Kitchen Sink Cookies

This weekend after all the sickness, we needed some cookies.  It's not as if we did not have pounds of candy laying around from Valentines and needed more sugar, but some times you just want cookies. Or rather cookie dough...

I am telling you, we would be dead if this was true...

So kitchen sink cookies all started one day at school...One of my teammates has a sister that works for Panera bread and she full out stopped a meeting and was like, "Girls! Last night I had the best cookie..." she proceeded to tell us all about how she devoured a cookie that was the size of her head and had everything you could imagine in it. When we asked her what it was she couldn't remember the official name of it. Which lead us to grab our phones and or computers and do a furious search for said cookies. We found out they are indeed called, "Everything but the kitchen sink cookies". Therefore leading us each to agree to bake a batch and bring it to school on Monday. I love my team SO much!

My cookies were not the most amazing looking, but I highly suggest whippin' up a batch and giving them a try!

It's a pretty basic cookie dough, but the add ins are what makes it amazing!

You need:

1 cup of butter room temperature (I used salted)

1 cup of white sugar

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1 egg + 1 egg white

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups of flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp of baking soda

1 tsp salt

Pre-heat the oven to 350.

First whip together the butter and gradually add in the sugars until it's nice and fluffy. Then add in the egg  and vanilla...

Like so...

Next add in the dry ingredients a little at a time, don't over mix. I think I mixed mine a titch too much and they were a little flat, but still super yummy.

After the dough is done add in the mix ins. We went all out, y'all! The title does not lie....

I crushed up pretzels, potato chips and fritos...a little salty, you know.

I lost my meat tenderizer mallet, so a spatula had to do...

Next, mix in 1 cup of your salty snacks! Then mix all of your sweet ingredients. We went with cocoa nut flakes, butter scotch chips, milk chocolate chips, craisins, and caramel bits. Yummm!

Then, add in 1 and 1/2 cups of your sweet ingredients. Again just mix them in nice and easy with a spoon or spatula, NOT the mixer!

After all of the mix ins are added, make loosely formed balls of dough and plop them on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Pop them into the oven for about 15 minutes! The first batch came out a little dark and more crispy than I liked. If your oven runs hot, like mine, reduce the time a little so they come out golden brown. My 2nd batch was MUCH better!

Let them cool and ENJOY!

They were oh-so-good and hit the spot!

cookie dough cupcakes

This weekend Brien got to try out his new smoker and make ribs for my parents, my brother and his wife. I was on dessert duty ( my favorite)! I have tried this recipe from scratch several times before and I have never had it come out quite right. This time was the best so far! So you need:

1 box brownie mix (prepare as instructed on the box, mine required 2 eggs, 1/3 cup oil and 1/4 cupwater)
1 package of break apart chocolate chip cookie dough
regular sized muffin/cupcake tin
1 brick (8 oz) 1/3 fat cream cheese (softened)
1/2 cup of butter (softened)
2 tsp of vanilla extract
3-4 cups of powdered sugar


1. Prepare brownies as directed on box:

2. Then roll the cookie dough into balls.

3. Coat muffin tins with cooking spray. Fill the muffin tins about 3/4 full with the brownie mixture, then press the cookie dough balls into the brownie batter.( I should have used cupcake liners, but we were out)

4. Bake the brownie/cookie cups for 18 minutes at 350. Check the brownie mixture to see if it is cooked through, a tooth pick should come out pretty clean at 18 minutes. Cook longer as needed.

5. While brownies cook, mix up frosting

6. Whip the butter, cream cheese and vanilla extract together using electric mixer for about 2 minutes. Slowly add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time.

7.*** allow the brownies to cool or remove them from the cupcake pan after they have had time to cool. (I tried to get them out too soon and a few of them fell apart) I waited about an hour.

8. I put my frosting mix in a gallon plastic bag and cut off the corner to frost the brownie cup cakes!

They were pretty easy and super yummy!