Brownies and Cookies - all together in one bite

I've made brookie cookies before but not all in one pan, these were much easier. I mean sure you make a bunch if mini cookies but it's with melted butter, melted butter is easier than softened. Especially if your kitchen is so cold because we live somewhere that the air hurts our faces. This recipes makes a nice 8 x 8 pan of bars, they cut into small bite sized bars. I baked these and let them sit overnight before I cut them. That way they setup and didn't run all over the place. These bars were a hit. Not just brownies but cookies too! All in one bite.

Brookies Brownies
Cookie dough:
⅓ cup (75g) unsalted butter, just melted
⅓ cup (70g) packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoon (25g) granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
¾ cup (105g) all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
heaping ¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup (85g) dark chocolate chips. plus extra for topping
Brownie Batter:
5 oz (142g) bittersweet chocolate (70% cocoa), coarsely chopped
6 tablespoon (84g) unsalted butter
2 large eggs at room temperature
¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup (50g) all-purpose flour

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8x8-inch square metal baking pan with parchment paper leaving a 2-inch overhang at each side and secure the sides down on the edge of the pan with ¾-inch binder clips. See notes on the last step for baking in a 9-inch pan.
Make the cookie dough. Melt the butter in the microwave or on the stovetop until it is JUST melted so it is still pale yellow and creamy-looking. Basically, gently melt it until there is still some solid butter left and then stir off the heat until the residual heat gently melts the remaining solid butter. Combine melted butter with brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large bowl and mix to combine. Mix in egg yolk and vanilla. Sprinkle in flour, baking soda and salt and fold it in. Fold in chocolate chips.
Roll cookie dough into about 18 small balls, transfer them to a lined plate or tray, cover and refrigerate while you make the brownie batter.
Make the brownie batter. Combine chocolate and butter in a saucepan over very low heat and stir constantly until melted and smooth, or melt in the microwave at 50% power in short bursts with frequent stirring.
Combine eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt in a large bowl and whisk until pale and thick. Beat in warm melted chocolate mixture. Sprinkle flour over the mixture and fold it in until evenly combined.
Scrape about half of the brownie batter into prepared pan and spread it out evenly using a small offset spatula. Flatten half (9) of the chilled dough balls into discs and lay them over the batter in three rows of three. Spread remaining brownie batter on top to cover the cookie dough, and then place remaining flattened dough balls over top. Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce temperature to 325°F and bake for another 15-20 minutes until a skewer comes out with a few moist stick crumbs attached.

Baking steak and not cookies

Things I don't like cooking, meat. I'm just not good at it, let alone great. I had steak on the menu, and the grill was frozen shut... so that meant it was up to me to figure out how to get that cooked in the house. Blech... I found this oven baked steak recipe; it seemed workable. It actually worked out very well. Did I get a great crust on it? Nope, but did it cook to a decent doneness and taste pretty good? Sure! Did everyone eat it? Sure did. Did they even eat the leftovers? They did. Guess what? I made steak! Will I do it again any time soon? Probably not, seems like a job for not me. I'll keep working on cookies and bars. So, if you too need help in the meat cooking department - here you go!

Oven Baked Steak Recipe
Ingredients
24 ounces boneless ribeye steaks 2 (1-inch thick) steaks
1 tablespoon olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2-4 sprigs fresh thyme optional
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (¼ stick), plus more for serving

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Rub both sides of each steak with olive oil. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
24 ounces boneless ribeye steaks,1 tablespoon olive oil, Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once it is very hot, add in the steaks. Sear for 1-2 minutes or until you get a nice crust. The hotter the pan, the faster the crust will form.
Flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes on the second side.
Remove from the heat and top each steak with a tablespoon of butter. Add the thyme to the pan.
2-4 sprigs fresh thyme,2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Bake for 10-15 minutes, until desired temperature is achieved.
Let the steaks rest for 5-10 minutes before serving with more butter.

All the flowers....

When all the things pile up on one night and you need to be in more than one place at a time - and bake for two things that are happening at once, you pick a known winner... Monster Cookies. Dump all good things into the bowl add more good things, scoop them out and out come great cookies! But why does everything pile up? Legit we had to be at two different events at one time and really four people needed to be in four different places. But we made it work, we had all the baked goods where they needed to be and oh there was snow too... Surprise snow because that's all we get this winter, endless snow - then cold. I'm ready for warmth and sunshine and flowers! ALL the flowers. Let's plan better huh? Fewer things, fewer places, fewer things... but all the flowers....

Monster Cookies
Ingredients
1 cup (120g) all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp cornstarch
½ tsp salt
1 ¼ cup (115-124g) old fashion rolled oats
½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup (107g) brown sugar
½ cup (99g) granulated sugar
½ cup (135g) creamy peanut butter
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup (210g) mini m&ms
1 cup (170g) chocolate chips

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350º F. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch, salt, and oats. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar with an electric mixer, for 1-2 minutes. Add in the creamy peanut butter, vanilla and egg, beat again.
Gradually add in the dry ingredients, mixing on low or by hand just until combined. Add in the mini M&Ms and chocolate chips, mix by hand. The dough will be thick.
Use a cookie scoop to form dough balls and place them on a silicone mat lined baking sheet. Press additional m&ms and chocolate chips onto the outside of the balls if desired. I used a 2 Tbsp/1 oz scoop for average sized cookies and a 4 Tbsp/2 oz scoop for extra large cookies.
Bake the 2 Tbsp/1 oz size dough balls for 10-13 minutes, bake the 4 Tbsp/2 oz size dough balls for 13-15 minutes or until the edges begin to just turn golden. They will look slightly undercooked, but will continue cooking once removed from the oven. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet.

Screenshots saved make great treats

Once upon a time I saw a video online of someone making this recipe. They tossed the recipe card up on the screen, I took a screen shot and decided some day I'd make them. That day was last Saturday. Sometimes you just need a baking challenge and that was mine. Turns out these are really easy to make. The dough came together very easily and while I wasn't sure how to form the 12-in roll, I figured it out, flattened them too. They really spread out way more than I thought they would - but cutting them apart was easy with a bench scrapper. I suppose you could use a pizza cutter too but the bench scrapper was easy, I sprayed it with a little vegetable oil and it worked well. Add the drizzle of almond icing when they are cool and these are great.

Scandinavian Almond Bars
Ingredients
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon almond extract
Milk
½ cup sliced almonds, coarsely chopped

Almond Icing
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
½ teaspoon almond extract
Enough milk (3 to 4 teaspoons) to make icing of drizzling consistency

Directions
Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large mixer bowl beat butter or margarine until softened. Add sugar and beat till fluffy. Add egg and almond extract and beat well. Add flour mixture and beat till well mixed.
Divide dough into fourths. Form each into a 12-inch roll. Place two rolls 4 to 5 Inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten till 3 inches wide. Repeat with remaining rolls.
Brush fattened rolls with milk and sprinkle with almonds. Bake in a 325° oven for 12 to 14 minutes or till edges are lightly browned. While cookies are still warm, cut them crosswise at a diagonal Into 1-Inch strips. Cool. Drizzle with Almond Icing.

One giant fluff loaf

It's the new year and I'm already starting my mental mood of "throw it all away!" which includes, use everything we have instead of buying new things, which apparently includes bread for dinner too. Also, it was like 1 degree out yesterday and I did not feel like going to the store to find some biscuits or bread to eat with dinner. This recipe has been sitting in my "to try" list for a while, it was ridiculously easy and we all loved it. What makes it Amish? No idea, all I know is it turned into amazingly fluffy bread. You could easily make this by hand, but I used my "fancy" bread mixer. Well, I call it that because usually that's the only thing I make in it. It's great at kneading the dough so you don't have to. So if you need some fresh bread or just need some carbs… this one is easy and uses easy pantry staples. It also just makes one giant loaf instead of multiple loaves that you have no idea what to do with.

Amish White Bread
Ingredients
1 cup warm water, 110-120°F
⅓ Cups granulated sugar
1 packet, 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast
3 cups all purpose flour
¾ teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
In a small bowl, stir together the water, sugar, and yeast. Let sit for 10 minutes, until bubbles form.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add the flour, salt, and oil. Pour in the yeast mixture. Turn the mixer to medium and allow to knead until the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl, about 10 minutes.
Roll into a tight ball and transfer to a greased bowl. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a dark, warm, draft free place for 60 to 90 minutes, until doubled in size.
Deflate and shape into a log to fit in a 9x5 loaf pan. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a dark, warm, draft free place for 50 to 60 minutes, until doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 350°F about 20 minutes before the second rise is done.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown.
Brush the crust with melted butter and let cool for 10 minutes in the pan.
Remove loaf from pan and transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely