120 Christmas Cookies

At least... we lost count!  And by we I mean my SIL who had a need to count all the cookies we had just decorated while I stuffed my face with popcorn and twizzlers (healthy dinner for the win) and watched the long awaited season 4 premiere of Hart of Dixie.  We had to wait for the icing to dry before we could package them up, duh.

 

On Sunday we baked said sugar cookies and then we got together last night after work to decorate them and if I do say so myself they turned out to be the prettiest Christmas cookies I have ever made.  The purple icing was definitely a key ingredient and props to my SIL for buying the real deal dye from a fancy store and everything, it was the perfect colour and it only took about 1/8 tsp.  Go for the real dye friends, it makes a huge difference. 

 

I don't actually have the recipe but need to get my hands on it, will work on that because both the cookie and icing recipes are so easy and pretty sure these are the best sugar cookies I've tasted.

 

The angels are my favourite followed closely by the snowflakes and then doves.  Now to decide who gets all these delicious treats...

 

 

 

Full disclosure: all designs were K's idea, she made a 'prototype' and I copied the design.  She's the perfect Christmas Cookie partner!

 

Also, we did try another cookie on Sunday but it was an epic failure... only in the looks department though, they were delicious!!

 

What is your favourite Christmas baking recipe?

   

Recap: Date Weekend!

Not only did I have date night with my husband, we spent the whole weekend together!  I had plans to go out with couple girlfriends on Friday night but they ended up falling through.  Half of me was super bummed because we were going out for a delicious steak feast and lots of yummy wine and my two friends are a blast, but the other half of me was looking forward to a chill night.  I definitely need to get our girls night rebooked ASAP though!

I left work on time Friday and hurried home, poured a big road pop and headed out with hubby to do our grocery shopping.  We rented a couple movies and picked up dinner on our way home, I barely made it through the movie and then headed up to bed.

Road pop... shhhh!

I slept in on Saturday and hubby brought me my coffee in bed as I lazily watched a couple of shows. Eventually I got up and organized all our laundry into piles (I've been slacking for a couple weeks so we had A LOT) and it was the perfect excuse to settle in front of the TV to watch another movie. Real productive hey?  Pretty sure I also pinned about 200 projects/recipes/home ideas... wonder if I will ever accomplish any of them?! 

Hubby and I eventually headed out for some drinks at a new restaurant near our house and I discovered a beer I really like.  We enjoyed a few drinks, a couple appies and eventually ordered dinner.  The food and drinks were all delicious and it was great to hang out and relax with my hubby.  

Goodbye wine, hello beer, welcome to the roster!

After we got back home I decided to do something I haven't done in so long - I baked!  I promised hubby a couple weeks ago that I would bake him a chocolate cake with Skor bites plus I have wanted to try a layered cake for a while.  Saturday night baking with a drink is so fun for me and I find it really relaxing as opposed to cooking where I always feel like the donkey in Gordon Ramsay's pressure test! So I decided to bake both cakes.

Chocolate cake topped with Skor bites

My first rainbow cake

Sunday morning I was anticipating a brutal hangover but I actually woke up feeling pretty good, so good that I actually whipped up quite the Sunday-worthy brunch! Oh and I actually found one of the ideas on Pinterest so ignore my comment above.  Needless to say hubby was happily surprised when he came downstairs in the midst of my cooking :)  I made scrambled eggs, baked bacon (easiest way to cook it!!) and pancake cups topped with strawberries and cool whip (the pancake cups didn't actually mold into cups the way they were supposed to but they still tasted like pancakes).

Sunday brunch deliciousness

After brunch I did some stuff around the house to get ready for the week and then went to meet my mom for coffee.  On my way home I picked up my new favorite beer (see above) to end the weekend a little easier.  

I have a week full of long days ahead of me as I finish pulling everything together for our affiliate seminar next week.  We have 24 people coming to town for a full week of training and I am praying that it goes amazingly well.  We have never done something of this magnitude and it's important we pull it off... Wish me luck!

It's been a while since I have linked up Lisa and Bella for the weekend recap so here I am and can't wait to read about everyone else's weekends... hopefully some of you had some sun?!?





Taste of Tuesday: Cookie of the Year??

I attempted to try two new recipes last night, Meatloaf Parmesan and Cheesy Potato Gratin, and the meatloaf was delicious but the potatoes were a complete disaster.  Maybe not a compete disaster, they tasted ok, but they were black.  Yes, black. I'm not too sure what happened, I was actually trying to be proactive and prepped the potato dish last night.  I didn't google what would happen to potatoes if you slice them 24 hours before cooking but I'm thinking it might have something to do with turning black.  When I screw up a dish I really screw up a dish!

But the Meatloaf Parmesan was sooo good, I will make it again and try a different side, maybe Kraft Dinner? That one I can handle!

I still want to link up for Taste of Tuesday though and because I can't post a recipe without a photo, I dug into my iPhone album and found my favorite new cookie recipe.  I found this recipe on Pinterest via The Dough Will Rise Again and even though they don't look like a holiday treat, I made them and got so many compliments. Of the four treats included in my holiday platter, these cookies were hands down the favorite!

Brown Sugar Oatmeal Coconut Chewies

 

Ingredients: 

1 cup butter, slightly softened

1 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

3/4 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 cup quick cooking oats

1 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

 

Directions:

1.) Preheat oven to 350°. Cream together butter and sugars until just combined.

2.) Add eggs and vanilla then mix until fully incorporated.

3.) Add baking soda, baking powder, and salt to the wet mixture. Mix until well-distributed.

4.) Add about 1/2 your flour, and mix until the flour is JUST incorporated. Scrape down the sides of your bowl, and then add the second half of your flour, mixing until just incorporated.

5.) Add oats and coconut, mixing until JUST incorporated.

Optional: 1 cup chocolate chips

6.) Roll dough into balls a little over an inch in diameter and place on lined cookie sheet.

7.) Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the edges are veeeery lightly brown, but the center is still light in color and puffy. This will result in a very moist, very chewy cookies.

8.) Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then move them to a cooling rack. Once they’re fully cooled, they can be stored in a ziploc bag or airtight container for up to a week.

 

I (and everyone else who gets my holiday treats!) am so very happy that I found this recipe, and it's perfect for any day of the year!  I think I will try them with mini chocolate chips too!

 

I can't wait to read what other people made because I will keep trying new recipes!

Today I am linking up with Ashley, Jessica and Mary for Taste of Tuesday!

 

 

 Does anyone else have as much trouble in the kitchen as I do?