Martha Stewart's Snickerdoodles

I heard on TV that the most popular cookie among adults, according to the Mrs. Field's company, is the snickerdoodle. Apparently because it's a childhood favorite. My mom wasn't much of a baker so I never really had snickerdoodles during my childhood, so I didn't really get to appreciate the simple splendor that is the snickerdoodle until later in life. Jeremy LOVES snickerdoodles and gets them a lot at coffee stands, and after stealing bites of his cookies I've come to love them too.

This recipe was adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe I found on Brianna's food blog Oishii. I didn't change much, just added vanilla and reduced the cooking time a tad - I like my snickerdoodles a tiny bit underbaked. These were wonderful, nicely sweet and a great soft, chewy texture. I'm calling these "Martha Stewart" snickerdoodles because Martha makes everything feel fancier. ;)

MARTHA STEWART'S SNICKERDOODLES

INGREDIENTS:

2 3/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For coating:

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with Silpat liners or parchment paper.

2. In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In a medium bowl beat butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating between additions. Beat in vanilla. Slowly beat in flour mixture until combined. In a small bowl combine remaining sugar and cinnamon for coating. Shape dough into 1 inch balls and roll in cinnamon sugar coating. Place on cookie sheets 2 inches apart.

3. Bake until puffed and just lightly golden, about 11 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 2 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Bliss Bars

I was in the mood to bake something, and found a random can of sweetened condensed milk in our pantry. I had seen a post for peanut butter bars on BakingBlonde's blog that used sweetened condensed milk, and since I pretty much had the rest of the ingredients already (except the peanut butter cups, although given Jeremy's love for peanut butter cups I'm surprised we didn't have those on hand as well) I decided to give it a try. I looked around online at different peanut butter bar recipes and came up with this, a combination of this recipe from About.com and the recipe from BakingBlonde's blog.

These were good, very gooey and sweet. I cut them into small squares, left a few for the hubby and am taking the rest to work - they're too dangerous to keep at home. They reminded me a lot of a 7 Layer Bar. I actually think they could have used a little more texture to them - maybe some coconut, or chopped peanuts for a little crunch. They're so gooey they can be a bit hard to eat so I'll probably chill them before serving - I had a hard time getting a nice bar cut for a picture. These were yummy though, and lots of potential for different mix-ins!

PEANUT BUTTER BLISS BARS

INGREDIENTS:

1 (14 0z) can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups quick cooking oats

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup buttered, softened

6 Reeses peanut butter cups, chopped

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degree. Spray a 9x13 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In a medium bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk and peanut butter, stirring until smooth. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl combine flour, salt, oats, brown sugar and baking soda. Add butter and mix until combined - mixture will be crumbly. Pour half of the mixture into the baking pan, spreading evenly and patting down to form a crust.

4. Bake crust for 5 minutes and remove from oven. Pour peanut butter mixture evenly over crust. Sprinkle remaining oat mixture evenly over the top. Return to oven and bake for 10 minutes. Sprinkle peanut butter cups and chocolate chips over the top and bake an addition 5-7 minutes - do not overbake. Allow to cool completely before cutting into squares - you may want to chill bars before cutting.