chewy snickerdoodle cookies

prep time: about 45 minutes (includes time in the refrigerator)

cook time: 12-14 minutes
yield: about 1 1/2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Coating

• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

 In an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugars on high speed, once creamy add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth.
Combine the flour, salt, baking soda, and cream of tartar in a separate bowl. Once mixed, Incorperate the dry ingredients with the moist and mix well.

 Preheat oven to 300 degrees while you let the dough rest for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.  Make sure to scrape off the sides of your bowl before you let it cool.  The dough gets quite hard, and is difficult to scrape off once chilled.
While you cool the dough mix the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl, and set aside.

 Remove dough from the refrigerator and roll about 2 1/2 tablespoons of dough into a ball. Coat the dough balls in the cinnamon and sugar mix, and lightly press onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat for remaining cookies.

Bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes and no more. The cookies will seem undercooked, but continue to develop once removed from the oven. Once cooled, the cookies should be soft in the center.

recipe found at http://heidibakes.blogspot.com/

classic chocolate chip cookies

Prep time: 10-15 minutes

Cook time: 9 minutes

Total time: about 25 minutes

Yield: makes about 2 dozen cookies   

Ingredients

• 2/3 c shortening
• 2/3 c butter or margarine
• 1 c sugar
• 1 c brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla 
• 3 1/2 c flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 12 oz milk chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 375* and prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside.
Cream first 6 ingredients until thoroughly combined in an electric mixer. Add dry ingredients (flour, baking soda and salt) and mix 'em in well. Stir in chocolate chips (it just isn't the same if you don't steal a few). And you are ready to eat some dough! If you so desire, bake the cookies in the oven for 8-10 minutes, or until a appealing golden colour.

lemon burst cookies

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 13 minutes

Total Time: 28 minutes

Yield: about 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 c granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 drops lemon extract
• 1/2 c powdered sugar (for rolling) 

 Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. That takes awhile, so meanwhile, as that creams, in a separate medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Add zest and whisk it in (the lemon zest smells so summery, does it not?  I could fill my whole house with that wondrous aroma...)

In the mixer add eggs, one at a time and mix well, then add lemon extract. Mix again. With mixer on low speed, combine dry ingredients with the moist, only until just combined. Roll the dough into balls and coat in confectioners sugar by pushing the dough in little circles through the powdered sugar.  Place powdery dough balls on the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of space between them. Bake those cookies for 12 to 14 minutes (be patient! I know they smell good, but you'll be happier if you refrain from eating them while scorching hot) , or until puffed and bottoms just golden brown.
Cool on sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer onto a cooling rack....Okay, now you can eat one... or two... or three....

recipe found on http://www.crunchycreamysweet.com

chocolate butterscotch cookies

They are sort-of like a meringue, and they are suuuuper good. 

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350
In a medium bowl sift flour and banking powder
In an electric mixer combine eggs, sugar and vanilla.  Beat on medium-high speed for 10 minutes or until white and creamy.
While you wait for the egg mixture, melt butter and chocolate chips in a small sauce pan on medium heat until smooth and completely melted, remove from heat, and set aside.
Mix the flour and egg mixtures together. Fold in chocolate mixture and butterscotch chips. Let sit for 10 minutes.
Cover two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Drop dough onto baking sheets by rounded tablespoonfuls.  Bake cookies for 9 to 11 minutes or until dry and cracked. Allow to cool on tray.  

found at http://diethood.com/

decadent (gluten free!!) peanut butter cookies

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 6 ounces semi sweet, dark, or bittersweet chocolate, chopped (1 cup semi-swett chocolate chips may be substituted)

 Directions:

In an electric mixer combine peanut butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla and beat on medium speed until no longer gritty; about 3 minutes. Add baking soda, mix well.  Pour in chocolate chunks and stir until barely combined. You don't want to crush the chocolaty goodness!  Move dough to an airtight container and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, and no more than 5 days before baking.

Preheat oven to 350, and cover a baking sheet with parchment paper.  (The cookies have enough oil in them already, so don't grease a pan.)  Line two cookie sheets with dough mounds and slightly press in the middle.  Don't over squish!

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until edges are set, even if the middle is slightly underdone. The cookies in the picture were bakes for 9 minutes, and are chewy all around.  I would not recommend cooking over 10 minutes. 

found at http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/ 

no bake oatmeal cookies

I added extra canned milk on accident.  So they are pretty ugly, and super soft. I thought the recipe said 1/2 can, when it says 1/2 cup.  Oops! We'll have to resort to eating them with forks! 

• 2 c sugar
• 1/2c canned milk
• 1/2c margerine
• 1/2c cocoa
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1c small marshmallows
• 3c oatmeal
• 1/2 c coconut
• 1/2 c nuts (optional)

Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil in a large sauce pan over medium heat.  Turn down to medium low, and add vanilla and marshmallows, stir until completely melted.    In a separate bowl prepare oatmeal, coconut, and nuts.  Pour marshmallow mixture into oatmeal mixture. Stir.  Spoon onto waxed paper, and allow to sit 1 hour.

Nutella Cookies

They.  Are.  Delectable. 

Recipe:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup Nutella

Preheat oven to 350. In a medium sized bowl mix flour, sugar, and egg well.  It will look like crumbly dough.

 Add Nutella and mix until condensed. -I may not have stirred my batch well enough, because I got little white chunks in them. If those bother you, I'm sure you can use a fork to mix it better-

 Roll dough into balls, and place each 1 inch apart on a cookie sheet protected with parchment or a silicone baking mat.

 Bake them for for 5 - 7 minutes.  Use the back of a fork to squish the center of the cookie. And let cool for 10 minutes.