Coffee Spice Cookies

I had to post this picture first, because I knew it would be the one people see and if you know me...I would not normally ever buy this kind of coffee. However, it the recipe called for instant coffee and only 1 teaspoon, I couldn't bring myself to buy a container of instant coffee, and I didn't want to waste my favorite instant version of coffee, so I opted to purchase the inexpensive small box of this coffee.

You want to know my favorite version of instant coffee? If you have come from my home blog you would have watched this already...if not...please click HERE now, watch the special video and come right back!

Ok, back to business. Just wanted to add this picture so you can see all that can be done in a busy kitchen. I'm a homeschooling Mom and we need to multitask like crazy around here. Shane catching up on his reading. Finished the whole book while I got my mise en place ready...

This recipe comes from my Cookie Lover's Cookbook (see side panel). 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 teaspoon instant coffee crystals
• 1 teaspoon of hot water
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flower
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup of candy sprinkles or multicolored shot

---about 5 1/2 dozen cookies

DIRECTIONS:

In a small bowl (or cup) combine coffee crystals and water. Stir until crystals are dissolved.

In a large mixing bowl, combine, coffee, sugar, butter, egg and vanilla.

BEAT at medium speed of electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add flour, baking powder, allspice, and salt. Beat at low speed until soft dough forms. (And it will be very soft - I had to actually put it in my refrigerator for about 5 minutes just to get it to where I could divide the dough.)  

Divide dough in half. Shape each half into 1 1/2 inch diameter log. Roll logs evenly in sprinkles pressing lightly to coat. Wrap in plastic wrap or wax paper. Chill for 3-4 hours until firm.

HEAT oven to 375

CUT logs into 1/4 inch slices. Place slices 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. 

BAKE for 6-8 minutes, or until set. (Careful because bottoms will look a lot differently than tops)

COOL completely before storing.

So now for a few photos with hints that should make you smile. First while my dough had to sit in the refrigerator to get to the point where I could divide it..I allowed my official taste tester to do his thing. (I know the hazards...but if you've seen what this child has put in his mouth over the last 8 years...one little raw egg mixed in with this dough will not kill him.)

Divide dough in half. This is where my OCD love for exact science comes in. I'm sure you "real" cooks out there will be fine just eyeballing your dough and dividing it. Me, I need my scale. Here we are with all of the dough....

..and here we are with half. Tada..evenly divided..because I'm a scientist not a cook.

Once the dough is evenly divided, Shape each half into 1 1/2 inch diameter. What, no ruler you say?...

Silly reader, guessing is for cooks - I have the ruler and yes I did measure it!

Roll logs evenly in sprinkles, pressing lightly to coat. I used my Candy Corn Cookie Bark sprinkles to keep it fall festive...but I've changed this up in the past and used sprinkles to match the season/holiday.

Cut logs into 1/4 inch slices. Yes, I used a ruler again so I can see what that looked like...

And now you can too. :) I'm having so much fun with my little phone camera, holding a ruler and an knife and a camera...perhaps I have superpowers too...lol! Nope....just having fun!

Ahhh..finished product...made the house smell of coffee and cookies...two smells I'm sure we'll continue to enjoy in Heaven some day.

Just so you know..this is not an overly sweet cookie..which is great for the person who would actually like to have these cookies accompany their favorite...

...cup of coffee. It is actually the absolute perfect cookie to go with coffee. If you are a coffee drinker you will understand. Sweet cookies ruin the taste of delicious coffee. So, the Coffee Spice Cookie is one of the best "to-go-with-coffee" cookies EVER! Try it. Let me know how you like it. Thanks for stopping by the kitchen!

Pumpkin Waffles - Oh My!

So this was so much fun today. I want to remind you, that I rarely come up with anything original, I get my recipes from books or other websites. This one I got from The Girl Who Ate Everything - check out her site for the original recipe (not sure I'm allowed to copy from her website even if I give her the credit...so to be on the safe side you can find it there yourself) - she even includes homemade syrup (sadly I have no time for that..I have to homeschool 3 elementary superheroes). Her photography is amazing. I might add that my photography is done by me, with my cell phone. That should give you a chuckle!

I will give you photo instructions and let you know what I did wrong differently. Did I mention this was FUN!?

I love getting my ingredients all out and ready to go...the term we use is mise en place (french term for "set in place.") It helps a scattered Mom like me. You know in case the phone rings, the dog is in the garbage and the kids are fighting - that never happens here.

Ok - (Just noticed that my capital O only works with the caps lock on--great)..I love whenever I can use the whole egg. I despise having to throw away my yokes. So fortunately this recipe calls for 4 egg whites and 4 egg yolks. That made me smile!

Just wanted to put a plug in here for my girl (The Kitchen Aid)..while I was getting all of the dry ingredients together, she was working hard forming stiff peaks with the egg whites! Love her!

Now about the butter. I've said it before, I'm not a professional anything...I know when I bake my rule is to always use unsalted butter because most recipes call to add salt. This recipe only called for 1/4 teaspoon so I used one stick of salted butter and half of a stick of unsalted. (My little adaptation).

Confession - I've never ever used a waffle iron before. The batter, after folding in the egg whites ends up being very fluffy...almost mousse like. I wasn't quite sure how this was going to go with the iron.

I chose this picture because my first attempt at getting that waffle out of the iron was...how shall I say this...a massacre. Oh I used plenty of Pam, it wasn't sticking, I just couldn't figure how to get them out because they were totally hot and not extremely crunchy like when you pull items from the toaster. So we taste tested the ugly waffle and it was....

(gone in two seconds) seriously one of the best waffles I have ever tasted in my whole life. Perfect pumpkin flavor - not too much -  not too little. Four forks devoured our first "test" waffle and then my superheroes were like putty in my hands..waiting anxiously for their waffle to be placed with love on their plate,

Brendan was first, because he is most polite and patient! He knows what he is doing!!

After making a few, I got the hang of this waffle iron. I appreciate my friend who let me borrow this for today!

Kyle was next. Just want to put a plug in here for Autism Spectrum Disorder. You know my Kyle was diagnosed with this many years ago, he has come a long way, but he still has issues that we have learned to love him through. See below...he couldn't bring himself to touch the fork because I touched it, and my hands had Pam or butter on them..made the fork greasy. Don't you love it? No, I did not give him a  new fork..I said I love him through his challenges, but we don't cater to them. I love this boy!

Then there is my third superhero..Shane. He is the one who could have eaten 2 whole waffles I think. He just has that much energy. (He was served last because he had the largest "testing taste" of everyone else.) No problem there, he also finished before Kyle was done!

The recipe said it would make 8 Belgium waffles. I used 1 measured cup and poured in into the iron. The result was 5 and a half...but it is really a cute half! I did invite the owner of the iron and her son to join us today, but I'm thinking they chose to stay in their jammies instead. They know me...I'll be doing this again...

I am going to freeze the two waffles I have left over so Mr. Incredible can try one for tomorrow for breakfast (or tonight for a snack). Hey, I'm really glad you stopped by the kitchen this morning! Up next...Coffee Spice Cookies...I'm making them today.

The Peculiar Pomegranate

Rich in antioxidants as well as symbolism, this peculiar fruit has held legendary powers for centuries. The Pomegranate, one of the super foods, is actually something we enjoy seeing go on sale here in the Engel home. There are numerous websites that can talk about the benefits of adding this fruit to your diet so I won't go into all the nutritional information. Feel free to google it! This is a spot for recipes and fun ideas. I'm hoping you can give me some ideas on what else to do with this amazing fruit..and I will share with you the fun my superheroes and I had today.

Above you can see what we had for dinner tonight. Grilled salmon, brown rice and a beautiful mescaline salad with roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, cucumbers, tomato and onion , generously sprinkled with pomegranate. Nice right? Mr. Incredible works wonders in the kitchen. My boys all love salmon and they had tons of fun with the multipurpose fruit. My plans tomorrow are to add some to my oatmeal.

I love to dig into a pomegranate. It is actually therapeutic. I don't like to share in the fun of digging up the little rubies. I imagine myself on a gem hunt. I cut open the fruit (there are ways of doing it that are simply amazing..me, I just cut it in half and start carefully excavating.) The minute I cut that sweet/tart beauty in half, my boys are fascinated.

What does it look like to you? We swap ideas. Looks like a beehive, a red beehive, or an atom with protons and electrons (that may be because we studied that today), or my personal favorite..blood cells.

Then there is the taste test. "Are you sure we're not supposed to spit these things out?" Yes, I'm sure. I demonstrate by eating a heaping teaspoon full. Kyle insists on trying it plain then a sprinkle of sugar (just to see if it makes a difference). Shane added some to his salad tonight too. That's my boy!

Then the conversation turned to.."Mom can we boil it in a pot and throw cloth in it to see if that is how they used to color clothing? We've learned about the pomegranate in Ancient Egypt and even heard that it may be the fruit that Eve gave to Adam in the garden of Eden (after all, it does originate from that part of our world). Well, I wasn't too keen on boiling it..I only bought one...so we tie dyed a paper towel. Very cool!

Then, it wouldn't be like my house if in fact we didn't have to make some kind of wound with it. We had it on the arms, the stomach, the head, dripping from the lips....

It makes for great fake blood. So here is Shane with a gunshot wound to the chest. Looking at the blood splatter (and the smile on his face) my CSI team times the wound at 1600 hours today. Sadly Dad was not home yet and although he wanted to wait to see Dad's classic "trauma care" reaction, there were miles to put on his bike today...before the sun set.

So there you have it. Our fun with the peculiar pomegranate. So...please..what do you do with the pomegranate? Comment to share. I can't wait to read your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by the kitchen today. Stop by in a couple of days for this week's cookie....Coffee Spice Cookies!

Chocolate Mint Cookies

These cookies were the #1 favorites so far! Do you see that adorable little taste tester? This is Shane, and he is one of my superheroes..and an official cookie taste tester. He loves that title!

I imagine what makes these cookies ultra delicious is this very special ingredient:

Yes..I'm sure of it! Just looking at this make my mouth water! OK..so you didn't come here for gibberish..I'll save that for my other blog..you came for the recipe (found in the Cookie Lover's Collection Book).

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup butter, softened (I might add here that it also says margarine, but who would use that?) ;)
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 pkg. (4.67 oz.) chocolate sandwich mints, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup vanilla baking chips

(Makes 3 dozen - not really enough)

DIRECTIONS:

HEAT oven to 375. In large mixing bowl, combine butter, sugars, egg and vanilla.

BEAT at medium speed of electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Beat at low speed until soft dough forms. Stir in mints & chips.

DROP dough by heaping teaspoons 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.

BAKE for 8-10 minutes, or until set. Cool completely before storing.

If you try these let me know what you think! Leave a comment!

Triple Chocolate Chocolate Chip

These were hard to keep in the jar. Loved by my serious chocolate lovers in this house...here is the "super" recipe..found in one of our favorite cookie books:...Cookies: A Cookie Lover's Collection:

This is where I have gotten tons of my recipes! We love this book! So back to the recipe at hand:

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
• 1/4 cup butter
• 4 squares semisweet baking chocolate, melted & slightly cooled
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 4 squares white baking chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped pecans

(makes about 3 dozen cookies)

DIRECTIONS:

HEAT oven to 375. In large mixing bowl, combine sugar, eggs, shortening, butter, melted semisweet chocolate and vanilla.

BEAT at medium speed of electric mixer until well blended. Add flour, baking soda and salt. Beat at low speed until soft dough forms. Stir in white chocolate, chips and pecans.

DROP dough by heaping teaspoons 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.

BAKE for 9-11 minutes, or until set. Let cool for 2 minutes before removing from cookie sheets. Cool completely before storing.

Just a plug for my girl here...she really helps in the kitchen!

Oatmeal Scotchies

 

This recipe can be found on the back of the Nestle's Toll House Butterscotch Morsels package. Remember however, I always always follow the directions. I never ever substitute..I figure these have been tested so why mess with what works. Here is the recipe directly from Nestle's Website or the package of Morsels.
 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 3 cups Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
• 1 2/3 cups (11 oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Butterscotch Flavored Morsels

DIRECTIONS:
 
PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

BEAT butter and sugars in large bowl until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla extract; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda and salt; mix well. Add oats and morsels; mix well.

DROP dough by level tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

BAKE 7 to 8 minutes for a chewy cookie or 9 to 10 minutes for a crisp cookie. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Store tightly covered. 

My superheros like the cookie more on the crisp side...so I do 9 minutes...and yes, I totally watch the timer while they rest and remove them from the sheet after 2 minutes. Don't laugh...it works!

 

Welcome to Krypton's Kitchen

If you're here, you must be curious. Every week or so, I post on my original blog...The Journey of a Superhero Mom...something I call The Cookie Chronicles. I've been asked on numerous occasions for the recipes. I needed a place to put all those recipes so I can share the sweetness (because we all need a little sweet now and then) ::wink wink::

My Mr. Incredible is a great cook. He loves to cook..I do not! I find it stressful, he finds it stress relieving. I'd say that makes for a "super" marriage! On occasion he will make something that must be shared...I will share that here as well.

Give me a day or so to get caught up. I have many recipes to type.

So feel free to stop by Krypton's Kitchen. Come in, sit down, let your guard down, relax and enjoy the company, the recipes and the smiles. After all, that is why I do anything in the kitchen...it's all for the smiles.