Referral Baking # 1

Usually after all of the baking I do for Christmas I am over baking for a good long time.  That hasn’t happened this year ~ for some strange reason.  I am still baking.  When trying to think of an excuse to bake – I know who needs and excuse – but it helps me feel a lot little less guilty!  Anyway, being that referrals came out this week I was reminded of when Lisa over at Tate R Bug used to have referral baking posts.  I really enjoyed her baking posts, so I think I am going to try that for a while.  I hope you don’t mind if I copy your idea Lisa. 

I had a plan, now I needed a recipe.  I have become addicted to cooking blogs.  I had NO idea there were so many out there.  I was searching through a few sites looking for something that said ‘BAKE ME’.

With the roller coaster ride of rumors this week my friends have really been on my mind a lot.  Especially:

So when I saw a recipe for Potato Chip Cookies I thought how perfect.  You see Special K introduced chocolate covered potato chips to the group last year.  They are amazing.  When I saw this recipe I thought of Special K and all of my buds.  I continued to look for a few days, but kept coming back to the potato chip cookies.  I was afraid that my family wouldn’t care for them.  Nothing else said “Bake Me” so I decided to give them a try.

It was simple enough ~ almost too simple. The recipe doesn’t call for it, but I knew I needed to add chocolate.  I thought about adding chocolate chips to the batter, but decided to drizzle them with chocolate.

The cookies have a crisp buttery slightly sweet texture, then add the saltiness of the potato chips with the hint of chocolate ~ Yum!!  I didn’t think Big Bear would like these because he does not really care for potato chips.  I was wrong.  He loves them.  

Girls, guess what I will be bringing to our next get-together?!?!!

The recipe is from Baking Bites.  LOVE this site.

Potato Chip Cookies

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 cups crushed potato chips

6 oz. chocolate chips, melted

Preheat oven to 350F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy, then beat in the egg.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt, then stir into butter mixture. Stir in potato chips.

Drop tablespoonfuls (1-inch balls) of dough onto prepared baking sheet, leaving about 2-inches between each cookie to allow room to spread.
Bake for 12-15 minutes, until light golden.

Cool completely on a wire.

Place melted chocolate chips in a Ziploc bag.  Drizzle over cooled cookies.

Store cookies in an airtight container.

Makes about 3 1/2 dozen cookies

Christmas Cookies 2008

Christmas cookies have always been my thing.  I have been baking the Christmas cookies for my family since I was a sophomore in high school.  In my younger days I would bake all night the two days before Christmas Eve.  I can't do that any more.  Now I take the four days before Christmas Eve and bake all day.  I love to turn up the Christmas music and bake away. This year I had some help from my nephew.  It was so much fun.  I can't wait to do this with polar cub in a few years.  

I lay out the ingredients on the dining room table. This does not include all of the refrigerator items: three dozen eggs, four pounds of butter, ricotta cheese, and a pound of cream cheese.

Peanut Butter Balls have been on our family cookie tray since I was in high school.  They are always a family favorite.  This is always the first Christmas treat I make.  Friends from Ohio call them buckeyes, but to us Illinoisans they will always be Peanut Butter Balls.  :)

My nephew Turtle-nose helped me decorate sugar cookies on Christmas Eve.  It was a wonderful afternoon.  All the baking was finished, we had the Christmas music cranked up, it was pouring the rain outside, and I was so happy and content spending the afternoon with Turtle-nose.  (Big Bear and I have called my nephew Turtle-nose since he was a toddler.)

These cookies are a family tradition.  I remember my mom making them when I was little.  Both of my grandma's LOVED when mom would bring them for Christmas. 

 

I can't believe what a hit Snowballs are on both sides of the family.  They are always the first ones gone from the tray.  They are so stinkin' easy.  I always double the recipe.

This was the NEW cookie of the year - every year I try one new cookie.  I saw this recipe on a blogger friend's site.  I wanted to make them for Thanksgiving, but didn't get the chance.  I made them for Christmas.  Turtle-nose was baking with me the day I made these.  He hardly let me take a cookie off the baking sheet before he had to try them.  When he tried these he literally hit the floor.  He fell in love with this cookie.  

I didn't add any sprinkles before baking because I was going to add the lemon glaze that came with the recipe.  Later that afternoon my dad and brother stopped by.  Turtle-nose made them try one of these cookies, and all three said they were perfect just like this.  My brother said he couldn't wait to have a cup of coffee and some of these!  :)

Thanks L for the AWESOME recipe!  These are a huge hit in my family

Christmas Wreath cookies are so easy to make, and they look so great on a cookie tray!

These nuts are a HUGE hit everywhere I bring them.  Big Bear calls them Christmas Nuts.  I usually make several pounds during the holidays!

Cherry Winks have been around as long as I can remember.  My grandma made these, and they are a family favorite on my side of the family.  This is one cookie that will be around for a long, long time.  This year Turtle-nose made these with me.  He tried one, and they are now ANOTHER favorite of his.  :)

There are a few cookies I forgot to take pictures of while baking. I labeled them on the trays below.

These are the two trays I took to my parent's.  The quality is not the best because I forgot to take a picture, so my nephew (Frog-face) took it from his iphone.