Hi.  It's been a while, hasn't it?  With our current snack rotation at church it can be months between my last time on and the next.

It's a busy weekend around here.  We're having a pulled pork taco party, plus a party for our "how did she get old enough to be 4" daughter. There is a carnival and parade and fireworks to attend, and general, normal household things to take care of.

And church snack.  Amid the business I was just going to make basic chocolate chip cookies.  I intended to.  I got the recipe out and got started.  Then I looked in the freezer and saw butterscotch chips.  Hmm, okay.  But they're so sweet.  What would balance that?  Cocoa.  Yeah, but I don't really like chocolate butterscotch cookies.  Coffee?  Hmmmm.  Coffee is bitter and would definitely do the trick.  So I modified my recipe and came up with these (I really need something besides a blue plate for pictures)

I brought these sunny delights to church yesterday.  I could have made chocolate or mocha or maple cookies.  But after catching a glimpse of Spring, only to be buried in snow again, I was feeling rebellious.  I wanted sunshine, darn it!  So I baked these sunny lemon treats.

I've been making these for years.  I often play with the recipe, adding lemon oil instead of extract, orange or lime in place of the lemon, or even adding chopped lemon thyme in the summer.  Over the years I've changed the original recipe a little, making the glaze thicker and tangier than the original, replacing the shortening with butter, adding more of a lemon flavour to the cookie and omitting the vanilla. I also add a little citric acid to the icing because I like it to be tangy, but I don't include that in the recipe.  Not everyone has citric acid on hand, or likes a tart glaze.

1 1/2 cups white sugar   
1/2 cup butter   
3 eggs   
1/2 cup milk   
1 teaspoon lemon extract or 1/2 tsp lemon oil
zest of two lemons   
3 cups all-purpose flour   
3 teaspoons baking powder   
1 pinch salt   

Icing
3 cups confectioners' sugar   
3tablespoon lemon juice   
1 teaspoon lemon extract or 1/2 tsp lemon oil
yellow gel food colouring   

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).   
       
Blend the white sugar and shortening until light. Beat in the eggs, milk, lemon extract and the lemon zest. Mix until well blended.
           
Combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture to the shortening mixture. Mix until combined (the dough will be sticky). Drop
teaspoonfuls of dough onto parchment paper lined baking sheets.     
       
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 8 to 10 minutes. Let cookies cool then frost with icing.       
   
To Make Icing: Combine the confectioners' sugar, lemon juice and lemon extract to taste.  Add enough food colouring to get the tint you want.  Beat until smooth and make icing thick enough to spread on cooled cookies.  I like to scoop it onto a tablespoon and dip the tops of the cookies into them and let the excess drip off.  Add sprinkles if you like.

Makes 5 dozen

It's been a bit, but it was my turn to make snack again this past weekend.  The trouble was, it was also January 2nd, and it snuck up on me.  So much so, in fact, that I was left baking during the night of January 1st.  After a big meal, a martini and a glass of wine.  Yeah, inspiration and any get-up-and-go were scarce.  Cookies seemed like too much work.  A loaf was too small, since I need enough for about 3-4 dozen and I only have one good sized loaf pan.

However, I do have 2 glass 9x13 pans.  So I opted for brownies.  Generic brownies.  So generic, that I'm not even giving a recipe.  The ones I found used cocoa rather than chocolate, and melted butter or oil instead of any creaming.  Simple.  They were dry though.  And crumbly.  Which was disappointing.  Once baked, I topped one pan with butterscotch chips, let them melt and frosted the brownies.  The other pan was topped with mini marshmallows, which I popped under the broiler to "toast."  Note to self - check them after a minute, because after 2 minutes they'll be seconds away from ignition!  No harm done, and while the middle part was darker than the edges, some people like their marshmallows well toasted, right?

Another thing learned... even after sitting overnight, marshmallow on top of brownies is nearly impossible to cut through without making a huge mess.  I had to employ a knife heated in hot water, dried AND coated in oil after every single cut just to not totally destroy the bars.

After all of that, they tasted okay.  The butterscotch topped ones seemed more popular, though.

So, where does that leave this entry?  Without a recipe?  Perish the thought!  Instead of the so-so brownies, I'm offering a cookie recipe that I put together today after realizing I forgot to buy eggs.  I wanted to make chocolate chip cookies to have for dessert tonight after our baked potato soup and homemade bread.  A real home cooked meal all around.  But without eggs, my go-to recipe was out.  So I did a little looking online and in other books and put together this recipe.  The smell of the dough with the vanilla and yogurt and chocolate chips was wonderful!

These first appeared on my main blog, A Single Step back in early Summer. These were such a hit that I've made them a few times since just at the request (demand) of my family.

Mocha-scotch Truffle Cookies

12 oz chocolate chips (not milk chocolate) - you could use a good dark chocolate
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp instant coffee granules
3/4 C all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 C white sugar
1/4 C dark brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 C butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 325F and line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper.

Using a double boiler (or not), melt together the chocolate, butter and coffee granules. Set aside to cool.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Beat the eggs (I used my stand mixer, but an electric hand mixer would work) and slowly add the sugars. Beat for a few minutes until light coloured. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat until smooth. Scrape down the bowl and add the vanilla.

On low speed (or by hand) add in the flour mixture and butterscotch chips until just combined.

Drop by tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets (the batter is thick and sticky), about 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for 15-18 minutes, until the cookies are set at the edges and still slightly squidgy in the centre (they will take on a crackled appearance).

Cool on a wire rack (slide the parchment onto it to make it easier), and enjoy.

Today's snack was inspired by a recipe I came across at the Picky Palate blog. The original is called Cinnamon Roll Sugar Cookies, and can be found here. The recipe has been sitting in my "want to try" file for a while now, and I decided that with the decidedly Autumnal feel in the air a cinnamon spiced sweet would fit the bill for this week's snack.

Cinnamon Bun Cookies

2 Cups sugar
1 Cup butter, softened
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Cup sour cream
6 Cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 Cup softened butter
1 1/2 Cups packed brown sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon

Frosting
8 oz softened cream cheese
1/2 Cup powdered sugar
2-4 Tablespoons milk, to thin icing

1. In an electric or stand mixer, cream the sugar and butter. Add the eggs, vanilla and sour cream until well combined. Slowly add in the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt until well combined.

2. In 2 batches, place in plastic wrap in a disc shape and chill for at least 2 hours for best results.

3. In a small bowl combine the brown sugar and cinnamon.

6. To prepare frosting, beat the cream cheese until softened and smooth, slowly add powdered sugar and milk until desired consistency. Keep the frosting in the fridge until you're ready to use it. Then spoon it into a plastic freezer bag and snip off the tip. Drizzle the frosting over the cookies and serve.

Makes at least 6 dozen. The dough can be frozen for another day.