Bakery Style Peanut Butter Cookies

Our choir is heading to Rome later this year to sing for the Holy Father.  It's one of those opportunities that arises "once in a lifetime", but in my case it's I suppose it's twice in a lifetime!  My senior year of high school, the choir made a trip to Italy for the same reason.  Sadly, I could not go on the trip that year...and I can't go on the trip this year either!  So that's not one, but TWO missed chances to sing for the Pope!  Oh well.  Here's hoping that there will be a third chance to go sometime in the future :)

To help defray some of the expenses, we held a bake sale a few weekends back.  I decided to offer giant version of our favorites for the cause.  I made some big chocolate chip cookies, giant Valentine sprinkled rice crispy treats, and these peanut butter cookies.  Everything was individually wrapped and priced at $1.00.  I thought the chocolate chip cookies would be the first to go, but it was these guys that were flying off the table!


Bakery Style Peanut Butter Cookies
Adapted from Favorite Brand Name All-New Bake Sale Cookbook

Yield: 18 five-inch cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
18 peanut butter cups


Preheat oven to 350°F.

Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then blend in peanut butter.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Stir in peanut butter.  Stir flour, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl, then add to creamed mixture until blended. 

Scoop out 1/4 cup balls of dough onto ungreased baking sheets, leaving plenty of room for spreading (I put 6 cookies on a each 13x18" half sheet pan).  Cut each peanut butter cup into 9 pieces and press pieces into cookie dough, flattening slightly.  Bake at 350°F for 15-17 minutes, or until edges are light golden brown.  Centers will be pale and slightly soft.  Allow to cool 1 minute on baking sheet before removing to cool completely.

Big Ole' Chocolate Chip Cookies

The famous New York Times chocolate chip cookie recipe.  You can find it pretty much anywhere you look on the web these days, owing to the masses of bloggers who have made and posted about this particular cookie.  This is probably my third or fourth time making them, but somehow they've never made it onto Kitchen Koala.  The only reason I can think of is that we ate them all before I could get any pictures!

Why all the hype?  What's the big deal about these cookies?  Well for starters, the prep time.  This recipe requires a full 36 hour chill time to optimize the flavor and texture of the cookies.  Can't wait that long?  24 hours is fine too.  Another big reason these are so beloved is their size.  Measuring in at a generous 5 inches, these cookies aren't for the faint of heart.  They've got a pretty substantial height too; paper thin cookies these are not!  They look almost too big for one person to eat at a sitting, but believe me--once you start chowing down on one of these, you just might eat it all without realizing it!

I made a few changes to the recipe now that I've made it a few times.  The sea salt sprinkle at the end?  Gone.  The sweet-salty thing is good, but I really prefer these without that extra salt on top.  I also reduced the amount of chocolate.  The original 1 1/4 pounds (20 ounces) was just...too much chocolate (though this is coming form the gal who would prefer her chocolate chip cookies to be "chipless.")  The Ghiradelli® 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Chips work well if you can't find/refuse to splurge on the pricey chocolate feves called for in the original recipe.  You could use regular chocolate chips if you like; I just like the bigger chip size of the Ghiradelli® bittersweet in a cookie of this size.

I've changed up the procedure a bit by scooping out the dough before chilling.  Freshly made dough is softer and a whole lot easier to scoop out than dough that's been chilling for a day and a half.  All that butter makes it a really firm dough!  Sure, it takes up more space than a bowl of dough sitting in your fridge for 36 hours--but if you have the room I think it's worth it. 

These cookies freeze really well if you package them up tightly.  Make and freeze a batch or two ahead of time for a bake sale and watch them fly off the table!  Individually wrapped and priced at $1 each, they're pretty much irresistable.  While they don't seem like a big money maker, I've found that people will often pick up one or two of these and leave a $5 donation.  Try it and see!


Big Ole' Chocolate Chip Cookies
Slightly adapted from The New York Times
Yield: 18 five-inch cookies

**Note:  Dry ingredient amounts are listed by weight in ounces.**

8 1/2 oz. cake flour
8 1/2 oz. bread flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. coarse salt
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter
10 oz. light brown sugar
8 oz. granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
18 oz. Ghiradelli® bittersweet chocolate chips

Sift cake flour, bread flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together.  Set aside.

Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Mix in vanilla extract.  Slowly add dry ingredients to creamed mixture and mix just until combined.  Stir in chocolate chips (I like to do this by hand). 

Handy tip:  When making cookies containing chocolate chips or other chunky goodies, save a tablespoon or so of said goodies and set aside.  You can add them to the last cookies that get scooped out of the bowl, which almost inevitably will have fewer chips than the cookies scooped out at the beginning. 

Line a baking sheet (that will fit in your fridge) with plastic wrap.  Using a 1/3 cup measuring cup, scoop out 18 mounds of dough onto plastic-lined baking sheet.  Quickly and gently roll dough mounds into balls, using flour-dusted hands if necessary.  Cover dough balls with additional plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours, or up to 72 hours max.

36 hours later...
Preheat oven to 350°F.  Line three baking sheets with parchment paper.  Place 6 dough balls onto each baking sheet.  Bake cookies at 350°F for 18-20 minutes, or until golden brown but still soft. 

Drury Lane: I've Been There

In search of a quick and easy bake sale item you can make a few days in advance?  Jumbo muffins certainly fit the bill and are easily customized for endless flavor variations.  The combination of a pudding-enriched cake mix base and minimal mixing produces a muffin with a texture that stands the middle ground between cupcake fluffiness and muffin sturdiness.  It's the best of both worlds!  


Bake sale tips: 

• These can easily be made ahead of time.  Wrap cooled muffins individually in plastic wrap, then stash in a plastic zip-top bag or other container and freeze.  When you're ready to package for the bake sale, unwrap muffins and allow to come to room temperature (thawing wrapped muffins can be messy if your freezer puts out as much frost as mine!).   Believe me, baking 141 muffins in one sitting is NOT something you want to attempt.  
• Four jumbo muffins fit very nicely on a paper, plastic, or styrofoam plate (about 9").  Wrap the whole deal in plastic wrap (you may need to overlap two sheets), then place on top of another plate to seal the deal!  Plastic wrap doesn't like to stick to paper or foam plates, so the extra plate keeps your wrapping from blowing away during transport and/or during the sale. 
• "Variety is the spice of life."   I baked up three batches of each flavor, then packaged muffins in groups of four--some same-flavor, some variety packs.  Guess which ones sold first?

Basic Muffin Recipe  Yields: about 12 jumbo muffins

3 eggs
½ cup oil
6 oz. plain yogurt
¾ cup water
1 box cake mix
1 small box instant pudding mix (not sugar-free)
Mix-ins for desired flavor (see below for variations)

Preheat oven to 375°F.  Place paper liners in 12 wells of two jumbo muffin tins.

Mix eggs, oil, and yogurt together in a mixing bowl until blended.  Stir in water (or other liquid, if using).  Sift cake mix and instant pudding mix together, then add to liquid mixture.  Mix on low speed until blended, about 30-45 seconds.  Blend in mix-ins by hand.

Portion batter into prepared muffin tins.  Bake at 375°F for 24-27 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in pan for a few minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

 Banana Walnut Muffins

Banana cake mix

 Vanilla pudding mix

Replace water with mashed ripe bananas

Mix-in: 1 cup chopped walnuts

   *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * 

Blueberry Muffins

White cake mix

Cheesecake pudding mix

Mix-in: 2 cups blueberries 

   *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * 

Chocolate Chip Muffins

Devil's Food cake mix

Chocolate pudding mix

Mix-in: 1½ cups chocolate chips 

   *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * 

 Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

(Yields only 11 jumbo muffins)

White cake mix

Lemon pudding mix

Mix-ins: 3 Tbl. poppy seeds AND zest of 1 lemon

   *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * 

Bake Sale Tip: Colorful Items Sell

We had a great turnout today for Game Day of the Games of Acadiana. Thanks to everyone who came out and supported the Games; all proceeds go to the Miles Perret Cancer Center. A popular attraction at the Games is "Mama T's Bake Sale," which I have participated in the last three years. I wanted to offer something a little different this year, something eye-catching among the masses of chocolate chip cookies. And did my items sell? You betcha!


I modified the Easy Monster Cookie I previously made, using less chocolate and fortifying it with raisins and peanuts in an effort to make such a gargantuan cookie more wholesome. I wanted to name it "Trail Mix Cookie," but with peanut allergies so common these days I went the safer route and labelled them "Peanut Monster Cookies." Gotta declare them allergens!

Jumbo rainbow cupcakes in two versions, inspired by the crafty gals over at Our Best Bites:

You could say that I had all the little princesses in mind when I mixed up the pastel rainbow batch. Sugar and spice, and everything nice- that's what little girls are made of. I'd like to think "everything nice" is code for "rainbows, hearts, and unicorns." And glitter.

Bakers of Acadiana, Unite!

Mark your calendars! The Games of Acadiana Annual Game Day will be held this year on Saturday, August 15th at the Cajundome in Lafayette, Louisiana. You know what that means, don't you? It's time once again for Mama T's Bake Sale! Click here to sign up as a volunteer baker. While you're at it, register to volunteer in some other area as well. The more the merrier! See you on Game Day!

The Games of Acadiana was founded in 2001 for the sole purpose of
funding and supporting Miles Perret Cancer Services. The Games consists of Game Day and a series of Stand Alone events.

Game Day, the major event of our season, will be on Saturday, August 15, 2009, at the Cajundome in Lafayette. It will have over 40 fun filled Game Day events for participants to showcase athletic, scholarly, musical, culinary and just plain wacky talents. Admission to Game Day is free, but donations are always welcomed.

How does The Games raise money?
Two ways. First, we enlist local businesses and individuals to generously sponsor each Game Day event and each Stand Alone event. Second, we also accept admission fees (from Stand Alone events) and donations, small and large, from our participants and supporters.

Who decides how the money raised will be spent?
The Board of Miles Perret Cancer Services, which is comprised of a group of individuals from the medical, business, and philanthropic community of Acadiana. The Board is guided in these decisions by a group of medical professionals with the knowledge of the causes, prevention, and treatment of cancer, as well as the needs of cancer patients and their families.

Source: http://www.gamesofacadiana.org/AboutUs.asp

Mexico Bound

Our Church is holding a bake sale this weekend to help raise funds for our Easter mission trip to General Cepeda, Mexico...and of course I had to join in on the fun! I don't know about you, but I just love--no, make that LOVE--bake sales :) Pictured above are: (clockwise, from upper left) Brownie bites, Neapolitan Bundt cake, Marshmallow Krispie Treats, Pretzel Kisses, Lemon Bundts, Pretzel Hugs, and Eggnog Bundts. Yum!

It's good to be back!

Well it's that time of year again, so head on out to the Cajundome for the Games of Acadiana Game Day on Saturday, August 16th beginning at 10 a.m. As always, it's free to register and play, but please consider making a donation to benefit Miles Perret Cancer Services. Check out "Mama T's Bake Sale" and peruse oodles of tables overflowing with baked goods lovingly made by the good folks of Acadiana. Every thing's $1, so buy plenty--it's for a good cause

Here's what I'll be throwing into the mix:

Neapolitan Cookies

Lemon-Lime Cupcakes

Marshmallow Krispy Squares (with sprinkles!)

If you're as big a fan of giant Rice Krispie Treats as I am, then you've gotta grab some of these at the bake sale. Measuring in at a whopping 3" x 3" x 1.75", these gooey, crispy yum-yums also sport the fun addition of "flair." Cute!

Games of Acadiana

So this is sort of late to be posting, but the Games of Acadiana will be held tomorrow, August 18th, at the Cajundome in Lafayette. I'll be there pretty much all day, but you can find me at the "Speed Stacking" event from 12:30-3:00 pm. Admission is free, and all proceeds benefit the Miles Perret Cancer Center. So come on out and have a great time! Come! Play! BUY! (edit: it was a blast! Definitely going to be volunteering again next year)

 I will be sad if at the end of the day all my baked goods have not sold, so be a friend and BUY. It's for a good cause, and all packages are $1.00. I KNOW you have a dollar. (edit: Anika told me that a lady actually TOOK a pack of my cupcakes out of her hand. Apparently they were a hit! I was very glad to see that around 1 pm, almost ALL of my stuff had sold. It's all in the packaging, ya know. Which was very cute by the way.)

Bake sale madness...
All in all over the past two days I've made:
48 very tasty cream-filled cupcakes (mmm.. like Hostess, only BETTER!)
158 scrumpdiddlyumptious chocolate chip cookies
74 meltingly delicious lemon cookies
 

Here's a picture of what used to be our kitchen table:

And for those of you counting...not all of the baked goods made it to the table! Some were given away, stolen, or "lost" by the baker :)