Buttermilk Sugar Cookies

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup softened butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 to 4 tablespoons buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in dry ingredients. Add enough of the buttermilk to moisten the dough and make it soft, not wet.

Roll rounded teaspoons of dough into balls and place on a ungreased cookie sheet. With a brush or fingers, moisten the top of each cookie with the remaining buttermilk and slightly flatten the top of each cookie. Sprinkle with raw sugar or colored sprinkles.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until slightly golden. Let stand for 2 minutes before removing to cool on a rack.

Buttercream Frosting

• 1 1/2 cups butter, at room temperature (3 sticks)
• 4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 3 Tbsp heavy cream
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (use clear if desired)

Directions:

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, using the paddle or whisk attachment whip butter on medium high speed (if using whisk attachment whip on high speed) until nearly white and very fluffy, about 7 - 8 minutes, frequently scrapping down the sides of the bowl. Add in powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla extract and mix on low speed until blended, then increase speed to medium and beat until very light and fluffy, about 5 - 6 minutes, frequently scraping down the sides of the bowl.

Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

1 (16 oz) bag pretzel twists

⅔ cup butter, melted
vanilla, a dash or two
1 cup sugar
2-3 tbsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine pretzels, melted butter and vanilla into a gallon size Ziploc bag and toss to coat. In a bowl mix together the cinnamon and sugar and pour half of the mixture in the Ziploc to coat the pretzels.  When well-coated, spread the pretzels into a roasting pan. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes, removing twice (after ten minutes and again after twenty minutes) to stir, adding more cinnamon sugar mixture each time.

Cream Cheese Brownies

1 box yellow cake mix
3 eggs
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
4 cups (1 lb) powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 300 and spray a 9×13 dish with cooking spray. Mix cake mix, melted butter and one egg to a soft dough. Press into the bottom of the pan. Mix powdered sugar, softened cream cheese and remaining two eggs until smooth, about 1-2 mins. Pour on top of crust. Bake at 300 for 40-50 minutes until top is golden brown.

Cookies and Cream Christmas Bark

Preparation:
Line an 8×8 pan with enough parchment or wax paper for a 1 inch overhang on each side.

Ingredients:

• 10 oz. white chocolate chips
• 15 regular size Oreos, plus 3 more for topping

Instructions:

1. Place chocolate in a double boiler over low heat and stir continuously, until chocolate is completely melted.  Transfer chocolate to a heat proof bowl and cool for 5 minutes. Add chopped Oreos and stir to combine. Pour mixture into pan. Use a spatula to smooth out top.
2. Finely chop remaining Oreos and sprinkle on top. Chill for about 10 minutes until chocolate becomes solid.
3. Lift whole bark out of pan by holding onto parchment or wax overhang. Split bark into pieces with a fork.

Saltine Toffee

1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed tightly
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
40 saltine crackers

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a 15x10-inch jelly roll pan or a 12x17-inch cookie sheet with foil and spray with non-stick spray. Lay a flat layer of crackers out on the foil. Melt the sugar and butter until a boil is reached. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 5-6 minutes or until mixture is thickened and sugar is completely dissolved. Pour this mixture over the crackers and spread to coat evenly. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the toffee becomes bubbly. After removing the pan from the oven, let it sit for 3-5 minutes. Sprinkle on the chocolate chips, let them soften and melt, and then spread them into an even layer. (You can add nuts, cracker crumbs, crushed peppermint, etc.) Let cool and, if desired for expediting purposes, refrigerate until hardened. Break into pieces the size of your choice.

Soft, Thick Sugar Cookies

These cookies taste just like the soft sugar cookies found in the store; we loved them.

1 18 oz box white cake mix with pudding in the mix
2/3 cup flour
2 large eggs
1/3 cup canola oil
2 T sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large mixing bowl, stir together cake mix and flour.  Add eggs, oil and sour cream and mix on medium speed until incorporated.  Batter will be fairly stiff.  Use a cookie scoop or roll into approximately one inch balls and bake on a baking sheet lined with a Silpat or parchment paper.  This will help keep the bottoms of the cookies from browning.  Use the heel of your hand or a glass dusted with sugar to gently flatten cookies to about a half inch thick.  You don't want the bottoms to be browned or you've over-baked these.  Bake approximately ten minutes until just set.  Let cool about one minute on the pan and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.  Frost with your favorite frosting.