Pina Colada Bars

A new cookie recipe from A Chef of Your Own, I plan on sharing these with clients soon. I found this recipe in the Better Homes and Gardens Special interest Christmas Cookie magazine from 1999.  Here is the recipe for

Pina Colada Squares

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups quick cooking rolled oats

1 1/3 cups packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 cup butter

1 cup pineapple ice cream topping

1 tsp rum extract

1 cup coconut

melted semisweet chocolate (optional)

Combine the flour, rolled oats, brown sugar and baking soda in a large mixing bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender till mixture resembles course crumbs. (I used a food processor and mixed until a fine meal) Reserve 1 cup of the crumb mixture for the topping. Press remaining mixture into the bottom of an ungreased, 13x9x2 inch baking pan. (mine was a half sheet pan, I think too large, still yummy, but the filling layer would have been a little thicker if I had used a smaller pan)

For filling, combine pineapple topping and rum extract in a small bowl. Spread evenly over the crust.

For topping, stir coconut unto the reserved crumb mixture. sprinkle over filling. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until golden. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into squares. If desired, drizzle with melted chocolate. Makes 48 bars.

 

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Magic Cookie Bars = also called Seven Layer Bars

This is one I remember from childhood.

Magic Cookie Bars

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 (14 oz) can Sweetened condensed milk

2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels

1 1/3 cups flaked coconut

1 cup chopped nuts

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat 13×9 inch pan with cooking spray.

Combine butter with crumbs. Press into bottom of prepared pan. Pour condensed milk evenly over crumb mixture. Layer with chips, coconut and nuts. Press down firmly with a fork.

Bake 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. ut into bars or diamonds. Store covered at room temperature.

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Get Fit Weekend

Here is another recipe for the Get Fit Weekend with Trinity Fitness, http://www.getfitweekend.com/

This is for a home made granola bar that got a lot of protein, depending on which breakfast cerial you use, and no preservatives. I hope you enjoy them!

Peanut Butter Breakfast Bars

243 calories, makes 12-16 cookies

4 cups granola with dried fruits

¾ cups quick cooking  rolled oats

½ cup of whole wheat flour

½ dried fruit

2 eggs

1/3 cup honey

½ cup chunky peanut butte

¼ cup melted butter or canola oil

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 9x9x2 inch baking pan with foil. Coat pan with non stick spray, ste aside. In a bowl combine cereal, rolled oats, flour and dried fruits. Set aside.

In a small bowl, stir together eggs, honey, peanut butter and melted butter or oil. Pour over cereal mixture. Mix well. Drop by ¼ cup onto prepared cookie sheet and flatten with back of spoon.

Bake for 28-30 minutes or until edges are browned.

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Cookie Recipe

I posted the winner, but not the recipe. The cookie this month is

sun-dried Cherry and Dark Chocolate Chip

1 stick butter

4 oz shortening

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup white sugar

2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 pkg Ghirdelli 60%cocoa chips

1 cup sun-dried cherries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter, shortening and sugars until light and fluffy. Add vanilla. Add eggs and combine. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt and gradually add to sugar mixture. Fold in chips and cherries. Drop by teaspoonful onto lined cookie sheet. Bake 5-7 minutes until golden brown. Remove to rack to cool.

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Better Recipe

So I spent the day yesterday making Oreo’s. Although the official tasters(kids and friends) said the cookies were good, I wasn’t satisfied. They didn’t have a great chocolate taste. So back to the drawing board. I used the same filling, but here is the recipe I think is a winner.

Home Made Oreo’s

6 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips

10 Tbls butter

12 Tbls cocoa powder

1 1/4 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 1/4 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

Frosting

8 ounces cream cheese

1/4 cup butter

2 tsp vanilla

2-4 cups powdered sugar

Combine chips and butter in a double boiler and stir often until melted. Add in cocoa powder, sugar and vanilla. Add in eggs and combine. Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. Drop by dime sized balls onto parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes in a 325 degree oven. Remove from oven, let cool 5 minutes and remove from parchment. Coat inside of cookie with frosting, top with another cookie and enjoy.

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and the winner is…Lorie

Thanks everyone for your comments. Lorie is the winner. I am attempting to make oreo’s, so I will let the kids try them first and if they meet with approval, I will get those out to you. If not, I have another recipe I was going to do this month and I will make and get thouse to you.

Homemade Oreo’s (from COOKS.com)

1 Devil’s food cake mix

1/2 cup shortening

2 eggs

Coimbine all ingredients and form into dime sized balls. Place on cookie sheet and bake 8 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Frosting

8 oz cream cheese

1/4 cup butter

2 tsp vanilla

2-4 cups powdered sugar

Combine all ingredients, spread on the back of one cookie and top with another.

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The winner is…

Congratulations Jackie. This month’s cookie is: molasses. This was one of the ones I can remember making with my grandma and I think my daughter’s favorite.

molasses Cookies

3/4 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup molasses

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt in a bowl and set aside.

Cream shortening, sugar and molasses. Add egg.

Gradually add flour mixture to wet ingredients.

Roll into balls and roll in additional granulated sugar. Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet and bake 7-10 minutes until lightly browned.

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And the winners are…

Thank you Allison D and LouAnn R for posting. If you get me your address, I will get you out your cookies. This month I have combined two of my favorites, chocolate and peanut butter and adapted a recipe to bring them together.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 stick butter

1/2 cup shortening

3/4 cup light brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups peanut butter

2 eggs

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Cream butter, shortening and sugars until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and then eggs until combined. Gradually add in flour mixture. Scoop onto cookie sheet and flaten by pressing a fork onto the top of the dough in a cross pattern. Bake 7-10 minutes until light golden brown. Carefully remove to rack to cool.

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And the Winner is…

An Urban legend is something not true but so compelling that we continue to pass it along. A sticky story I was told in a networking session yesterday. Today’s cookie of the month is such a story. These are called Neiman Marcus cookies, the links to the stories are: www.snopes.com/business/consumer/cookie.asp and www.neimanmarcus.com/store/service/nm_cookie_recipe.jhtml

And the winner of the cookies is Tim. Thank you all for your comments, please check back for future contests!

There is a recipe on each site, I am including my favorite. I have cut it in half because unless you have a really large bowl, it won’t fit.

Neiman Marcus Cookies

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups flour

2 1/2 cups blended oatmeal (place oatmeal in food processor and blend to flour like consistency)

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

12 oz chocolate chips

4 oz Hershey bar (grated)

1 1/2 cups chopped nuts

Combine the flour, oatmeal, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Cream the butter and both of the sugars. Add the vanilla and eggs. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter and sugar. Stir in the chips, grated Hershey bar and nuts. Tool into balls and place two inches apart on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees. Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

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It’s Still May

Where has May gone. A little late but I still have a few days to get the cookie of the month in. This is an updated version of a traditional Italian cookie, Biscotti. This version calls for dried tropical fruit, crystalized ginger, coconut and nuts. I have replaced them with white chocolate and cranberries, dark chocolate and dried cherries, or Holiday spices to make them into gingerbread bars. I hope you enjoy them as much as everyone I have made them for over the years.

Tropical Biscotti

1 stick butter

1 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp vanilla

3 large eggs

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup toasted fry shredded coconut

1/2 cup dried tropical fruit bits

1/4 cup crystallized ginger, chopped

1.4 cup chopped toasted almonds

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl using a hand mixer, cream the butter until it is light. Gradually add the sugar and vanilla, then beat in the eggs. Stir in the flour, salt and baking powder. Fold in the coconut, dried fruit bits, crystallized ginger and toasted almonds.

Spoon strips of batter that are 2 inches wide and 10 inches long onto parchment or silicone lined baking trays. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden. Remove from the pan and cool on a rack for about 30 minutes.

Cut the loaves into diagonal slices that are about 1/2 inch wide. Return the slices to the baking sheet and bake an additional 10-14 minutes or until lightly toasted. Cool and store in an airtight container.

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