1 cup butter
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
5 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp coconut extract

Mix everything together in a bowl. Dough will [...]]]> These delightful creatures taste like one of my favorite Provo bakery’s cookies. I won’t say which bakery.

1 cup butter
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
5 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp coconut extract

Mix everything together in a bowl. Dough will be surprisingly dry. Spread evenly in cookie sheet pan (11×13). Bake in 350 degree oven for 12-14 minutes. Cool for at least 1 hour. Frost with frosting listed below. Cut in small squares and serve.

Frosting:
1 cup butter, softened
5 cups powdered sugar
3 oz cream cheese
1 tsp coconut extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 Tablespoons heavy cream or evaporated milk, to achieve desired consistency
Pink food coloring if you are feeling creative, or leave white and sprinkle with multi-colored jimmies. So cute.
 

Ingredients:

2 and 1/2 cups flour (a little more than this is BETTER than a little less)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon corn starch (optional!! It offers your cookies a “soft baked” [...]]]> Basic Cookie Dough:
The recipe below is a combination of a few recipes. Enjoy.

Ingredients:

2 and 1/2 cups flour (a little more than this is BETTER than a little less)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon corn starch (optional!! It offers your cookies a “soft baked” quality)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter (at room temperature)
1/2 cup shortening (butter flavored)
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs (if you have time, convert this to 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk)
2 cups (or 2 packages) milk chocolate chips*

1. Place butter and shortening in bowl. Mix until combined.

2. Add brown sugar, white sugar (also referred to as granulated sugar), eggs, and vanilla. Mix until just combined.

3. Add flour. Sprinkle salt, baking soda and baking powder on top of flour. Mix dry ingredients with butter mixture until just combined.

4. Add chocolate chips and mix until combined.

5. Chill the dough for 2 hours (at least). If you are DYING to have cookies right now, go ahead and bake the fresh dough. It won’t hurt anybody.

6. Using a large spoon, scoop dough out, shape into balls, and bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes.

*If you are adding other mix-ins, add 2 cups total of any combination of mix-ins you choose.

(If you want the spreadsheet that lists the many chocolate chip cookie recipes, email me or leave a comment below.)

Heart Day approaches and you need to make these. I’ve posted and reposted this but there is not a better sugar cookie. Enjoy, and happy Valentine’s Day.

The Best Sugar Cookie Recipe

1 cup shortening (butter flavor is best)
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup [...]]]>

Heart Day approaches and you need to make these. I’ve posted and reposted this but there is not a better sugar cookie. Enjoy, and happy Valentine’s Day.

The Best Sugar Cookie Recipe

1 cup shortening (butter flavor is best)
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup sour cream (whole milk vanilla yogurt works just as well)
1 tsp. vanilla
1 Tbs. almond extract
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. soda
4 tsp. baking powder
4 1/2 cups flour

Cream shortening and sugar. Beat in eggs, sour cream and extracts. Add dry ingredients (may need a little more flour). Mix dough until soft. Chill several hours (even up to two days). Roll, cut, and bake at 350° for 10 minutes. (The longer you allow the dough to chill, the easier it is to roll and cut.)

Mint Brownies
This confection consists of three different layers: A brownie-like base, a mint filling, and a chocolate frosting. The recipe below makes a large batch (2 9×13 lasagna pans [...]]]> There is a famous pastry at my alma mater. The mint brownie. Most students love it, a few hate it. You judge for yourself.

Mint Brownies
This confection consists of three different layers: A brownie-like base, a mint filling, and a chocolate frosting. The recipe below makes a large batch (2 9×13 lasagna pans or one baker’s half sheet–a 13×18 pan).

Layer #1–brownie base
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts

Layer #2–mint filling
3 cups powdered sugar
3 Tblsp butter
2 Tblsp evaporated milk
2 Tblsp milk
1 tsp. peppermint flavor
green food coloring (optional)

Layer #3–chocolate topping
5 Tablespoons butter
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 and grease bottoms of two 9×13 pans or one baker’s half sheet (aka jelly roll pan–13×18). Make layer #1. In a stand mixer, mix all ingredients (oil, sugar, cocoa, eggs, flour, salt, vanilla, nuts). Bake brownie base for 20-30 minutes. While layer #1 bakes, wash stand mixer bowl and make layer #2. Combine all layer #2 ingredients (powdered sugar, butter, both milks, peppermint flavoring, and green food coloring). Remove layer #1 from oven. While brownie base is still warm, spread layer #2 over base. Cool in fridge or on counter. Once brownie base is cooled completely, make layer #3. Combine butter and chocolate in microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Carefully mix chocolate chips and butter together until completely melted. (Remember, if you overheat the chocolate it will seize and become a crumbly mess. You can avoid this by melting the chocolate slowly and carefully. In a microwave, melt chocolate no longer than 30 seconds, checking and stirring it often and letting it sit in its own heat until melted.)
Spread chocolate layer over mint layer and let cool. Score into small bites and serve.

Once in a while I’ll use a recipe so much that over time it morphs into a slightly different recipe. You may remember that I told you about my favorite Oatmeal Chocolate Chip recipe that I used…um…a little too much last summer. This summer, I’m using it just as much. But I’ve [...]]]> Hello friends.

Once in a while I’ll use a recipe so much that over time it morphs into a slightly different recipe. You may remember that I told you about my favorite Oatmeal Chocolate Chip recipe that I used…um…a little too much last summer. This summer, I’m using it just as much. But I’ve made a change that is shaving away the guilt. Instead of using 100% white flour, I’m doing half whole wheat and half all purpose white (in fact a little more whole wheat than all purpose). The beauty of this change is that you can’t really tell there’s a change. Nobody can tell that it’s a slightly healthier cookie; which begs the question: what happened if we changed more white flour into wheat flour? Have you tried substituting? If you did, do you have any successes or failures? I for one will continue to gorge on the dough and feel about 20% less guilt.  Recipe follows below.

Cream butter sugars, then add vanilla and eggs.  Add dry ingredients and mix just ‘til combined.  Stir in oats and chocolate chips.  Bake at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes.

Originally published February, 2008

Valentine’s Day is a very big deal at our house. [...]]]> Valentine’s Day sugar cookies. Need I write more? I’m re-posting this today so you can be prepared next week. I’ve tried too many sugar cookie recipes to count. This is the best. Don’t mess around and take my word for it.

Originally published February, 2008

Valentine’s Day is a very big deal at our house. We send cards and pass out treats. For several years, I religiously made an extra large batch of heart-shaped, frosting-covered sugar cookies. We delivered them to neighbors, friends, and colleagues. Sadly, I do not have the time for this anymore. For the second year in a row, I have opted for an easier treat (last year we made Ina Garten’s Homemade Marshmallows and this year we made Regan Daley’s Chocolate Fudge Cookies). “How could those be easier than sugar cookies?” you may ask. Trust me, they are. But, that is not the point I want to make. I want to make this point: This is the best sugar cookie recipe I have ever used. I adore it. My sisters adore it. In fact, one sister loves it so much that when I told her I was posting my sugar cookie recipe, she asked “Are you really going to give that recipe away? Isn’t that a secret?”. Well, yes and no. I love giving recipes to others. And no, I do not believe in secret recipes. So, happy Valentine’s Day to you. May your day be as sweet as the frosting on your perfect sugar cookie.

The Best Sugar Cookie Recipe

1 cup shortening (butter flavor is best)
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup sour cream (whole milk vanilla yogurt works just as well)
1 tsp. vanilla
1 Tbs. almond extract
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. soda
4 tsp. baking powder
4 1/2 cups flour

Cream shortening and sugar. Beat in eggs, sour cream and extracts. Add dry ingredients (may need a little more flour). Mix dough until soft. Chill several hours (even up to two days). Roll, cut, and bake at 350° for 10 minutes. (The longer you allow the dough to chill, the easier it is to roll and cut.)

Well, I have invited myself into an actual family. Yes, a family. The Tueller sisters. If you don’t know a Tueller, you [...]]]> I’ve been told that one of my greatest talents in life is my ability to invite myself to anything. It’s true. I have a knack. Cringe worthy, yes. Useful? Depends on the circumstance.

Well, I have invited myself into an actual family. Yes, a family. The Tueller sisters. If you don’t know a Tueller, you haven’t lived. They are a beautiful, happy, funny, insanely smart, inspiring family.

The Tueller Family just two years before I was born. Man. If they had just waited for me.

But enough about them. Let’s talk about their recipe. One day Betsy T. showed up at a baptism with a plate of these beauties. I grabbed her shoulder and didn’t let go until she scribbled the recipe for me. Today I make these chewies often.

Do you remember those captions in The National Geographic where they did a close-up of something and you had to guess the object? Well, guess this close up.

They are my go-to when I don’t have time to make full-on chocolate chip cookies. How could these be any less time consuming you may ask? I don’t know. They just are. Perhaps it’s the bar cookie part of the recipe, they just seem to easy and fast. Love these babies. But not as much as I love the Tueller women.

Tueller Chocolate Chip Chewies

2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups chocolate chips
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
3 eggs
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cream sugar and butter. Add eggs, salt and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients. Add chocolate chips. Sample dough. Spread the rest on 9×13 cookie sheet (jelly roll pan). Bake 15-20 minutes or until light brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes.

Score and serve. And don't make fun of my uneven scoring.Double up on the chewies if you have a big crowd. Same amount of work, twice as many chewies.