Annual Ugly Sweater Party

We hosted our annual ugly sweater/cookie & beer exchange/white elephant party last month.  Of all the parties we throw, this is by far my favorite.  I decided to keep things simple.  As a centerpiece, I used leftover blue and silver ornaments strung together, and added some silver glitter trees.  The best part of any cookie exchange is the delicious treats you get to take home, and this year didn't disappoint.  Just for fun I put together individual hot cocoa test tubes, the perfect serving for a single cup, that everyone added to their cookie loot.

In addition to the beer exchange I made a Christmas sangria with cranberries, pears, and a delicious moscato.

Sometimes a tree skirt is the perfect alternative to an ugly sweater.  Well maybe not, but it was all I had to work with.

We DIYed a sleigh for the little Man.  I happen to love the way it turned out, he on the other hand was not convinced.  It took several attempts before he agreed to sit in it. 

How to DIY yourself a Sleigh: 

Materials: cardboard box, an x-acto knife, red metallic tissue paper, packing tape, & tinsel. 

Step 1:  Using an x-acto knife, remove the front flap of your cardboard box. 

Step 2:  Secure the 2 side flaps to the back flap with packing tape, this gives the sleigh the appropriate height. 

Step 3:  We then drew and cut, with an x-acto knife, a curved shape for the side of the sleigh.  Using one side as a template we drew and cut out the other side.  At this point you should have what looks like a sleigh. 

Step 4:  I covered the box with metallic red tissue paper and added tinsel to hide the slightly messy edges. 

Voila, in 10 minutes you have a festive sleigh, perfect for watching Polar Express and for taking photos.

Tasty Thursday: Holiday Cookies

Is it just me or, is the oven on the entire month of December?  We just made a batch of delicious sugar cookies last night, the perfect midnight snack and let's face it, it makes for a pretty good breakfast on the go.  And it's almost time for our annual Ugly Sweater, Cookie & Beer Exchange party, which means I need a holiday cookie recipe asap.  Here are some of the tasty treats I'm considering making for our cookie exchange.  Happy Baking!

Bake the post:

1. Chocolate Kissed Gingerbread Cookies | 2. Shortbread Sugar Cookies | 3. Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle Cookies | 4. White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge | 5. Snowball Cookies | 6. Swirl Cookies | 7. Shirley Temple Kiss Cookie | 8. Ultimate Almond Cookies | 9. Spicy Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Cookies | 10. Mint Chocolate Cookies

Tasty Thursday

These thin mints look amazing!!  And coming in at under 15 minutes, they'd make the perfect snack to hold me over until my order of Girl Scout Thin Mints are here.

INGREDIENTS:
16 to 20 oreo cookies

7 to 10 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate

1 tsp mint extract

DIRECTIONS:

Twist the oreos to separate them (see notes), and scrape off the cream filling (either discard the filling...or eat it, if you're into that.)

Melt (and temper, if you can be bothered - see notes) the chocolate, then stir in the mint extract well.

Dip an oreo half in the melted chocolate, turn to coat using a fork.

Use the fork to remove the oreo from the chocolate, tap it on the edge of the bowl a few times (to let excess chocolate drip off) and transfer to a lined cookie sheet.

Leave at room temperature until set.

Tasty Thursday: Holiday Cookie Exchange

This Tasty Thursday is brought to you by Notes by Sara.  I love the fabulous compilation of festive holiday cookies she's assembled.  Those coconut caramel cookies, have my name written all over them!  Happy baking!

Recipes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25

Tasty Thursday: Chocolate Chip Cookie Edition

Tomorrow night I'll be whipping up 8 batches of these delicious nutella-stuffed, brown butter, chocolate chip cookies as favors for our nautical themed baby shower.  I was inspired by Chips Ahoy cookie favors for an "Ahoy it's a boy" themed shower.  Seeing as I wanted to give our guests more than just store bought cookies, I went on a search for the perfect chocolate chip cookie.  And voila I found this tantalizing recipe, the kicker it has sea salt in it, very nautical-esk.  Happy Thursday!

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of salt

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 tablespoon plain greek yogurt

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1 jar of Nutella, chilled in refrigerator

Coarse sea salt for sprinkling

DIRECTIONS:

1.    Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and set aside. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. The butter will begin to foam. Make sure you whisk consistently during this process. After a couple of minutes, the butter will begin to brown on the bottom of the saucepan; continue to whisk and remove from heat as soon as the butter begins to brown and give off a nutty aroma. Immediately transfer the butter to a bowl to prevent burning. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.

2.    With an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, vanilla, and yogurt until combined. Add the dry ingredients slowly and beat on low-speed just until combined. Gently fold in all of the chocolate chips.

3.    Chill your dough for 2 hours in the refrigerator, or place in freezer for 30 minutes if you are super eager, although I cannot promise the same results if you do this.

4.    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Once dough is chilled measure about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball. Flatten the dough ball very thinly into the palm of your hand. Place 1 teaspoon of chilled nutellanutella is not seeping out of the dough. Add more dough if necessary. Place dough balls on cookie sheet, 2 inches apart and flatten with your hand VERY gently. (Really only the tops need to be flattened a bit!)

5.    Bake the cookies 9-11 minutes or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown. They will look a bit underdone in the middle, but will continue to cook once out of the oven. Cool the cookies on the sheets at least 2 minutes. Sprinkle with a little sea salt. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets after a few minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.

 

Cinco de Mayo Inspiration

Cinco de Mayo is this Saturday and a dessert table like the one below is the perfect way to celebrate.  With an authentic Hacienda flair, this table highlights the Mexican culture's flair for sweets.  Featuring an ombre cake, mini churro cupcakes, mini Mexican hot chocolate cupcakes, Mexican wedding cookies, and Jarritos or Latin sodas.  The soft pastel color palette of greens, blues, and oranges really tie the whole table together.  Love the blue glass platters and the lovely orange blossoms.

{photos via Hostess Blog}

Tasty Thursdays: Oscar Inspired

Love these Oscar statuette cookies from Bakerella!  They look amazingly delicious, just wish I had the patience to make them! 


{via}

 Awards Night Sugar Cookies Ingredients:4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 sticks salted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons almond extractStatue cookie cutter
Round cookie cutter

(yields 15 statue and circle base cookies)

Directions:

1. Cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer.

2. Add eggs and extract mixing until well blended.

3. Add flour in several additions with your mixer speed on low.

4. Scraping the bowl in between each addition.

5. When the dough is thoroughly blended, separate it into three-four sections.

6. Flatten each section slightly into a disc shape. Cover in plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator until ready to use.

7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

8. Unwrap one of the dough discs and place between two sheets of parchment paper.  9. Use a rolling pin with rubber spacers attached to help you achieve thick, evenly baked cookies sturdy enough for standing.

10. Remove the top sheet of parchment paper and use a statue cutter and a round cutter to cut shapes for each cookie award.

11. Then cut an opening in the middle of the round cookie and remove the excess dough from the center.

12. The openings should be slightly larger than the cookie cutter bottom.

13. Leave the cut cookie shapes on the bottom sheet of parchment paper and transfer to your baking sheet.

14. Repeat rolling and cutting cookie pairs until your baking sheet is full. Bake cookies for about 10 minutes or until the edges are slightly golden.

15. When you remove from the oven, you may need to recut the slots on the cookie bases after baking to maintain straight edges. Do this while the cookies are still warm.

16. Repeat with more cut cookies using a second baking sheet while allowing the first cookie sheet to cool. Repeat until all of the dough discs are used. Reuse and roll the scraps to make sure you get enough cookies.

17. Let cool completely. When cool, pair up the cookie award pieces and make sure the statues fit into the base. Score the bottom of the cookie statue to use as a guide for piping your royal icing. 

Royal Icing for Statues Ingredients:
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
3 tablespoons meringue powder
3 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:
1. Combine all the ingredients using an electric mixer. Beat for several minutes until thoroughly combined.
2. Add icing color until you achieve the desired shade. These were decorated using buttercup yellow form Wilton.
3. Immediately cover the royal icing so it doesn’t dry out. Bowls with lids are great to have on hand.
4. Prepare a decorator bag fitted with a #3 tip. Place about 1/3 of the royal icing in the bag. Cover the remaining 2/3 of icing while you pipe the outline of the cookie statues in yellow.
5. Reuse any icing that is left in the bag and combine it with the remaining royal icing that you have covered in the bowl. Add a few drops of water and stir until the icing becomes more fluid. “Flood” or fill the inside of your piped statues with the royal icing.
6. You can sprinkle the tops with gold sanding sugar while the icing is still wet.
7. Or let the icing completely dry for a few hours and then paint them with luster dust to give them a metallic look. Place a small amount of super gold luster dust in a bowl. Add a few drops of clear extract (it evaporates quickly) and mix until the powder dissolves. Paint on the mixture with a brush and let dry.

Royal Icing for Circles Ingredients:2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons meringue powder
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:
1. Use the same mixing instructions above, using black icing color to tint.
2. Immediately cover the royal icing so it doesn’t dry out.
3. Prepare a decorator bag fitted with a #3 tip. Place about 1/3 of the royal icing in the bag. Cover the remaining 2/3 of icing while you pipe the outline of the cookie bases in black.
4. Then pipe more royal icing on to the bottom of each statue and insert into the opening of each circle cookie base. The royal icing will act as a glue as it dries.
5. You can use a toothpick to help prop up the statues if necessary. Place one end on the cookie base and the other against the back of the cookie statue.
6. Add a few drops of water to the remaining black royal icing and stir until the icing becomes more fluid. “Flood” or fill the inside of your piped circles.
7. Let the icing completely dry for a several hours.

Tasty Thursday: Holiday Cookie Exchange

This weekend we are hosting an ugly sweater/cookie & beer exchange/holiday party.  The Mister is in charge of the beer selection and I've been turfted the responsibility for the cookies. 

{via}

Some festive holiday cookie options I'm considering:

Chocolate Peppermint Roll

Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle Cookies

Hazelnut-Mocha Macroons

Chocolate Coconut Bars

Tasty Thursdays: Chocolate Chip Cookies

This weekend I whipped up some of the yummiest chocolate chip cookies.  I accidentally added 2 tablespoons of vanilla extract instead of the 2 teaspoons, whoops, but no worries the cookies were still delicious!

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 3/4 cups (12 oz) all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp. smallish-medium coarse sea salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

2 1/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (about 1 1/2 bags)

DIRECTIONS:Preheat oven to 360 degrees. Cream butter, sugar, and brown sugar until it is nice and fluffy (approx. 3 minutes on medium-high speed on a K-5). Add both eggs and vanilla and beat for an additional 2 minutes.  Add baking soda, baking powder, salt, and flour until cookie batter is fully incorporated.  Finally add chocolate chips until well distributed.  The cookie batter should be somewhat thick.  Drop about 2 tablespoons of dough or use a medium cookie scoop and plop the batter onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake for 12-14 minutes until the edges are nice and golden brown.   For troubleshooting tips, check out the recipe at The Savory Sweet Life. Enjoy!

Tasty Thursdays.. Madeleines

I love Madeleines!  They're buttery, sweet, airy and just delicious!  When we were in Paris we loaded up on these cookies at every bakery we visited.  I was so excited when I received my Madeleine pan in the mail, I instantly whipped up a batch.  And yes, they were as heavenly as the ones we had in Paris! 

Ingredients:
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (6 ounces)
2 tablespoons softened unsalted butter (for greasing pan)  or Cooking Spray
3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
a pinch fine-grain sea salt
2/3 cups sugar
zest of one large lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
powdered sugar
a bit of extra flour for dusting baking pan

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Melt the 1 1/2 sticks of butter in a small pot over medium heat until it's brown and gives off a deliciously nutty aroma, approximately 15-20 minutes. Strain (using a paper towel over a mesh strainer) - you want to leave the solids behind. Cool the butter to room temperature.

While the melted butter is cooling, use the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter or cooking spray to grease the Madelene pan. Dust with flour and invert the pan tapping out any excess flour.

Whip the eggs and salt on high speed until thick - you are looking for the eggs to roughly double or triple in volume - approximately 3 minutes. Continuing to mix on high speed, slowly add the sugar in a steady stream. Whip for 2 minutes or until mixture is thick and ribbony. Now with a spatula fold in the lemon zest and vanilla (just until mixed).  Sprinkle the flour on top of the egg batter, and gently fold in. Now fold in the butter mixture. Only stirring enough to bring everything together.

Spoon the batter into the molds, filling each mold 2/3 -3/4 full. Bake the Madeleines for 12 - 14 minutes (7-10 minutes for smaller cookies), or until the edges of the Madeleines are golden brown. Remove from oven and unmold immediately. Cool on racks and dust with powdered sugar.  View the recipe on 101 Cookbooks.

Other variations to this recipe include dunking the Madeleines in melted chocolate, once cooled.  For the coconut variety: substitute the lemon zest for a tsp of coconut extract and adding sweetened shredded coconut to the batter.