cookies

Milk Bar’s Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies

These soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies by Christina Tosi are the fastest homemade cookie recipe I’ve ever made, and they come together in just one bowl, no mixer required. The hit of flaky sea salt really sends them over the top.

Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies

Because it’s Monday. That’s why.

Mondays call for a stiff cup of coffee in the morning and possibly a martini with three olives to cap off the night. But homemade chocolate chip cookies — they’re in order no matter what time of the day.

Last Friday was the official chocolate chip day of the year. But since my sugar rolodex was on hiatus, I missed it. Ironically, I had this chocolate chip cookie recipe ready to rock and roll for today.

I may be a day or two late, but this cookie is FAR from a dollar short. Make that a chocolate chip short. Hardly. Because this baby is PACKED with chips. In fact, the amount of dough pretty much comes secondary to the number of chips, making for an extra rich, soft, chewy chocolate chip cookie with crispy edges.

All I did was add a sprinkle of flaky salt and I have a new favorite.continue to the recipe… about Milk Bar’s Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies

The Best No-Bake Cookies Recipe – with Coconut!

These easy no-bake cookies are loaded with goodness and even a little bit of healthy. Old-fashioned oats, chocolate and the surprise addition of coconut make these classic no-bake cookies (without the peanut butter!) the very best.

No-bake cookies are a starter-cook-in-the-kitchen classic recipe that’s oh so easy to make.

That’s the good part.

So what’s the bad part?

It’s just that they’re so dang easy to make you can whip up a batch whenever the craving strikes. And then eat the whole bowl. By yourself. In one sitting.

Just ask my husband. That was his M.O. when back in the day after high school football practice he would make no-bake cookies at least once a week. As all big brothers do (or more aptly don’t) he refused to share any of the batch with his siblings. Brotherly love. It’s real.

But here’s the best part…

Once you make these no-bake beauties yourself, you’ll see why he was so selfish. And you won’t blame him one bit for keeping them all to himself.continue to the recipe… about The Best No-Bake Cookies Recipe – with Coconut!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are super soft and pillowy and packed with pumpkin pie flavor! Bonus: this recipe makes a BIG batch of cookies.

My mom has a saying about cooking / eating / observing an overly ambitious amount of dinner table food. “This could feed an army!” is the exclamation I’ve heard from her more than once in my life. It’s her way of noting how lucky we are, to live and enjoy such bounty with our family and friends.

It happens most every year when we cook to excess at Thanksgiving, or when I get a wild hair and decide I need to add just a bit more to the BBQ with a few more side dishes, plus another dessert, and oh heck, why not have hot dogs PLUS hamburgers. Just so nobody goes hungry.

These pillowy, cakey, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies fit that bill. This recipe is perfect. Especially if you’re baking for a crowd. Like for my mom’s invisible army. Or better yet, for a party! Now, that’s an idea I can get behind. Or better yet, I’ll lead the charge.

So hop to it soldier (I’m looking at you, Mom), and let’s get this cookie baking party started.continue to the recipe… about Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Sandwich Cookie Pops with Nutella®

These chocolate chip cookies are made into cookie sandwich cookie pops filled with creamy Nutella® hazelnut spread for a totally different take on Christmas cookies.

This recipe is brought to you by Nutella®. All opinions are my own.

The holidays have never tasted so good. And these cookies are one reason why.

Every year I gear up to make something unique to share at my holiday cookie exchange. Coconut Snowball Cookies, My Mom’s Famous Homemade Fudge, and even White Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn and Cashews have all made the cut.

This year I decided to take everyone’s favorite standard cookie (chocolate chip), dress them up, and add a little fun to the cookie exchange game.

This recipe for chocolate chip cookies marries two unique ways to show off your mad cookie making skills by bridging the gap between a cookie sandwich and a cookie lollipop bound together as one with a slathering swirl of creamy Nutella® hazelnut spread spread.

You can either bite ’em from the cookie outside or lick em’ from the Nutella® creamy center, there’s just one thing you HAVE to do. Make ’em.

continue to the recipe… about Chocolate Chip Sandwich Cookie Pops with Nutella®

Cranberry White Chocolate Chip and Macadamia Nut Cookies

These easy, wonderfully chewy cookies are loaded with chunks of macadamia nuts, white chocolate chips and dried cranberries in an oatmeal batter good enough for breakfast too.

See these cookies? They are chock-full. Chock-full of all kinds of flavors and goodness that go together like peas in a pod. But they’re much sweeter—and most everyone says much better—than peas. Obviously.

But they’re missing one thing for too many people.

They’re missing a giant glass of cold milk for some kids not as fortunate as mine to dip these still-warm-from-the-oven cookies into before setting a glass next to Santa’s plate to wash them down and then wipe from his frosty mustache.

But that doesn’t have to be the case, because I’m doing something about that fact, and you can too. continue to the recipe… about Cranberry White Chocolate Chip and Macadamia Nut Cookies

Loaded Monster Cookies

Whole wheat pastry flour, nuts, raisins, popcorn, coconut and chocolate bits all combine to make one monster of a healthier cookie.

This post is sponsored by Lifetime’s production of Jim Henson’s Turkey Hollow premiering Saturday, November 21, 2015.

These cookies. They’re so ugly, they’re crave-ingly cute. Just like Jim Henson’s classic puppeted creatures and those in the new holiday movie, Turkey Hollow, these Loaded Monster Cookies are destined to become classics.

When Lifetime asked if I’d like to preview their new Jim Henson movie and make a treat to eat along with it, I was all for it. I grew up with Jim Henson and his cast of characters. I know every line to Rainbow Connection. I can still sing the opening credits to the original Muppet Show TV series.

And as for Kermit and Miss Piggy? They’ll always be a the ultimate celebrity couple in my eyes. I’m just waiting for a reunion.

Until then…these cookies.

By using smart ingredients like whole wheat, heart-healthy nuts, raisins and oatmeal, not to mention that chocolate is good for you (here’s 10 reasons why!) these cookies pack a fortified punch. Your kids’ll never know you snuck in all that good stuff into these perfectly-imperfect, Henson-inspired cookies.

continue to the recipe… about Loaded Monster Cookies

Chocolate Dipped Almond Cookies and Santa’s Milk Drive

These simple and decadent almond cookies are sandwiched between a layer of rich dark or milk chocolate filling and are then dipped in dark or white chocolate and sprinkled with chopped nuts or crushed peppermint candy for a delicious crunch.

This whole thing started with my wish to teach my 10 year old daughter a little bit about the true spirit of Christmas. To reinforce to her and her friends that it’s better to give than to receive. And I have to say, my wish was granted in spades.

My daughter is an only child. And let’s face it, she is totally and utterly spoiled. And I am 100% okay with that.

We’re, ahem, “more mature” parents who’ve lived a lifetime of pre-kid fun, travel and experiences. So when she surprised us and showed up in utero with an unanticipated pee test (which is a whole ‘nother story for another day,) it was no surprise to us or those around us that she’d have 100% of our attention, our love, and the keys to our wallet.

But in turn, my husband and I agreed that this girl was in no way going to grow up a prima donna. A spoiled brat. A young adult who doesn’t appreciate the love and luxuries she’s been lucky enough to receive. And in my opinion, that’s our job as parents. To be sure to instill the work ethic and gratitude that damn well better be drilled into our children’s core.

And because of that, the idea of Santa’s Milk Drive was born.

continue to the recipe… about Chocolate Dipped Almond Cookies and Santa’s Milk Drive

Crushing On Deborah Harroun of Taste and Tell and Red Velvet Cream Cheese Thumbprint Cookies

An interview with Deborah Harroun of the blog Taste and Tell, and her amazing, from scratch Red Velvet Cream Cheese Thumbprint Cookies.

I can’t think of a better way to start off the holiday baking season than with a festive cookie recipe from one of my favorite food bloggers Deborah Harroun, author of the food blog Taste and Tell, and her new cookbook Red Velvet Lover’s Cookbook.

If you don’t already follow her blog, Deb might still be a familiar face to FoodieCrush readers. She and her husband Josh along with their three children, Abbi, Easton and Camden (in utero!) joined me two years ago at the State Fair for an article in my summer issue of FoodieCrush magazine. They rode rides, hit the games and noshed on favorite fair food which Deb took back to her own kitchen and created fair-inspired recipes you can see here.

Deb has always been a huge supporter and inspiration to me and to FoodieCrush. So when she offered to send me a copy of her new cookbook, Red Velvet Lover’s Cookbook, I knew before even seeing it that I’d be finding plenty of delicious influences. These Cream Cheese Thumbprint cookies are pretty much just the start.

continue to the recipe… about Crushing On Deborah Harroun of Taste and Tell and Red Velvet Cream Cheese Thumbprint Cookies

Meyer Lemon Bars

Earlier this week I asked my friends on Facebook which holiday recipes they wanted to see (you’re following FoodieCrush right?!!?.) It came to a tie between Meyer Lemon Bars and a slow-cooker Christmas Eve dinner. So I made you both. We’re starting with dessert first, as every meal really should. That slow-cooker dinner? Look for it on Sunday, a little bonus holiday post.

I took on a gardening adventure this year. See, I live in the mountains at the edge of a desert. Some wouldn’t think of Utah as a desert, but it is. The summers are so hot the chickens lay hard boiled eggs and the winters are colder than a witch’s kiss. (You can thank my mother in law for that vision.)

So when I decided to attempt to grow my favorite Meyer lemon tree in this non-Florida/Southern California landscape, I was pretty much tempting fate.

My two little trees/shrubs/bushes did produce about 6 lemons. Which makes each lemon worth about $34. Which makes for some rather expensive Meyer Lemon Bars. But totally worth it going from MY farm to MY table. And of course, you can find them a lot cheaper in the grocery store.

Now, thanks to snow on the ground and that darn witch and her kiss, I’ve moved these babies indoors and I must say, they are happy, happy, happy. I even have a new greenie on the stem just hoping to one day meet it’s destiny with a vodka martini. Shaken, not stirred thank you very much.

continue to the recipe… about Meyer Lemon Bars

Currant Cookies and a Cookie Cravings eCookbook Flash Sale

Friendship is a funny thing.

You can be the best of friends. Totally inseparable for weeks, months, even years. Then life changes. New friends come into your life, old friends drift away. Often it’s not even a conscious decision, thought or action. It just happens.

I was first introduced to these Currant Cookies thanks to a friendship I’ve known all of my life, a friendship of my mother’s that has been passed down to the next generation. Life comes full circle and somehow these cookies have become a part of it.

Back a few more years than I’d care to have on my calendar, my mom was set to deliver my little sister when she met her best friend Pam. My mom and Pam were both in the same hospital about to give birth to daughters. For years they had run in similar circles, in the same city, but hadn’t met one another. Yet people would always mistake them for one another. Similar mannerisms, style, beauty and height. It was a wonder they hadn’t met before. I guess bringing their daughters into the world at the same time made it their time.

They both named their daughters Holly. Well, my mom didn’t initially. I did that. My mom and dad named her Heather, but I refused to call her anything but Holly. My mom said she never did look like a Heather. She said Heather’s are wispy. Holly was a tub. So at 4 months old, Holly had a name change.

I’ve always been a bossy older sister. I blame it on this first act of self righteousness.

continue to the recipe… about Currant Cookies and a Cookie Cravings eCookbook Flash Sale

Crushing On Averie Sunshine of Averie Cooks and Flourless Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies

If you’re a blogger, chances are your blog has received a comment—or many comments—on your blog posts by Averie Sunshine of Averie Cooks. If you’re a baker, you’ve probably discovered one of her many sweet treats in online searches or through many of her super popular Pinterest-favorited recipes.

Prolific, dedicated and one of the hardest working bloggers who makes her blog her business, Averie of Averie Cooks creates recipes that put the sweet in “sweet tooth” like this Flourless Chewy Cinnamon Sugar Peanut Butter Cookie recipe that she’s letting me share at the end of this post, baked from her new cookbook Peanut Butter Comfort.

When her blogging began in 2009, Averie originally authored the blog Love Veggies and Yoga, aligning her lifestyle as a vegetarian and avid yoga enthusiast. There she shared yoga poses that went far beyond the Downward Dog, (Half Bound Lotus Standing Forward Bend anyone?) and stretches most humans envision only at a sidewalk pretzel cart. Or maybe that’s just me.

As a vegetarian, she also featured healthy foods she herself ate everyday, green foods and whole grains which gained her a happy and devout following and recipes that still reside in her archives today.

But she soon faced a dilemma, or more candidly, she became bored with her recipe creations and their wholesomeness. That’s when she started including desserts and baking recipes on her blog, and soon rediscovered the passion that motivated her to start blogging in the first place.

Since changing her blog name to Averie Cooks, there has been no looking back.

continue to the recipe… about Crushing On Averie Sunshine of Averie Cooks and Flourless Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Growing up there was pretty much just a handful of cookies that we (as in the royal ‘we’ that would pretty much just be ‘me’) would make at home to satisfy the old sweet tooth. No Bake Cookies, Sugar Cookies and Snickerdoodles were all part of the arsenal. But none got as much action as this recipe did in my teenage cookie craving days.

I’m pretty surprised it’s taken me this long to pull this recipe out of the proverbial hat and post on the blog. But in reality, I’ve been giving this recipe the cold shoulder while I’ve been on the search for the ‘perfect’ chocolate chip cookie. You know, the one that makes me weak in the knees, the one that has me reaching for a glass of the coldest mug of dunkable milk.

After making these babies again for the first time in several years, I’m convinced I was looking in all the wrong places, and that like so many things in life, I had the ‘perfect’ formula in front of me all along.

This recipe came from my mom’s friend Annette and was the only chocolate chip cookie I made until the age of about 26 since it was the only chocolate chip cookie recipe I could fathom to exist. Until the afore-mentioned quest led me astray. Until I FINALLY experienced for myself that the grass is not always greener.

continue to the recipe… about Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Coconut Snowball Cookies and Friday Faves

(Dear reader, please rewind one month and put this little sing-song to a very popular Holiday jingle in your head as you read…) “It’s finally beginning to look a lot like wiiiiinnn-ter, eeeeverywhere I gooooo…”

After an entirely lame-o winter last year, I was so geared up for some serious white fluff to fall from the heavens this year. I’m happy to report Winter 2012-13 is serving up some doozey storms, like 3 that delivered over 1-2 feet at each shot. I might be one of the few and far between who is giving props to the weather man.

There isn’t much I like more than lighting the fire, sitting in my living room and watching my front yard get absolutely buried in snow, like you can’t leave your house type of snow. Live you may never see your car again snow. Like don’t let the chihuahua out, we may never be able to find her snow. Since I live on the benches of the mountain and on a get-your-glute-burn-on steep kind of hill, its not so far fetched when old man winter cooperates.continue to the recipe… about Coconut Snowball Cookies and Friday Faves

12 Traditional Christmas Recipes

We’re on the final countdown. Just days away from a twinkle in his eye, a squinch of the nose, scarf up those cookies and up the chimney he goes.

As a young kid, I spent every Christmas Eve at my aunt Marilyn and Uncle Tom’s house where I would gorge myself on those pastel hard candy covered licorices as I tracked the jolly old elf’s progress toward our home, hoping against hope he’d find me and my sister all nestled in our single set beds. I was glued to the radio, (this was pre-NORAD ) raptly listening to the DJ’s talk of the man in the red suit fighting his way through the clouds toward the twinkling lights of my little old Utah neighborhood.

Later in my teens we moved the party to Grandma and Grandpa’s house, where everyone was greeted by Grandma’ MJ’s coveted ceramic lit Christmas tree holiding court in the foyer, her collection of Avon holiday plates nestled in evergreens and boughs artfully adorning the mantle, and where I would gather the younger cousins in front of the fire to read to the younger kids from Grandma MJ’s coveted edition of The Santa Claus Book.

As Grandma and Grandpa grew older we moved the party to Aunt Jill and Uncle Ben’s, where I spent most of my time either helping dish out Aunt Jill’s famous lasagna or arm wrestling my studly football playing boy cousins—and beating them—while reciting every word from my all-time favorite Christmas movie.

continue to the recipe… about 12 Traditional Christmas Recipes

NEW! FoodieCrush Magazine Holiday Issue & Gift Guide GIVEAWAY

And a happy ho-ho to you too!

Here it ’tis, the holiday ala winter issue of FoodieCrush magazine, complete with mouth-watering images, the stories behind some of your favorite food bloggers and favorite recipes, recipes, recipes.

Thank you so much to Denise of TLT-The Little Things for creating the cover image of her lush Mini Pavlovas with Pomegranates, a recipe that will add a delectable taste to any wintery féte.

And to celebrate the issue’s launch I’m doing a Food Blogger Gift Guide giveaway.

Last week I posted some great food blogger gifts that go well beyond the kitchen, creators of products other than delicious delicacies. And now it’s one reader’s chance to win all 5 of these fun products.

But more about that at the end of the post. First, let’s take a look at the new issue.continue to the recipe… about NEW! FoodieCrush Magazine Holiday Issue & Gift Guide GIVEAWAY

Shortcut Pie Dough Sugar Cookies

You may be a mom. Maybe you’re not. But I’m guessing you had a mom, right? I’m a mom. And what’s generally known about moms is that we have to be prepared for unexpected situations.

From simply carrying extra tissues and ‘gently” reminding to wipe noses, to anticipating and quickly reacting to cars in front of us that abruptly put on their brakes, we throw our protective arm across the chest of our unsuspecting passenger (do you really think it would work?) ensuring our cubs will be protected from foe.

My mom was, and still is, the queen of both of these situations. Just yesterday she reminded me to get my flu shot and update my passport. That’s why I love her. She’s my mom.

But there are some situations we can’t always prepared for. Those sneak attacks our kids purposely disclose at the tipping hour just to keep us on our toes. To let us know we’re not as all-knowing or as on-top-of-our-game as we think we are.continue to the recipe… about Shortcut Pie Dough Sugar Cookies

Friday Faves and White Chocolate and Peppermint Christmas Wreath Cookies

Sensory overload and I love every minute of it.

Freshly cut pine boughs as you brush by the tree. Cinnamon and cloves gently lollying in a saucepan of hot apple cider. The overwhelming wall of perfume spritzers as you enter the department store. And hot deliciousness baking in the oven.

They’re the smells of Christmas.

Between creating homemade gifts for the neighbors and keeping up with Smudge’s cookie cutter creation requests, I’ll be baking up a storm this month.continue to the recipe… about Friday Faves and White Chocolate and Peppermint Christmas Wreath Cookies

Cyber Monday Deal: NEW Holiday Cookie Cravings eCookbook for just $.99

** CYBER MONDAY PRICES NOW CLOSED, THANKS FOR PURCHASING THIS GREAT COOKIE PACKAGE AT OUR REGULAR PRICE

I’ve been teasing about it for a few weeks, and the day is finally here. The release of Holiday Cookie Cravings.

To kick off the holiday season, Maria of Two Peas and Their Pod and I are joining the Cyber Monday fray and offering our brand new Holiday Cookie Cravings, filled with 10 favorite brand new Holiday cookie recipes in a gorgeous, full-color ebook, FOR JUST $0.99!

This super special price is available today only—Cyber Monday—and will return to the regular price tomorrow.

I got so excited about sharing all of these cookies with you I knew you’d want to see how it all came about, so here’s a behind-the-scenes video to show you how we created this sweet tasting project.

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/54215189 w=600&h=340]

We know you’re going to want more, more, more, because who doesn’t love cookies?continue to the recipe… about Cyber Monday Deal: NEW Holiday Cookie Cravings eCookbook for just $.99

10 Ways to Cook with Chai Plus Chai Shortbread Cookies with Sea Salt

Goodbye summer’s afternoon diet coke, hello chai latté de fall.

Now that my coffee shop is just 18 strides from my office desk—when you work at home you have the luxury of doing things like actually counting how far the kitchen is from the computer—I’m finding that my afternoon routine has made a major switcheroo.

Lately I’ve been craving a different afternoon pick me up rather than the cold diet soda I sometimes wished could be pumped straight into my veins. I’ve been craving a cuppa something hot.

I tend to get all wrapped up in what I’m working on, so lately I’ve been making it a point to get up from my chair, move away from the computer screen, stretch my legs and clear my head with a 5-minute afternoon timeout.

My new favorite ritual is partaking of a moment in the waning afternoon sun, sitting on my deck with my chihuahua in my lap and a simple coffee drink in my hand. Lately my favorite has been an afternoon latte. Warm, milky and creamy.continue to the recipe… about 10 Ways to Cook with Chai Plus Chai Shortbread Cookies with Sea Salt

Friday Faves and Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookie S’mores Recipe

S’mores. The quintessential summer experience. I could have said treat, but really, isn’t the act of making s’mores more of an experience?

It’s not like the recipe is a toughie: graham crackers, chocolate bars and soft, gooey marshmallows. Not a lot of ingredients, not a lot of time invested. But the care and crafting that goes into making a s’more. Now that’s a skill.

In honor of National S’mores Day, I’m presenting to you my personal guide to strategizing the best approach to the toastiest roasted S’more and my top 10 list of this week’s favorite things.continue to the recipe… about Friday Faves and Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookie S’mores Recipe

Cookie Cravings Print and Digital Cookbook Giveaway

Chocolate chip or sugar, dipped in chocolate or stuffed, there’s hardly a cookie combination that hasn’t yet been discovered. Or is there?

I love coming up with new ways to share my love of food with others. That’s why I created Foodie Crush digital magazine—which by the way you still have a few more days to submit your favorite frozen treat recipe for the summer edition. I love concepting new and different ways to package recipes that makes my mouth water and stomach growl.

Food bloggers are some of the most inventive recipe developers in the world of cooking. And when it comes to cookies, Maria’s inventive combinations are at the top of the pack.

I recently teamed with Maria to create the e-cookbook Cookie Cravings, sharing 30 of her favorite cookie recipes with you. Some cookie recipes are new and some are revisits from her blog Two Peas and Their Pod. All of the recipes feature new photography and new behind the scenes stories.

I mean take a look at this Cinnadoodles recipe for sweet sakes.

Thank you to all who have purchased the e-cookbook digital package. And if you haven’t yet, you can purchase here. We loved providing delicious recipe for you and your families and your comments have been amazing!

And now at your request, we’ve added two more purchase options: You can now buy Cookie Cravings for your Amazon Kindle at the amazing introductory price of just .99—but only for the next week before the price goes up. And If you’re still craving the lovely printed page, we are offering a full-color, printed cookbook option for sale on Blurb.

And to thank you for your support I’m sharing the digital and the printed version of Cookie Cravings with you. It’s time for a giveaway!continue to the recipe… about Cookie Cravings Print and Digital Cookbook Giveaway

Announcing the Cookie Cravings Cookbook Plus a Giveaway

Hey! Guess what? We’ve birthed ourselves a cookie cookbook.

I’m thrilled to announce that Cookie Cravings cookbook is now available!

And to celebrate its arrival we’re giving away a KitchenAid 7-quart Stand Mixer just like the one Maria used to bake all these cookie wonders. Believe me, it got a workout. Oh, and a little known fact about Maria: If you can believe it, Maria doesn’t like to eat cookie dough. She’d rather eat the cookies baked! Which turned out just fine, more dough for me and Josh to snack on.

Okay, now I’m getting ahead of myself. First, the cookbook…

Maria’s Triple Chocolate Oreo Chunk Cookies from the Cookie Cravings Cookbook

I’ve partnered with Maria and Josh of Two Peas and Their Pod to co-publish their first e-Cookbook, Cookie Cravings. It’s been such a blast plotting, planning and BAKING. We’re thrilled to share it and a bunch of other downloadable goodies with you.

Cookie Cravings is a 78-page downloadable cookbook that includes all new photography, new stories and a month of cookie recipes: 15 favorite recipes from the Two Peas and Their Pod blog plus 15 new cookie recipes created specifically for Cookie Cravings. I can verify they are all delicious after nibbling my way through the cookie cornucopia as I photographed and styled them for the book. My skinny jeans are officially on vacation.

And just like they say during late night T.V., “But wait! That’s not all!”continue to the recipe… about Announcing the Cookie Cravings Cookbook Plus a Giveaway

Announcing > Cookie Cravings Cookbook and Nutella No-Bake Cookies

Yep, it’s been one of those weeks. As in: Awesome.

It started off with a fantastic weekend when we surprised Smudge and her 7 y.o. bestie with a trip to Vegas for the Tour Concert Debut of her fave Nickelodeon band Big Time Rush. I think I liked the concert as much as she did—hello boy crush? It was hilarious when she put two and two together and figured out—and was SHOCKED—to learn that her “teen idols” were all of 23 years old. Oh, show bizness.

Our visit to the Neon Boneyard was beyond our expectations and a weekend stay at the incredible Loews Lake Las Vegas was followed by an amazing food buffet—and I mean GOOOD as in crab legs, shrimp and champagne galore—at M Las Vegas—a Best-Of suggestion from one of my L.V. resident besties. Thanks Chan!

And then it was straight hone to the big project that’s been filling my weekends and night-times with even more love, more food—definitely not the diet kind—and more laughter.

I’m so excited to announce that I’ve partnered with Maria and Josh of Two Peas and Their Pod to photograph, design and co-publish their first e-Cookbook, Cookie Cravings.

Maria, who the Pioneer Woman herself affectionately calls “The Cookie Queen”, and I met over three years ago and we’ve done several fun projects together, including Maria’s contributing editor duties for Foodie Crush magazine. And I can verify first-hand that the girl can bake cookies.

Maria and Josh have been asked to do cookbooks before but for some reason or another it just didn’t work out. But now they’re sharing their very favorite cookie recipes as well as some delicious, never before published cookie creations.

And lucky me! Maria curated her favorite cookie recipes, and then created some amazing, brand new recipes, and I got to take pics of all of them, design the e-Cookbook and lend my years of publishing expertise to get the project rolling.

We’re so excited to share Cookie Cravings with you. And of course, Maria’s first cookbook is all about cookies, SHE IS THE COOKIE QUEEN, RIGHT?

continue to the recipe… about Announcing > Cookie Cravings Cookbook and Nutella No-Bake Cookies

Craving: Easter Nest Cookies

photo > foodiecrush

Chocolate Easter bunnies, jelly beans and those not-of-this-world colored Peeps drum up memories of Easter mornings. Memories of a hollow bunny that collapses upon itself at the first bite, jelly beans that glue themselves to the technicolor fake grass at the slightest hint of humidity and Peeps that unless you eat the entire box in one sitting, harden like a rock in a few hours time.

None of those high-octane Easter treats were very tempting to me as a child, yet alone as an adult. But there was, and still is, one Easter treat that I start hunting for the minute the candy sweethearts are stripped from the shelves come February 15.

Oh baby. Russell Stover Egg Nests.

I’m all about the Almond Joy, the German chocolate cake, the macaroons. Bring on the coconut and chocolate, that’s my temptation when it comes to the sugar stuff. And the Russel Stover Egg Nests aren’t usually easy to find. Most years I’ve had to load up at the beginning of the season so I can maintain my sugar high through Good Friday.

But this year I’ve found them still lurking in the stores and I’m wondering to myself, “Why?” And I think I’ve found the answer.

Because there’s no more jelly beans.

This year our chocolate nests are empty and it looks like my Easter tradition has become a casualty to inflation.

So for everyone who’s craving a jelly-filled-nest-alternative—me especially—here are a couple of cures.

photo > Sunday Hotpants

The simple Bird’s Nest cookies – Chocolate Coconut Macaroons recipe from New Zealand’s Sunday Hot Pants showcases the big ingredient winner—coconut—these little nests look very much like the real thing when studded with pastel colored candy eggs.

photo > Kitchen Simplicity

As a teen, my husband would cook up batches of no-bake cookies and eat the entire bowl without ever making a cookie so when I stumbled upon Cheri at Kitchen Simplicity‘s Un-Baked Cookie Nests I couldn’t resist. Love the styling using just white and yellow eggs mimicking the real deal. Check out the additional recipe in the same post for so cute Chocolate Dipped Rice Krispie Eggs.

This recipe for Bird’s Nest Cookies from Art of Dessert forgoes the coconut, but does sound tasty with its combo of salty and sweet combination of chow mein noodles and butterscotch. Would probably be just as tasty with chocolate too.

photo > Two Peas and Their Pod

And if you’re craving soft and gooey chocolate craving, Maria at Two Peas and Their Pod has cooked up Chocolate Pudding Cookies with another one of my favorite Easter treats: malted milk chocolate mini easter eggs. Yum.

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