Fudgy Peanut Butter Mousse Cups

I am sorry about my unannounced absence.  My family was battling the stomach flu right up to Christmas and I didn't really feel like thinking about food.  Then I wanted a few days off with nothing to do.  I hope you understand, which I am sure you do.  But now that we are all well and I've rested for a few days doing absolutely nothing I am ready to get down to business.

I hope that you are not sick of goodies.  I found this recipe at http://www.cookscountry.com/ and I love it.  I gave it out on my goodie plates this year for my neighbors and friends.  The most common word used to describe them, heavenly.  One gentleman tried to convince the rest of his family that they weren't any good so that he could eat them all himself.  The combination of chocolate, peanut butter and a shortbread like bottom just takes this treat over the top.  They are pretty too, although I forgot in my selfish snacking to take a picture of them.  They are a bit involved, so make sure you have plenty of time, but they are worth every minute.  You can pipe the filling into the cups as long as you use a tip with a wide opening.  Otherwise the peanuts from your peanut butter will get stuck inside.  I found I had leftover mousse so I filled the cups a little fuller than the picture below shows.  Make sure you have someone to share them with!  ENJOY! (But of course you will)

Fudgy Peanut Butter Mousse Cups
Prep Time: 25 minutes+ chilling
Cook Time: 10 minutes per batch, plus 20 minutes cooling

Yield: 36 cups

Ingredients:
1 package sugar cookie mix (17.5 oz.)
1 c. pecans, toasted and chopped fine (Toast pecans in a skillet over medium-heat for a couple of minutes)
2 T. all-purpose flour
8 T. unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
1 1/4 c. heavy cream, divided
1 c. chunky peanut butter (I don't see why you can't use creamy really, but I followed the recipe)
1 package cream cheese (8 oz.), softened
1 c. confectioners' sugar
1 t. vanilla extract
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips
Directions: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a mini-muffin tin. (The recipe calls for a 12 cup, I used my 24 cup and it worked fine).  Combine cookie mix, pecans, and flour in a bowl.  Slowly stir in butter until mixture resembles wet sand.  Press 1 T. cookie mixture into bottom and sides of each muffin cup.  Bake until golden, about 10 minutes.  Cool 20 minutes in tin, then turn out cookies.  Repeat with remaining dough.
With electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat 1 cup cream to stiff peaks, about 2 minutes.  In another bowl, beat peanut butter, cream cheese, sugar and vanilla on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute.  Fold in whipped cream.
Microwave chocolate and remaining cream in small bowl, stirring occasionally, until smooth, about 1 minute.  Pour 1/2 t. chocolate mixture into each cookie cup, then fill cups with 1 T. peanut butter mixture.  Drizzle remaining chocolate evenly over cookiesand refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

(The photo is from cookscountry.com)

Pecan Toffee Shortbread Stars

I am always on the look out for good cookie recipes.  You can never have too many cookie recipes, right?  As long as you have your exercise routine in place you should be fine.  Mine has kind of fallen by the way side these last couple of weeks.  If I don't get back to it I am going to have a lot of work to do after Christmas.  I found this recipe on Cooks Country website (which is by the way my new obsession).  It took a pecan shortbread recipe, which is already almost perfect, and added two of my favorite things, toffee and chocolate.  These were delicious straight of the oven and still tasty a couple of days later.  My sister and I agreed that maybe a little chocolate drizzled on them would put these on the top of the Christmas gift list.  Careful, the dough is delicious too and because it doesn't have eggs in it you can eat your fill, unless you want baked cookies later.  I am just saying. Another great thing about this recipe is that you can bake two pans and once so you're done so much quicker.  Oh, and there isn't a picture because I ate them all before I thought to take a picture.  You'll have to make them and take your own picture I guess.  Also, you don't have to use a star cookie cutter, turns out I don't have one, I made mine into Christmas trees.  Enjoy!

Pecan Toffee Shortbread Stars

Prep Time: 10 minutes, plus 1 hour refrigeration
Bake Time: 12-14 minutes (I think my oven is going because these took about 17 minutes, so keep an eye on them)
Yield: Depends on your cookie cutter size, I got about 2½ dozen

Ingredients:

1½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ c. cornstarch
¼ t. salt
12 T. unsalted butter (1½ sticks), softened (DO NOT SUBSTITUTE WHEN MAKING SHORTBREAD)
¼ c. granulated sugar
¼ c. packed light brown sugar
2 t. vanilla extract
½ c. mini semisweet chocolate chips
1 c. finely chopped pecans
½ c. Heath Toffee Bits (without chocolate)
Confectioners' sugar for serving or try the chocolate drizzle
Directions: Whisk flour, cornstarch, and salt in bowl; set aside.  With electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter, sugars, and vanilla until smooth, about 1 minute.  Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture, chocolate, pecans, and toffee; mix until dough forms, about 1 minute.  Gather dough, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or up to 3 days. 

Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350°.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  On lightly floured work surface, roll half of dough into 11-inch circle, about ¼ inch thick.  Using 3-inch star-shaped cookie cutter, cut out cookies, gathering and rerolling dough as necessary.  Place cookies 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets and bake until edges are golden brown, 12-14 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking.  Let cool 10 minutes on baking sheets, then transfer to wire rack and cool completely.  Repeat with remaining dough.  (Cookies can be stored in airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.)

Linzer Cookies

Our sweet neighbor Elfie has brought us a plate of Christmas cookies every year since we've moved to our little community.  Elfie is German and her fare is not your usual Christmas cookies.  I wait all year for her plate so that I can eat all of these cookies off the plate.  They are crunchy, gooey, and not overly sweet.  They are more of a grown-up cookie I guess, which is good so Greg and I  can eat all of them and not share with my kids.  I found this recipe last year and I was so excited.  Monday night while I was at Joann's I found Linzer cookie cutters, yippee!  For the ground almonds I simply processed whole almonds in my food processor.  I hope you like them too!
 
Linzer Cookies

Prep Time: 20 minutes, plus 1 hour refrigeration
Cook Time: 10-12 minutes per batch
 

Ingredients:

1¼ c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
3 c. all-purpose flour
1 T. baking cocoa
½ t. salt
¼ t. ground cinnamon
¼ t. ground nutmeg
¼ t. ground cloves
2 c. ground almonds
6 T. seedless raspberry jam
3 T. powdered sugar
Directions: In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Combine the flour, cocoa, salt and spices; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.  Stir in almonds.  Refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8” thickness.  Cut with a floured 2½” round cookie cutter.  From the center of half of the cookies, cut out a 1½” shape.  Place on ungreased baking sheets.  Bake 350° for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown.  Remove to wire racks to cool.  Spread the bottom of each solid cookie with ½ tsp. Of jam.  Sprinkle cutout cookies with powdered sugar; carefully place over jam. 

 (This recipe was originally found in Taste of Home magazine) 

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Cookies

Against my better judgment I got onto Pinterest for the first time last week.  I was looking for ornaments to make as I was feeling rather uninspired by what I found in my usual go-to sites.  While searching for ornaments I found a picture of these very adorable cookies.  I was scheduled to go to a Christmas party later that week and I was to bring a dessert.  Happily, these are super-duper easy and the kiddos can help, just make sure that they wash their hands.  Mine had to wash their hands a bunch of times because they kept licking their fingers.  But we had a blast making them and we will probably make them again before the season is over.  The originals called for red-hots for the noses, when we make them again we will be using more kid-friendly red M&M's.  Who likes red-hots really anyway? 

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Cookies
Yield: approximately 24 cookies (I can't remember really, but it used almost a whole package of Nutter Butters)
Prep Time: 15 minutes if you do it by yourself, 30 minutes if you've got kids helping

Ingredients:
1 pkg. Peanut shaped Nutter Butters
1 bag of light cocoa melting chocolate (found in the cake decorating section) or if you like almond bark
small twisted pretzels
red M&M's or red-hots
mini-chocolate chips
Directions: Melt the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl according to the directions on the package.  Dip the cookies and place on wax paper lined cookie sheet.  Working quickly place the pretzel on for the antlers, mini-chocolate chips for eyes, M&M's for noses.  Let dry and eat. 

This photo came from momtaughtus.blogspot.com  There are several variations of these but I thought these were the cutest and the easiest.  Gotta love that when that combo comes together.

Tip: To keep your chocolate melted, cover a heating pad with wax paper and turn on low, put your bowl of chocolate on the wax paper.  If you need it a little warmer turn it up one more level. 

Holiday Sugar Cookies

I don't know about you but I can't resist making sugar cookies for every holiday.  I like that I can make them any shape for whatever holiday.  Sugar cookie dough is a blank canvas.  My sister is a sugar cookie genius and decorates them better than anyone else I know.  I am not that talented when it comes to decorating, usually I hand the frosting over to the kids with some sprinkles and let the chaos reign.  Then our sweet neighbors usually get the interesting results.  While my cookies may not always look great, this recipe ensures that they will melt in the recipient's mouth.  The addition of cream cheese in this recipe makes them tender and the butter, well butter makes them fabulous.  Did mention that the dough is so very yummy?  Let me know if you like them.  A couple of years ago I used my gingerbread man cookie cutter and turned them into mummies using white frosting and a decorator's tip.  So cute.  The sky's the limit. 
 

Holiday Sugar Cookies

Prep Time: 10 minutes + 3 hours chilling time
Cook Time: 8-10 minutes for each batch
Yield: Hard to say, it depends on the size of your cookie cutters.
Family Friendliness: Kids love sugar cookies, and most adults do too.

Ingredients:

1 c. butter, softened ( you can substitute margarine, but they are so much better with butter)
1 pkg, (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 c. sugar
1 egg yolk
½ t. vanilla extract
¼ t. almond extract
2¼ c. all-purpose flour
½ t. salt
¼ t. baking soda
Tinted frosting, coarse sugar, and/colored sugar, sprinkles, or whatever you can think of
Directions: In a large bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg yolk and extracts.  Combine the flour, salt, and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours or until easy to handle.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8 inch thickness.  Cut with a floured cookie cutter.  Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets (I like to line my pans with parchment paper.)  Bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes or until edges begin to brown.  Cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks.  Cook and decorate as desired.

 (This recipe is originally from Taste of Home magazine)

Peanut Butter Chippers

Chocolate chip cookies are my go-to comfort food.  A warm chocolate chip cookie right out of the oven seems to solve every problem, at least for a little while.  I found this recipe earlier (in Taste of Home) this year and I love it.  First, they are so delicious.  Second, they don’t make a ton so you don’t spend all day baking and eating cookies.  Third, the peanut butter makes them more than just a chocolate chip cookie.  YUM!  Let me know if you like them!

Peanut Butter Chippers    

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 11-14 minutes for each batch
Family Friendliness: I don’t know any child alive that doesn’t love a chocolate chip cookie.
Yield: The original recipe says 3½ dozen, but I must make my cookies bigger because I only get 2 dozen.  Or maybe I eat too much of the dough.  I know Mom, I shouldn’t, but I do.

Ingredients
6 T. butter, softened
¼ c. peanut butter
½ c. sugar
½ c. packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla extract
1¼ c. all-purpose flour (I add about ½ c. more because otherwise they are flatter than I like my cookies)
½ t. baking soda
¼ t. salt
1 c. milk chocolate chips (or semi-sweet depending on what my mood is, or sometimes I mix them)
Directions: In a small mixing bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars.  Add egg; mix well.  Beat in vanilla.  Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets.  Bake 350˚ for 11-14 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove to wire racks.