Day 3: Red Velvet Cookies

Red velvet cake has always been a requested and well-received dessert in our household. (That has only been established for about 5 months... haha.) Our love for all things red velvet has gone back way before my Business Man and I were married.

My Business Man's birthday is on Flag Day. (June 14!) So, every year while he was growing up, his mom would make him a red velvet cake, one layer red and one layer blue. How cute!

I also have a killer red velvet cupcake recipe, that I have used on many separate occasions. One of those being when one of my BFF's from college got married last summer! I made cupcakes for her wedding, and red velvet was one of her choices. With homemade cream cheese frosting. Yumm... that was such a great weekend! Now she's off in South Korea... visit her here!

Anyways, when I saw this recipe for Red Velvet Cookies, I immediately thought "Christmas!" What doesn't scream Christmas more than red-tinted cookies? 'Tis the season!

Little red cookies, all lined up in a row.

Yes, I took my cookies outside to take a picture. The lighting is so much better.

These cookies were SO. GOOD. Definitely of the chewy variety, with a light cocoa taste. Not overwhelmingly chocolatey. And not so red that your tongue turns funky colors. Perfect with a mug of hot cocoa.

And I had another idea: Make half with red food coloring, half with green! Red and green Christmas cookies! (Or would that be a little too out there?)

Red Velvet Cookies

Ingredients

½ cup butter
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. red food coloring
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
⅓ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup chocolate chips, white, milk, or semisweet

Method

Preheat oven to 375*F.

Cream butter and sugars together until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until smooth. Blend in red food coloring. Stir in flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

Drop dough by spoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. (Caution: Don't overbake! You want these to be a bit chewy.)

Oh, by the way, if you were wondering, I made it to the store to stock up on all my necessities for the rest of my cookies.

And that's not even everything. I couldn't find the molasses or peppermint kisses. And I forgot the marshmallow fluff. And I'm sure I will be going back at some point this month to re-stock on flour, sugar, butter, eggs, and all that...

Tonight, my Business Man and I are headed to a Christmas function for his business. A great start to the weekend!

Quality control: Yup, they're safe to eat!

Question: What dessert do you associate most with Christmas?

The Arrival of Something New...

Woo hoo for the last Friday of the school year! And only one more day of school next week. (And then a couple teacher workshops...) Another reason to be excited? Our fridge came today!! Isn't she a beauty? It is so nice to have a fridge again. You don't realize how much you miss a full-size refrigerator until you go a couple weeks without it. A bit bare... but that can be solved easily. Bottom-drawer freezer, containing the essentials: moose tracks & Diet Dew trying to get cold asap. Anyways, I'm just popping in to share my beautiful new appliance. The baking monster has taken over, and I'm in the midst of making 150 cupcakes for a graduation party tomorrow. First big baking project in the new kitchen! I'm loving all the counter space. Mmm... chocolate buttercream! Making good use of the baking nook! :) Adios!

The Essential Summer Dessert

Last weekend, my Business Man and I hosted a fiesta for some of our friends in the Bean Town. While everyone enjoyed the food, I think dessert was the biggest hit. (Surprise, surprise.) We had brownies (from a box, the horror!) topped with chocolate ganache, and fruit pizza . Fruit pizza is most definitely my "go-to" summer dessert. Since it's the official 1st day of summer, I thought I'd share the recipe! It's delicious without being too heavy or rich. And it's most definitely healthy, because you are eating fruit, right? The recipe I use is my mom's... she's been using it for years. It starts with a basic sugar cookie base, topped with a cream cheese-whipped topping, and then all the fruit your little heart desires! I usually go with strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, pineapple, and mandarin oranges. But raspberries are really good, too. Even better when you pick the fruit yourself! (Picking berries on our honeymoon last July.) ...

2011 Flying Pig Marathon Race Recap

Marathons are hard. But before we get to the actual marathon, let's rewind a bit to Saturday afternoon. We arrived in Cincy around 2pm, and hit up marathon expo. Goodness sakes, I had never seen a room so large filled with so many runners. Everyone was so excited, you could almost feel the energy. We weaved our way through the exhibitors and what they had to offer. (Think free dark chocolate almond granola samples! Yum! I also might have snagged some info on the Disney Half & Marathon in January... we shall see.) We also stopped for a few fun photo ops. Posing with a balloon flying pig. These were everywhere! Flying pigs with all sorts of themes. They were so cute! After the expo, we headed to our early-bird dinner. We had the luxury of dining at Maggiano's Little Italy (major carb-loading!), and it was a fantastic dining experience. The service was great , and the food was delicious as well. None of us had ever eaten there, befo...

Livin' the Dream in Lima

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