The very best Oatmeal Cookies in the history of ever.

Do you have a favorite cookie?  Mine is oatmeal reaisin.  I'm kinda weird and really don't care for chocolate chip cookies ... I'll pass 'em up anyday for a nice oatmeal cookie.  I'll even pass 'em altogether if there isn't something else available.  My husband thinks I'm straight crazy.  

Now, I don't discriminate between oatmeal cookies ... I'll eat any one that comes my way.  But my very fave is a nice buttery cookie.  Most oatmeal cookies have at least a little bit of cinnamon, and I'll gladly take that kind off your hands, but my true love is a nice buttery cookie.  

This recipe comes from my parents' neighbor.  She's been blessing us with them for years, and eventually my sister was able to snag the recipe out of her.  And because these are my very favorite cookies in the history of ever, I thought I'd share it with you.  (Pssssst, Kathy ... if this is some secret family recipe, let me know so that I can take it down ;) )

Alright, who's ready to make some cookies?  We start with gathering the goods -  flour, sugar, brown sugar, quick oats, baking powder, salt, raisins, shortening, vanilla, and eggs.  Once you have everything gathered, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  

Add 1 cup of brown sugar (Brown splenda works too!) and 1 cup regular sugar to your bowl.  Top it off with a cup of shortening; I use butter flavored shortening to get that buttery taste to the cookies.  

Mix up your sugars and shortening.  Add 2 eggs and a teaspoon of vanilla and mix some more, til it's nice and smooth.

In a seperate bowl, mix up your dry ingredients: 1 and 1/2 cups of flor, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and 1 teaspoon of salt.  Seems like a lot of salt, right?  But it ends up being my favorite part of the cookie!

Slowly add your dry ingredients to the creamed mixture.  Have you ever dumped a flour mixture all at once into a moving Kitchenaid?  If so, you'll know why I emphasize the word slowly.  

When the flour mixture is completely combined, it's time to add 3 cups quick oats.  For some reason I don't have a picture of the oats dumped in.  But I do have a picture of them all mixed together...

Once the oats are mixed in, it's time to hand mix in any fixin's you desire.  I prefer raisins, but you could add chocolate chips, nuts, or some other kind of dried fruit.  

Once everything is nice and mixed in, drop rounded spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet and pop them into your preheated oven.  

Bake them for about 12 minutes, until they have a little golden tinge to them.  

Leave them on the sheet to cool for a couple of minutes before you move them to a cooling rack.

Then, you know, maybe sample a warm cookie before they get too cool.  Not all cookies are great warm cookies, but these are delicious.

And they're just as good cooled off.  They are the perfect mix of buttery, salty, and sweet.  

I usually prefer my cookies a little underdone, but I really like these with a little crunch on the outside and chewy on the inside.  So, so good.

These photos are making my mouth water, so I'm off to make batch!

Here's the condensed recipe for you...

1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 cups quick oats
Optional raisins, chocolate chips, nuts, etc

Cream together sugars and shortening.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Combine dry ingredients.  Mix dry ingredients into creamed mixture.  Add oats.  Stir in optional raisins, chocolate chips, nuts, or whatever you'd like.  Drop onto ungreased sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 12 minutes.  Leave on sheet to cool for 2 minutes before removing to cooling rack.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Do you have a cookie recipe that reminds you of childhood?  You know, the one that your Mom made on the regular; that just smells like home?  For me, it's Chocolate Chocolate Chip cookies.  I loved them as a kid, and I love making them for my boys.  Actually, they are so easy to make that it's one of my favorite things to make with my boys!

These cookies have the shortest ingredient list ever!  You'll need:

A box of Devil's Food cake mix (or really any dark chocolate cake)

2 eggs

1 stick butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla

2 Tbsp flour (if necessary)

6 oz. chocolate chips

First step, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Now onto the good stuff.... dump roughly half of the bag of cake mix into a bowl.  I take my hand and squeeze the bag of mix in half.  Yep, fancy.  

Next, add your softened butter, both eggs, and the vanilla.  I can't be the only one in the world that doesn't measure vanilla, right?  I just squeeze in whatever looks like enough.  

Then mix it up nice and smooth.  And then you should probably taste it.  You know, to make sure that it's working out OK.  

Now, grab the rest of your cake mix and slowly mix it into the batter.  It'll get thicker, so you'll probably have to taste it again.  It's all about quality control.  

When my Mom used to make the original recipe, the cookies often came out a bit flat.  So over the year she learned that a couple of tablespoons of flour helped fluff them up a bit.  When you add the flour, add your chips!  I had jumbo on hand, so I dumped in a handful or 2.  

Give 'em a good mix and plop 'em a few inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.  I REALLY love my Pampered Chef cookie scoop!  Pop 'em in the oven for 10-12 minutes.  

I used my Airbake sheets because they're prettier than my other ones, but I wouldn't recommend doing so.  Classic "Do as I say, not as I do".  I have a love/hate relationship with Airbake.  Sometimes I just don't like the texture of cookies baked on them.

When they're done, they'll still be a bit soft in the middle.  Like, you'll almost think that they aren't done.  Trust me, take them out!  Then let them sit on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes before removing them to a baking rack to cool.  

They usually aren't quite so fluffy, which I prefer.  But the Airbakes did something weird.  I prefer them a tiny bit flatter, but they were still fudgy and delish.

So once they are a little cool, you should probably taste test them one more time.  I mean, it's really best to be thorough.  

I love when they're cool, but the chocolate chips are still a bit warm, so they're nice and creamy.

The inside is dense, but not too heavy.  The boys call them "Brownie Cookies", and they definitely remind me of brownies as well.  This is probably why I like them so much!  Gather up your kiddos and whip up a batch.  I promise you won't regret it.  And if you do, let me know how it goes!

Here's the whole recipe in one shot to make it a little easier:

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

Box Devil's Food cake mix
1 stick butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp flour
6 oz chocolate chips

Beat together half cake mix, butter, eggs, and vanilla.  Gradually add the remaining cake mix.  Stir in flour and chocolate chips.  Drop by tablespoon onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.  Cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes before removing to rack.

Linked up at: A Pumpkin and a Princess, Artsy Fartsy Mama, Reasons to Skip the Housework, DIY Show Off

Green Onion & Cherry Chicken Salad.

Do you have one dish that you make that everyone seems to ask you for the recipe?  I have a few of them, but one of the most popular is my chicken salad.  I must admit, it's pretty flippin' good.  

If you're one of those people that like nuts and apples and celery and grapes and all kinds of crunchy things in your chicken salad, this might not be for you.  I detest crunchy things in chicken salad, so this is crunch free, but it's still packed full of flavor!

OK, first things first, you need shredded chicken.  A bunch of it.  I usually throw a bunch of chicken breasts in the crock pot with some water and spices and let it cook on low for 8 hours or so.  When it's cooked, I shred it up with a few forks and stick it in the fridge til it's cold. 

When the chicken is cold, gather up the gang ... 2 bunches of green onions, a bag of dried cherries, mayo, ranch dressing, a ranch packet, garlic powder, salt (I use Lawry's), and pepper.  I didn't decide to document this whole process til after I chopped my onions, so that's where our photo journey begins!  

I usually use 2 bunches of onions, but if you want the flavor to be a little less punchy, you can you just one.  Then throw in a few handfuls of dried cherries.  I use the whole bag, but you can use less if you'd like.  One of my favorite things about this dish is just how pretty it is.  The green onions and the dark red cherries are so pretty!  

Then it's time for some seasonings.  OK friends, here's the deal -- I'm a really big "little of this, little of that" kinda cook.  I make all of my food "to taste".  So when people ask for recipes, I do my very very best to measure things.  I really do.  But I'm just going to stress to you that you have to taste it and add more spices as necessary!  

So here's what you want to dump into the chicken mix:  the whole ranch packet, 2 tsp garlic powder (yes, it's going to be garlicky, because that's how I like it!), 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper.  Then mix it all up!

Now for the mushy part.  Plop in some mayo.  Depending on how much chicken you used (I used about 4 pounds for this batch), you'll want to use about 1-2 cups of mayo.  I used 1.5 cups for this one.  Start on the small side - you can always add more.  Mix it up!  

Next, add some ranch dressing - about 1/4 to 1/2 cup.  Then mix, mix, mix.  Add more mayo or ranch, depending on whether you like your chicken salad on the dry side or on the mushy side.  I'm in the middle of the road on this one.  

And then, ohhhhhhh!!  I forgot the parm!!!  I like to add some parmesan cheese.  Because I love cheese.  It adds nice flavor.  It can also rescue you a bit if you put too much mayo or ranch in and the texture is too goopy for you.  Honestly, just sprinkle dump some in.  

Mix it up, and then most importantly, TASTE IT!  This is when you'll add more seasonings, mayo, ranch, etc.  When you're happy with the flavor, stick it in the fridge for a couple of hours.  

When it's nice and chilly, it's time to eat!  This chicken salad is so darn versatile.  You can make a sandwich, make a lettuce wrap, put it on a cracker (Triscuits are my fave), or just eat it plain out of a bowl.  Seriously, so delish.  

This is one of my go-to party dishes.  It's super easy to mix up a batch and pair with some croissants.  But it's also a family fave.  I frequently make a batch for lunches during the week.  And when we lived in Florida, I liked to make this for my Mom when she visited because she LOVES it.  Seriously, give it a try folks.  You won't be disappointed!!

Linked up at:  Reasons to Skip the Housework , That DIY Party,  Home Stories A to Z, Show & Tell Link Party @ Flamingo Toes, Inspiration2 Party, 

Pumpkin Pound Cake.

I am a big fat sucker for essentially anything involving pumpkin.  Literally.  Anything.

With the arrival of Fall(!!) and therefore all of the pumpkin recipes flying around Pinterest, I felt like trying a simple little recipe myself.  Pumpkin bread sounded delish and simple, so that's where I landed.

I have a recipe that I've tweaked and adapted from a few different recipes over the years.  As I gathered all of my essentials, I realized that I was going to have to adapt a little more.  I was missing a pretty crucial ingredient - cinnamon.  Then I realized that instead of packed pumpkin, I had a can of pumpkin pie mix.

Eh, what did I have to lose?  I went with it.

And it paid off.  Sooooooo scrumptious.  A little different than your average pumpkin bread, but moist and flavorful.  Actually, it ended up being a little more like a pound cake.

Yeah, we'll go with that.

What you'll need:



3 cups flour (whole wheat or all-purpose)
4.5 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup softened butter
3 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
1.5 cups canned pumpkin pie mix
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Beat softened butter until creamy.

Add brown sugar and beat at medium speed until well mixed.  I usually let it mix while I sift together the dry ingredients...

Sift flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, salt, and baking powder together in a bowl.  Set aside.

Add eggs to butter and sugar mixture, one at a time, and beat well in between.  This is why I love my stand mixer!

Then it's time for pumpkin!  Beat well.

Add the vanilla to the milk, then add to pumpkin mixture.

Next, add dry mixture.  Sometimes I alternate adding the two.  Sometimes I get lazy and just dump it all.

Grease two loaf pans (I use 8"x4") and pour batter into each pan.  Bake in 325 degree oven for about an hour.  I like to undercook them a tiny bit, because if there's anything I like better than pumpkin baked goods, it's undercooked pumpkin baked goods.

When they're done, cool them for half of an hour or so, then remove them from the pans and cool on the rack.

The tops edges are a tiny bit crunchy, almost caramelized.  The insides are dense and moist and absolutely delish.  And I sprinkled some powdered sugar on the tops for fun.  Love, love, love!

Pumpkin Pound Cake

3 cups flour (whole wheat or all-purpose)
4.5 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup softened butter
3 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
1.5 cups canned pumpkin pie mix
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat softened butter until creamy.  Add brown sugar and beat at medium speed until well mixed. Sift flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, salt, and baking powder together in a bowl.  Set aside.  Add eggs to butter and sugar mixture, one at a time, and beat well in between.  This is why I love my stand mixer!  Then it's time for pumpkin!  Beat well.  Add the vanilla to the milk, then add to pumpkin mixture.  Next, add dry mixture.  Sometimes I alternate adding the two.  Sometimes I get lazy and just dump it all.  Grease two loaf pans (I use 8"x4") and pour batter into each pan.  Bake in 325 degree oven for about an hour.

Linked up with:

 The Friday Finds Link Party, Skip the Housework Saturdays, Craftaholics Anonymous Friday Finds, Creative Connection Link Party