Family Favorites · Holidays

Peanut Blossoms…with a kiss for your Sweetheart

Peanut butter and chocolate are a combination made in heaven.  What a perfect way to treat your Valentines with a sweet treat for Valentine’s Day. While Peanut Blossoms are also a Christmas favorite at my house, they are good all year long.

My 11.5 year old Golden Retriever likes them, too…helping himself to a few dozen stored in a canister on my counter.  I’m lucky he has an iron stomach! No more Peanut Blossoms for Big Bad Joe this year!

PEANUT BLOSSOMS

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons milk
1 egg
1 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 bag chocolate kisses

  • Combine all ingredients in a bowl (except chocolate) and mix on low speed until well blended. Shape in round balls and roll in sugar.
  • Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 10-12 minutes at 375 degrees.
  • Remove cookies and press in chocolate star or kiss in each cookie while cookies are still hot.

Yield: 4 dozen

New Favorite

Cranberry Bars…perfect for your Valentine!

Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars are daughter Sarah’s favorite holiday treat. When she was a teenager I bought her a pan of Cranberry Bliss Bars for her November birthday and she was ‘WOW’d’. Before Christmas this year she was very depressed that Starbucks/Denver had sold out of Cranberry Bliss Bars and, being pregnant, she had cravings that we needed to fill.

 

Sarah found this recipe on Pinterest and we made them for the holidays. They were delicious and very close to what we experience at Starbuck’s.  Perhaps this will become a new Valentine’s tradition in our house and in yours.   XOXOXOXOX

CRANBERRY BARS

BLONDIE LAYER:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter, cubed
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup dried cranberries
6 ounces white baking chocolate, coarsely chopped

FROSTING:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
6 ounces white baking chocolate, melted
1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 13×9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
  • Prepare the blondie layer: In a medium bowl, melt butter for one minute in the microwave; stir in brown sugar. Scrape the butter & sugar into a large bowl and let cool to room temperature. Use an electric mixer to beat in the eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; gradually add the dry mixture to the butter mixture. Stir in the cranberries and chopped chocolate (the batter will be thick).
  • Spread the blondie batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 18-21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean (do not overbake). Cool completely on a wire rack.
  • Prepare the frosting: In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until well-blended. Gradually add half of the melted white chocolate; beat until blended. Frost brownies. Sprinkle with cranberries. Drizzle with remaining melted white chocolate. Cut into bars- square or triangle-shaped. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Tips:

*If you’d like to add an orange flavor to these bars, add 1 tablespoon grated orange zest to the frosting.

Recipe from:  http://www.recipegirl.com/2011/11/14/cranberry-bliss-bars/

Family Favorites · My Roots

Peanut Blossoms…a Valentine’s kiss!

Peanut Blossoms have been a family favorite since I was a child.  I loved them, my children love them and the tradition continues.  What beats the combination of peanut butter and chocolate!  It seems fitting to make a batch of peanut blossoms for your sweetheart with the famous Hershey KISSES as Valentine’s Day approaches.

I was curious about the origin of Hershey’s Kisses.  Per Wikipedia, Hershey’s Kisses milk chocolates were introduced in 1907. The candy got its name because the machine made kiss sounds as the chocolate kiss is created.

These cookies are good anytime of year.  What is sweeter than a Valentine’s ‘kiss’!

PEANUT BLOSSOMS 

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons milk
1 egg
1 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
chocolate stars or chocolate kisses

  • Combine all ingredients in a bowl (except chocolate) and mix on low speed until well blended. Shape in round balls and roll in sugar.
  • Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 10-12 minutes at 375 degrees.
  • Remove cookies and press in chocolate star or kiss in each cookie while cookies are still hot.

Yield: 4 dozen