Royally Sweet

Ever tasted a Royal Cookie from
Nordstrom Cafe? We recently got our hands on one of these yummies. And WowZer! It’s like a cookie and magic bar rolled into one. Coconut, macadamia nuts, and chocolate chips. Incredible!!!Thankfully we found a copycat recipe and this Saturday we will be recreating our version of these goodies in the comforts of our own kitchen. Here’s to a Royally Sweet Saturday!!!

Ingredients

• 3 cups unbleached flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter flavored Crisco
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• ¾ cup chopped macadamia nuts
• 1 cup ounce bag dark chocolate chips
• 1 cup Heath Bits

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, powder and salt.
3. In the bowl of your electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the Crisco and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 5 full minutes. Beat in each egg white one at a time. Beat in the vanilla extract.
4. Add the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until just combined, scraping the bottom of the bowl if needed. Stir in the shredded coconut and macadamia nuts until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and heath.

5. Scoop out 1 1/2-inch sized balls of dough and place them on the parchment paper, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until the cookies are just golden on the edges. Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a cooling rack.

*recipe inspired by How Sweet Eats

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Sweet with a Hint of Spice

We’ve been told, mostly by our husbands, that we’re mostly sweet with a hint of spice. I guess we can be a bit sassy from time to time. But isn’t sugar and spice what girls are made of??? So with Cinco de Mayo just around the corner we’ve decided to add a little bit of spice to our Saturday sweet treat. Our half adult/half kid friendly version of Mexican Magic Bars have a hint of cinnamon which gives them just enough of a kick to remind you that sweet and spicy are a perfect combination. We think our husbands will agree. That’s if they know what’s good for them😉!

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups crushed graham crackers
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup pecans
• 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
• 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

Preparation

In 9×13-inch baking dish, mix crackers, cinnamon, and melted butter; press onto bottom. Layer with chocolate chips. Sprinkle half the pan with pecans (adult side) and the other half with coconut (kid side). Pour condensed milk over the top. Bake at 375 degrees until browned, 25 minutes.

*recipe inspired by Rachael Ray Every Day

Hello Sweetheart

There are a whole bunch of reasons why this Saturday’s treat will win your Sweetie’s heart! It makes no difference whether you call them Hello Dollies, Magic Bars, or 7 Layer Bars. What matters is how incredibly yummy they are! These easy to make goodies are everything plus a little bit more guaranteed to make your Sweetheart’s day!

Ingredients:

½ cup butter (melted)

1½ cups graham cracker crumbs

1 cup coconut flakes

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1/2 cup red M&Ms

1/2 cup butterscotch chips

1/2 cup Heath Bits

1 cup pecans, chopped

1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

While the oven is preheating, melt the butter in a 9×13 baking pan.

Sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs evenly over the butter in the bottom of the pan, press lightly into the butter.

Evenly cover the crust with the coconut flakes, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and pecans. Drizzle the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the top.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Watch it closely until the edges are golden brown. You want to be careful not to burn the coconut and it can happen very quickly.

Let cool about 5 minutes and run a knife around the edges of the pan to prevent sticking.

Allow to cool completely before slicing into squares.

Sweet Surfing

Consider yourself extremely lucky if you get to live near the ocean! Don’t get us wrong. There are many great things about living smack dab in the middle of the country. However, since it’s already 90+ degrees outside it would be so awesome to submerge ourselves in the salty sea. It’s times like these that we have to get a little creative and channel our inner Houdini. This Saturday we’re doing a little wizardry by baking Caramel Magic Bars and enjoying them while we hang ten with our peeps. How? You ask. Driveway and deck surfing! No need for waves or surfboards. Treating in our lawn chairs while shooting the breeze with our pals is the only requirement. It’s trickery at its sweetest!

Caramel Magic Bars

Ingredients 

1½ cup graham cracker crumbs

6 Tbsp butter, melted

1-14oz can sweetened condensed milk

50+ pretzels 

1 cup caramels bits  

1 cup dark chocolate chips

1 cup sweetened coconut flakes

1/2 cup Heath Bits 

Directions:

Mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter & press in a sprayed 13x9in pan.

Pour about half the can of condensed milk over crust.

Layer your pretzels as close together as you like over the condensed milk/crust.

Sprinkle caramels bits, chocolate chips, & coconut flakes.

Pour remaining half of condensed milk on top.

Break up some extra pretzels & sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips, caramel bits, and Heath bits, and pretzels above the condensed milk.

Bake at 350*F for 20-30 min until lightly brown. Let cool completely before cutting.

*recipe adapted from Dessert Now Dinner Later

We’re Here for the Sweets!

Hooray!!! Our local football team, The Kansas City Chiefs, have made it to the playoffs and it’s the first time since 1994. A watch party is now on Saturday’s agenda. And what goes perfectly with football? Wings, nachos, pizza? Nope, not at our house. Not on a Saturday. We’re channeling our inner Girl Scout and baking Samoa Brownies. We love anything made with chocolate and caramel. Throw on some toasted coconut and we have just what we need to cheer on our team…or more accurately have our hubbies tell us the score while we lick the bowl! 

Samoa Brownies

  
Ingredients

1 brownie mix

3½ cups shredded coconut, toasted

1 package of Caramel Kisses, unwrapped

½ tsp. salt

4 tbsp. almond milk

3 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips 

Instructions

Prepare brownie mix according to box directions and cool.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place coconut on baking pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir coconut and cook for another 2-3 minutes until toasted. Watch closely so it doesn’t burn.

In a large, microwaveable bowl, add unwrapped caramels, salt, and milk and cook on high for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally (about every 45-60 seconds). Cook until all caramels are melted and smooth.

Add coconut and mix together. Spread over cooled brownies.

*recipe adapted from Six Sister’s Stuff

Magically Sweet Time of Year

It’s that time of year again. You know the one…when the kids head back to school! There’s something magical about the smell of pencil shavings, fresh paper in notebooks, and new school clothes.  At our homes there’s also the smell of warm Magic Bar Cookies baking in the oven.  After school they’ll do just the trick and are sure to vanish before our eyes.

Magic Bar Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) Crisco butter flavored sticks
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
pinch salt
1 cup graham crackers and crumbs
1 cup dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
3/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut

DIRECTIONS:

1. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the Crisco, sugars, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until well-creamed, light and fluffy.
2. Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, salt, and mix until just combined, about 1 minute.
3. Add the graham crackers), chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, coconut and beat momentarily to incorporate, less than 1 minute, or fold in by hand.
4. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 5 days, before baking. Do not bake with warm dough because cookies will spread and bake thinner and flatter.
5. Preheat oven to 350F,  spray with cooking spray. Make 2 inch mounds of dough and place on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart  Bake for 8 to 9 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before removing and transferring to a rack to finish cooling.

* recipe adapted from Averie Cooks