KEEPiNG iT REAL
Man!! That recipe card is just TOO cute.
But seriously - Ella LOVES this Hot Cocoa and J said I could totally package this up and sell it! *wink*
So, this past Sunday, I hosted our annual family Cookie Baking party.
I spent the afternoon with my mom, daughters, aunt, and cousins covered in flour and all of us up to our eyeballs in sugar, butter and frosting. I had my happy Holiday Baking Playlist going in the background while we baked…and baked…and baked the afternoon away.
This year, my oldest daughter, Clara, and I decided to get a little crazy and come up with a signature holiday cookie. Since she LOVES Snickerdoodles and is a professional at whipping them out with perfection, we decided to start with our favorite Snickerdoodle recipe as our cookie base. To make them a little more special and "signature worthy" we added a streusel topping for some extra crunch and fun holiday flair! *wink*
We call these STREUSELDOODLES!! Clara came up with the clever catchy name too - she's nothing short of brilliant!
I thought you might like the recipe so here it is… just in case you are looking for something a little fun and different to make for your neighbors, mail carriers, teachers, office staff, etc.
Mix sugar, pecans and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon in bowl.
Stir in melted butter. Set aside.
Cookies
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 TBSP. sugar + 2 tsp. cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350º.
Beat sugar and butter together in large bowl until light and fluffy.
Add vanilla and eggs - mix until well blended.
Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt, mixing well.
In small bowl, combine 2 TBSP. of sugar + 2 tsp. cinnamon, stirring until completely blended.
Shape cookie dough into 1" balls.
Roll in cinnamon/sugar mixture and place on ungreased cookie sheet.
Using your thumb, press down in the center of each cookie ball to create a well.
Spoon in about 1 tsp. of the Streusel topping and press down lightly.
Bake at 350º for 10 - 14 minutes - or until a light golden brown finish.
Remove immediately from oven and cool on wire racks.
TIP: These cookies are meant to be eaten when they are soft so I recommend baking and gifting them the same day for best results!! OR…you can try adding a couple of slices of bread to the airtight container or ziploc bag you are storing them in so as to maintain moisture.
And here we all are!!
I love the flour on Clara's sleeve with all of us crazies in the background!
We had a total of 8 bakers in the kitchen this year and I just
LOVE the selfie group shot Clara got of all of us.
Thanks for the photo AND the Strueseldoodle cookie idea Clara!!
And thanks to all of my family for actually showing up every year!! *wink*
And would you look at all of the cookies we made!!
A photo posted by Jessica Kirkland (@pnpflowers) on
KEEPiNG iT REAL
Clara and I had much grander plans for these cookies originally.
Not only were we going to add the streusel to the top…
we were also going to make a cinnamon cream cheese frosting and create sandwich cookies out of these. The top cookies would've had the streusel and then we were going to add a small drizzle of white royal icing for presentation. (and packaging)
BUT…after sampling the cookies with just the streusel we knixed the frosting idea altogether.
It would've been too much. The simplicity of the snickerdoodle + streusel topping was perfect all on its own. Simple is always better. Right?
Also…it HAS to be mentioned that our first batch of Snickerdoodles we attempted to make the night before were a #cookiefail - Clara We put double the amount of butter so we had Snickerdoodle pancakes - not cookies. Ha!!
THEN Kalie and Clara we had a #royalicingfail on baking day for the sugar cookies too. Despite having to dump 3 pounds of icing down the sink, we all found ourselves laughing about my one sentence response to the disaster: "It cannot be saved!" (said with a British accent) - I just may end up having the statement printed onto t-shirts in hashtag format for our party next year: #ItCannotBeSaved
This is a glimpse into the Cookie Exchange I styled for the magazine...
I'll be sharing more details next week.
In the meantime...
check out the full magazine RIGHT HERE... just released yesterday...
filled with wonderful Holiday inspiration from an array of talented bloggers/vendors.
I know you'll enjoy it!!
THREE other points of interest:
#1: WINNER ANNOUNCED:
The winner of the Work Inspired™ Compendium Giveaway has been announced. Was it YOU?
Scroll down to the Rafflecopter Widget within the Giveaway Post to see the winner's name displayed.
and a$50 Shoppe Creditin another AMAZiNG giveaway going on RIGHT NOW!!
It's sponsored by Fabulous Fun Finds...
with so much fabulous loot to win...
the prizes have been broken down into 5 specific categories/prize packages:
One winner from each category TAKES ALL!
That's right...
one winner will be chosen from each category.
Each winner gets everything within the category they've won.
You won't believe how much stuff is up for grabs!?
Both of the items I'm giving away are listed within the Home/Hostess Category!
Tell your friends/family to enter too...
You could split the prizes if you wanted!!
If you win, your Holiday Shopping could be finished!!
There's something for everyone.
Thanks for being here my sweet, sweet friends.
I loved reading your comments about what you love most about my blog.
My heart melted...
KEEPiNG iT REAL The deadlines I have today are SO super fun... but I'm totally freaking out, hoping I get them all done.
Hey!
That rhymed! *wink*
Maybe I should turn that into an art print... since I could pretty much say that on a daily basis! Ha!
