Printable Recipe
~4 to 5 dozen cookies

2 ¼ c. shortening
3 c. sugar
3 eggs
3 t. vanilla
¾ c. molasses
6 c. flour
6 t. baking soda
3 t. cinnamon
2 T. ginger
1 ½ t salt

Cream together shortening and sugar. Add eggs, vanilla, molasses and mix well. Add dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Roll into balls and roll in sugar. Bake at 350 for about 9-10 minutes.

Holly's Note:
These are delicious.

Printable Recipe

Cake:
3 1/2 cups cake flour
2 1/2 t. baking powder
3/4 t. salt
1/4 t. baking soda
1 1/4 cups butter, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs, at room temperature
1 egg yolk
1 t. vanilla
3/4 c. sour cream

Filling:
1/4 c. butter
1/2 c. semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. dry roasted salted peanuts, finely chopped

Glaze:
1/2 c. semi sweet chocolate chips
3 T butter
Miniature Snickers Bars, sliced, optional

Directions:
Butter and flour a 12-cup bundt pan. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda; set aside. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just combined. Beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low and beat in flour mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, until just combined. Beat in sour cream. Evenly spread about 4 cups of batter in pan.

For filling: melt chocolate and butter, add peanuts, stir. Spoon filling in a ring in the center of the batter. Spoon remaining batter over the filling.

Bake for one hour at 350°. Cool in pan for 30 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely.

For glaze: melt butter and chocolate, together. Stir. Pour (spoon) over cooled cake. Garnish with sliced pieces of Snickers candy.

Holly’s Note:
I found this in a magazine, years ago, and it is delicious. It also sells well at bake sales and it looks very impressive when you serve it at church dinners! I've had issues with baking it at our higher Idaho altitude: the filling sinks, rather than cooks in the center of the cake. This last time I made it, it sank in the middle. It looked great when I turned it out and frosted it anyway, and it tasted fantastic. It just wasn't as pretty when it was sliced. So, as I figure out the high altitude secret, I'll modify the recipe here. It worked fine in California!!

Printable Recipe

6 eggs, well beaten
3 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups butter
6 squares unsweetened chocolate
3 cups flour
3 t. vanilla
3 cups chopped nuts, optional

Melt butter and chocolate squares together over low heat until completely melted. Beat eggs, add sugar and the butter/chocolate mixture. Mix well. Add flour, vanilla and nuts, if desired. Mix well. Pour into a large, greased jelly roll pan (about 17 x 12). Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, no longer.

Holly's Note:
I received this recipe to fix these for a church activity. I had to borrow a large pan. It needs one of those commerical jelly roll type pans like you would find at a church or cafeteria. i need to get one! These were easy and delicious. They're fairly dense. Be aware that it makes a lot though.

Printable Recipe

1 package yeast
3/4 cup warm water (110° to 115°)
4 1/2 t. honey
1 T. nonfat dry milk powder
2 cups white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 t. Italian seasoning
1 t. salt
4 1/2 t. pizza sauce
3/4 cup chopped pepperoni
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella, divided
2 T. finely chopped onion
1 t. chopped olives
1 t. chopped mushrooms

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in honey and milk powder and until well blended. In a small bowl, combine 1 cup bread flour, wheat flour and seasonings. Add to yeast mixture, beat until smooth. Stir in pizza sauce. Stir in enough remaining bread flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto floured surface and knead until elastic. (6-8 minutes). Place in greased bowl, turning once to grease top, cover and let rise until doubled (about an hour)./

Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Roll into a 14 x 12 inch rectangle. Sprinkle pepperoni, 1/4 cup cheddar cheese, parmesan cheese, 2 T. mozzarella cheese, onion, olives and mushrooms to within 1/2 inch of edges. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a long side, pinch seam to seal and tuck ends under. Place seamed side down on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes.

Sprinkle with remaining cheeses, Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes.

Holly’s Note:
I make the dough in the bread machine. Rather than going through the whole cycle, I just shut the machine off after it is kneaded, and let it rise in the machine until doubled. Once I roll it out, I treat it like a pizza and use our favorite Ragu, the toppings we like, the cheeses we like (not olives!), and then rolled it up and let it rise, etc.

I used the dough recipe for regular pizza, but we didn’t like it as well as we do the stromboli. This is great for snacking, but is also sells well at bake sales. The original recipe came from a Taste of Home magazine.

Printable Recipe

So, when I made the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownies, I got to thinking. How would they be in a muffin tin?

I made a batch of cookie dough and a batch of brownie dough, although I eliminated adding the chocolate chips to the brownies. You can certainly use your own brownie and cookie mixes or boxed ones. I just happen to like mine!

Then I just did a marbleized mix: a drop of brownie and a drop of cookie dough. Bake the mini muffins at 350 for about 12 minutes and the large muffins at 350 for about 20 minutes.

You could frost them with yummy Chocolate Buttercream frosting, but they were pretty rich and I think they were just fine without.

Definite thumbs up from my boys and their friends.