Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

My husband and I watch some random stuff on YouTube, and one night we ended up watching this video about a bakery, housed in a picturesque baking in Sweden, in the snow. It was so lovely. My husband noticed they had a cookbook, which soon arrived at our home. I went through and there were many interesting recipes. Some ingredients are a little different, but I can adapt.

My husband always wants chocolate chip cookies, and this was the recipe he chose from the book. I have browned butter before, and it called for dark sugar beet sugar, or suggested molasses. I couldn’t get the lid off our molasses, so I used golden syrup. It was such a small amount, so I figured it was ok. The recipe also called for spelt flour, and thankfully my local organic market had spelt flour in the bulk section, so I was able to buy a very small amount. I made mine smaller, as the recipe had a yield of 12 cookies and I made 27.

I didn’t quite refrigerate these as I was supposed to. I read the recipe (ok, maybe I skimmed the recipe) and read to refrigerate the dough overnight. I did that but then realized that you chilled the dough for an hour and then shape the cookies and refrigerate those overnight. I figured I would be fine and it worked out with no issue. These cookies come out of the oven looking pretty perfect, and they are a wonderful combination of crispy but also gooey. My husband can’t stop saying how great these cookies are! I agree completely. 

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
160 grams butter
125 grams brown sugar
70 grams sugar
10 grams molasses/golden syrup
1 egg
180 grams flour
20 grams spelt flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
150 grams dark chocolate, chopped

In a small bowl, heat the butter over medium heat, swirling the pan occasionally. Cook the butter until it is lightly browned and smells nutty. Transfer the browned butter to a small dish and allow to cool for 30 minutes.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the browned butter, brown sugar, sugar, and molasses. Beat on medium for a minute to combine. Add the egg and beat the mixture until smooth. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, spelt flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour in two portions, mixing until just combined. Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold in the chopped chocolate.

 
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and shape into 1-1/2” balls. Place the dough on the prepared baking sheet and press down slightly (so that the dough balls stay in place).

Bake for 12-13 minutes, until golden along the edges. Allow the cookies to cool for at least 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Recipe from Cookies & Crumbs by Kaja Hengstenberg

Take 5 Cookie Bars

I really love Take 5 candy bars, but I will admit that I almost never purchase them at the store. Sometimes, I will come across a little bar around Halloween, but that’s about it. My father would always make Take 5 bars in a fudge version, and honestly those were probably better than the actual candy bars. I don’t see that I have made and posted that recipe, so that will certainly need to be on my list for holiday baking.

Most of the ingredients used in these bars are things I have on hand. The different chips I usually have on hand, usually have pretzels, and sometimes have peanuts. My mom had a big container of peanuts, and she said I could take some, so that’s where my peanuts came from. Thanks Mom! Pretzels I had fancy seasoned ones (not good here) but also little packs of traditional twist pretzels. The small packs keep us from using/eating some of the pretzels and then letting the rest of the bag go stale.

These came together quickly, even though there are lots of ingredients. It makes sense as Take 5 bars combines all sorts of flavors! For the pretzels, I opened up a little bag at a time and stopped when it seemed like the cookie base was covered. (I think I used 2 little bags?) I used just 2 cups of chocolate chips for the topping, and I could have used a little more, but I didn’t want the chocolate to be too thick. These cut wonderfully, even in my kitchen which is on the warm side. Some others noted that the bar cookie separated from the chocolate/pretzel layer, but I didn’t have any issue. These are so good. Do I like the cookies bars or the fudge more? Hmm, I’m not sure…

Take 5 Cookie Bars
½ cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla 
½ cup peanut butter
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup chopped peanuts
½ cup peanut butter chips
¾ cup caramel baking bits
2 cups broken pretzels
2-3 cups chocolate chips
1 Tablespoon shortening 

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9”x13” pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large mixer bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar on medium until fluffy. Add the eggs, vanilla, and peanut butter and beat again on medium. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the dry ingredients until a soft dough forms. Stir in the peanuts, peanut butter chips, and caramel bits by hand. Spread the dough in the prepared pan. 

Bake for about 25 minutes, until browned along the edges. Cool completely.

When the bars are cool, melt the chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave-safe bowl, stirring every 30 seconds to prevent burning. Lay the broken pretzels on top of the cooled bars and spread the melted chocolate on top. Let it set at room temperature before cutting into bars with a hot knife.

Recipe from Inside BruCrew Life

KitKat Brownies

My husband and I have been visiting the local Trader Joe’s, and they always have a bounty of interesting items. Sometimes I see items and keep them in the back of my mind. I’m usually thinking “What recipe could use that item?” I don’t always have an answer, but when I was looking through recipes, I found the perfect thing! 

The recipe I found was for KitKat Brownies. Trader Joe’s had a candy bar that was a peanut butter wafer covered with chocolate. They are a little different from Kit-Kats, they are slightly thicker and aren’t scored into 4 parts. For this recipe, you need to cut the candies to fit the pan anyway. I used about three and a half bars of Trader Joe’s version, including the bit that I chopped up and sprinkled on top.

This was an unusual recipe for me that I didn’t use the mixer. You just have to make sure that you start with a large enough bowl to melt the butter and chocolate. The whisking takes a little effort, just to make sure that all of the ingredients are properly incorporated. You have barely enough batter to make the base and then top the bars. These are a little difficult to test for doneness, so I baked them for a full 30 minutes. These cut beautifully, just be careful with the wafer candies. These have a lovely crunch, but then a gooey brownie as well. They are just excellent!

KitKat Brownies
½ cup butter
6 ounces chocolate chips
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, whisked
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup flour
¼ cup cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon salt
6-8 KitKat Bars (enough to fit the pan)

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8” square pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Cut the butter into cubes and place in a large microwave-safe bowl. Add the chocolate chips to the bowl. Microwave the butter/chocolate mixture in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until the mixture is melted and smooth. Remove from the microwave and whisk in the sugar, whisked eggs, and vanilla. Whisk until well combined.

Add the flour, cocoa powder, and salt to the bowl and whisk to incorporate fully and no lumps remain. Pour half of the batter into the prepared baking pan.

Top with a layer of candies, cut as needed to fit the pan. Top with the remaining batter. Chop some of the remaining candies and sprinkle on top of the brownies.
 
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the center of the brownies is baked. It is difficult to test the bars with the candies in the center but do your best. 

Allow the brownies to cool completely before cutting them into bars.

Recipe from Bite-Sized Bash

Nut Toffee Bars

It feels like the seasons are changing and I try to find recipes that reflect the sunnier days that we are having. Of course, next week may be rainy and gloomy, so it’s hard to know what direction you should go! Most of the recipes that catch my interest and more appropriate for fall, but I did recently try to sort recipes that I have saved to remind myself of these spring-friendly recipes.

This week I am still sticking with my tried and true- so this is an oat bar topped with toffee, chocolate, and nuts. I had all of these ingredients on hand (generally speaking) so they were quick to make. This recipe originally called for sliced almonds, which is a logical ingredient to pair with toffee chips, but I didn’t actually have any almonds. I had almond flour, but no almonds, which I found shocking. I did have pistachios, so I used those instead.

The base of these cookies can be mixed by hand, and it is really rare for me to find a recipe that doesn’t require my stand mixer. You then just top with the toffee bits, chips, and nuts and cover everything with sweetened condensed milk. That tends to make things super sweet, so I try to use it sparingly. These baked up well and were easy to cut (always a plus). They have a nice sturdy base, and the chocolate and toffee flavors shine through and the nuts add a nice crunch.

Nut Toffee Bars
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 cup rolled oats 
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup melted butter 
1 cup toffee bits
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup pistachios/sliced almonds
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 8” square pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, oats and salt. Stir in melted butter and mix well. Press the mixture into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the base with toffee bits, then chocolate chips, then the nuts. Pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the bars.

Bake for 30 minutes, until lightly browned along the edges. Allow the cookies to cool completely before removing from the pan, peeling away the foil and cutting into bars.

Recipe from Lil’ Luna

Almond Marble Cookies

I have had this recipe saved for a while, something about the simplicity of the cookie was really interesting. I made another marbled cookie last year and I was pleased with the results. At times I worry that the cookies may lack flavor, but these contain chocolate, as well as vanilla and almond extract, so I figured that they would have good flavor. They were called Chinese Marble Cookies, but I don’t think that’s accurate.

The original recipe had you make the dough, then swirl in the chocolate with a knife. I wasn’t sure how easy that would be, as cookie dough is quite thick. Instead, I shaped the dough into a rough rectangle then drizzled the dough with chocolate. I folded it over then manipulated it some more to make a nice swirl. I used a 1 ounce chunk of bittersweet chocolate that I had on hand; you only need an ounce so use what you have available.

Working with the dough and chocolate this way is messy, but I shaped the dough into a log and refrigerated it overnight. That made it very quick to bake these up, which was good as I was tired and short on time. I did cut the cookies on the thicker side, but I think I prefer the ones that were closer to 1/3 inch. They have a lovely chocolate swirl and the chocolate shines through despite using only 1 ounce! The almond flavor is subtle, but makes the cookie better. These remind me of a tasty sugar cookie that you have around the holidays.

Almond Marble Cookies
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ounce chocolate, melted

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt; set aside. In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter and sugar on medium until fluffy. Stir in the egg, almond extract, and vanilla. With the mixer running on low, add the flour mixture in two parts, mixing until the flour disappears into the dough. 

Shape the dough into a (rough) rectangle on the worktop. Drizzle the dough with the melted chocolate. Fold the dough over and twist and turn the dough to swirl the chocolate. Shape the dough into a log about 2-1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate at least one hour.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and remove the plastic wrap. Refine the shape of the log if needed. Slice the dough into slices, 1/3 to 1/2 inch in diameter. Place on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for 14-16 minutes, until the cookies are golden around the edges. The baking time will vary based on the thickness of your cookies. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Spiced

Spiced Hot Cocoa Cookies

It’s becoming harder and harder to choose recipes on the web, as so many things that I come across are made with AI. I suppose that some AI recipes will work, but I’m not really interested in that. Now when I look online, I choose recipes that are a couple of years old or come from a blog that I am familiar with. I also have been using recipes from well-known companies, such as this one from King Arthur Baking.

They sent out a “top recipes” email recently and there were quite a few that looked great! While I believe some cookies were meant as Christmas cookies, they didn’t necessarily scream the holidays. This recipe is certainly wintery, but it certainly is winter! I had some large marshmallows on hand and wanted to use them before they went stale.

I followed this recipe exactly, using both the whisk and beater attachment for my mixer. I had a bit of chocolate hodge podge, but it measured 170 grams, so all was good. The dough is very similar to brownie batter when I put it in the refrigerator, and I was glad to refrigerate it overnight. It was still soft but workable at that point. Partially baking them, topping them with marshmallows, and finishing the baking was easy. I toasted the marshmallows with my kitchen torch and that worked, but I had to be careful not to set the cookies on fire. These cookies are soft and gooey, and so very tasty.

Spiced Hot Cocoa Cookies
170 grams bittersweet chocolate, chopped
85 grams butter, cut in pieces
90 grams flour
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
132 grams sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla 
10 marshmallows, halved crosswise

Melt the bittersweet chocolate and butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl, heating in 30 second increments, stirring frequently. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.  

Using a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the sugar and eggs. Whip at medium speed about 5-6 minutes, until the mixture is pale and ribbons into the bowl when the whisk is lifted. Add the melted chocolate mixture and vanilla and whisk until combined, about 1 minute.

Change to the mixer’s flat beater and stir in the flour mixture, about 30 seconds. Use a spatula to stir in any remaining bits. Cover the dough and refrigerate the dough for 2 hours or overnight.

Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Shape dough into 1-1/2 tablespoon balls (each about 28 grams) and place on the prepared baking sheets. 

Bake for 8-9 minutes. The cookies will puff but will be soft and underbaked. Remove the cookies from the oven and press 1/2 a marshmallow into each cookie, flattening and slightly cracking the cookie.

Bake for an additional 3-5 minutes, until the cookies are set and the marshmallows are puffed. Broil the marshmallows with a kitchen torch.

Recipe from King Arthur Baking

Boston Cream Pie Fudge

Since I became the designated fudge maker in the family, I don’t always choose very traditional fudge recipes. My dad used to make about 20 different varieties of fudge and molded chocolates, and I simply don’t have the time for that. I have long looked at different recipes, but I was hesitant to share them as I didn’t want my dad to feel compelled to make them. Now I am choosing to make them.

One that I have wanted to make for a while is this recipe for Boston Cream Pie Fudge. It uses a variety of ingredients: marshmallow fluff, custard powder, white chocolate chips, but you also have to cook the butter/sugar/cream to soft ball stage. An interesting combination and one that made for a very thick mixture! I certainly got a workout with this recipe.

Since the fudge was so thick, my effort to swirl the batter wasn’t very obvious. You make the base fudge then cut it into pieces and dip in melted chocolate, which I hadn’t done before. Thankfully the fudge was easy to cut and dipping in chocolate was no problem at all. The chocolate adds a nice flavor to this fudge, which has the subtle flavors of white chocolate and custard.

Boston Cream Pie Fudge
2 cups sugar
½ cup butter
½ cup heavy cream
2 cups white chocolate chips
7 ounces marshmallow cream
3 tablespoons Bird's Custard Powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla 
3 tablespoons cocoa powder

6 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil

Line an 8” square pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, and heavy cream. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Attach a candy thermometer to the pan and lower the temperature to medium low. Cook until the thermometer reads 234 degrees, which was about 10 minutes. 

Remove from the heat and add the white chocolate chips, stirring until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth. Stir in the marshmallow crème, then the Custard Powder and vanilla. Stir until smooth.

Pour 2/3 of the fudge into the prepared pan. To the remaining 1/3, stir in the cocoa powder, mixing until combined. Pour the chocolate 1/3 on top of the remaining fudge in the pan. Swirl the two fudges together with a flat knife. Chill the fudge for several hours.

Remove the fudge from the pan and cut into squares. 

Finally, make the topping: in a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate and vegetable oil. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring frequently, until the mixture is smooth. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Dip the top of each piece of fudge into the chocolate. Allow the chocolate to set before serving. Store in the refrigerator.

Recipe from Sweet Recipeas

Peppermint Patty Cookies

Peppermint with chocolate is a fantastic combination, especially this time of year. I have made a variation of this recipe before, where I made the dough from scratch. This year, in trying to find easier recipes, I came across this one that uses a chocolate cake mix as the base. While this does make for a thick dough, it comes together quickly. You’ll need that as shaping these cookies does take some time.

I had the option of using mini York Peppermint Patties or York Thins, which are the same diameter as the mini Patties, but are thinner. As I was hoping to make a few more than the 16 that the original recipe stated, I chose to use the York Thins. Other than the dough being sticky, they worked great!

Did I mention that the dough is sticky? I’m not kidding! I measured out all of the dough and had the York Thins ready to go, but the dough wants to stick to your hands. I had to completely wash and dry my hands after shaping three cookies. Don’t try to shape them with damp hands, that was a complete mess! Shaping them takes a bit, but they look great when they come out of the oven, and will be perfect for my cookie exchange coming up.

Peppermint Patty Cookies
1 package dark chocolate fudge cake mix (15.25 ounces)
1 egg + 1 yolk
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
16-24 snack size York Peppermint Patties
Holiday Sprinkles

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a large mixer bowl, mix the cake mix, egg and yolk, cream cheese, and butter on medium until combined. The mixture will be thick. 

Shape the dough into 16-24 portions. Flatten the dough with your hands and place a peppermint patty in the center of each piece of dough. Wrap the dough around the peppermint patty, sealing completely. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheet and top with holiday sprinkles.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until set. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Recipe from Tastes of Lizzy

Chocolate Ginger Marble Cookies

I’ve already planned out my baking for post-Thanksgiving and December, but there is a little time left for posting before the busy season begins. When I had looked at my mom’s Better Homes & Gardens magazine, I found several recipes that I wanted to try. One I made at the end of October, and this ginger/chocolate cookie was the other one that I couldn’t wait to make. I was intrigued by the swirly-ness of the cookies.

This recipe is a little more time-consuming than some of the other recipes I make. You make a dough, then divide it into two halves. One half is the chocolate half, and the other is the spiced half. I was happy that the candied ginger was a part of the base cookie recipe! I used a little less chocolate than was specified, since I decided to grate the chocolate bar and that was very tiring! Grating the chocolate distributes it within the dough better, so I knew that the flavor wouldn’t be impacted that much.

The original recipe had you shape each half of the dough into rectangles, then cutting each into 30 pieces. I simply weighed the dough and figured out how much each piece should weigh. Yes, this takes some time, but it worked better for me. You then pair up a piece of each type of dough, smoosh it together, pinch it into two, turn and stick it back together, then roll them into a ball. It sounds like a lot, but it was fun to shape the cookies and then see how they looked after baking. These turned out great! They have a good ginger flavor, but I would add even more ginger next time.

Chocolate Ginger Marble Cookies
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup finely chopped candied ginger
2 teaspoons ground ginger
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
Sugar

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir in the candied ginger. In a separate bowl, combine the ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. 

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter and brown sugar on medium until light. Add the egg and vanilla; mix again to combine. With the mixer running on low, add the flour mixture and stir until combined.

Divide the dough in halves. Add the spice mixture to one half of the dough. Mix the cocoa powder and chocolate to the other half of the dough. Weigh each piece of dough and divide each into 30 even pieces or shape each piece of dough into a rectangle approximately 5” x 6” rectangle and cut into 30 pieces.

Combine one piece of spiced dough and one piece of chocolate dough together and pinch and roll the dough to make a marble effect. Roll the dough in sugar and place on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten the cookies with the bottom of a glass coated in sugar, until the cookies are about 1-3/4” across.

Bake for 10-13 minutes, until the cookie begins to brown on the bottom. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Better Homes & Gardens, October 2025

Brownie Brittle

This week I needed to make something fairly quickly, so I started looking through all of the recipes I have saved. I had one recipe that I wanted to make, but it makes quite a few cookies so I will wait to make those. Bar cookies are usually quick to make, but I like to let them chill for a while before cutting them into bars, so those were off the table. I came across these brittle cookies, and they looked perfect.

I have made a brownie cookie that is similar to this recipe, so I figured that these would also be successful. Those cookies were gluten free, but these cookies have ½ cup flour, so a little bit different. Gluten-free cookies are often sticky, and the original blogger noted that these should be crispy. Mine came out of the oven a tiny bit sticky, but I figured that it would lessen as they cool.

The brittle did become firmer as they cooled, but I wouldn’t call them crispy. The edges are crispy, but the edges tend to fly across the kitchen when I cut them. I topped my brittle with chocolate and peanut butter chips, as I didn’t want to chop nuts. You can honestly top these with anything you’d like, which I love! I cut my brittle with a pizza cutter and that worked great! This makes some very tasty cookie in a short amount of time!

Brownie Brittle
2 egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla 
1/2 cup flour
3 tablespoons cocoa powder 
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
 1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter chips

Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the egg whites until frothy. Beat in the sugar and mix well to combine. Add the oil and vanilla and beat to combine. With the mixer running on low, add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. 

Spread the brownie batter on the parchment paper. Using a metal spatula, spread the batter thinly; when I was finished the batter was about 9”x 12”. Top the batter evenly with the chocolate and peanut butter chips.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until set and firm, but not too dry. Allow the brittle to cool before cutting into random pieces.

Recipe from Princess Pinky Girl

Rice Krispie Chocolate Chip Cookies

I was gathering recipes recently and one of the recipes that I wanted to make called for Rice Krispies. When you buy those, you have to buy a box, so I figured I had better find other uses for the cereal. I suppose you can eat Rice Krispies as a breakfast cereal, but you’d have to add so much sugar! Off I went to find more recipes using Rice Krispies cereal.

My husband often claims I never make him chocolate chip cookies, so when I came across this recipe for a chocolate chip cookie that contained Rice Krispies, I figured I should make them! I hadn’t made anything like them previously, which was a relief. Sometimes it’s hard to find a recipe that’s different from others.

This recipe is typical, with the exception of the inclusion of Rice Krispies. This recipe calls for chocolate chips, but I think you could add any number of ingredients: different chips, coconut, nuts, etc. The cookies do spread and brown quickly along the edges, so you need to watch them carefully. The ones I refrigerated before baking did the best, so I feel that this is a useful step. These cookies are tasty and crunchy, with the addition of the Rice Krispies, and were enjoyed in my house!

Rice Krispie Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup Rice Krispies cereal

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light. Add the egg and the vanilla and mix on medium until combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour mixture, stirring until almost combined. Fold in the chocolate chips and Rice Krispies with a spatula.

Scoop onto the prepared baking sheets. If desired, refrigerate the cookies for 15-20 minutes before baking to reduce spreading.

Bake for 10 minutes, until browned along the edges. The centers will firm up as the cookies cool. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack.

Recipe from Clara Quick Dinners

Chocolate Cookies with Reese’s Pieces Bunnies

I came across this recipe from Practically Homemade on Pinterest, and I was inspired! We had recently bought a large bag of Reese’s Pieces from nuts.com, and my husband had said that we had those available for baking. The original recipe used M&Ms, but Reese’s Pieces are nearly the same and I figured I would be fine. The colors worked, but I wanted to use a chocolate cookie.

The most difficult part of this recipe was finding a pill splitter to cut the Reese’s Pieces in half. I could have just cut them, but I had read a comment about using a pill splitter and that seemed easier. I went to two stores to find a pill splitter, and I was finally able to find one when I asked someone. I guess people often get them when they pick up a prescription, so the tool was not easy to find. I was happy that I eventually found one.

I altered the recipe slightly, as I didn’t want Reese’s Pieces in the dough, so I added mini chocolate chips instead. I baked them before adding the Reese’s Pieces, as I didn’t know what would happen and how the dough would shift while baking. I had the cut Reese’s Pieces ready to go once the cookies came out of the oven, and that’s really important. These cookies are super soft and chocolatey! The Reese’s Pieces add a subtle peanut butter flavor, which is just perfect.

Chocolate Cookies with Reese’s Pieces Bunnies
12 tablespoons butter, softened
½ cup sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoon molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1 ⅓ cups flour
½ cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup mini chocolate chips
Reese’s Pieces, whole and half, for decoration

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter on medium until very creamy. Add the sugar, brown sugar, and molasses and mix on medium to combine. Add the egg and vanilla and stir to incorporate. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour mixture; mixing until just combined. Add the chocolate chips and stir with a spatula to incorporate.

Shape the dough into 1-1/2 inch balls. Place on a parchment-covered baking sheet. Once all the cookies are formed, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.

Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Place the chilled cookies on the baking sheet. They don’t rise a lot, so there is no need for extra space between the cookies.

Bake for about 10 minutes, until set and firm around the edges. Once the come out of the oven, immediately top the cookies with Reese’s Pieces (whole and half pieces) to resemble bunnies.

Recipe from Partylicious and inspiration from Practically Homemade

Chocolate Wedding Cookies

Wedding cookies, usually made with pecans, are one of my favorites that you see around the holidays. I have made a couple of variations with different holiday flavors, but there are so many more flavors to explore. Tim’s sister Maria and I are both big baking fans and we have gotten together to bake things, and we sometimes send recipes to each other. She is the one who discovered this chocolate version, and I knew they would be good!

These “Mexican” wedding cookies are so called because of the combination of chocolate and cinnamon. These call for so little cinnamon that you can’t really taste it, so I would think you are safe calling them chocolate cookies. The original cookies called for chopped pecans, but I followed Maria’s advice and made them all chocolate, adding mini chocolate chips to the dough.

These cookies are quick to assemble, but you do need to make sure that the dough comes together completely and there are no dry areas. If there is dryness, it will be impossible to shape them into balls. This recipe made about 30 cookies, which I was able to bake in two batches. Since they don’t spread, you don’t have to worry so much about spacing. Yes, powdered sugar-coated cookies are always messy, but you are rewarded with a super chocolatey cookies, lovely with chunks of mini chips!

Chocolate Wedding Cookies
1 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup mini chocolate chips
Additional powdered sugar

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix until the ingredients are creamy. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, and salt. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until a dough forms with no dry patches. Stir in the mini chocolate chips.

Shape the dough into 1-1/4” balls and place on the prepared baking sheet. As these cookies don’t rise or spread, there is no need for extra space between the cookies.

Bake for about 12 minutes, until the cookies are set. Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes, and then roll them in a bowl of powdered sugar, coating the cookies evenly.

Recipe from Marie Saba

Browned Butter Chocolate Pistachio Cookies

This is the final recipe that I made with the bag of cinnamon pistachios that I purchased during the holidays. I feel like making three recipes was a victory! Some of the recipes that I found are quite similar, but there are little nuances to set them apart. This one uses browned butter, which does add an extra layer of flavor. It looks a lot like a traditional chocolate chip cookie, but it is more than that.

I have used browned butter in a number of different recipes. It’s frustrating that I can’t provide times for how long the butter will take to brown, but there are so many factors that make a difference. I will say that if you step away from the stove for even a moment, your browned butter will become burnt butter and that’s not good at all. I’m not sure why this happens, just be careful! You could also simply melt the butter, but that wouldn’t impart the same flavors.

Yes, I suppose this is a traditional chocolate chip cookie, but it has some extras. I used dark chocolate chunks and not milk chocolate. I felt this would pair better with the cinnamon pistachios. You really could use any type of chocolate, because it is the pistachios that make the big difference. There are lots of interesting flavors of pistachios out there on the market, and this cookie would lend itself to all sorts of flavors.

Browned Butter Chocolate Pistachio Cookies
½ cup butter
¼ cup sugar
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 ⅓ cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup chocolate chunks
¾ cup cinnamon pistachios, roughly chopped

First, brown the butter. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Once the butter melts, continue cooking, swirling the pan frequently, until the butter browns and smells nutty. Watch carefully so that the butter doesn’t burn. Transfer the browned butter to a separate dish to cool slightly.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a larger mixer bowl, combine the browned butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Mix on medium to combine. Add the egg and vanilla and mix again to incorporate. With the mixer running on low, add the flour and baking soda. Stir in the chocolate chunks and cinnamon pistachios with a spatula.

Shape the dough into 1-1/4” balls and place on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for about 10 minutes, until the cookies are browned along the edges. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Kale Junkie

Graham Crumb Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you read this blog with any frequency, you will be aware that my husband often complains that I don’t make enough chocolate chip cookies. That is true, as it needs to be quite a different chocolate chip cookie for me to add it to my blog. I came across this recipe and it seemed interesting. I have made a couple of items with graham cracker crumbs, but not this recipe exactly. I figured it would be nice to make a chocolate chip cookie variation.

This recipe originally called for mini milk chocolate chips, but I didn’t have those on hand, so I used regular sized milk chocolate chips. I need to restock some of my baking chips, and I will see if that’s something that is available here. I gather recipes from bloggers that live all around the world, so sometimes I have to be creative with specific ingredients.

These cookies come together like traditional chocolate chip cookies, simply with the addition of graham cracker crumbs and cinnamon. I like cinnamon a lot and it pairs well with milk chocolate, so I wasn’t surprised to see that added to this recipe. Some people don’t like the idea of adding extra flavors to chocolate chip cookies, but I think this one is fine. The graham cracker crumbs and the milk chocolate chips add a lovely sweetness to these cookies, which is hard to resist!

Graham Crumb Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 cups milk chocolate chips

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Beat on medium for several minutes until light. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and graham cracker crumbs. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. When the dough is almost cohesive, add the milk chocolate chips and mix on low to incorporate.

Shape the dough into 1-1/4” balls on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for 10 minutes, until cookies are set. The cookies will continue to bake a little as they cool. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Lord Byron’s Kitchen

Chocolate Mint Truffle Snowball Cookies

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate! I try to make something that looks very festive for the Christmas holiday. By the time I get to Christmas, I have done a lot of baking, and then cooking for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We also celebrate Boxing Day, so I will be making something for that as well, but I plan that to be easy. This year I also remade a couple of recipes that were in great demand. I’m tired!

These cookies look fancy, but they really were easy to make. The dough is simple and doesn’t have any leavening, which means the cookies end up being the same size as when you start. I did add an extra egg yolk, as the dough seemed a little dry, and that was perfect. Shaping the dough around the Kisses was easy, as there was plenty of dough.

My only issue is melting the white chocolate, as I have discovered some brands melt well, and others don’t seem to melt at all. I need to remember this for the future! My first batch of melted chocolate didn’t work at all, so I tried again with different chips, and while there weren’t a lot of those chips, they were fine. I bought some fancy sprinkles so these would be extra nice, and I think they are a fun cookie for a holiday selection. Enjoy!

Chocolate Mint Truffle Snowball Cookies
24 mint truffle Hershey kisses
½ cup butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all flour
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup cocoa powder
3-4 ounces white chocolate
1 teaspoon vegetable shortening
 Sprinkles

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Unwrap the Hershey Kisses and place in the freeze while you make the cookie dough. In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter and powdered sugar on medium until combined. Stir in the egg and vanilla. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour, salt, and cocoa powder; mix just until a thick dough forms.

Roll the dough into 24 balls. Flatten each dough ball slightly and place a frozen Hershey Kiss in the center of each. Wrap the dough around the Kiss and seal it in completely. Reroll the cookies and place on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for about 10 minutes, until set. Allow to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.     

Once the cookies are cool, melt the chocolate and vegetable shortening in a small microwave bowl. Dip the tops of the cookies in the melted chocolate and finish with sprinkles.

Recipe from Inside Bru Crew Life

Cranberry Pecan Christmas Fudge

There are quite a few Christmas fudge recipes that are out there, and sometimes they have similarities and sometimes they are very different. I actually made a Christmas Swirl Fudge last year, but that was a white fudge with red and green swirls. The recipe that I am making this year, also a variation of Christmas Fudge us a two-toned fudge, with a chocolate pecan layer and a white chocolate cranberry layer. It is very different from last year, but also very festive for Christmas.

I was concerned that it may be difficult to make the fudge layers and keep them completely separate, but that was no concern at all. I ended up using my 9” square pan, so the fudge is thinner than had a used a smaller pan. I worried at first, but when I cut the fudge, the pieces looked great, so I need to learn to worry less.

I made one change to the recipe- the original called for a cinnamon and chocolate chips in the chocolate layer, and I just used traditional chocolate chips. I do love cinnamon chips, and probably are festive, but I kept this one simple. I also used dried cranberries from Nuts.com and they were perfectly round! I had never seen that before, but they taste wonderful. My husband deemed this my best fudge of the year, and it is hard to disagree!

Cranberry Pecan Christmas Fudge
1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1 can sweetened condensed milk, divided
½ teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup pecans, toasted and chopped
1 ½ cups white chocolate chips
½ cup dried cranberries

Line a 8" or 9” square pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips, 2 tablespoons butter, ¼ teaspoon salt, vanilla, and half of the sweetened condensed milk. Heat in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until the mixture is smooth. Add the pecans and stir to combine. Spread the chocolate layer evenly in the bottom of the prepared pan.

In a separate microwave-safe bowl, combine the white chocolate chips, 2 tablespoons butter, ¼ teaspoon salt, and the remaining half can of sweetened condensed milk. Heat in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the dried cranberries.

Pour the white chocolate layer on top of the chocolate layer, spreading evenly.

Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight. Once the fudge is chilled, remove the fudge from the pan and cut into 1-inch squares.

Recipe from Midwestern HomeLife

German Nussecken Bars

When I was selecting cookies to make this season, I kept coming across European cookie recipes and they just sounded so good. Germany is known for their baking, and to this day I am sad that a local German bakery/café closed without them releasing a cookbook. Some of those recipes aren’t easy to replicate, but if I know what I am looking for it helps.

This recipe is for German Nut Corners (Nussecken) and it uses hazelnuts, a favorite of mine. You can use either almond or hazelnut flour, and while I used whole hazelnuts, I used almond flour as I had that on hand. The other ingredients are somewhat flexible. The original recipe called for apricot jam, and I ended up using apricot/pineapple preserves, and it was great. The jam just adds a little bit of flavor, and I think many different jams would work.

My biggest struggle with this recipe, if you can call it that, was what pan to use. The recipe called for a jelly roll pan, which the recipe said was 13” x 18”. That is a contradiction (unless sizes are different elsewhere) as a jelly roll pan is 10” x 15”. The other size is a half sheet pan. I knew it would be hard to spread the dough, so I used the jelly roll pan. That worked fine, and thankfully the cookies didn’t boil over while baking. It takes a little time to cut these and dip in chocolate, but it’s worth it. They aren’t as sweet as many American cookies, which is refreshing this time of year.

German Nussecken Bars
½ cup butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 ½ cups flour
⅓ cup apricot jam

1 cup butter
5 tablespoon rum
1 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup whole hazelnuts, roasted and roughly chopped
2 cups almond/hazelnut flour

1 cup dark chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vegetable shortening

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan (10” x 15”) with aluminum foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter and sugar and mix until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla and stir to combine. Stir in the baking powder and salt, and then gradually add the flour, until the dough comes together. Press the dough evenly into the prepared pan. Dock the surface of the dough with the tines of a fork and then spread the base layer evenly with the apricot jam. If needed, you can heat up the jam slightly to ease in spreading.

Make the topping: in a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup butter, the rum, brown sugar, and vanilla. Heat over medium until the sugar is dissolved, but do not bring to a boil. Add the roasted and chopped hazelnuts and the almond/hazelnut flour to the melted butter mixture and stir to combine.

Spread the topping mixture evenly over the base crust.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the bars are golden. Allow the bars to cool completely, ideally overnight.

Using a sharp knife, cut the bars into squares and then triangles.

If desired, melt the chocolate a vegetable shortening to make a glaze and dip the corners of the cookies in the glaze or drizzle over part of the cookies. Allow the glaze to set before serving.  

Recipe from Bake It With Love

Peppermint Nanaimo Bars

I have been waiting to make these bars for a very long time. I pinned the recipe and then the URL of the post changed so I had to look again and find a viable recipe. I found it and saved it again. I had planned to make these bars last year, I had even started the write-up, but then I ended up changing what I made. I kept the recipe, because I knew that I would eventually make these.

This was the year that I made these bars! I am so glad that I did as I love Nanaimo Bars, and a holiday variety is not to be missed. A few years ago, my husband and I traveled to Vancouver Island, and stayed a couple of days in Nanaimo. We went to the museum there and thought that we would find out the origin of the Nanaimo Bar. Unfortunately, no one really knows who created the Nanaimo Bar. That’s ok, I’m just glad that someone created these wonderful bar cookies and made a cookie that is so adaptable.

These no-bake cookies have a couple of layers, but they really don’t take long to make. I will admit that making a no-bake cookie in the winter, heating things up on the stove, is much better than making them in the summer. These are quite traditional, with the addition of peppermint extract and the topping. My only challenge was the topping, as the topping called for butter and that never works with chocolate! I substituted vegetable shortening and that was much better. These cookies have all the flavors of a Nanaimo Bar with the refreshing peppermint flavor!

Peppermint Nanaimo Bars
1/2 cup butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup cocoa
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3 tablespoons cream
2 tablespoons custard powder
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon peppermint extract

4 ounces chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
2 ounces white chocolate
1 teaspoon vegetable shortening
Crushed peppermint candies

Line an 8” pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, and cocoa. Heat over medium-high heat, whisking until the mixture is smooth. Add the egg, and quickly stir over the heat to set the egg. Remove from the heat and add the graham cracker crumbs, coconut, and pecans. Press into the base of the prepared pan.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter, cream, custard powder, powdered sugar, and peppermint extract. If needed add additional powdered sugar if too thin or extra cream if too thick. Spread over the graham cracker base and refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour.

In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate, stirring frequently. Pour the melted chocolate over the bars, smooth the top, and refrigerate until almost firm. Melt the white chocolate and then drizzle over the partially cooled chocolate. Sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies. Refrigerate overnight.

Remove the bars from the pan by lifting the foil. Cut into squares.

Recipe from Parents Canada

Gluten Free Almond Flour Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies

The next cookie that I made, related to last week’s cashew toffee cookies, was a gluten free cookie. It isn’t quite the same, but I wanted to have something similar to the chocolate chips of the other cookie. When I am making gluten free cookies, I look for recipes that inherently have no flour, something that uses almond paste, almond flour, cocoa powder or similar. The measure-for-measure gluten free flour mixes are fine, but can add an extra flavor that I don’t always want. These use almond flour; perfect.

I do have special measuring cups that I use for gluten free baking, and I use disposable parchment instead of a silicone baking mat, to help lessen the likelihood of cross contamination. It’s not perfect but I try to be careful. At the store these days it isn’t too difficult to find “free from” chocolate chips that have no dairy, gluten, soy, etc. I always try to keep those on hand. I did make these dairy free as well, using vegan butter.

Gluten free baking is different, and you are never going to get dough that is super cohesive. Shaping these you must be careful, as they don’t form into a perfect ball but you can get pretty close. They do spread some, very common with gluten free cookie. I have a spatula ready when they come out of the oven to coax them back into shape if needed. These cookies are a bit fragile, but the chewiness and mix of flavors overcomes that! These are very tasty and perfect for those with particular food avoidance.

Gluten Free Almond Flour Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies
½ cup butter (or vegan butter), room temperature
½ cup sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ¾ cups almond flour
½ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1½ cups gluten free rolled oats
1 cup (or more) “free from” dark chocolate chips or chunks

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter/vegan butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Mix on medium until light. Add the egg and vanilla and stir too combine. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the almond flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix just until a dough starts to form. With a spatula, fold in the oats and chocolate chips.

Shape the dough into 1-1/2” balls and place on the parchment-lined baking sheets. The cookies may spread so only put 8 cookies per baking sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden. The cookies will be soft but will set somewhat while cooling. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet before removing to cool completely.

Recipe from Lemons and Zest