Pinterest Recipe Reviews Pt. 2

  How's your week been so far? Here in Saskatchewan we are trying to stay warm... cuz baby, it's cold outside! I'm trying to keep things cozy in our little nest. Christmas tunes are playing (click here to hear our new favourite album) & I've been doing some Christmas prep. We're starting to feel the Christmas spirit & I, for one, love it!

  Several weeks ago, I did my meal planning via Pinterest. Well, I'm here to finish off the reviews on that group of recipes. (Here is part one if you missed it.)

Lemon Chicken Breasts

  This was an amazing chicken dish! SOOOOOO tasty! The only thing I did differently was I used skinless chicken breasts instead of skin on. If you're a fan of lemon, you will love this as much as we did. I will definitely be making these again.

Salted Caramel Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookies

  Okay, this recipe wasn't on my original meal plan, but I was going to a girl friend gathering & had to bring something. ;) These cookies are crazy good! If you enjoy sweet & salty together, you will certainly enjoy these bundles of yumminess. In Canada, we sadly don't have the caramel pieces she lists in the ingredients so I used butterscotch chips instead. I think they were a pretty great substitute. I will be making these again.

Mini Frittatas 

  My kids helped me make these for supper one evening. They are easy & tasty. One note: do not mix in the salt with the eggs like it says to. It all settled to the bottom & most of the salt ended up in one of the frittatas. Yup, I got that one. Yech! But the rest were very good. I would just sprinkle some salt into each cup next time. I'll make them again.

  So now that I've finally made most of what was on that original meal plan, I'm off to do another one! A family's gotta' eat, after all. Might as well make it good.

Enjoy your day!

Classic Sugar Cookies

  Every year I try to start my Christmas baking in November. Some years it happens. Some, it doesn't. This year: so far, so good. :) My goal is to make one Christmas sweet each week & when December rolls around, my Christmas baking is pretty much done! Like I said, we'll see if that happens. At least I'll have a head start, right?

  This week, my little girl & I made these colourful Sugar Cookies to tuck away in the freezer for our Christmas celebrations. You can use whatever coloured sugar you want. I wanted to go for Peacock type colours. We bought these pretty coloured sugars at the Bulk Barn here in Saskatoon.

Classic Sugar Cookies

Makes 3 1/2 dozen. These are soft & chewy unlike a lot of sugar cookies. I also like that you don't have to roll out & cut the dough. Simply roll into balls & dip in pretty sugar.

2/3 cup shortening

2/3 cup butter

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1/3 cup sugar for decorating 

(Use regular white sugar if you don't have any coloured sugar. You can also use food colouring to tint your own.)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F.

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, shortening, & sugar. Stir in the eggs & vanilla.

Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Stir into creamed mixture until dough comes together. 

Roll dough into truffle sized balls & dip the balls in sugar. Place them on ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.

Bake 10-12 minutes in a preheated oven, until bottoms of cookies are light brown. Remove from baking sheets to cool on wire racks.

~~~

When do you usually start making Christmas treats? 

These pretty sugars make me want to go make some other goodies!

~~~

On another note...

  It being November 11th, let's all take some time to remember the men & women who have served our country & given their lives to fight for our freedom. We must never forget that there is a price to be payed for peace & freedom. I'm so thankful that we live in a free country where we are free to worship God. 

  I, for one, will never forget their sacrifice. I hope you won't either.

~~~

Enjoy your day!

Linkin' Up:

Just a Girl

Tatertots & Jello

Cookie Week Finale / Peanut Butter Nummies

Cookie Week - Day 5

  Cookie week has been so great! I wish I could have had you all to my house for a cookie tasting party. 

  On a side note, I have been baking & photographing all these cookies for about a month. I've also been brushing up on my photography skills in the last month. If you look back over this week's posts, you'll probably be able to tell which photos were taken at the beginning of the cookie photo journey & which were taken towards the end. I'm happy to see improvement in my photography in the past month.

  I'm saving my absolute favourite cookie for last. My Peanut Butter Nummies are amazing, if I do say so myself. This is such a moist, chewy peanut butter cookie. No dry, crumbly business here.

Peanut Butter Nummies
makes 2 dozen

3/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup shortening
1-1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
3 Tbsp. milk
1 Tbsp. vanilla
--
1-3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
--
1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 375º F.

Cream first 6 ingredients until smooth. Combine dry ingredients & add to peanut butter mixture. Blend. Drop by teaspoon onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool slightly, then remove to wire rack to cool completely.

~~~~~

Well, that wraps up my first cookie week! Perhaps I'll make it an annual affair?? What do you think? I'm definitely considering doing a Cookie Week: Christmas Edition come December. Then I can get out my fancier recipes. I'd better get baking so I'm ready in time! Thanks so much for joining me. I love my bloggy friends.

Enjoy your day!

Linkin' Up:

The Creative Paige

Tatertots & Jello

Just a Girl

The DIY Showoff

Cookie Week / Ginger Softies

Cookie Week - Day 4

  Ginger is one of my favourite flavours. Especially in tea & sweets. Do you agree? Good. We'll get along splendidly. 

  Enter: Ginger Softies. Lovely, subtle ginger taste. Soft, chewy cookie goodness. What's not to love?

Ginger Softies

makes 5 dozen small cookies

Before you start making these, just know that you have to refrigerate the dough for a few hours or overnight.

2 cups white sugar

3/4 cup butter or margarine

--

2 eggs

1/2 cup molasses

2 tsp. baking soda

2 Tbsp. vinegar

--

3-1/2 cup flour

2 tsp. ginger

Cream sugar & butter; then add eggs, molasses, baking soda, & vinegar. Add dry ingredients. Refrigerate for a few hours or overnight. Roll into balls. Dip in sugar. Bake at 350º for 10 minutes. 

~~~~~

Do tell! What's been your favourite cookie of the week so far??

I hope you'll join me again tomorrow for the grand finale... Peanut Butter Nummies! Until then...

Enjoy your day!

Linkin' Up:

Crafty, Scrappy, Happy

The Creative Paige

Cookie Week / Double Chocolate Cookies

Cookie Week - Day 3

  I'm loving cookie week! Thanks so much for joining me. 

  These cookies are really versatile. You can mix your chip flavours to vary the flavour of these cookies. Think: Chocolate chips, mint chips, peanut butter chips, white chocolate chips, etc. 

Double Chocolate Cookies

makes 2-1/2 dozen

2-1/4 cup flour

2/3 cup cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

--

1 cup butter or margarine, softened

3/4 cup white sugar

2/3 packed brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

--

2 eggs

--

1-2/3 cups chocolate chips (or try a mixture of peanut butter chips & chocolate chips or mint chips & chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Combine dry ingredients. Set aside. 

In separate bowl, beat butter, sugars, & vanilla until creamy. 

Beat in eggs. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. 

Drop by teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely. 

~~~~~

Come back tomorrow for Ginger Softies. I scream! You scream! We all scream for cook-ies! Um, ya. I never claimed to be a poet.

Enjoy your day, fellow bakers!

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Let Birds Fly

The Creative Paige

Cookie Week / Haystacks

Cookie Week - Day 2

  This cookie recipe comes from my mother-in-law, Ethel. She's an amazing baker & was kind enough to share this recipe with me. 

  These are super fast, no bake cookies. Perfect for days you just don't want to turn on the oven.

Haystacks
makes 15

3 cups oats
1 cup coconut (long, not fine)
6 tsp. cocoa
--
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup milk
2 cups brown sugar (loose, don't pack)
--
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix first 3 ingredients well.

Heat butter, brown sugar, & milk in a pot. Take it off the heat when it just starts to bubble. Or, if you're careful, you can do this step in the microwave. Be careful though, it can easily boil over. Stir often & watch closely.

Add vanilla & pour into the first mixture. Stir well. Drop by spoonful onto waxed or parchment paper. Freeze for 15 minutes. Remove & place into a container. Store in the refrigerator.

Join me tomorrow for Double Chocolate Cookies. Yay for cookie week!

Enjoy your day!

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Mommy By Day...Crafter By Night
Skip To My Lou

Cookie Week Kickoff! Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Cookie Week - Day 1

  Welcome to cookie week! This week I will be sharing my favourite simple, everyday type cookies. Nothing too fancy here. Just tasty cookies to satisfy your sweet tooth, to make for a simple dessert, or for your kid's lunch boxes. I'm kicking cookie making into high gear and starting things off with these totally delish oatmeal raisin cookies. 

  Before I say anything else though, I must say Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians! I hope you have a marvellous day with family & friends. 

  Okay, back to cookie business.

  Funny cookie story: About a year ago, I made these cookies, only when I made them I was out of regular oats & only had a porridge blend on hand. It was made of all kinds of grains - high fibre grains, if you get my drift. The cookies turned out quite good & tasted delicious & my husband had several that day. The next day he asked me what I had put in those cookies because he had spent quite a bit of time in the bathroom, if you know what I mean. I hadn't even thought to warn him before eating them! After that, we called that particular batch of cookies "Remember They Are High Fibre Cookies". :)

Don't you love the owl napkin? I sure do!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

makes 3 dozen

1 1/4 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

--

1 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/8 tsp. nutmeg or allspice

-- 

3 cups oats

1 cup raisins or 2 cups chocolate chips 

(Just to switch things up a bit, although you'd have to change the name of the cookie to Oatmeal Chocolate Chip. I make both varieties regularly.)

Heat oven to 375º F. Cream butter & sugars until light & fluffy. Beat in egg & vanilla. 

Mix dry ingredients. Add to creamed mixture. Stir in oats, then raisins. 

Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 minutes. Cool for a minute before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

~~~~~

I'm looking forward to sharing some of my favourite recipes with you this week! I hope you'll join me again tomorrow for Haystack Cookies.

On a completely different topic, what do you think of my blog's new look? I'm excited to have it up & running. I'm so happy with the finished product. 

See you tomorrow!

Enjoy your day!

Linkin' Up:

Sumo's Sweet Stuff

Craft-O-Maniac

Chef in Training

Pinspiration

  As I told you last week, I have joined Pinterest. What a wealth of inspiration it's been! There are so many decorating ideas, crafts, recipes, fashion trends... the list is endless. 

  Here are several of my favourite finds. I will break them into categories so they (hopefully) don't overwhelm. I hope you enjoy & are inspired by these images. (Disclaimer: I do not own these images. I will link back to the source provided on Pinterest.)

Ideas for the home:

I love this plate arrangement on the wall as well as the amazing turquoise the piano has been painted. I don't think I would have the courage to paint my old friend (my piano), but I might if I came across one thats wood was in bad shape. The thing is, I don't NEED a piano. But that colour would be pretty somewhere else, perhaps? 

See? Pinterest = inspiration! 

Classy Clutter

Okay, I love pretty much everything about this kitchen. The turquoise ceiling, the awesome backsplash, the very cool hardware on the cabinets, & the fact that the cabinets go all the way up to the ceiling. 

This one is staying in my "dream home" file. 

Canadian House & Home

I am IN LOVE with the colour combo grey & yellow. 

Southern Living

I'm thinking I may try this yellow stripe in my basement bathroom. 

houzz

Desire to Inspire

Craft ideas:

Look at this lovely wreath made of old book pages. Thrift shops are full of cheap 2nd hand books!

Brassy Apple

Wood letters covered in old maps. You could even use maps you brought home from a trip. 

Pinterest

House number pumpkins. Such a great idea!

Lookie What I Did

Cookie Recipes 

(a.k.a. get out a napkin 

because you're going to start drooling):

Salted Caramel Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookies

The Diary Of Dave's Wife

Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies... are you kidding me?!

Scrambled Henfruit

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Flickr

Makeover Goodness:

Adorable painted school desk

Brown Paper Packages

Union Jack Packing Palett Table

Tres Chere

Pink bedside tables - how cute!

Natty By Design

I even have a whole folder (on Pinterest it's called a "Board") of just Owls. 

Cuz you know I love me some Owls:

I think I may have to attempt these Christmas tree owls

Juicy Bits

AMAZING owl cake

Cake Wrecks

A Pumpkin owl is perfect at this time of year

Sara's Party Perfect

 Well, does that get your mojo flowing? These are just the tip of the Pinterest iceburg! I'm pumped & ready to do something to make our home a nicer place. This weekend, we're tackling the painting of our main floor hallway & back entry. What's on your to do list? 

Enjoy your weekend!

Linkiin' up with: Two Things In Common