Nutella Chocolate Birds Nests

Posted in activities for kids, food & flavor & recipes, holidays by Rosemary Lynn

We’ve made Chocolate Birds Nests in the past, but this year we changed it up…. by adding Nutella!

These Nutella Chocolate Birds Nests were a lot of fun to make with my girls. It gets them in the kitchen with a combination of cooking and crafting.

And we also picked up a little Edible Grass this time around. It’s easy to snip into bite-sized pieces with kitchen shears and adds a nice visual touch, but it isn’t necessary if you’re having a tough time finding it. (And I picked mine up for half off after Easter – since these can be a fun treat all season long.)

All our ingredients gathered and ready to go….

Since there is no actually baking involved, it’s mostly mixing and shaping and decorating, once the chocolate chips are melted.

Melt the chocolate at half power, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth.

Then stir in the Nutella.

(And, yes, my kids are wearing superhero costumes while we cook. That’s how we roll at our place.)

I slowly poured in the noodles while they stirred.

Make sure all the noodles get covered in the chocolate mixture, because that is the glue that holds everything together.

Spray some nonstick baking spray in the muffin tins and scoop in some of the chocolate noodles.

You want to be able to shape them into nests with your fingers, so with a small indention in the center, or at least flat as opposed to hill-shaped. If it’s too bumpy and you’re having trouble flattening it, just take some out.

Put three eggs in the center of the nest and sprinkle a little edible grass over top, if you like.

You can see that my kids also added a few of the confetti-like bunnies that came with the edible grass.

This recipe makes 24 nests, but if that’s just too much for you, you could half the recipe. Or share with all the neighbors.

When you first make them, the nests will be gooey and will fall apart if you try to pick them up. They are still okay to eat, especially for anxious kids who want to try their creations, but they’re much easier to eat if you let the chocolate set first.

Put the pans in the fridge for an hour or so to help the chocolate set (because if you live in a humid place like me, that would take forever at room temperature), and then scoop them out with a spoon. Preferably a plastic spoon so you don’t scratch the metal.

Store them in covered containers, using waxed paper to separate stacked layers.

Chocolate Nutella Birds Nests

Ingredients:

1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup Nutella
12 oz. chow mein noodles
72 candy-coated malted milk chocolate eggs (I used Whoppers Robin Eggs)
Edible Grass, cut into 1-inch pieces (optional)

Melt the chocolate chips in a large microwave-safe bowl at half power, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth. Stir in the Nutella.

Pour the noodles into the chocolate mixture and stir gently until they are all fully coated.

Spray 24 muffin tins with nonstick baking spray and scoop a spoonful of the noodle mix into each tin. Move the noodles with a spoon or your fingers so that they are shaped like a nest.

Place 3 chocolate eggs in the center of your nest while the chocolate is still slightly melted. Sprinkle a little edible grass over the top, if desired.

Put the nests in the refrigerator for at least an hour to allow the chocolate to set. Remove from the muffin tins with the help of a spoon.

Store in a closed container in the fridge, using waxed or parchment paper to separate stacked layers.

**********

And here’s the free printable PDF of the recipe:

Nutella Chocolate Birds Nests

Happy Eating!

Save

14Apr2017

Mint Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

Posted in food & flavor & recipes, holidays by Rosemary Lynn

Annnnnd….. now that it’s almost Easter, I’ve noticed that I’ve completely forgotten to post our St. Paddy’s Day dessert. So here it is! ;)

We made these Mint Chocolate Cheesecake Cookie Bars based off of the Lemon Cheesecake Bars that I love so much. But we made these green (and mint) to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.

They were a hit with both my kids and my coworkers, so I may try other variations in the future, since the recipe is flexible.

The ingredients are pretty easy to pull together, especially if you already happen to have cream cheese on hand.

The base for it is a box of cake mix, which makes it a speedy dish to throw together.

The crust will seem a little dry at first, but massaging the ingredients together will help.

If your kids like to get messy, this is a great job for them to help with.

You’ll reserve some of the mix for the crumbles that go over the top, but the rest gets pressed into the bottom of the pan. This is also a good task for little hands.

The crust will seem very thin but don’t worry, it will rise a little as it bakes. Just be sure you spread it out to cover the entire bottom surface of the pan.

I add the food coloring to the cheesecake ingredients before blending, so the mixer brings it all together evenly.

The more you use the deeper the color will be. I was going for bright and bold because it was a themed dessert for St. Patrick’s Day, but if you’re going for a subtler minty look, start with only a little color.

You can see tiny chunks of cream cheese in my cheesecake mixture because it wasn’t fully at room temperature when I mixed it.

This is okay, though. It will still bake up just fine.

Sprinkle the crumbles over the top for a fun look. They also add a nice texture to the finished dessert.

You can technically cut them into any shape you’d like, but I favor the rectangles. I cut it twice lengthwise, and then cut those three rows into pieces about an inch thick.

This gives me 30 pieces, which makes it a great recipe for sharing!

Don’t eat these when they first come out of the oven and are still warm – chill them for the best results. They can be enjoyed at room temperature too, but because of the cream cheese, you’ll want to be sure to store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Mint Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

Ingredients:

1 box chocolate cake mix (15 to 18 oz.)
2 large eggs, separated
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
Green food coloring, gel or liquid

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).

In one bowl, combine the cake mix, one egg, and the vegetable oil. You may need to use your fingers to help it all come together.

Spray a 13” x 9” baking pan with nonstick spray. Reserve about 3/4 cup of the chocolate crumb mixture for later use, and press the remaining batter into the pan. It will be thin but should cover the entire bottom of the pan.

In another bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Then mix in the other egg, the sugar, extract, and a little food coloring. Beat until smooth, adding more food coloring if needed until you reach your desired color.

Spread the cream cheese mixture over the chocolate crust in the pan. Sprinkle the reserved crumb mixture evenly over the cream cheese.

Bake for 25 to 28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with dry crumbs. Cool on a baking rack until it reaches room temperature, then slice. Make two cuts lengthwise and then cut into ten pieces across to make 30 pieces that measure approximately one by three inches. Cover and refrigerate overnight before serving for best results.

**********

For the free printable PDF version of this recipe, click the link below:

Mint Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

Happy Baking!

22Jan2017

Cinnamon Ginger Cookie Cheesecake

Posted in food & flavor & recipes by Rosemary Lynn

Cinnamon Ginger Cookie Cheesecake Recipe by Roaming Rosie

This past year for Thanksgiving, I created this Cinnamon Ginger Cookie Cheesecake.

It’s smooth and creamy and full of autumn flavors. A perfect ending to the day.

I played around with some other recipes that are out there, and was happy with the way this one came out. I utilized advice about how to make a cheesecake without cracking, and this one turned out nice and smooth.

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-2

I love these Anna’s Ginger Swedish Thins. I also used them in my Ginger Cookie Truffles.

I also used pure Madagascar vanilla extract and a stronger cinnamon. I picked up the Korintje Cinnamon and the vanilla at Whole Foods.

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-3

By finely crushing up the two 5.25 ounce boxes of cookies, I got just over the 2 cups of crumbs that I used for the crust.

You could use a different cookie here, if you have another favorite, or if you can’t find these in your local store. (I picked up the cookies at Walmart.)

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-4

After mixing the cookie crumbs and butter together well, you’ll want to smoosh them into the bottom of your springform pan. Grease the pan first, with either butter or a non-stick cooking spray.

A cup with a flat bottom can be used to press the crumbs down firmly.

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-5

For the cheesecake batter, once you’ve mixed together the cream cheese and sugar, and then blended in the eggs, you will mix in the sour cream, vanilla, and the mixture of flour and cinnamon.

The brown powder you see there is not just cinnamon, it’s the cinnamon mixed into the flour.

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-6

Then pour the whoooooole thing into the pan.

Wrap the bottom of the pan in tin foil, just to make sure no water from the water bath gets into the pan.

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-7

You don’t need a water bath, strictly speaking, but it’s a really really good idea.

Just put the cheesecake pan in a larger pan and fill that pan with an inch or so of water.

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-8

After baking for an hour, turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in it with the door closed for an hour.

Then pop open the oven door a little and let it sit in there for another hour. Once that hour is up, take the cheesecake out of the water bath, trace a knife around it to loosen the edges (above pic), and move it to the counter to let it cool fully. Then refrigerate it overnight before serving.

Now, this all sounds like a great time investment. It kind of is, except that all these steps are really easy. You could, theoretically, skip some of them … but the cheesecake might crack or not set right. So I suggest taking the time to do it. It’s totally worth it!

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-9

Oh and there is one of my Turkey Gingerbread Cookies. Those were super delicious too. ;)

cinnamon-ginger-cookie-cheesecake-10

Cinnamon Ginger Cookie Cheesecake

Ingredients:

2 cups crumbs from ginger cookies or ginger snap cookies, finely crushed
1/4 cup (4 Tbsp.) butter, melted
4 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set the rack in the lower middle of the oven. Grease a 9-inch springform pan.

In a medium bowl, combine the cookie crumbs and melted butter. Press into the bottom of the pan. Use a flat-bottomed glass to help press it down. In a small bowl, combine the flour and cinnamon.

In a large bowl, use a mixer to blend the cream cheese and sugar until creamy. Mix in the eggs and egg yolk, one at a time. Then mix in the sour cream, vanilla, and flour mixture. Pour into prepared crust. Wrap the bottom of the pan with foil (to help keep out the water from the water bath), and place the cheesecake pan in a larger baking pan. Fill the larger pan with an inch or two of water.

Bake in preheated oven for one hour. Turn off the oven but let the cheesecake stay in the oven with the door closed for another hour. Crack the door open and let it sit in the oven for one more hour. Then, remove the cheesecake from the water bath and run a knife along the inside of the pan to loosen the edges. Let it sit on a cooling rack on the counter until completely cool. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Refrigerate overnight before serving for best results.

[Note: I used Anna’s Ginger Swedish Thins for the crust, but any type of crispy ginger cookie should work. I ground up two 5.25 oz. packages which made a little over the 2 cups of crumbs I needed. Also, using the water bath and allowing the cheesecake to sit in the oven with the door open helps to make sure it will not crack. These steps are not completely necessary, but I highly recommend them.]

*****

Click here to print out the free PDF of the recipe:

Cinnamon Ginger Cookie Cheesecake

Happy Baking!

Roaming Rosie Signature

Save

27Nov2016

Turkey Gingerbread Cookies

Posted in food & flavor & recipes by Rosemary Lynn

Turkey Gingerbread Cookies

I hope everyone had a yummy Thanksgiving last week!

These Gingerbread Turkeys were one of the treats I made this year.

Just like my Autumn Leaves Mini Gingerbread Cookies, these use the recipe from my Mini Soft Iced Gingerbread Cookies. Because I love these cookies. So, there’s pretty much no way to make too many of these.

gingerbread-turkey-cookies-2

Last year I made turkeys from sugar cookies (Iced Turkey Cutout Sugar Cookies), but I was in the mood for gingerbread.

Again.

I may have made a lot of gingerbread this year. ;)

This time, though, unlike last year, I had a regular turkey-shaped cookie cutter. It made the job a whole lot easier.

gingerbread-turkey-cookies-3

The cookies spread just a tad, but the turkey shape is still recognizable.

Then I made four colors of royal icing: brown, red, yellow, and orange.

I used brown food coloring instead of cocoa powder to make the brown for two reasons: I didn’t want the chocolate flavor and it was much easier to make one batch of icing and add four colors than to make two batches, one chocolate and one regular.

gingerbread-turkey-cookies-4

As you can see from the above photos, I outlines the turkey body first, then colored in the tail and face.

It takes a few minutes to draw the patterns on, but it looks SO cute when it’s done.

And here they are all packaged up to share:

gingerbread-turkey-cookies-5

Here is my post with the gingerbread recipe:

Mini Soft Iced Gingerbread Cookies

And when you go to make the icing, make a double batch, separate it out into four bowls and dye them brown, orange, red, and yellow. You’ll need more brown than any other color.

Then fill a plastic baggy with each color, snip off a small corner, and squeeze the colors onto each cookie like I did in the photos. I did brown (body), then orange (tail feathers), red (tail feathers and wattle), and finally yellow (feathers and beak).

Happy Baking!

Roaming Rosie Signature

Save

24Nov2016

Mini Gingerbread Cookies: Autumn Leaves

Posted in food & flavor & recipes by Rosemary Lynn

It’s Fall! So I made my Mini Soft Iced Gingerbread Cookies, but instead of tiny Christmas shapes, I made autumn leaves.

Mostly because I love these flavors alllllll season long. Not just in December.

Look at all the yumminess!

Cinnamon, ginger, molasses…. this is a good lookin’ list.

It’s starting to come together now.

I love showing all the flavors that combine to make these cookies so special.

I used the smallest of the nesting cookie cutters from the Wilton Leaves and Acorns 9-Piece Cookie Cutter Set.

Which, incidentally, I also used to make my Fall French Toast.

So many cookies!

My kids helped me make these. They loved cutting them all out.

My girls also helped me to decorate them. We dipped them into the icing, which is quicker than spreading it on.

(Make sure to click on the recipe link to see the full directions.)

Yum!

I used regular chocolate sprinkles for some, but to get the yellow and orange combination, I had to pick the ghosts out of the Wilton Halloween Ghost Mix Sprinkles.

It’s amazingly difficult to find sprinkles in Thanksgiving/Autumn colors in the stores. But the Ghost Mix is pretty easy to find around October.

So once again, here is the recipe:

Mini Soft Iced Gingerbread Cookies

Happy Baking!

16Nov2016

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins

Posted in food & flavor & recipes by Rosemary Lynn

These Mini Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins are incredibly moist and flavorful.

A combination of pumpkin puree and virgin coconut oil, blended with a healthy helping of cinnamon, give these muffins a layered dimension of flavor in every bite.

And, really, these mini muffins can function as one giant bite apiece, but I suggest savoring them.

Especially with coffee.

I’ve been wanting to create a pumpkin muffin recipe for a while, and I wanted to incorporate coconut oil. I’m really glad I did, because I feel that the coconut oil was what pushed these over the edge of awesomeness and made them totally irresistible.

Above are of some of the ingredients.

The cream cheese goes towards the cheesecake filling that is used to top these muffins with a deep swirl of melt-in-your-mouth smoothness.

I used more cinnamon that I find is called for in similar recipes. I like to taste my spices.

But there’s no nutmeg. I know people often put it in pumpkin recipes, but I do NOT eat nutmeg. It’s too strong and, at least for me, it distracts from the other flavors. I find that cinnamon is a wonderful compliment for pumpkin, but if you really, really love nutmeg, then you can toss in a smidgen. If you must. But it’s unnecessary. (Don’t do it.)

Plus, you can use vegetable oil if you don’t have coconut oil handy, but the coconut oil adds so much flavor that it’s worth the effort to pick some up if you don’t already have it on hand. Like I said, it’s the turning point for intense flavor and moisture.

Virgin or extra virgin coconut oil will have a stronger coconut taste and aroma, so that’s the best to use.

And you do lose some health benefits by melting the oil (which is solid at room temperature) in the microwave, but when I’m baking while heating something for dinner after working a full day… I take shortcuts. Didn’t feel like washing a saucepan.

Just make sure if you melt the oil in the microwave, that you do it on 50% and for no longer than necessary. About 30 seconds at a time.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon with a fork or whisk until the colors are completely combined and the cinnamon is evenly distributed.

Mix together the sugars and wet ingredients.

I just used a fork. (Shortcuts means not pulling out the mixer.)

This time, I actually blended the sugars and pumpkin first, then added the oil and eggs, but you could throw all of it together at the same time, too.

As long as it’s all well blended.

Then you’ll gradually add in the flour mixture. Do not overmix it, though. It should be smooth, but if you beat it too much the muffins may be tough.

Here are the filling ingredients.

Again: just mixed it with a fork.

I had considered layering the pumpkin mix, then cream cheese mix, and then more pumpkin, but I’m glad I decided against it. This method was easier and, as long as you swirl it, the cream cheese mixture still makes it into the center of the muffin.

Fill the mini cupcake liners about 3/4 full with pumpkin batter, then dollop about a teaspoon of the cream cheese mix on top.

Next, you’ll swirl a toothpick through the muffins, which will drag the cheesecake portion over the top and mix it into the center, too.

Don’t over do it. You’ll want some large chunks of cheesecake, so don’t swirl it to the point of thinning it out so much you can barely see the cream cheese any more.

Doesn’t that look AMAZING???

And they taste even better.

You can eat them right out of the oven, but I prefer them at room temperature. They should be stored in the refrigerator, because of the cream cheese, but can be left our for a while without spoiling. (I ate a few of the ones I’d brought into work and left out in the break room all afternoon, before putting them back in the fridge at the end of the day. They were fine.)

I suggest serving them at room temperature, but they’re also good cold right out of the fridge.

I haven’t tried freezing them. They were gone in a few days! ;)

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
1/2 cup melted coconut oil, room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Cheesecake filling:
8 oz. cream cheese
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375° F (190° C). Prepare mini muffin pans with 5 dozen mini cupcake liners.

In a small bowl, mix flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt with a whisk or fork. In a large bowl, use a mixer or a fork to cream together pumpkin, granulated and brown sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Gradually incorporate the flour into the pumpkin mixture until batter is smooth. Do not overmix.

Make the cheesecake filling by creaming together the cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla extract.

Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 full with pumpkin batter. Top each with approximately a teaspoon of cheesecake filling. Combine by gently swirling a toothpick through the batter.

Bake for 14 to 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let sit in pan for two minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Store covered in the refrigerator. Serve at room temperature.

[Note: I use virgin coconut oil because it has wonderful taste and aroma of coconut that compliments the muffins, but you can substitute vegetable oil if you need to.]

Here is the free printable PDF:

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins Recipe

Happy Baking!

Save

18Oct2016

Graveyard Brownie Halloween Cupcakes

Posted in food & flavor & recipes, holidays by Rosemary Lynn

These Graveyard Brownie Cupcakes are SO MUCH FUN to make (and eat!) and very, very rich.

If you’re a chocolate lover, then you need to try these!

To make them a little less decadent, you could make regular cupcakes in place of the brownie base, and even try a milder flavor like yellow cake dyed orange.

But I was in need of some heavy-duty chocolate. This hit the spot.

The first thing I did was make some of my Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Pumpkins with my girls. We made them the day before.

Then we melted some white candy melts to make the chocolate bones using this skeleton mold from Wilton.

We crushed up a handful of Oreo cookies in a plastic bag for our graveyard “dirt,” and we baked up some box brownies according to the package directions.

I’d thought about making the brownies in a big pan to construct a large graveyard scene, but then switched to the cupcake idea.

I was going to use regular cupcake lines and write RIP in icing on some Milano cookies for the gravestones, but then I found these cute graveyard cupcake liners that come with their own paper gravestones on toothpicks. I happened upon them at Walmart, but there are similar products online and at other stores, too.

We let the brownies cool completely, then iced them with chocolate icing.

We pressed in the graveyard picks and some pumpkins and bones into the icing, before sprinkling over a little of the Oreo dirt. (If you sprinkle the cookie crumbs first, the chocolate pieces won’t stick into the icing.)

Then we savored the festively decedent chocolate culinary celebrations.

I recommend you share them, and not attempt to eat 18 thick piles of chocolate all by yourself. Because: wow. ;)

Happy Halloween Baking!

Save

11Oct2016

Spider Web Peppermint Patties

Posted in food & flavor & recipes, holidays by Rosemary Lynn

I am enchanted by these Spider Web Peppermint Patties!

Seriously easy and super cute Halloween treats are my favorite. Like my Vampire Donuts or Oreo Ghosts or Jack O’ Lantern Cinnamon Buns.

And these are in that vein. (Is that a Halloween pun??)

Candy plus icing, and done.

I used peppermint extract to flavor the icing, which was nice with the peppermint candy, but you could also use vanilla.

I made icing with a scoop of powdered sugar, a sprinkle of meringue powder, a dash of peppermint extract, and a splash of water.

(You can see the actual recipe on my Chocolate Almond Mummy Cookies, but here I used peppermint extract instead of almond.)

I put the icing in a baggy, snipped off the end, and drew the webs with the icing on top of the York Peppermint Patties. I drew an asterisk, then made a swishy circle in the shape of a spider web.

I lost the plastic spider-shaped rings I thought I had, which would have looked cute in the photos, but the candy still looked good. And the kids were super happy!

Happy Halloween Snacking!

6Sep2016

Dark Chocolate Dipped Brown Sugar Cinnamon Cookie Bars

Posted in food & flavor & recipes by Rosemary Lynn

I’ve been wanting to make cinnamon cookies for awhile. And, apparently, my new obsession is dipping things in chocolate.

This particular recipe is a thick, cake-like cookie with a strong hint of cinnamon and an emphasis on brown sugar.

And the chocolate just makes it incredibly amazing.

Plus – and this is my favorite part – that thick cookie soaks up warm coffee like it was born for it. It’s like the perfect breakfast. (And dessert. And snack.)

All the good stuff.

Theoretically you could use light brown sugar … but then you’d be missing out on the extra oomph of molasses.

We’re getting there…

Coming together…

(I’m getting excited.)

Not that I promote eating raw cookie dough or anything but… ohmygosh this stuff is like a gooey pile of heaven.

But it’s a little sticky too, so use nonstick cooking spray to coat your hands before spreading it in the pan.

It will be thin, but that’s okay – it’s gonna rise. Just make sure there are no holes allowing the pan to show through.

Yum! Good stuff right here.

Don’t overbake it, though. I probably could have cooked this one right here about a minute less, since it’s going to keep cooking just a little when you pull it out. The cookie needs to cool completely in the pan.

When you cut your cookies, they will present a nicer display if you trim off the crispy edges.

You can see my “edges” in the photo above. They were a little larger than necessary, but, you know, those were the parts that didn’t make it to the pot luck. ;)

You could dip them into chocolate any way you want, but I certainly recommend using dark chocolate. It has a nice deep flavor that complements the cookie.

I like the way it looks when you dip the corner, but technically you could dip just the bottoms or a full half of the cookie instead.

Or drizzle the chocolate over it.

Were you still thinking about those “edges” I mentioned? Here they are (above). I drizzled the leftover chocolate over them. For parties I think the dipped corners are gorgeous, but the drizzle does the job too.

Did I mention these were amazing with coffee?

Did I only mention it once? ‘Cause these are uh-mazing with coffee.

(Even if you accidentally put too much creamer in your coffee. Still amazing.)

Dark Chocolate Dipped Brown Sugar Cinnamon Cookie Bars

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoons sea salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
10 oz. dark chocolate (I used Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Melting Wafers)

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 15 by 10-inch jelly roll pan, or baking sheet with sides, with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Stir in the vanilla and the eggs, one at a time. Add in the flour mixture, a little at a time, until fully combined.

Spread the dough onto the baking sheet. It is easier to work with if you lightly coat the parchment paper and your hands (or spoon) with nonstick cooking spray. The dough will be a little wet and it will be very thin in the pan.

Bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Place pan on a cooling rack and allow cookies to cool fully in pan.

Slice the cookies into bars by first trimming off the crispy edges. Cut three rows lengthwise, then slice those pieces about an inch thick. You’ll have about 4 dozen cookies that measure about 1 by 3 inches.

Melt the chocolate according to the package directions. Dip each cookie into the chocolate then place the cookie onto parchment or waxed paper to allow chocolate to set. Store covered.

********

Click below for the free printable PDF recipe with photos:

Dark Chocolate Dipped Brown Sugar Cinnamon Cookie Bars

Happy Baking!

Save

3Sep2016

Ginger Cookie Truffles

Posted in food & flavor & recipes by Rosemary Lynn

So the other day I was sitting there thinking: if people make Oreo Truffles all the time, can I make truffles out of other cookies too?

The answer is OH VERY YES.

And the more specific answer would be DUDE IF YOU LIKE SPICE COOKIES/CAKE AT ALL YOU TOTALLY HAVE TO TRY THESE RIGHT NOW.

I chose these ingredients because I’m a big fan of spice cakes and gingerbread cookies and things like that. My mom can practically live off of ginger snaps. And fall is on its way. (Or maybe it’s already here. I’m not sure: I live in Florida.)

Anyway, these truffles are basically a combination of cookie crumbs and cream cheese smushed together and dipped into white chocolate.

Then, for a fun touch, drizzled with a little cinnamon chocolate. Just ’cause.

It took me a little bit of forever to crush up all the cookies because my food processor broke, but it wasn’t difficult.

I like these ginger thins because they’re pretty crispy, which made for great crumbs.

I’m sure you could substitute a different cookie, but you might have to adjust your amounts, and – you know – these ginger thin cookies are incredible so why would you??

Unless you come up with something better – then please let me know. Food is my favorite type of experiment. ;)

Oh, and if you’re wondering, I picked up all of my ingredients at Walmart. But you can also get them online if you can’t find these things locally. I totally swear by those Ghirardelli wafers. They seriously rock both in the ease-of-use and taste categories.

The end result?

A silky smooth creamy center exploding with spice and encased in a mildly sweet chocolate that’s decorated with just a hint of cinnamon.

They look good and taste even better.

Ginger Cookie Truffles

Ingredients:

10.5 oz. (2 boxes) Anna’s Swedish Thins or other ginger cookies
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
10 oz. white chocolate (I used Ghirardelli White Melting Wafers)
1-2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (optional)

Crumble the ginger cookies in a food processor or by hand until finely ground.

Mix the cream cheese into the cookie crumbs until well combined and smooth.

Scoop out large teaspoonfuls of the cookie mix and shape into balls. Place the balls on a tray lined with parchment paper or tin foil. Freeze for 10 to 15 minutes.

Melt the white chocolate according to the package directions, stirring until smooth. Take out the cookie balls and dip them into the chocolate using a fork, one at a time, until fully coated. Shake the fork to allow excess chocolate to drip back into the bowl. Set the truffles on a sheet of parchment or waxed paper until chocolate hardens, using the side of a second fork to push the truffle off the first fork.

When all the truffles are done, sprinkle a teaspoon or two of cinnamon into the remaining chocolate, depending on how much chocolate is left, and stir to combine. Then use a clean fork to drizzle the cinnamon chocolate over the truffles.

Allow to fully set, then store in the refrigerator.

Makes about 2 dozen.

********

Click here to print the free PDF of the recipe: