Soft Banana Chocolate Chip Drop Cookies

These cookies, my friends, are seriously one of the best cookies that you'll ever bake and perhaps the best cookies you may ever consume. I know that there are oodles of cookie recipes out there in baking-land. But, these are something spectacular. This recipe is my mother's ... one that she has made for years and years. The cookies are truly a family favorite {along with her Slow Cooker Steak in Golden Mushroom Cream Sauce recipe}. She is asked to make these particular cookies for most any special gathering. And, when the grandkids show up at her house, it's pretty much a given - almost without fail - that they will ask her for these cookies. She usually keeps batches of them tucked away in her freezer. And, truth be told, they are barely given adequate time to thaw before everyone - including the adults - are diving into them.

Ripe, mashed bananas - lending both amazing flavor and extra moisture - are used in the dough. Mini chocolate chips lend just the right amount of crunch as you make your way through each chewy, soft bite. These are not dense like some traditional chocolate chip cookies. Rather, the texture is light, fluffy and ultra-soft.

I highly urge you to try this recipe. And, I'd love for you to come back and let me know how you like these. I think you'll find that these become a family favorite for you, too.

Yields 4 dozen.

Ultimate Drop Blackstrap Molasses Cookies

Soft molasses cookies have been my husband's favorite sweet treat for many years. Both his mother and my mother make amazing versions that are super similar. They often pass a dozen or so his way. {He devours them in less than a day.} I sometimes refer to this as his "molasses cookie fix." After twenty-plus years of he and I being together, I figured it was time for me to step up and attempt to master the recipe.

These cookies - truth be told - are one of my favorites, as well. {I just rarely get any when he is gifted them.} They are deep and rich in flavor. Almost magically, they manage to be both ultra moist {almost brownie-like in texture - especially when warm} on the inside while presenting a bumpy, slightly crisp exterior {especially fresh from the oven}. Utilizing blackstrap molasses yields such a deeply developed molasses flavor here. And, the inclusion of cold, strong coffee contributes to the moistness of the batter and helps boost the already-exuberant molasses flavor.

These do freeze well, too. And, they thaw super quickly. So they are a wonderful treat to have on hand for when company stops by or when you may need some goodies on the fly.

Yields 5 dozen cookies.

Moravian Ginger Spice Cookie Thins

It took me quite a bit of experimenting to get this particular recipe how I wanted. Lots of trial and error. I knew the texture and flavor for which I was aiming. I tweaked and tweaked with each new batch until I came up with what I consider "The Ultimate Ginger Cookie" recipe. I think you'll like this one and I urge you to try it for yourself. It has become my favorite holiday cookie.

Thin and crisp, these cookies are more complex in flavor than traditional, run-of-the-mill ginger snaps. Each spice is all at once undeniably and robustly distinct, yet harmoniously in sync with the other. The cookies are addicting in every sense of the word. Last year, I hid away the last couple of dozen for myself and I may have led the kids to think that there were simply no more left. (Shhhh! That'll probably happen again this year, too.)

Banana Chocolate Chip Cookie Mini Muffins

Let me start this post with a disclaimer. These mini muffins are dangerous. Seriously. I have to make myself step away from these, turn off the kitchen lights and practically strap myself to the living room couch to keep from devouring like, the whole batch!

 

(Don't say I didn't warn ya!)

Let me fill you in on the "backstory" of this recipe. My mother is the Cookie Queen in our family. She is constantly making batches upon batches of various kinds of cookies on a weekly basis. Her freezer is always stocked full of upwards of five varieties at all times. I walk a slippery slope when I visit her as it is beyond difficult to refrain from trying and "retrying" all the different types that she keeps on hand.

However, I have always had a favorite - her Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies. And, I'm not alone. I think they're pretty much the most-loved cookie by all my family members on that side - kids and adults alike. (It would not be a lie if I said that some of the adults in my family have even been known to hoard them away from our kids if we bring any home with us.)

My children love, love, love those darn cookies just as much as I do. They, also, adore those little packets of mini muffins from the store - especially the chocolate chip kind. They remind us so much of my mom's Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies (even though the store-bought muffins have no banana in them).

So, I set out to take her recipe for our favorite type of cookie and convert it to make these mini muffins.

Worked like a charm (and then some). The result is a super soft muffin that is loaded with banana flavor and tons of chocolate-y goodness. These aren't your typical dense muffin. They are almost sponge-like ... in a good way!

Holy moly, friends ... get your butts up and make them as soon as humanely possible. (Sorry - was that a little too bossy?)

These are amazing little treats. And, like I said - you'll have to restrain yourself from eating like, twenty of them.

P.S. It wouldn't be a bad thing if you just went ahead and doubled the recipe. They keep in the freezer amazingly well and are perfect to keep there on hand for company.

Yields 48 Mini Muffins

Classic Peanut Butter and Chocolate No-Bake Cookies

You know 'em. You love 'em. Old-school, classic no-bake cookies. A super quick-to-make, well-loved treat that was a staple of so many of our childhoods. They certainly bring me a real sense of nostalgia every time that I make them. And, I love seeing my own kids enjoy these cookies just as much as I did when I was young.

And, really ... what's not to love here? Chocolate and peanut butter collide amid a sea of oats, sugar and butter. {The ingredient list is a short one and consists of stuff most of us keep on hand.} And, you'll literally be in and out of the kitchen in like, ten or fifteen minutes making these. 

This is my mother's recipe and one that she made like, weekly when I was growing up. In our family, we prefer a combination of both quick oats and old-fashioned oats in this recipe. It just seems to create the perfect texture. But, just using regular quick-cooking oats works fine if that's what you have on hand or prefer. {Most recipes call for just quick oats.}

NOTE:  I would pretty much never recommend margarine for any recipe. However, my mother always used margarine in this recipe when I was growing up. I have tried making these many times using real butter, but they just never seem to turn out the same. So, I list margarine in the ingredient list. However, the recipe can very well be made with butter if that is all you prefer to purchase or have on hand.

Now, isn't it time you whipped up a batch of these today? You'll be so happy that you did.

Yields 24 - 28 small cookies or 12 - 14 large cookies.

Cheesecake Caramel Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

 

Oh, my goodness ... that is one lengthy recipe title, isn't it? I wanted to be sure to get all of the main components of this recipe into the name.  I'm sure, however, that once you try these bars, you'll care not what the name is or how many words are involved in the title.

 

 

Baking actual cookies is not one of my strengths.  Not because I fail at it (usually), but simply because I'm a pretty impatient girl. (Is it okay to still call myself a girl at thirty-seven?) I hate waiting in between each batch.  I hate the process of spooning dough onto a tray, waiting twelve minutes for each tray to bake, then repeating the steps over and over again throughout four or five spooning/baking cycles.  More often that not, I get busy doing something else while a batch is baking, then I have a tray (or three) of burnt cookies as a result.

So, I'm thrilled when I can take the concept of cookies and turn them into a one-pan recipe.  Mix everything up, assemble everything into the pan, pop the pan into the oven, let it bake and be done with it. But, that's not the only reason I love these bars.  This recipe combines my love of cookies with my love of cheesecake.  Plus, it has some toffee bits and caramel bits thrown in for my pleasure good measure.

If you're not familiar with caramel bits, they can be found right in the chocolate chip section in your supermarket.  They are made by Kraft.  They come in an eleven-ounce bag and cost around three dollars.  They are super adorable (well, as adorable as little balls of caramel can be).  They are just like Kraft wrapped caramel candies, but in little ball form - perfect for baking.

Yields 12 bars.

Adapted from Double Batch.

Cake Mix Chocolate Chip Cookies

The kids were wanting to bake some chocolate chip cookies this week. I, on the other hand, was so over the whole baking "thing" due to all of the pre-Christmas goodies I had made in recent weeks. We opted to make these super simple cake mix cookies to satisfy their cookie craving.

My kids can pretty much make these on their own. The dough comes together in like, two minutes with little mess and very few dishes dirtied. {That I like, of course.} You don't even need a mixer for these.

These cookies bake up super soft and fluffy. And, while they may not necessarily be grandma's from-scratch version, this is a great recipe to throw together when you are craving chocolate chip cookies and don't want to put in a lot of effort/time. And, I like that this yields only a couple of dozen cookies ... the perfect amount for when cookies are craved, but standing by the oven baking batch-after-batch isn't really desired.

Yields 20 - 24 cookies

Oatmeal Crinkle Cookies

My dear mother, Dawn, bakes dozens of cookies each week.  Chocolate chip. Molasses. Peanut butter. Snickerdoodles. Oatmeal. {You get the idea.} There is rarely a time when speaking to her on the phone that she isn't pausing to pull a tray of cookies out from the oven or starting another batch. All of the grandkids know to expect cookies upon visits to her house. {And, truth be told ... so do I.}

 

 

She has a cute sign hanging on the wall of her kitchen.  It reads, "A Balanced Diet is Having a Cookie in Each Hand." Boy, does she love that sign.

This recipe is one of her most-requested {aside from her Banana Chocolate Chip ones.} She's been making these for as long as I can remember. They are as magnificent and sinful as they look! As I type, my shirt is dusted with powdered sugar ... remnants of the two {okay, three} that I just devoured.

These cookies are slightly chewy in the center and have a wonderful texture from the oats. A good roll in powdered sugar prior to baking results in a beautiful, crackled, crinkle exterior that makes these oatmeal cookies next-level for sure.

Yields:  4 Dozen

Laura Bush's Texas Governor's Mansion Cowboy Cookies

As I am beginning to write this post, the last batch of these cookies is finishing off in the oven. I just could not wait to share this amazing cookie recipe with you. Basically, these are an amped up version of oatmeal cookies. Chewy and hearty, they are loaded with oats, coconut, pecans and chocolate chips. So, so good.

 

 

I had found a link on Pinterest a while back for these and repinned it so that I wouldn't forget to try out this yummy-looking cookie recipe for myself.

I did some searching through different websites that have posted this recipe throughout the years (including The New York Times and Family Circle magazine) and it appears that most of the postings have been pretty much the same in terms of ingredients, quantities and directions.

In 2000, this recipe by Laura Bush beat out Tipper Gore's gingersnap cookie recipe in a magazine contest. The two potential first wives each submitted a cookie recipe in the months leading up to the election and readers voted for their favorite. This recipe certainly has my vote and will (undoubtedly) become a favorite in my household.

Yields approximately 4 1/2 dozen cookies.