Chocolate Dipped Pumpkin Shortbread

In an attempt to tame my sweet tooth, I am trying to train my body to appreciate sugar more (says the girl who is now posting her THIRD dessert recipe in a row. I promise we eat real food--and I have a savory recipe coming Monday!). Don't get me wrong, desserts--even the super sweet kind--aren't being banished from my house (everything in moderation!), but I am on a mission to reduce sugar where possible, especially since it's already hidden in just about everything. You can usually cut some sugar out of most baked goods recipes and you won't notice a difference. You can also make less sweet desserts, like shortbread! 
The star ingredient in shortbread is butter, not sugar. Again, everything in moderation...and it's always worth it for this buttery dessert. I was sent some Kerrygold coupons via my partnership with Cooking Light and while I love their cheese, my mind immediately went to butter and to shortbread! When you're making shortbread you want good butter, since that's the dominant flavor, and I knew Kerrygold wouldn't lead me astray. I couldn't resist a fall twist, hence the pumpkin, and while good, it just didn't seem complete...until dipped in chocolate! The pumpkin makes the cookie a little softer than a traditional shortbread, so reduce to 1/3 a cup if you want something a bit crunchier. These are the perfect treat to eat with some coffee. Given that today is Halloween and excessive sugar is EVERYWHERE, whip up something to balance (?!) all that sugar--this shortbread won't disappoint!
Note--this post is not sponsored. I was sent coupons, but opted to post and share based on my own experiences. 

One Year Ago: Monster Marshmallow Treats
Two Years Ago: French Apple Galette and Slow Cooker Applesauce
Three Years Ago: Creamy Cauliflower Soup with Havarti Croutons and Chocolate Cupcakes with Ganache Filling and Buttercream Frosting
Four Years Ago: Pumpkin Granola Bars
Five Years Ago: Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings and Stuffed Acorn Squash

Gingersnap Snickerdoodle

Chocolate Brownie Cookies

Cookies meet brownies, what more do you need to know? Seriously, that description tells you everything, and hopefully prompts you to go make them immediately. But okay, if you need a little more convincing, know that I made these and gave 90% of them away and then found myself with a very disappointed husband on hand. He mentioned this several different times, and it's safe to say I've taken the hint...I'll be making these again soon!
They're chewy and fudgy and rich. You'll think you should stop at one, but you won't be able to resist a second...or third! Make them, and maybe share some of them, but don't make my mistake!

One Year Ago: Blueberry, Feta, Walnut Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing and Chicken Sandwiches with Artichoke Pesto
Two Years Ago: Farro, Green Bean, and Tuna Salad 
Three Years Ago: Crazy Feta and Berry Coffee Cake with Cinnamon Streusel Topping
Four Years Ago: Blueberry Cream Cheese Danish Cake and Watermelon Salad with Feta, Balsamic, and Basil

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies with Chia Seeds

Coconut Thumbprint Cookies with Salted Caramel

Few things are sweeter than watching your husband with your child. I love the moment when Ryan gets home from work each day. Sometimes this is because I'm chomping at the bit to head out on a run, but it's usually because I love to watch Brecken and Ryan interact. I've known from the moment she was born that she'd have him wrapped around her finger, and watching it play out is oh-so-sweet. Right now "playtime" usually consists of Ryan singing to her (they have Beatles sing and dance parties) or practicing her tummy time, but I can't wait to watch their relationship grow as time goes on!
These cookies are sweet too, but nowhere near as sweet as Ryan and Brecken. That's actually a good thing. The cookie base is essentially a buttery shortbread, and when rolled in coconut and filled with salted caramel, they have an ideal ratio of flavors. Although there are a few steps involved, you can easily break it down and do it over a few days. I made the dough and chilled it, then rolled and baked the cookies the next day. Finally, I filled them with coconut and then chilled them in the fridge, where they kept for days. These would be a perfectly sweet addition to your Easter meal!

One Year Ago: 10 Tips to Survive a Food Event
Two Years Ago: Cheddar, Ham, and Apple Paninis and White Chocolate Biscoff Hand Pies
Three Years Ago: Kale, Potato, and Onion Frittata and Peanut Butter Cup Surprise Cookies
Four Years Ago: White Chicken Enchiladas and Sangria 

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies with Golden Raisins

These cookies will cause you to throw all self control out the window. I'd apologize, but I did cut the butter from the original recipe in half, reduce the amount of sugar, and add some whole wheat flour, so I don't feel the need to be too sorry! Heck, we can practically call these breakfast cookies, with the inclusion of oatmeal and golden raisins. 
I wasn't actually the one with no power to resist the cookies, mostly because I didn't have the chance before they'd all disappeared! Ryan and our friend Mike cornered the market on these cookies at our weekly community group, both claiming to eat at least half a dozen each over the course of our hour and a half together. I'm not complaining...there's no greater compliment to a baker than to send her home without any leftovers!

The Back in the Day Bakery cookbook is one of my favorites (for another great recipe, check out the Drunken Blondies from the cookbook!), and it's easy to see why with recipes like this one. Like I said, I healthified the original recipe and made the cookies much smaller than what you'd find in the bakery, but only so you can eat six at once, which is probably the equivalent of one bakery cookie ;) If you're the type to scoff at raisins in cookies, throw some chocolate or white chocolate chips in there instead!

One Year Ago: Slow Cooker Spicy Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches and Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
Two Years Ago: Carrot Ginger Salad and (Slow Cooker) Penne with Eggplant Tomato Sauce 
Three Years Ago: No Bake Banana Split Pie and Broiled Tilapia Gyros
Four Years Ago: Portabello Pita Pizzas and Moroccan Carrot Sandwiches

Almond Meltaways

My brother and sister-in-law moved a few months ago to a house with a glorious kitchen. While I'm envious of many of its features, I am most jealous of the double oven! You don't know the number of times I've wished for multiple ovens of my own. Maybe some day...
The usefulness of this feature became clear when we were baking Christmas cookies last month. I was already occupying one oven and Erin had actually completed her baking for the day. Then, on a whim, she remembered she'd been meaning to try these Almond Meltaway cookies and she quickly whipped up a batch. We had plenty of space, both in the ovens and the countertops, and didn't have to worry about the fact that our cookies required different oven temperatures.
Believe it or not, the double oven wasn't even the best part of the day...it was the discovery of these cookies, my new favorite! The name describes them perfectly--they're a buttery sugar cookie whose primarily flavor is almond extract, which in my opinion far surpasses the more popular vanilla extract. Texture-wise, they literally do melt in your mouth. Erin sent me home that day with some of the cookies, but I insisted on making another batch a few days later because I couldn't wait to share them with my visiting family, who also fell in love with them!

One Year Ago: Buttermilk Clover Rolls and Layered Asian Dip
Two Years Ago: Eat & Repeat: Salt and Banana Bread Ice Cream with Peanut Butter and Chocolate
Three Years Ago: Oregano and Prosciutto Pinwheels and M&M Dream Bars
Four Years Ago: Carrot Cake Pancakes and Butternut Squash Lasagna

Chocolate Eggnog Cream Puffs

One of the sponsors of the St. Louis Food Media Forum that I attended in August was Safest Choice Eggs. I was about twelve weeks pregnant at the time and already mourning the temporary hiatus of runny egg yolks. Needless to say, I was thrilled to discover that Safest Choice Eggs are pasteurized, totally eliminating the risk of salmonella, meaning I could go crazy with egg yolks again. Since then, I've stocked up on Safest Choice Eggs and resumed my fried egg habit, not to mention my raw cookie dough eating! (To be fair, I'm totally okay with eating the occasional non-pasteurized runny egg and don't stress about it too much in restaurants, but it's totally a personal decision for all pregnant women out there!).
Today we're using Safest Choice Eggs in another form: cream puffs and pastry cream! Again, the nice thing about these eggs is not having to worry about cross contamination or whether the eggs are undercooked...perfect in recipes like pastry cream! In light of the upcoming holiday, I went eggnog themed with these cream puffs.
I'm never sure whether I'm an eggnog fan or not. I like the idea of it and it contains things I love (heck, it's basically spiced ice cream in liquid form)...but I prefer it in small doses. Thus, eggnog pastry cream was perfect for me! You get just enough of the eggnog without feeling totally weighed down by all that sugar and spice and cream. 
I've made cream puffs before, so I had the basic process down, but decided to change things up and make chocolate cream puff shells this time around. The shells don't have any sugar in them, making them an ideal blank (chocolate) canvas for the sweetened eggnog pastry cream. Although you might be familiar with the giant overwhelming cream puffs, I stuck to bite-sized ones making them perfect for a Christmas party where you want to try all the desserts on the spread!

You can make the recipe components ahead of time (shells one day ahead of time, pastry cream three days ahead of time), just don't assemble until the day you plan to serve for the freshest flavor! Cookies and fudge are good and fun this time of year, but change things up this season with these miniature cream puffs that scream holiday!

Kitchen PLAY is hosting a giveaway with Safest Choice eggs for a holiday baking pack, including Sur La Table baking sheets, mixing bowls, and spatulas, a Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, twelve DOZEN eggs, and more ($150 value!). Enter on Facebook here!

One Year Ago: Chocolate Covered S'Mores on a Stick and Spicy Chicken and Vegetable Enchiladas
Two Years Ago: Peanut Butter M&M Cookies and Curried Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie
Three Years Ago: Whole Wheat Rosemary Bread and Mushroom and Goat Cheese Crostini
Four Years Ago: Pear and Arugula Salad and Turkey and Squash Risotto

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate and Peanut Butter Chips

 I'm kind of shocked, but it's been five years since that sunny, chilly October Saturday when Ryan and I married. Rather than get all sentimental today, I'll leave it at this: these five years have been challenging, to be sure. We've encountered things we didn't necessarily plan on when we naively said "I do" as babies at age 22. But they've also been the five best years I could've asked for. Five years full of laughter, tears, travel, bickering, exploring, learning, and loving! I wouldn't change a thing, and I can't wait to venture into this next year which will include parenthood and is sure to rock our world more than anything we've done yet! Ryan, I continue to have no doubts that God knew exactly what He was doing when he brought us together. I'm so thankful for the last five years and so excited to continue walking this path with you!
And onto a completely different note, albeit, still a sweet one....!
These cookies are based on another recipe I've made before, which features peanut butter oatmeal cookies with chocolate chips and sea salt. While they were definitely good, I knew they could be better. And so I went, changing a little of this and a little of that until they'd morphed into something I was satisfied with. The finished product was a cookie much more to my liking--thicker, chewier, and even a little healthier, since I used whole wheat flour this time around. 
I made these before heading out on business travel one week, wanting to make sure Ryan had something to snack on while I was gone. I couldn't help but sneak a few before I left and I was mildly disappointed when I returned home to an empty cookie jar. Make these and share them with someone you love!

One Year Ago: Spicy Asian Chicken with Brussels Sprouts and Ginger Cookies
Two Years Ago: Greek Stuffed Spaghetti Squash and Pumpkin Roll 
Three Years Ago: Pumpkin Cheesecake Dip and Twelve in Ten Challenge: The King & I 
Four Years Ago: Apple Puff Pancake and First Wedding Anniversary!

 At first glance these looks like peanut butter cookies that are terribly miscolored. At least that's where my mind first goes when I see the familiar cross-hatch pattern on top of each cookie. Surprisingly, especially considering how much we love the stuff, no peanut butter made its way into these cookies.
They may look like a peanut butter cookie, but they are made with Nutella and cocoa powder. Chocolate hazelnut?! I don't think you'll even miss the peanut butter! A word of caution--like many recipes, this one called for some espresso powder to enhance the flavor of the chocolate. I added it, as I always do, but was a tad disappointed that it added a bit of a coffee flavor that overpowered the Nutella. The cookies were still excellent, and I actually really liked the taste of the coffee/chocolate/Nutella combo, but if you're wanting to really get that essence of Nutella, I recommend skipping the espresso powder!
One Year Ago: Amaretto Blondies
Two Years Ago: Vegan Mango Banana Bread
Three Years Ago: Okra Fries

 The great thing about hot summer afternoons is that when we get home from work, the kitchen is warmer than usual since we don’t start blasting the air conditioning until we get home (and even then, my definition of cold is likely different than yours!). You might be thinking, “and why is this a good thing?”. Two words: softened butter.


One Year Ago: Bourbon-Marinated Pork Tenderloin
Two Years Ago: Cheesecake Extravaganza (a dozen forms of cheesecake!)
Three Years Ago: Caprese on a Stick