Lovin' From the Oven

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Mini Chocolate Chip Turtle Cookies

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I think I’m finally starting to run out of fuel. Working 7 days a week + school + hanging out with friends + boyfriend + keeping up with my baking blogs = not exactly the most ideal schedule to have. As much as I love keeping busy, a girl has gotta rest every now and then! Luckily, I have an ENTIRE week off and will be heading to Big Bear in two weeks… a MUCH needed vacation, if you will. I’m excited to just sit there and do nothing. That’s what keeps me sane– little trips to far away (or not so far away) places. A day trip to San Diego? Yes, please. As long as I’m with the boy, it’s a good trip.

I saw these on Visions of Sugar Plum (by the way, how cute is she?!) and just HAD to have them. I recently had a turtle chocolate thing from Disneyland and have been craving it ever since. I knew I should have bought the bigger one! Oh, poop. Until I get the chance to go back to Disneyland to get another chocolate turtle, these cookies will have to suffice. I adapted the recipe just a smudge but they turned out perfectly. Let’s add another cookie to my all time favorite list, shall we? These definitely made the cut. Pecans, chocolate, AND caramel?! What more could a girl ask for? I used mini choco chips and made my cookies bite-sized. The cookies were amazingly chewy– kinda like the cookies that I bought from the cart in high school/middle school way back in the day(best cookies EVER!). They also resembled the mini cookies at Mrs. Field’s. yum!

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted
  • Melted caramel, for drizzling
  1. In a medium mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt. In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until creamy – about 1-2 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually beat in flour until just combined; stir in chocolate chips and pecans until combined. Chill dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
  2. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat cookie sheets with cooking spray.
  3. Roll dough into balls (about 2 teaspoons per ball), place on cookie sheets, and flatten using the palms of your hands. Bake 8 minutes or until set and light golden. Cool on wire racks. Drizzle with melted caramel.
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Oh, I’ve also started updating my style blog once again after a year of deadness. haha, I know.. I suck.. but check it out if you’d like!

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Pioneer Woman’s Chocolate Sheet Cake

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So I just got fingerprinted today for part of my teaching credential program. 80 bucks, seriously!?! I just spent my month’s money worth of food to have my identity taken. I mean, the process only took ten minutes at most, so I’m still confused at why it costs so darn much. Teachers don’t even make any money, anyways! Rip off the ones that have the money to be ripped off.. Sigh.. End rant.

I painted my room last night with my dad and couldn’t LOVE it more. It used to be a bright seafoam green (I went through my Roxy stage ten years ago and decorated my room to fit the whole “surfer theme”) and now it’s a tan/light brown/beige color. It makes such a big difference on the way my room looks now. My room is now currently my little side project that I’m working on and I’m revamping it to make it more suitable to my age. Haha.

Now onto the cake…Thank goodness for Pioneer Woman. I’ve never met her or talked to her in real life, but I feel like I know her. Those are always the best bloggers, right?— The ones that you seem to know oh so well. I don’t take any credit for this recipe, for this one is truly hers. You can find it posted on her blog here. This recipe has wandered across the baking world and finally made its way into my kitchen. I’ve had it bookmarked for months since it’s been raved about so much, and I can now stand behind it with the rest of the bloggers. I took it into work and everyone raved about it. It’s delectably moist without having too much of an overpowering chocolate taste. It’s a light cake, so be careful not to eat the entire thing in one sitting (or do, who am I to tell you what not to do?)!

For the Cake:

  • 2 cups Flour
  • 2 cups Sugar
  • ¼ teaspoons Salt
  • 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
  • 2 sticks Butter
  • 1 cup Boiling Water
  • ½ cups Buttermilk
  • 2 whole Beaten Eggs
  • 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla

    For Frosting:

  • ½ cups Finely Chopped Pecans
  • 1-¾ stick Butter
  • 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
  • 6 Tablespoons Milk
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla
  • 1 pound (minus 1/2 Cup) Powdered Sugar
Preparation Instructions
  1. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.
  2. In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.
    Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.
  3. In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.
  4. While cake is baking, make the icing. Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.
  5. Cut into squares & eat.

Texas Governor’s Mansion Cowboy Cookies

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As you may or may not know, every First Lady has a unique dessert recipe that they share with the public. At my work, we sell a book called Presidential Cookies. Each page gives a summary about every President and their First Lady, along with one or two of their favorite recipes. Fun, right? The only sucky part about the book is that the pictures included are terrible! No offense, but every picture is taken on the same plate– same scene– same ol’ dim lighting. I especially love cookbooks with great pictures of each recipe, so I wasn’t a fan of the visuals in this one.

It’s funny because you can tell how much the cookies have improved from the 1700’s. They start out with three ingredients and gradually increase as time goes on. I chose to try one a bit closer to our time period, one from Laura Bush. To be honest, a coworker baked them and brought them into work. They were so good that I had to bake some for myself. I opted to make them smaller rather than putting 1/4 cup of dough into each cookie. I also omitted the coconut, because I can always do without that. These cookies would be easy to sub some ingredients into depending on your liking.. Just take out one and replace with another! Try them for yourself!

Ingredients

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, at room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
  • 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 2 cups sweetened flake coconut
  • 2 cups chopped pecans (8 ounces)

    • Directions

    Prep Time: 25 minutes
    Bake Time: 17 to 29 minutes
    Yield: About 3 dozen cookies (see note below)

    1. Heat oven to 350 F.
    2. Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in bowl.
    3. In 8-quart bowl, beat butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 minute. Gradually beat in sugars; beat to combine, 2 minutes.
    4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Beat in vanilla.
    5. Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Add chocolate chips, oats, coconut and pecans.
    6. For each cookie, drop 1/4 cup dough onto ungreased baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart.
    7. Bake in 350 F oven 17 to 29 minutes, until edges are lightly browned; rotate sheets halfway through. Remove cookies from rack to cool.

    Note: For 6 dozen small cookies, use 2 tablespoons dough for each. Bake at 350 F for 15 to 18 minutes.

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