white chocolate snickerdoodle pudding cookies.

I have been eyeing these cookies on Pinterest for some time now and finally got around to baking them. They had me at pudding cookies. I've never made pudding cookies that disappointed. They are always thick, chewy, soft, and delicious. 

I also had some leftover cinnamon chips which I felt were the perfect addition to the white chocolate chips. If you don't have cinnamon chips or can't find them, just add an extra cup of white chocolate chips. You can't go wrong either way. Get baking, friends!

white chocolate snickerdoodle pudding cookies

from the recipe critic

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3.4 oz package white chocolate instant pudding mix (mine was 3.56 oz)
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup white chocolate chips

1 cup Hershey's cinnamon chips

Instructions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats

2.  In a large bowl mix together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and white chocolate pudding mix. Set aside.

3.  In mixer, cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar.  Add eggs and vanilla. Mix together.  Add dry ingredients to butter mixture.  Mix together just until combined and lastly add the white chocolate chips and cinnamon chips. Fold them in gently.

4.  Scoop cookie dough with medium cookie scoop. Place two inches apart on baking sheet.

5.  Bake for about 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden.  Let cool and enjoy!

blueberry banana doughnuts.

I got a doughnut pan for Christmas and I have been dying to use it. 2 months later, I finally got around to using it. 

We had a very ripe banana just begging to be baked and tons of frozen blueberries packed away in the freezer from this summer. Therefore, this was the perfect recipe to inaugurate this doughnut pan. (Did I use that word correctly? Hmph, probably not- oh well!)

If you go to the original doughnut recipe, I made several changes. I used different flour, sugar, and yogurt. I also made a delicious blueberry glaze which I highly reccommend. If you don't have enough blueberries or you prefer a more traditional glaze, you can't go wrong with vanilla glaze! Just go to whole and heavenly oven to find it. I hope you enjoy this health(ier) doughnut recipe as much as we did!

~

blueberry banana doughnuts {with blueberry glaze}

Ingredients

• Doughnut recipe from whole and heavenly oven
• 2 cups flour (I used all purpose)
• 1/2 cup sugar (I used 1/4 cup stevia, 1/4 cup granulated sugar)
• 3 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 medium ripe banana, mashed
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup yogurt (I used strawberry greek yogurt)
• 3/4 cup buttermilk (I used 1% milk+lemon juice)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries 
• 
  
• Glaze recipe from blahnik baker
• ½ cup blueberries
• 1-1½ cups powdered sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and grease a doughnut pan. Set aside.
2. In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, mix mashed banana, eggs, yogurt, buttermilk, and vanilla until smooth. 
3. Gently fold dry mixture into liquid mixture until just combined. Gently fold in blueberries.
4. Fill greased doughnut pan 3/4 full of batter. Bake donuts at 350F 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool doughnuts in pan 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
5. In a small bowl, mash blueberries (or stick them in a food processor). Add powdered sugar to blueberries until smooth. You want the glaze fairly thick so add powdered sugar as needed.
6. Once doughnuts are cooled, transfer to wax paper (for easier clean-up). Dip them into the glaze or spoon glaze over doughnuts. 
7. We left doughnuts out for 2 days then transfered them to freezer. Pop in the microwave as desired  and enjoy!

pretzel buckeyes.

Peanut butter + chocolate = pure bliss

^^

That right there is my favorite math equation. Ever. 

I have recently been enjoying peanut butter on a spoon and sprinkling chocolate chips on top. I read that on a food blog somewhere but can't remember which blog! Thank you to whoever shared that simple idea. I also love melting peanut butter and chocolate chips and dipping apple slices in it. And these. I love these.

They are simple and delicious- salty and sweet at the same time. A perfect bite sized treat. Grant who doesn't even like the pb+chocolate combination liked these- VICTORY!

I got this recipe from my sister's blog and I couldn't get enough- enjoy!!

~

pretzel buckeyes 

from the pajama chef

Ingredients:

• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar + extra (if needed)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• Pretzels
• 12 ounce bag chocolate chips (semi sweet or milk chocolate)

Directions:

1. Line a baking sheet with wax paper, baking mat, or parchment. Set aside. Beat together peanut butter and butter with an electric mixer until well combined. Scrape down sides of the bowl, add powdered sugar and brown sugar, and beat again until fully mixed.  You don't want the dough to stick to your fingers so add more powdered sugar as needed. 
2. Roll peanut butter mixture into balls of about 1-2 teaspoons each and sandwich between two pretzels. Or alternately, you could spoon a dollop of the peanut butter mixture onto the pretzel and stack another pretzel on top. Place on prepared baking sheet and repeat until peanut butter mixture is gone. Place baking sheet in freezer for 30 minutes.
3. When nearing the end of the 30 minute period, melt chocolate in a metal bowl set over a pot of simmering water or in the microwave, as directed on package. You want the chocolate as smooth as possible. Dip each pretzel sandwich halfway into the melted chocolate and return to baking sheet. Refrigerate or freeze until chocolate is set.
4. The original recipes says these freeze well but we didn't need to do that ;)

cinnamon chip scones.

Have you ever had cinnamon chip scones before? For our anniversary, Grant and I stayed in a hotel and ate the restaurant there the next morning. They had the best cinnamon chip scones ever- I even ate 2! Being diabetic, I try to eat more protein at breakfast instead of the "bread-y"/high carb foods. That's why it was a huge deal I ate 2!

Within days of eating these scrumptious scones, I set out to find cinnamon chips and a killer scone recipe. I found it and I am sharing it with you- enjoy!!

~

cinnamon chip scones

from sally's baking addiction

Ingredients:

SCONES

• 2 cups  all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
• 1/2 cup heavy cream (plus a little extra for brushing)
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups Hershey's cinnamon chips

GLAZE

• 1 cup  powdered sugar
• 3 Tablespoons heavy cream (or black coffee or milk)
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F degrees. Place oven rack in middle-low position. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Dice the butter into small pieces. 
3. Toss the butter into the flour mixture and combine it with a pastry cutter, clean hands, or two forks until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Set aside.
4. In a small bowl, whisk the cream, egg, and vanilla together. Drizzle it over the flour mixture and toss the mixture together gently until everything appears moistened. Slowly and gently fold in the cinnamon chips. Do not overmix. Dough will be a little wet. 
5. Work the dough into a ball with floured hands  and transfer to the prepared baking pan. Press into a neat disc or rectangle and cut into equal wedges with a very sharp knife. Using a pastry brush or a spoon, brush lightly with a little bit of cream. Separate the scones and line them on the baking sheet with a little space between each one.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly golden and cooked through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. 
7. While the scones are cooling, make the glaze by whisking the powdered sugar, cream, and vanilla together until completely smooth. Drizzle over scones right before serving.
8. The scones taste best immediately but are still extremely delicious warmed up for 10-20 seconds in the microwave!