CookieD-oh

 Hey, long time no blog! Life just keeps on happening, and that's the only excuse I have. The kids are growing up rapidly. The boy is in high school, and the girl is in middle school. Both of them run cross country, so I (finally) got around to making cookies for them. The school logo and some general cross-country themed cookies, along with a saying from their coach. And just so this isn't the world's shortest blog post, here's a picture of my vintage kitchen: It's a weird mix of 40's and 50's, but as I'm working off of Craig's List for my décor, it's the best I can do.  Well, that's all for now.  Enjoy!

So I made cookies for a friend’s baby shower. It was a nautical theme for a new baby boy! I lifted the designs off of Pinterest (of course) but they were really fun to do. I also made cupcakes, but they weren’t particularly fancy. :) Anyhoo, it was a fun time. Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy!

Not the most creative title in the world, but what are you going to do? It fits. Anyhoo, made some flower and butterfly decorated sugar cookies for an event at work. I also made some chocolate chunk cookies, but they weren’t as pretty. I made a set with more flower designs for my Mom’s retirement, but I didn’t take pictures of those. I’m basically the worst blogger ever.  I thought they were cute. I like butterflies and flowers, but who doesn’t? And who doesn’t like chocolate chunk cookies? Well, that’s all for now. Enjoy!

We recently moved into an old farmhouse and we thought it would be fun to go retro with the kitchen decor. We inherited a 1940's kitchen cabinet from Mr. D-oh's Grandma May when she passed a few years back. We love it and it reminds us of Grandma, so why not decorate the kitchen around it? Craig’s List has been good to us thus far. I found an old chrome and Formica table and chairs (in yellow and green Moonglo) as well as a remarkable old stove. I’m still hunting for a refrigerator, but I’m in no hurry. Anyhoo, I made a chocolate cake for a family get-together. Mint chocolate frosting with roses. Added some blue because I read somewhere a long time ago that you should use at least three colors when decorating. So red, blue, and green for this one. I don’t know if that’s really a thing, but it stuck with me. And here’s a bit of the kitchen with the amazing stove. It’s purported to be a 1948 Western Holly. Works like a champ and kind of looks like we have a laund...

So we finally moved to another house. Not that that’s why I haven’t blogged in almost two years, but whatever. 😜 Vanilla almond cupcakes with raspberry filling and raspberry frosting for a bridal shower. I also brought brownies, but I posted That recipe a few years ago. Anywho, that’s all for now. I’ll post pictures of my sweet “new” kitchen soon. Enjoy! CookieD-oh

So I got invited to my first Matilda Jane trunk party last week. I had heard of Matilda Jane, sort of, but didn't really know what it was. Turns out it's super cute girls' clothing (big and little girls!). I was asked to make themed cookies, so I had to do a little internet research. I found out later that when Matilda Jane releases a collection, if an item sells out they don't replace it. So at least one of the dresses I based my cookies on was not available by the time the party was held. D'OH! Oh well, I still think they were cute. This was the "Once Upon a Time" collection for fall, and I really enjoyed the colors. These took me out of my comfort zone, too. I tend to do cookies that are similar in style most of the time. These were definitely not my regular style, but they were fun. The girl accompanied me to the trunk show, of course, and she had a wonderful time! She is ALL about clothes right now. *sigh* At 8 she is more fashionabl...

Decorated sugar cookies for fall! Leaves, pumpkins, apples, and sunflowers. I saw a couple different versions of the trees on Pinterest and decided to give them a go. I think the trees sort of pulled them all together. Well, that's all for now. Enjoy!

The chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and ganache that I made last year was so popular that I turned it into cupcakes. Because, honestly, they're easier to deal with sometimes. Go-to dark chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and a ganache drizzle. Very tasty, if I do say so myself. They're best if eaten with a fork. Just being honest. The cake recipe is here . To make cupcakes, fill cupcake liners 1/2 full and bake in a 375 F oven for about 16 minutes. Cool completely before frosting. Here is the frosting recipe: Peanut Butter Frosting 1 cup butter 1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy...not natural, sorry) 1/2 cup shortening 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 lbs powdered sugar 1/4 - 1/2 cup heavy cream Mix butter, peanut butter, shortening, salt and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer until well-combined. Add the powdered sugar and mix until incorporated. Add cream until the frosting reaches the desired consistency. Beat for 5 m...

Because who doesn't like a nice orange creamsicle? Nobody who enjoys summer, that's for sure. Orange cupcakes with vanilla cream cheese filling and orange cream cheese frosting. Yum! The folks at work seemed to like them. :-) That's all for now. Enjoy!

Peach cobbler revisited...because this recipe is amazing and deserves to be reposted. I think I even got some pictures that were better than the first time around. I know that peach season is mostly over, so you'll have to forgive me for posting this so late. I blame the computer; it's having some issues right now. :-( *Before we get started, I would like to say that I only make this recipe with fresh peaches from the fruit farm (unless I'm using frozen peaches that I froze myself after buying them from the fruit farm). Grocery store peaches just aren't the same. So if you can find some fresh-picked peaches, use them to make this.  You won't regret it.* Anyhoo, start by mixing peaches, cinnamon, and sugar together in a bowl. Set the bowl aside and let the ingredients mingle for a while. Next, in a new bowl, take some shortening and some sugar and beat the tar out of them until they're good and fluffy. Remember when I burned up my hand mixer m...

Made for a friend's daughter's baby shower. The theme was Mommy to Bee. These aren't colors I use regularly, but it was nice to do something different! There was a lot of black and some of the designs were wet-on-wet, so I made the icing with extra meringue powder, just in case. I've heard that extra meringue powder will stop bleeding. (Of course, for my regular royal icing recipe I've halved the amount of meringue powder I use, so really it was just the normal amount.) But whatever the reason, it worked! There was no bleeding black icing, even with the white polka dots. All bagged up and ready to go! I really have to start taking pictures before they're in the bags. I think that's all of them. I'm going to be making more cookies in the next couple weeks, so hopefully I'll actually get them posted to the ol' blog. Maybe. Well, that's all for now. Enjoy!

Welcome back to the blog! I know it's been a while, but that just seems to be how it is these days. :-) I'm going to be teaching a baking class at my church in October, and I needed to decide early what I want to bake. We wanted something Christmas-y, since October is now (according to most American retailers) the beginning of the holiday season. After much vacillating, waffling, hemming and hawing, I decided on a chocolate cake with peppermint frosting. Because cake. I tried really hard to take better pictures this time. I'm pretty sure I failed, but the effort was there, I promise! I even went on the internet to see how other bloggers staged their cakes for photos. I went down to my basement and found a white plate! THAT is dedication right there. This is the same chocolate cake I always make because, really, it's the best. Start out by gathering your stuff. Here's some of the stuff you'll need. The first thing you'll do is to mix some boil...