for our new tab:  Ms. Claire's Crockpot Creations. :) 

Coconut Pineapple Squares

Any of y'all that know us know that we're minor fans of a show called Castle (and by minor I mean we get together every Monday night, no matter what, to watch the newest episode.) Anyway, it's been one long summer waiting on new episodes to come back, but it's finally here! And, in honor of the Castle Season Five Premiere (don't know Castle? Now you do.), we’re making something that’s just as sweet as Nate ‘N’ Kate...Coconut Pineapple Squares...mmmmmmmmm… J

Now, this recipe comes to us from Ms. Linda Livolsi, another friend of Ms. Claire's. Her handwriting is much easier to decipher than sweet Ms. Ruthane's, which helps. Here goes!

What you’ll need:

• 1 ¼ cups sifted flour
• ½ cup shortening or margarine
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 cup strained crushed pineapple
• 1 Tbsp. soft butter
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• A pinch of salt
• 1 ½ cups coconut
• 1 tsp. vanilla

What you'll do:

Mix flour and sugar in a mixing bowl.  Cut in shortening until fine, like cornmeal.

Pat into a 9x9 pan. Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

Combine the butter, the rest of the sugar, egg, and salt.  Beat well. Add coconut and vanilla.

Put 1 cup of strained crushed pineapple on top of cake. Spread coconut mixture over pineapple and pat in. Bake 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

So, not only is Ms. Claire a fantastic cook, but apparently she surrounds herself with good cooks as well.  The more of these recipes we make, the better they get, so thank you, Ms. Linda!  Like a pina colada in a pan. J  Warning, however, these things are rich. Pace yourselves.

Gameday!

So, remember when we said that we reserved the right to addto the recipes in the box?  We’re invoking that right riiiiight now. J In honor of SEC football (GO HOGS!! J), we’re making tailgating food, and we thought we’d share it with you folks today. 

Onion Dip

What you’ll need:

• 1 cup Mayonnaise
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1 cup frozen onions

Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.  Transfer mixture to an oven safe dish (we used corning ware).

Cook for an hour.  I know…it’s gonna be a loooooong hour. Let cool and serve with wheat thins.

Pretzel Bites

What you’ll need:

• Auntie Anne’s Pretzel making kit
• 1 ¼ cup water

Dissolve yeast in 1 ¼ cup of lukewarm water.  Let stand for 2 minutes.  Add yeast mixture to the dough packet and knead with your hands.  Put dough into a large mixing bowl and let rise for 30 minutes.  Take dough out of bowl and twist or break into bites.  Bake for 5 minutes at 425 degrees. 

We also made Garlic-Citrus Edamame (see Ms. Ruthane’s Sweet and Sour Chicken), pizza rolls, and hot wings, but we trust you can follow directions on respective packages. J 

Finally geared up for a lot of eating and a lot of football, we’ll see y’all later.  We’re going to watch our Hogs play!!  Whooooooooooooooooooo!!!! PIG SOOIE!!!!!!! J

Y’all come back now, ya hear!