Crispy Polynesian Butterscotch Cookies

So, I don't even like coconut... but these cookies are AMAZING. I'm pleasantly surprised at how yummy these are. It's an odd recipe, using both butter and oil. What really makes it interesting though is the mixture of other ingredients: butterscotch chips, oats, crushed Corn Flakes cereal, coconut, and chopped nuts. These cookies have a really unique, light and crispy texture. And I love the butterscotch chips. <3 Mmm, yum. Even my brother, who usually isn't vocal about liking my baked goods, said he really liked them. So that's an excellent sign. I'd give them a 4 1/2 out of 5. ^_^

Cheers!

~Jesia

Giant Decorated Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are exactly what they sound like - they are ginormous. In fact, the recipe says that it should yield only 10 cookies; I ended up getting 9 out of it. But believe me, these babies should be shared. To emphasize the largeness of these cookies I included a quarter in the picture for size reference. Anyway, on to other matters. These are a lot like the Cookie Pops; they contain milk chocolate chips (instead of semi-sweet), raisins, and nuts (instead of oats). Incredibly enough, they only bake for 10 minutes. I did have a little trouble though, because for some reason one cookie on the pan would consistently underbake. See, each cookie is a full 1/2 cup of dough spread out into a 4-inch circle. I put three cookies at a time on the baking sheet, and for some reason the leftmost cookie would come out less done. It wasn't a huge problem, but it was annoying when one completely fell apart and another almost did. I used a big, big, thin spatula to move them, carefully, and I actually had to get out a second spatula to help move a couple without breaking them.

Other than all that, these cookies look great plain or decorated with frosting and candy. <3 I'm sure they'd be a hit with kids or at parties (as long as they don't mind the raisins and nuts). Again, I'm not a fan of raisins or nuts, but these cookies are tasty. ^-^ Of course, the icing helps a lot. Personally I'd like these better made with oats and peanuts instead of raisins and finely chopped walnuts, but they're still good. I'd give this recipe a 4 out of 5. ^_^ As far as fun though, definitely a 5 out of 5. I happened to have some friends over when I was decorating and they helped. Good times. <3

One more recipe for this month! And it looks really... interesting.

Cheers!

~Jesia

Milk Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Mmmm, these are tastttyyy... <3 It's a simple recipe, and I love that it uses milk chocolate for a change, and the cinnamon really adds something extra. However, since there was only one cup of oats involved (I would have liked more, personally), the cookies turned out rather flat. The good thing about this is that they were chewy with crisp edges, which is one of my favorite types of cookies as far as texture. Mmmmmyum. <3 The bad thing about these cookies is that they're delicate; they easily fall apart. My parents really like these cookies too. I'd give this recipe a solid 4 out of 5. ^_^ I'd definitely make these again.

On that note, on the pages of recipes in the cookbook that I've rated 4 or better I've been adding stickers to make them stand out for future reference. =) I've loved doing this project so far because it's forced me to make all kinds of recipes I wouldn't have normally considered trying. It's become a sort of regimen. It's something that I've made a long-term goal of, and upon successful completion I can celebrate victory knowing that I've proved to myself I have the self-discipline required for these types of goals.

Thanks for reading. Cheers!

~Jesia

Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies

I've been looking forward to this recipe, because I LOVE peanut butter and chocolate. It was a pretty standard recipe, other than the fact that the dough is made chocolate with both melted semi-sweet morsels AND unsweetened cocoa powder. That plus 1/3 cup of peanut butter and a cup of semi-sweet morsels makes for a rather thick dough, which is chilled for a little while to make it nice and firm for "thumbprinting."

It's possible I may have overbaked them a little, but I didn't want them to be too delicate to handle. The cookies are pretty dense, since it's a thick dough and doesn't spread much. To me, they look like Buckeyes: peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate. Except in cookie form, of course. Although I expected them to be richer, they're pretty tasty. ^^ I'd give them a 4 out of 5.

Cheers!

~Jesia

Deep Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

These things are rich. Like, whoa. Verrrry chocolatey. <3 This has the same kind of crust as the Chocolate Amaretto Bars, made simply of flour, butter, and brown sugar. I think I may have overbaked the crust a bit, because it was difficult to cut into. >.>; It's an okay type of crust, but I prefer graham cracker crumb crust myself. Not a difficult recipe at all - very rich and chocolatey. Whoo~

I'd give these babies a 4 out of 5 overall. Even if you're a total chocoholic, I think you'll need a big glass of milk to wash these bars down with. Mm, tasty!

Cheers!

~Jesia

Chocolate Amaretto Bars

This is by far my least favorite as of now... It's one of those recipes where you can't avoid the almonds, and not only am I allergic but I also don't like them. My parents LOVE this recipe, but I really don't... I found it dull and bland, despite all the chocolate. The almonds were just overwhelming. >< The recipe was odd too. The crust is made of simply flour, butter, and brown sugar. The filling honestly looks like someone ate too many almonds and chocolate chips and vomited it up. (Sorry to be so graphic in a food blog, but it's true.) There was 1/4 cup of amaretto liqueur called for in the recipe (or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract, but I figured since these are amaretto bars they should have amaretto liquer). Thanks to my dad for buying the liqueur for me - I couldn't find anything small enough for what I needed, and I was kind of reluctant to spend almost $10 on a bottle of alcohol I was only going to use a little bit of.

Anyway, as far as a rating, I'd have to give this a 2 out of 5... That is slightly generous, but I feel that it would be unfair to penalize the recipe for being comprised mostly of an ingredient I'm allergic to and don't like. Like I said, my parents love these bars though. I suppose it really is a matter of personal taste. If you love almonds and chocolate, this is right up your alley.

Cheers!

~Jesia