Oatmeal No Bake Scotchies

Where I live, the weather seemed to go from winter to summer overnight! When it's already really warm in your house, do you really feel like turning the oven on to bake cookies? I know I don't! I had a good friend recently send me some recipes for no bake cookies. Today, I decided to give one of the recipes a "test drive."  I changed the proportions of the ingredients and the end result was absolutely decadent!  Be forewarned, these are super duper rich. Trust me, half of one of these will satisfy your taste for something sweet :)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup white milk
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups butterscotch morsels/chips
3 1/2 cups quick oatmeal (not instant)

Place paper liners in a 12-cup cupcake tin and set aside.  In large saucepan, bring sugar, milk and butter to a boil.  Turn the heat down slightly and continue to boil for one full minute, stirring constantly with large spoon.  Remove from heat and add vanilla and butterscotch morsels/chips. Stir constantly for one more minute until all the morsels/chips are melted. Add the oatmeal and combine thoroughly.  Pour batter evenly into the paper liners.  Put in refrigerator for at least one hour or until firm.  Makes 12.  These must be stored in the fridge, not at room temperature.

Momma's Oatmeal Cookies

This oatmeal cookie recipe came from my mother-in-law.  I found it a few months ago on a handwritten piece of paper, but hadn't had a chance to make them until last night.  I had always called my mother-in-law,  "Umba" which was a nickname my stepson gave her a really long time ago.  I can probably count on one hand how many times I called her by her given name, Cecelia!  A few years before she passed away, she was telling me that she didn't want to be called Umba anymore, so I started calling her "Momma." All three kids would still call her Grandma or Umba, but the hubby and I would call her Momma.  My mother-in-law was one of the strongest women I ever met.  She outlived her parents, all of her many siblings and her husband.  I was kind of close to my mother-in-law when she lived in Cleveland, but when she moved to an assisted living facility closer to us, I became ultra close to her. One of the hardest and most heartbreaking things for us to watch was her decline into advanced dementia.  We really didn't know that was what she had until about six months before she passed away.  I know it was extremely difficult for her to move out of her house and into assisted living.  She was not able to entertain or cook or bake.  When my husband would visit her she would give him something from her lunch or dinner (like a cookie or a piece of pie). No matter how often he would tell her not to do it, she still would.  I think in her mind, she was still entertaining.  One of my fondest memories of Momma was when she, my husband and Lauren tried to make kolaches one Christmas.  I think in both of these pictures she was trying to dispense some advice :)

 

I am so glad that I keep finding her handwritten recipes and making them. It kind of makes me feel that she is still with us (she passed away in January 2011).  Hope you enjoy Momma's oatmeal cookies!

Ingredients:

2 cups white flour
2 cups light brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3 cups old fashioned oatmeal

In large bowl put flour, sugar, butter, shortening, baking soda, salt and eggs.  Mix with electric mixer or by hand with large spoon until smooth.  Add oatmeal and mix by hand until well combined.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill in fridge at least one hour.  When ready to make, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Roll dough into small balls (about the size of a ping pong ball) and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake for 18 minutes or until cookies are starting to get brown.  Remove from oven, let cool five minutes and then remove to wire rack. Makes four dozen.

Vanilla Biscotti

 

Biscotti is a "twice-cooked/baked" Italian biscuit or cookie. Did you know that the reason they are long is so you can dip them into coffee or wine in order to soften them??  You learn something new every day! They are traditionally known for being hard and crunchy :) I have made four other kinds of biscotti (chocolate, hot chocolate, lemonade and pumpkin), but vanilla was a kind I hadn't tried to make before.  These smell so good when they are baking - kind of like sugar cookies.  You can have biscotti for breakfast with your coffee or tea, as a mid-afternoon snack or after dinner for dessert.  They are perfect anytime of the day when you are looking for something sweet to eat!

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup white sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 cups white flour

In large bowl, beat butter, sugar, salt, baking powder and vanilla extract until smooth with large spoon. Add eggs and white flour and combine well.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill in fridge at least one hour.  When ready to make, preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly spray two cookie sheets with non-stick spray.  Divide dough in half and shape each into a log 12 inches in length and about 2-3 inches across.  Bake for 25 minutes and then remove from oven.  Let sit five minutes and then with a serrated knife, slice each log into 12 slices.  Place cut side down and then bake another 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes and then remove to wire rack.  Makes 2 dozen.

Homemade Chocolate Cupcakes

Buried in the binder of the old newspaper clippings and handwritten recipes that were my mother-in-law's,  I found a recipe for old-fashioned cocoa cake.  I have absolutely no idea which newspaper this came out of or how old this recipe is, but I'm guessing it's close to at least 50 years old. Since I had all the necessary ingredients in the house, I decided to give this recipe a try and make them into cupcakes.  I had an unexpected "assistant" today helping me in Cathy's Kitchen. Dominic was home recovering from a really bad migraine he had yesterday and wasn't quite up to going to school today. Since he started feeling a little better later in the afternoon, I let him be my "taste tester."  Dominic did have one special request, he wanted his cupcake with blue sprinkles. He proclaimed his cupcake, "good, yes!" When the hubby and Lauren returned home, they ranked them a 10 and 9, respectively.  Since I have not had chocolate since February (when I gave it up for Lent), I have to 100% rely on their positive endorsement :)  After you make up a batch of these,  I would love to hear how you liked these cupcakes!  I think they're a winner for our family!

 

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups white flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups white sugar
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place paper liners in two 12-cup muffin tins. Set aside.  In large bowl, put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, cocoa, shortening and 3/4 of the cup of milk.  Beat two minutes with electric mixer or by hand with large spoon until smooth.  Add the remaining 1/4 cup of milk, vanilla and the eggs.  Beat an additional minute with electric mixer or by hand until well combined.  Pour batter evenly between the 24 paper liners.  Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to continue cooling.  Frost with your favorite frosting. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Breakfast Cookies

Cookies for breakfast? Interesting concept, huh? The next time you are in the granola bar/snack aisle at your local grocery store, take a look at the breakfast cookies. Quaker makes oatmeal/chocolate chip ones, but I was surprised when I counted the number of ingredients on the side of the box.  Take a guess how many there were. Would you believe 43?!?!?! Good grief, I don't know about you, but I think that's quite a few.  I like the fact that I'm making my own from scratch, so I know EXACTLY what is going into them.  I gave a couple of these cookies to Dominic's bus driver Thursday morning and also took some in to his teachers in the afternoon. It's just a small token of my appreciation for all that they do for him on a regular basis!!  These cookies would also be great for dessert.  Just put a scoop of your favorite ice cream in between two cookies and press gently together. YUM!

Ingredients:

½ cup white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup margarine (softened)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup smooth peanut butter
2 large eggs (slightly beaten)
1 cup white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups old fashioned oatmeal
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups crushed cereal

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and lightly grease a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.  Cream the white sugar, light brown sugar and margarine together (either by hand with a large spoon or with an electric mixer).  Add the salt, baking soda, vanilla extract, peanut butter, eggs, white flour and wheat flour.  Mix well either by hand or with mixer. Stir in oatmeal and chocolate chips and mix well with large spoon.  Measure out two cups of cereal, put in a sealed bag and then crush it with something heavy. It's okay if there are bigger pieces of cereal. It doesn't need to be finely crushed :) You can use one kind of cereal or any combinations of cereals that you want. This particular time, I used Honey Nut Cheerios. In the past, I have used Trix and Kix cereals when I have made these cookies. This recipe is a good way to use up a near empty box of cereal. Roll the batter into the size below (which is a little bigger than a golf ball) and flatten with the palms of your hands. You will probably only be able to get six to a sheet.

Bake about 18 minutes or until they are slightly brown. Let cool about 5-10 minutes and then remove to rack to continue cooling.  Makes two dozen large cookies.

Sour Cream Kuchen Muffins

At our house, my mother-in-law's sour cream kuchen is a big favorite.  I made it just a few days ago and it's already gone (Dominic ate the last piece this morning for breakfast)!!  Since I had a little bit of sour cream left over in the container and it wasn't enough to make a full recipe, I was curious if I cut all the ingredients in half, if it could be made into muffins. I was able to and the finished product I'm calling sour cream kuchen muffins.When I make my mother-in-law's kuchen, I use a 13 x 9 x 2 inch pan.  I put the batter, then the cinnamon topping, the batter and then end with the cinnamon topping.  I thought about trying to make four levels in the muffin tin, but if I filled them too full, it might spill out and land on the bottom of the oven.  I just recently cleaned my oven, so I didn't want to take a chance :)  These muffins are done in about 20 minutes and are super yummy and delicious!!!

Ingredients:

Batter:

1/2 cup margarine, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup white flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream

Topping:

1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.  In large bowl, put all the ingredients in the order shown for the batter and mix well with large spoon by hand until smooth.  Distribute batter evenly between the paper liners.   In a small bowl, put the light brown sugar, white sugar and cinnamon and mix well with small spoon. Sprinkle cinnamon mixture evenly between the 12 muffins.  Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean.  Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes.  Transfer to wire rack to finish cooling. Makes 12 muffins.

Easy Homemade Graham Crackers

The next time you go to the grocery store, take a look in the snack aisle and see how much the name brand graham crackers cost. Let me put it this way, they aren't cheap! Lauren and Dominic LOVE graham crackers, but I don't buy them very often.  I have seen several recipes for homemade graham crackers, but they were either really complicated, involved a food processor or you needed a mixer with a dough "hook"or "paddle." Since I don't own a food processor or a mixer with attachments, that let out about 99% of the recipes I found! My husband who doesn't eat any kind of graham cracker, "sampled" one of mine.  He rated them "very good." Lauren told me they were a 10 out of 10. Be forewarned, these are super delicious and addictive.

Ingredients:

2 cups white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature (cut into small cubes)
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup honey

In large bowl, put white flour, wheat flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon.  Add the butter and "cut" in using two knives or a pastry blender until it resembles coarse crumbs.  Add the light brown sugar, white sugar and honey.  Using a large spoon or your hands, mix until the batter is smooth.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Take a 11 inch x 17 inch jelly roll pan and cover with aluminum foil. Spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray and then press batter evenly into pan with the palms of your hands or fingertips.  Prick entire batter with a fork and bake for 20 minutes, turning pan around after 10 minutes.  Remove from oven.  Let cool completely and then cut into rectangles or squares.