Oatmeal Raisin Cookies ( The Best )

These are the best Oatmeal Cookies I have ever tried so far. I have baked them several times and they are always a hit. I brought these goodies on one of our weekend getaway to the Caribbean and OMG! my friends and family keep on asking for more cookies. They said they are absolutely delicious. This is really my go-to cookie recipe because it is super easy to make and it always comes out Oatmeal-a-licious! Ok, here's the deal, I honestly do not know who to credit for this recipe because it is one of those things where I wrote it in an Index Card and no reference where I copied it. But who ever is the original owner of this recipe... I thank you for sharing.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe

Ingredients:

¾ cup butter ( at room temperature)

1 cup sugar

1 egg ( room temperature)

1 teaspoon vanilla

¾ cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

pinch of nutmeg

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

½ cup raisins

Cooking Directions:

• Creme butter and sugar with electric mixer. Add egg and vanilla.
• In a separate bowl, combine  flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
•  Start mixing with big spoon by hand the dry and wet ingredients.
• Add rolled oats 1 cup at a time. Add the raisins.
• Press balls about half inch on a prepared baking pan.
• Bake at 350°F for 15-20 minutes. Let it cool on a wire rack.
• Share and Enjoy!

            

Note: You should have a very thick and sticky mixture. If it is too sticky or wet, add little more flour. Make a small balls and place on a baking sheet. After cookie balls are on the baking sheet, with your wet hand, press the ball upto half and inch.

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Lemon-Coconut Bars

These Lemon-Coconut Bars are a perfect treat during Summertime. The marriage of the two main ingredients, coconut and lemon are a match made in heaven. As my husband claims, these Lemon- Coconut Bars are the best dessert bars he ever had! He is my No.1 food critique. He said that in this recipe, the coconut is the key, it provides an out of this world flavor and a bit of chewiness to the butter cookie crust. The filling is as beautifully bright as a Spring day and it is a perfect blend of sweet and tart. A recipe like this is worth sharing, so go ahead and share this to your friends and network.

Lemon-Coconut Bars Recipe
Source: Bon Appétit

Ingredients:

 Crust
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted, cooled
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

  Filling
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon (packed) finely grated lemon peel
1 teaspoon all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup powdered sugar ( I substitute with flaked coconut )

Cooking Directions:

 

For crust

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 8x8x2-inch metal baking pan with foil, leaving overhang. Butter foil. Combine flour, sugar, and salt in processor; blend 5 seconds. Add coconut and butter; process until mixture resembles fine meal and begins to clump together. Gather dough into ball. Press dough evenly over bottom of prepared pan. Bake crust until golden at edges, about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare filling:

• Combine 3/4 cup sugar, eggs, lemon juice, lemon peel, flour, baking powder, and salt in processor. Blend filling until smooth.
• Remove crust from oven. Pour filling evenly over hot crust. Return to oven and bake until filling begins to brown at edges and is just set and springy to touch in center, about 30 minutes. Transfer pan to rack; cool lemon bars completely.
• Using foil as aid, transfer lemon bars to work surface. Flatten foil edges. Cut into 16 bars. Sift powdered sugar over. (Can be made 5 days ahead. Store airtight in single layer in refrigerator.)

 

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Jam Thumbprint Cookies

Thumbprint Cookies is the easiest cookie recipe I have ever made. You have the luxury of having variations in fillings.  From Peanut Butter to Jam to Chocolate. This recipe can be adapted to suit any theme, flavor preference, season or occasion. These Jam Thumbprint Cookies I made are soft and buttery, flecked with ground pecans, and filled with strawberry preserves. It is very delicious, easy to bake and can be festive. I strongly recommend this for easy "go to" cookie recipe.

Jam Thumbprint Cookies Recipe
(Adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine)

Ingredients:

• 14-1/4 oz. (3 cups plus 2 Tbs.) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. table salt
• 3/4 lb. (1-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
• 6 oz. (1-1/2 cups) pecans, toasted and finely ground in a food processor
• 3 oz. (1 cup) confectioners’ sugar
• 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup red raspberry preserves with seeds ( I used strawberry preserves)

 Cooking Directions:

• Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the flour and salt to blend.
• Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and pecans on medium speed until very soft and light, about 3 min.
• Beat in the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla until thoroughly combined, about 1 min. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula.
• With the mixer on low speed, slowly blend in the flour until totally incorporated, about 30 seconds.
• Using your hands, roll the dough into 1- to 1-1/4-inch balls and set them about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Press your thumb into the middle of each dough ball to create a well for the preserves.
• Stir the preserves to loosen and then spoon about 1/2 tsp. into the middle of each dough ball.
• Bake until the cookies are golden brown, about 20 min.
• Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 1 min. before transferring them to a rack to cool.

Note: The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for three to four days.

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Butter Tarts

A butter tart is a Canadian pastry treat. It is made of flaky pastry shells filled with sweet  and gooey mixture of butter, brown sugar and eggs. Finding these sweet treats is easy when I am in Canada.  But living in Latin America is a different story. I googled these Butter Tarts recipe and I was able to find the Award-Winning Butter Tarts  at RecipeZaar.

This recipe is Adapted from RecipeZaar.

Ingredients:

pie pastry ( enough to fill 16 muffin cups, I used Pillsbury pie crust )
¼ cup packed brown sugar
½ cups raisins ( soaked in water for 30 minutes )
¼ cup soft butter
1 pinch salt
½ cup corn syrup
1 egg, lightly beaten
½ teaspoon vanilla


Cooking Directions:

• Prepare muffin pans, if you are using refrigerated pie crust, you need to bring the dough to room temperature so take it out from the fridge 15 minutes before fitting to your muffin cups.
• Using a cookie cutter, cut about 4-inch circle; fit dough circles into muffin cups, set aside on the fridge until ready to fill.
• In a large bowl, using wooden spoon, mix the soft butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Stir well, make sure the ingredients are well incorporated and butter is creamed.
• Add egg and vanilla, mix well.
• Add drained raisins.
• Fill the tart shells with butter mixture. Make sure the raisins are divided equally. Do not fill tart shells all the way to the very top, leave room as the filling bubble up a bit.
• Bake at 400°F for 15-20 minutes or until filling is lightly brown and bubbly.
• Remove from oven. Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and place on racks to cool completely.
• Enjoy!

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Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

I have seen these little delights from Birthday Girl when I was searching for cool Super Bowl dessert. I was so happy when to discover that I happen to have a brownie mix in my pantry. I did not have any peanut butter chips available, but I think the final product still looks so irresistable.


Ingredients:


1 box of brownie mix
1/2 cup peanut butter chips ( I did not have this available)
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter


Cooking Directions:

• Pre-heat your oven to 350°F. Prepare 40 mini-muffin cups, spray or grease.
• For the brownie, follow the directions on the box of the brownie mix.
• Carefully spoon the batter evenly into the muffin cups ( about 1 heaping teaspoon )
• Bake the mini brownies for 13-15 minutes. Check, insert a toothpick into the center, it should come out slightly wet.
• Bring out the brownies and let it cool,wait for center to fall. If not,make a hole on the center using the back of a teaspoon. This is where you put the peanut butter.
• In a small microwave-safe bowl, place peanut butter and microwave on high for 45 seconds then stir.
• Spoon about half a teaspoon of the peanut butter into the center of each brownie. Do this while brownie is still warm.
• Top with semi-sweet chocolate chips abd peanut butter chips. Let it cool and Enjoy !

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Apricot and Nut Cookies- Giada Food Network Recipe

When Giada at Food Network make this cookies, i told myself, i will give this a try. It turn out pretty good. The mixture of nuttiness and the sweet-sour apricots make it so fresh. Easy to make and definitely a keeper. I was not able to have a picture with the icing on because everybody ate them before i had the chance to make the icing. ;-)

Ingredients:

Cookies:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup dried apricots, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
Icing:
1 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
5 to 7 tablespoons almond flavored liqueur (recommended: Amaretto)

Cooking Directions:

For the Cookies:

1. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
2. Beat in the egg. Stir in the flour until just blended.
3. Mix in the apricots, almonds, and pine nuts.
4. Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap and shape into a log, about 12-inches long and 1 1/2-inches in diameter.
5. Wrap the dough in the plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 heavy baking sheets with parchment paper.
7. Cut the dough log crosswise into 1/4 to 1/2 inch-thick slices.
8. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets, spacing evenly apart.
9. Bake until the cookies are golden around the edges, about 15 minutes.
10. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before icing.

For the Icing:

1. Place the confectioners' sugar in a medium mixing bowl.
2. Gradually whisk in the almond flavored liqueur, until the mixture is of drizzling consistency.
3. Place the wire rack over a baking sheet.
4. Using a spoon or fork, drizzle the cookies with the icing, allowing any excess icing to drip onto the baking sheet.
5. Allow the icing to set before serving, about 30 minutes.

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