Sunday, September 14, 2025

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies Recipe

This was from the Preppy Kitchen https://share.google/yIjVDIf0HFY7DdzgB  Soooo good. I used half olive oil and half coconut oil

  • 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (100g)
  •  cups granulated sugar (350g)
  • ½ cup vegetable oil (120mL)
  • 4 large eggs room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (240g)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup powdered sugar (120g)

  • In a large mixing bowl using a hand mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the sugar, cocoa powder, and oil. Beat on medium speed until well combined and shiny.
  • Add the eggs one at a time, beating until well combined. Beat in the vanilla.
  • Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl, stirring to combine. Add the flour mixture to the cocoa mixture and mix on low speed just until combined.
  • Cover the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to overnight.
  • Once the dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the powdered sugar in a small bowl.
  • Using a small ice cream scoop or tablespoon, scoop the chilled dough and roll into roughly one-inch balls. Roll the dough balls in powdered sugar until well coated and place on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart. (Only coat as many dough balls as you can fit on the baking sheets at one time. Refrigerate the remaining dough balls and roll in powdered sugar just before baking.)
  • Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are firm and the center is puffed but still appears slightly wet. Let them cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes

  • Don't rush the chilling time. This dough is quite sticky when it's first made, so it needs time to firm up before you can roll and coat the balls. Also, a warm dough will result in flat cookies, so don't let it sit out too long either.
  • The cookies will naturally deflate in the center when cooling. Don’t let this send you into a panic that they are underbaked! This means the cookies will be deliciously fudgy in the center.
  • Add other extracts. You can add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract or orange extract to the cookie dough for a twist on flavors!

Homemade Brownie Mix

 


This is from I Am Baker. Double for a 9 x 13. Will make a dozen if you bake them in muffin tins. These are very chocolatey (plus we added 1/2 C dark chocolate chips into the mix). I gave one to Eli to take to school. Decrease cocoa if desired.

Dry Ingredients

  • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
  •  cup (40 g) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
  • ½ cup (64 g) all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder

Wet Ingredients

  • ½ cup (1 stick / 113 g) unsalted butter, melted, then cooled
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray an 8x8-inch pan with non-stick spray.
  • Sift (or whisk) together granulated sugar, cocoa powder, flour, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl.
  • Melt butter and set aside to cool.
  • In a medium bowl, beat two eggs and vanilla extract with a hand-held mixer.
  • Add the egg mixture and melted butter to the dry ingredients. Stir until just incorporated.
  • Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20-22 minutes.

Notes

HOW TO GIFT BROWNIE MIX
Sift together all dry ingredients. Place into a jar or airtight container.On a gift tag or label write the wet ingredients and quantities and then directions. "Melt butter and set aside to cool slightly. In a medium bowl, beat two eggs with the vanilla. Add in and gently stir dry ingredients. Pour the melted butter into brownie mixture and mix until just incorporated. Spread batter in a prepared 8-inch square pan and bake for 20-22 minutes at 350 degrees."

Easy Homemade Pancake Mix Made from Scratch

From The Recipe Critic https://share.google/stGcrjiyxQqTn35tN. I sent some of this to Sarah on her mission in Nauvoo, and it's so easy I wanted to save it.

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons baking powder
  •  cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • In a large bowl, add 3 cups all-purpose flour2 tablespoons baking powder⅓ cup granulated sugar, and 1 teaspoon salt.
  • Whisk the pancake mix ingredients together until combined. Store in a sealed container and keep in a dry cool place.

Notes

How to Use the Mix to Make Pancakes
  1. In a medium-sized bowl, combine ¾ [a little less] cup of milk, 1 egg, and 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add 1 cup of pancake mix and stir until combined.
  2. Drop ¼ cup of the pancake mixture onto a heated, buttered skillet on medium heat. Cook until golden brown on both sides and enjoy!
 
How to Use the Mix to Make Waffles
  1. In a bowl, mix ¾ cup milk, 1 egg, and 3 tbsp oil. Add 1 cup pancake mix and stir. The extra oil creates a crispier texture.
  2. Pour batter onto a heated, buttered waffle iron and follow its instructions. Adjust batter based on waffle iron size.

Saturday, August 9, 2025

Baked Oatmeal

 This is originally from Fit Foodie Finds under the name Dark Chocolate Berry Baked Oatmeal, and I love it. I put in less fruit and less chocolate than the original recipe, and a couple other potential changes.

Wet Ingredients

  • 1 medium ripe banana, smashed
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup*
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

Dry

  • 2 cups rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour any kind of flour will work*
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 C frozen berries
  • a couple tablespoons mini dark chocolate chips
  • pinch of salt (opt)

Optional: Drizzle almond butter on top before baking

*It would also work to substitute at least some of the flour with vanilla protein powder, then you would cut down on your flour and your maple syrup. 

Combine the wet ingredients, combine the dry ingredients, mix the wet and dry together. Spread into a small casserole dish (7x10 - serves 6), bake 350 for 30 minutes. Doubling this will fit into a 9x13.

Thursday, July 31, 2025

Greek Burritos

 We tried this when we were doing e-meals and really liked it!

  • 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1½ cups roasted red pepper hummus
  • 6 burrito size flour tortillas
  • 1 (5-oz) pkg baby spinach
  • 1 English cucumber, chopped
  • 1 (6-oz) pkg crumbled feta cheese
  • ¾ cup chopped kalamata olives

Instructions

  1. Cook tomatoes and onion in a large skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat 6 to 8 minutes or until tender.
  2. Spread hummus on tortillas; top with spinach, cucumber, tomato mixture, cheese, and olives. Fold in sides of tortillas; roll up to completely enclose filling.

Monday, July 14, 2025

Peanut-Coconut Quinoa

 I originally got this on Chow, maybe as far back as 2012. I'm not even going to post a picture because it looks so gross, but it tastes so yummy. The original recipe calls for tofu, but we just leave that out. Here is the simplified version I like to make.

Cook Quinoa:

2 C quinoa

1 - 14 oz can unsweetened coconut milk

1 1/3 chicken broth

1 t salt

8 oz chopped carrots

1 lb. chopped broccoli

Bring all but the vegetables to a boil for around 15-20 minutes. Cook the broccoli and carrots separately until crisp-tender then add to the quinoa (OR, you can also just add them raw into the quinoa mixture while it's cooking so they will cook too---this may cause the quinoa to take a little longer to cook, though).


Sauce:

1 2/3 C cilantro (around 1/2 bunch)

1/2 C natural, chunky peanut butter

1/4 - 1/3 C Sriracha sauce

2 T lime zest (from 3 limes)

1/4 fresh lime juice (from 3 limes)

1/4 C sesame oil

1 T brown sugar or honey (opt)

2 garlic cloves

3/4 t salt

Blend the above ingredients together.


Pour the sauce over the hot quinoa and vegetables and serve with fresh cilantro, peanuts, and green onions, if desired. 

Sunday, July 6, 2025

Lebanese Lemon Garlic Chicken

I found this recipe online, but can't remember from where! It's so flavorful! When I make this for our family I should probably double it.

2 lbs chicken (2 chicken breasts?)**

1/4 C fresh lemon juice (approx 2 lemons, but you could use bottled)

6 minced garlic cloves

3 T olive oil

1 t ground cumin

1 t ground coriander

1/2 t paprika

1/2 t ground turmeric (opt)

Salt and pepper to taste (1/2 t each?)

2 T chopped fresh parsley (for garnish)

Lemon slices (for baking or serving)

Whisk together the lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, cumin, coriander, paprika, turmeric, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken to the bowl and coat well. Cover and let marinate for 30 min to 4 hours. Place chicken in a single layer in a baking dish or sheet pan. Add lemon on top if desired. Bake at 400 for 35-40 minutes until skin is golden and crispy. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve. 

You can also cook this on the stove top in a pan until cooked through. You could probably cook it in a crock pot, too... maybe 4 hours on low or 6-8 hours or so on high?

We served this with rice, but you could also serve with couscous or a salad.

**I put 3 frozen chicken breasts in a sprayed glass 9x13 and poured the sauce on top (didn't marinate) and baked the whole thing at 400 for about an hour. The chicken was perfect!