Sugar Cookies - Thick and Chewy - Buffalo...

The day has finally arrived....a day I can proudly say the perfect THICK & CHEWY sugar cookie has come into existence! It has been years of testing, practice, trial and error but look no further for the recipe is here!

Brenna's Thick and Chewy Sugar Cookie Tips:
Dough stage - Butter must be room temperature (not melted, not cold). Beat the butter and sugar for 5 or more minutes (should turn fluffy and light white in color). When dough is formed, wrap and chill at the very least 30 minutes.
Rolling stage - Roll the cookies 1/3" to 1/2" thick. Yes, that thick. Place on a cooled cookie sheet. Place in the refrigerator 15 or so minutes (to re-chill the butter) before baking in the oven.
Baking stage - Bake only 6-7 minutes - the cookies will still be soft to the touch and pale in color (not golden brown).

1st stage of creaming the butter and sugar

2nd stage of creaming the butter and sugar

3rd (and final) stage of creaming the butter and sugar

Perfectly creamed butter and sugar (5 minutes later)

Evenly mix all the wet ingredients

Place the dough on a lightly floured surface

Pat the dough into a disk and then wrap with plastic and chill

Roll to 1/3" to 1/2" thickness

Roll to 1/3" to 1/2" thickness

Bake 6-7 minutes - still pale in color

Thick and fluffy!

Piping bag and small round tip (or use Ziplock baggies)

Place over a cup to easily pour in frosting without a mess

Wilton's Gel Food Coloring - the best

Just pipe around the edges - let it dry completely

Fill in the spaces

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Sugar Cookies Thick and Chewy (Holly)

Author: Brenna Bowers

Serving: 30-40 thick cookies (about 2-3” each)

Ingredients:

1 cup salted butter (if using unsalted butter, add another ½ tsp of salt), room temp

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

3 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. almond extract

1 cup sour cream

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking soda

7 cups flour

Frosting:

4 cups powdered sugar*

2 tsp vanilla extract

4 Tbs milk

brown gel food coloring

chocolate/brown sprinkles

*chocolate frosting: substitute 3 Tbs. of powdered sugar for unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions:

In an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar for 5 minutes - or until light white and fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla extract and almond extract; beating until evenly mixed. Add sour cream and again, beat until just mixed.

In another large bowl, combine salt, baking soda and flour. Add to the wet mixture, in 3 additions, mixing in between each addition. Mix just until it forms a dough.

Sprinkle your counter with a light dusting of flour. Press the dough into a circular disk, adding enough flour to just keep the dough from sticking to the counter. Place into the refrigerator 30-60 minutes.

With a rolling pin (or wine bottle) roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/3” -1/2” thick. Really. And press with a cookie cutter. Use a spatula to carefully slide under each cookie and place onto a parchment-lined cookie sheets (Tip 1).

Bake at 375 degrees F. for 6-7 minutes. THEY WILL NOT LOOK DONE…BUT THEY ARE! Leave them on the cookie sheet to cool completely before moving to prevent cracking the cookie.  

Frosting:

In an electric mixer, beat all the ingredients together until evenly mixed. It should be slightly runny, adjust with more powdered sugar or milk.

Place a small piping tip into a pastry bag (or use a Ziplock plastic baggie and cut the tip) and fill with the prepared frosting.

Outline each cookie and let the frosting harden. Then go back in and pipe the frosting to fill each cookie. Top with chocolate sprinkles.

Tip 1: (Optional) Sugar cookies have the tendency to flatten as they bake, therefore they loose their detail. To prevent this, start by placing rolled cookies onto a cooled parchment-lined cookie sheet. Secondly, place the cookie sheet into the refrigerator 10-15 minutes to re-chill the butter in the dough and then place straight into the oven for baking.

Peaches and Cream Oatmeal...

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A hearty and healthy Vegan breakfast to kick start your day the right way!

Flavor packed and rich with fiber, healthy fats (from the coconut) and protein (from the nuts). So eat your breakfast to "break the fast"!

Coconut water really adds to the flavor of the oatmeal.

Allow the cinnamon- coconut- oatmeal to simmer (small bubbles).

Fresh peaches and roasted almonds are key players!

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Peaches and Cream Oatmeal

Author: Brenna Bowers

Serving: 2

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Ingredients:

1 cup oats (quick oats or old-fashioned)

½ cup light coconut milk

1 ½ cups coconut water (Brenna's fav-Zico, found @ Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Safeway)

½ teaspoon cinnamon

2 Tablespoons maple syrup

¼ cup toasted almonds, chopped

1 ripe peach, sliced

Optional garnish (not displayed in picture): coconut cream, coconut flakes

Directions:

In a small saucepan, add the oats, coconut milk, coconut water and cinnamon. On medium-low heat, allow the mixture to come to a simmer (small bubbles); will take about 4-5 minutes. Simmer the oatmeal 1 minute and continually stir (to keep from burning the bottom). Remove from the heat and cover with a lid for 2-5 minutes (Tip 1).

Stir in maple syrup and chopped almonds. Divide the oatmeal mixture into 2 servings and top with peaches. Garnish (optional) with coconut cream or coconut flakes for added coconut flavor.

Tip 1: Covering the oatmeal with a lid is optional. I like my oatmeal thick/less liquid so I place the lid on the mixture so that it continues to cook in its own steam. If you prefer your oatmeal more runny, either cook it less time or add more liquid towards the end.

Wine & Sunflower Wedding Cake...

Love, happiness, smiles and joy filled our hearts at the Gallagher Wedding. Andrew and Amy Gallagher, may your lives be blessed with a fruitful marriage and be filled with the love of Christ!

Thank you for the privileged of designing your wedding cake, it was great to be a part of your special day.

Now for my friends and family, I am happy to share with you the themed:
 

Wine and Sunflower Wedding Cake 

Chocolate Wine Cake with Port Ganache &

 Chai Tea Cake with Cream Cheese Buttercream

designed by Brenna Bowers

Chocolate Vegan Pudding...

Decadent, rich, smooth and scrumptious all will come to mind with each bite of this dessert! And believe it or not, this recipe is Vegan, Gluten Free and Dairy Free!

So whether you are craving a healthy dessert or maybe watching your figure, you can still have dessert today!

How is Chocolate Vegan Pudding good for me?

It is important that we consume 'healthy fats' in our diet. The secret ingredient in this recipe--avocado--is the perfect source of healthy fats in the form of Omega 3's. Omega 3's help your body properly metabolize, reduce bad cholesterol (LDL) while raising good cholesterol (HDL), reduce inflammation and maintain proper cell membrane function.

So how about it....try this simple and decadent dessert for yourself!

Made with AVOCADOS!!!

Vegan, Dairy Free & Gluten Free!

Chocolate Vegan Pudding

Author: Brenna Bowers

Serving: 4

Ingredients:

2 ripe avocados (Hass is best/black kind), peeled and pit discarded

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

¼ cup water

1/3 cup maple syrup

3 Tbs honey

2 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

1 cup fresh raspberries (or any seasonal berry)

Directions:

In a high powered blender (Vitamix is best) or food processor add the avocado flesh, cocoa powder, water, maple syrup, honey, vanilla extract and salt. Blend for 1 minute (adding more water or maple syrup if the blender is seizing up) until the mixture is creamy and smooth.

Divide the pudding into 4 ramekins (small bowls) and top each with fresh raspberries. Eat right away or chill before serving.

*Nutrition Information on Avocados from one of my favorite sites: Avocado Facts

Churro Cupcakes wtih Dulce de Leche...

A cupcake twist on some favorite foods...dulce de leche and churros.
Bake a batch of your own, you won't regret it...that's a promise.

Churro cupcake with Dulce de Leche center

Vanilla cake batter

Cinnamon cake batter

Swirl the cinnamon and vanilla batter with a toothpick

With a pairing knife, remove a small piece of the center to be filled

Spoon Dulce de Leche into the hole of each cupcake

Pipe on the Vanilla Cinnamon Frosting

Churro Cupcakes with a Dulce de Leche Filling

Author: Brenna Bowers

Serving: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

Cinnamon Vanilla Churro Cake:

1 box white cake mix (Duncan Hines)

1 package (4 servings) instant vanilla pudding mix

1 cup water

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

¼ teaspoon almond extract

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 egg whites

1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 can (13.4 oz) Dulce de leche

2 large churros (Costco), cut into 24 bite size pieces

Vanilla Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 stick butter (1/2 cup), room temperature

8 oz. (1 block) cream cheese, room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2-3 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Cinnamon Vanilla Churro Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 2 cupcake tins with cupcake liners (24).

In a mixing bowl combine the cake mix, pudding mix, water, oil, almond extract, vanilla extract and egg whites. Mix for 2 minutes or until well incorporated. Remove ½ cup of the batter and stir in 1 Tablespoons of ground cinnamon.  Divide the vanilla cake batter evenly amongst the 24 cupcake holders. Spoon a dollop of the cinnamon batter into the center of each cupcake. Using a toothpick, swirl the batter to give a marbled effect.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Let cool completely.

With a paring knife, make a small hole in the center of each cupcake to be filled. Spoon and fill each hole with a dollop of dulce de leche.

Vanilla Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:

In another mixing bowl beat the butter and cream cheese until whipped (2 minutes). Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon. Mix in powdered sugar and whip for 1 minute until fluffy.

Pipe frosting onto each cooled and filled cupcake. Top each cupcake with a piece of churro.

Eat and repeat!