Blog Archives - Cookie Recipes

How to Make a Large Cookie Cake

May 20, 2015September 3, 2013 by cookieradmin

There are few things quite as sweet and delicious as cookie cakes. Almost everyone loves a giant chocolate chip cookie. Super-size that sentiment, add a bit of frosting, and you have a delicious cake that is perfect for any occasion. The best part of this treat, though, is that it is super-easy to make.

Shape and Pans

The key to any good cookie cake is the pan itself. While most cookie cakes are about a 12 inch round, you can certainly go with any size or shape that works for you. You won’t need a special pan for this. Your cookie cake is going to come out in the size or shape of the pan you choose to bake it in. If you’re looking to go with the more traditional 12 inch round shape, just use a simple pizza pan.

The Recipe

Once you have your shape issues worked out, the next step is to find the single best chocolate chip cookie recipe on the planet. You’ll certainly want to choose one that is well suited for bar-style cookies, but beyond that, feel free to select one with delicious add-ins like chocolate candies, macadamia nuts, or even shredded coconut. Here’s a great one from Food.com if you don’t already have one in mind.

Take 1 cup of softened butter, ½ cup granulated sugar, and 2/3 cup brown sugar and beat them together. Add in 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 2 cups chocolate chips. Mix together. Add the dry ingredients to the batter. Mix until you’ve blended them well. Spread the dough in an ungreased pan. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

It’s important to note that whether you use this recipe or another, your baking time will probably vary depending on the type of pan you use. It’s important, no matter what recipe you use, to leave about an inch of space between the edge of your pan and the giant cookie you’re creating. That gives it a little room to spread out. Once your giant cookie cake is done baking, you’ll want to pull the pan from the oven, then allow it to cool completely on a wire rack.

Icing the Cookie Cake

Your final step is icing and any other decorative touches you want to add. Almost any icing recipe will work for a cookie cake. A standard buttercream icing is typically a great choice. Many people also glaze the entire thing with a simple chocolate glaze recipe. You could also simply go with a can of store-bought icing and pipe on a cute design or slogan to fit the occasion. For an added touch, put some sprinkles or small candies on top of the icing to help decorate the cake a bit.

Cookie cakes are easily the perfect addition to any celebration whether you’re talking about a child’s birthday party or a retirement party at work. They’re easy to make, too, so grab your ingredients and start baking!

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Why An Organised Kitchen Is The Secret To Culinary Perfection

October 4, 2015August 19, 2013 by cookieradmin

Have you ever felt like life gets on top of you when you head to the kitchen? I know that I for one often feel rather cooped up and stressed out when I’m cooking, and while it’s something I should enjoy in theory, this does mean that I often end up avoiding cooking wherever possible. Obviously this in turn then impacts on my healthiness and means I end up spending more on meals.

And then even when I do cook, I often find that it becomes hectic and chaotic as I have ten pans on the go at once and no space to put dirty plates etc. I often emerge with my cooking feeling hot, flustered and incredibly stressed. It’s no wonder I’m never in a hurry to do it again, so what’s the solution?

Well as it turns out, the problem for me with cooking is not the cooking itself but rather the kitchen environment that I’m cooking in. I feel cooped up in the kitchen because it’s generally quite a small space and it tends to feel even more claustrophobic due to the disorganisation and the amount of mess and clutter everywhere. It’s hard to be organised in the kitchen because the kitchen is not organised, and it’s hard to relax because the place is a complete mess. If we look at improving the kitchen though, it might just help us to cook more efficiently and to have more fun doing it.

Here’s how to go about doing that. Follow these tips and you should end up with a kitchen that’s not just well organised, but also clean, attractive and great to spend time in. You might just find yourself becoming quite the chef…

Tip One: Make it Easy to Clean

A perfect example of using your kitchen décor to make cooking easier is using granite or laminate flooring and countertops. This will ensure those surfaces look great and give your kitchen more of a luxury finish, but at the same time it will also mean that they are less likely to get chipped and scratched, and that it will be much easier to simply wipe away any grime or spills rather than having to scrub. As a result you’ll end up with a kitchen that looks much cleaner and that you don’t feel unhygienic just standing in…

Tip Two: Clear Lots of Space

Small kitchen appliances are great whether they’re blenders, toasty makers or coffee machines. The only slight problem however is that they take up a lot of space, and their wires exacerbate this problem even more. This in turn then means that you’ll end up with nowhere to stand your crockery and with more crumbs gathering.

The solution is to keep as much as possible in your cabinets whenever you’re not using it. Alternatively, find a space specifically for your appliances and keep them together there where they’ll be out of the way.

Tip Three: Get a Waste Disposal Unit

Waste disposal units work by sitting in your sink’s drain and then using blades to chop up any food or peel that comes in. This way you never end up with a blocked sink because you can just turn on the blades and remove the blockage. Furthermore, it also means that you can chop or peel your veg straight over the sink and then just blend away the remains rather than needing to clear space for a chopping board for every little job.

Tip Four: Have Lots of Space for Draining

Peel, stains and crumbs make a mess in your kitchen, but so too do dirty plates and pans. Part of the problem here is often that the washing up you do doesn’t fit on the draining board which then means you put off doing it or it looks just as untidy when it’s done. To avoid this problem, make sure you have as much space as possible for drying and you’ll find it’s much easier to stay on top of the washing.

Tip Five: Organise Your Cupboards Well

As well as organising what’s visible, you also need to think about how you arrange the things you aren’t using. Make sure that you keep your tins, your crockery and everything else local to the spaces where you are likely to use them and organised in such a way that you can find what you want quickly. This way you’ll find it easier to keep things tidy and you’ll spend much less time lifting and moving piles of plates around or reaching to the back of dark larders.

And all that will mean that cooking isn’t quite so off putting – and you might just end up doing it a little more often as a result.

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No Bake Cookies for Cool Summer Treats

May 20, 2015July 17, 2013 by cookieradmin

Its getting hot out there this summer! No one wants to turn on their oven and heat up their home to bake cookies. You don’t have to turn on that oven though, if you use a great NO BAKE cookie recipe instead! Here’s a few of our favorite no bake cookie recipes, perfect to sweeten up this hot and sticky summer:

No-Bake Chocolate Cookies – Easy to make, no exotic ingredients. You probably have all the ingredients ready for smores anyway, why not use them for these cookies instead?

No Bake Peanut Butter Squares – Luscious peanut butter makes these squares rich and delicious. Another twist on smores cookies!

Easy No Bake Cookies – Simple to make, yet still so delicious. Barely a small paragraph of recipe instructions to make these scrumptious bites!

No Bake Caramel Cookie – A one pan cookie, then drop onto a sheet to cool, how simple and easy is that?

No Bake Coconut Oatmeal Cookie – A no bake oatmeal cookie, with coconut? Yes, try this one out, you’ll be surprised at how well coconut and oatmeal go together. Drizzle some chocolate over them for some extra richness!

No Bake Butterscotch Cookie – Just a few ingredients go into this delightful treat, and I bet you have all of them in your pantry!

No Bake Orange Cookies – Another recipe using mainly pantry ingredients plus frozen orange juice concentrate. Who knew that you could make delectable cookies with that stuff? You do now! Give this one a go for a refreshing citrus punch in your cookie!

No Bake Apricot Balls – Are they a cookie or candy? Who cares! They are delicious, and perfect for summer picnics. Easy to make as well!

No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies – What list of recipes would be complete without some chocolate oatmeal cookies? Not this one! Chocolate oatmeal cookies that come out of your refrigerator, that’s right. You can’t go wrong with this one!

Check out our other no bake recipes!

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Cookies with Kids: Making Baking Fun

October 4, 2015October 18, 2012 by cookieradmin

Today, we present a fun guest post by Bethaney Wallace:

For bakers everywhere – even occasional dabbers – the idea of letting a child into the kitchen is one that causes stress and anxiety. While this is somewhat true for mothers, fathers, and daycare providers, the fear rises steeply by those who aren’t used to having youngsters around. But no matter a person’s comfort level with children, some fear is to be justified – after all there’s necessary heat, electric appliances, and the possibility for one humdinger of a mess.

However, with a little coaching and persuading, baking with kids can actually become a welcome treat – one that even includes a literal treat (which is a great point to tell any helpers).

Follow these easy tips to help baking with any age a fun, bonding, and fruitful event.

Start out by having a pre-cookie talk. Depending on the age of the child/children, you’ll want to explain that only adults use the oven (and why), and that unless directions are followed, the cookies won’t be edible. Once this is understood, it’s time to get out the recipe, ingredients, and baking sheets, as doing so beforehand may be distracting.

When making dough, be sure to involve the kids as much as possible. If they’re old enough to measure, let them do so. If not, let them pour in each ingredient – after all, that’s the fun part! Side bowls can also be used to make sure there are no accidents such as a broken shell or overuse of flour. While mixing the dough, you can also incorporate other fun elements, such as listening to kiddie music, wearing hats or aprons, or taste testing individual ingredients, like scientists or professional bakers might do.

As for the cookie divvying itself, let your helpers use their hands. It will be messy, but they’ll have fun … and its’ much easier than teaching the whole two-spoons technique.

As for cooking and cooling steps, this is a great time to prepare any icing or toppings, and clean up any dough or batter mess. (And what a great time for a lesson on cleaning up after oneself.) Here, rely on the music or dancing to transition to the next fun part.

Finally, it’s time for decorating, which is likely to be their favorite part – aside from the eating. Provide an option of candies and frosting colors for sugar cookies, while chocolate chip or monster cookies can use a douse of sprinkles or powdered sugar – anything to let them add a final touch.

Of course eating the cookies will be an obvious reward, but another benefit will be the quality time you spent together, as well as the lessons learned. Remember that baking with kids is a fun and exciting activity, and all it takes is getting them involved to have a fun and delicious afternoon.

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Food Allergies and Baking

October 4, 2015October 11, 2012 by cookieradmin

For most people who are diagnosed with having food allergies, being told to lay off wheat, dairy or eggs by your doctor is much akin to being ordered to lay off happiness. And for those poor souls who love to bake it seems the insult runs even deeper, after all, how do you go about baking a birthday cake for a child who is allergic to wheat and eggs?

The answer, in a nutshell, is to know your enemy (the allergen) and how it serves to function in the baking process. If you can pinpoint the particular role a certain allergen, such as the protein in eggs, plays in the baking process, well then it becomes a simple matter of substituting an ingredient that fulfills the same role, but without setting off an allergic reaction. Little Johnny certainly can have his gluten-free birthday cake and eat it too if you bake smart and substitute wisely.

When you’re baking with substitutes the most important thing you need to keep in mind is the functionality of the ingredient you’re looking to replace. Take eggs for example. Eggs are the second most common food allergy for kids. Being allergic to eggs is one of the most frustrating things to be allergic to, because in the world of baking, eggs find their way into just about everything. They serve to bind ingredients together, provide structure, act as leavening to make things rise and they add a soft texture to dry ingredients. Fortunately however, there are a few great substitutes for eggs when baking and by incorporating these into your anti-allergen baking arsenal you will be pleasantly surprised by the results, leaving your taste buds none the wiser.

Finely ground flaxseeds make for a great substitute in anything that calls for a nutty flavor. So cookies, muffins and pancakes are back on the menu. To substitute for 1 egg simply add 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed to 3 tablespoons of water.

For adding fluffiness to cakes and muffins simply combine a little vinegar and baking soda. It’s neutral in flavor so it won’t overpower the other ingredients. To substitute for 1 egg combine 1 tablespoon of vinegar with 1 teaspoon of baking soda.

Pureed fruit such as ¼ cup of applesauce or ½ a mashed banana will help add extra sweetness and flavor which makes cakes and cookies an absolute pleasure. Just be sure to keep watching the oven because pureed fruit does tend to extend the baking time a little.

Egg replacer powder is another substitute that has most eggs looking to leap from the nearest wall in consternation. To substitute for 1 egg use 1 ½ tablespoons egg replacer powder with 2 tablespoons of water. Whisk it with warm water for a light, frothy texture and with hot water for a thicker, binding effect.

Gluten is another formidable allergenic adversary when it comes to producing great tasting, freshly baked breads, cakes, muffins and all things delicious. Fortunately it is also one of the most easily substituted for ingredients. Tapioca flour is a light, white and very smooth flour which gives white and French breads a wonderful, chewy texture.

To whip up a batch of nutty flavored chocolate brownies, Soy flour is your best bet. It has a high fat and protein content and works beautifully in anything that calls for a nutty or fruity flavor whereas both corn flour and white-rice flour are great options for breads, muffins, pancakes and waffles.

The last category of allergens has proven to be arguably the most difficult to substitute for, purely because of the rich, characteristic flavor these ingredients bring to the table; dairy, predominantly milk and the mother of all baking ingredients, butter.

Milk can be substituted for with a variety of ingredients such as rice milk, soy milk, oat milk, almond milk and even fruit juice depending on the recipe. But it is replacing butter that remains the bane of many a baker’s existence. Although it is difficult to substitute for, it is not impossible. Olive oil is a heart-healthy oil that works wonderfully in breads, muffins and cakes that incorporate herbs, citrus or strong flavors like pumpkin.

Organic coconut oil will ensure a beautiful, silky texture and mild taste making it perfect for sweet recipes. And if all else fails a wise tactic to employ is to add an extra teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Allergen-free baking does not have to be a second rate attempt at replicating ‘the real thing.’ The world of flavor is incredibly diverse and more often than not, simply by educating oneself as to the function of a food in the baking process, it becomes a simple and richly rewarding experience to produce something from the oven that tastes just as good as it looks, without costing you a trip to the emergency room.

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Most Popular Christmas Cookies – Top Ten Christmas Cookie Recipes

May 20, 2015December 22, 2011 by cookieradmin

We are in the midst of Christmas cookie baking season! Are you done baking or are you still in need of some Christmas cookie recipes? Either way, here are the most popular and the top ten Christmas cookie recipes on our site this season —

#1 Traditional Decorated Christmas Cookies – No surprise here, people want the best sugar cookies for decorating with frosting and candies.

#2 Christmas Butter Cookies – This one may be a surprise, these are much more simple cookies, rich and buttery but not as easily frostable. Though they are easy to make, perhaps the easiest Christmas cookies you can make.

#3 Auntie’s Christmas Cookies – Here is another sugar cookie recipes, traditional, good for decorating.

#4 Christmas Spice Cookies – Here is another surprise entry on the list. You would think gingerbread would fit the bill for spice cookies, but this recipe has proven to be very popular.

#5 Christmas Angel Cookies – These are some fun angel shaped cookies, great for making with kids.

#6 White Christmas Cookies – Another fun cookie to make and you get great results.

#7 Christmas Candy Cane Cookies – These cookies are actually shaped like a candy cane and with the use of double colored doughs, they look like candy canes as well. A fun cookie to make and they look fantastic as a gift or to set out for your Christmas buffet or table.

#8 Old Fashioned Soft Sugar Cookies – For those looking for a great tasting but soft sugar cookie.

#9 Christmas Ginger Cookies – A gingerbread style cookie recipe, but a bit more simple.

#10 Frosted Christmas Brownies – Here is another surprise, Christmas brownies! Yes, Christmas brownies, these are just brownies with some Christmas decorations. Easy and fun to make for Christmas and great for chocolate lovers.

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Favorite Christmas Cookies

May 20, 2015December 11, 2011 by cookieradmin

You may have noticed that we are reformatting and adding more description to our recipes, starting with the Christmas cookies section. We hope this will allow people to view and print recipes easier on our site, with less clutter. We are in the midst of Christmas cookie baking season, so to celebrate, here are my favorite Christmas cookie recipes —

Decorated Christmas Cookies – Perfect for baking and decorating with your favorite cookie cutters. Don’t forget the frosting!

7 Layer Bars – I know some people who wouldn’t bother baking if they didn’t bake these lovely little morsels of yumminess. Some people also refer to them as Dream Bars. Very easy and quick to make as long as you have all the ingredients.

Mexican Christmas Cookies – These are traditional Mexican cookies, especially for Christmas time. These are a must for my family at Christmas, someone always brings along a plate of Bizcochitos, as we call them.

Candy Cane Cookies – These are amazing candy cane shaped cookies that are not nearly as complicated to make as they seem. These are very impressive cookies to bring along to parties, cookie exchanges and simply to impress your family, friends and co-workers.

Christmas Ornament Cookies – These are surprisingly easy to make, and you can hang them on your tree, you just need to cut a hole to put some string through. If you really want to make them fancy, the easy way, you can use some little tubes of store-bought frosting to make these gorgeous.

Holiday Gingerbread Cookies – No holiday season would be complete without some gingerbread at some point. These cookies are traditional and tasty, yet aren’t crazy complicated. You get the real gingerbread taste, perfect for cutting out with your handy dandy gingerbread man cookie cutter.

These are my essential holiday cookie recipes, what are yours? Check out our site for loads more Christmas cookie recipes!

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