Stir-n-drop Sugar Cookies

I like to bring cookies to family parties because they are easy for everyone to grab and eat. Mom has a lot of cookie recipes with nuts, but I try to avoid nuts for family parties in case of nut allergies. This recipe was a perfect cookie for a recent family get-together for father's day.

These cookies are so easy to make and easier to eat. When I made them, I made smaller cookies, but this recipe could also be used to make some jumbo cookies. The recipe calls for butter flavor vegetable oil, but I just used standard vegetable oil. The recipe says to bake for eight to ten minutes, but I found that they baked in about six to seven minutes. Give these easy and tasty cookies a try.

Stir-n-Drop Sugar Cookies 

• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup butter flavor oil
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt

Beat eggs. Stir in oil, vanilla, and sugar. Sift together the dry ingredients; add to egg mixture. Drop by teaspoonful about two-inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten each cookie with bottom of glass dipped in sugar. Bake at 400 for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove immediately from cookie sheet. Enjoy!

Norwegian Cream Cake

Recently, we had Mom, Meg, and Tim over to our new house. For dessert, I decided to make a recipe that might not travel well because I could just serve it at home. So I found this layer cake recipe that fit the bill. This cake is delicious, especially after being refrigerated for a day or two.

When I made this recipe, I used fresh strawberries because we are in the height of strawberry season. Because some of the strawberries were so large, they had to be sliced. Try to keep the slices of equal thickness. Meg suggested that for the whipped cream mixed in with the strawberries would benefit from having some strawberry juice mixed in to enhance the strawberry flavor. I will have to do so the next time I make this recipe.

Norwegian Cream Cake 

• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup potato flour or cornstarch
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 2 packages (10 ounce) frozen strawberries or raspberries
• 1 1/2 pints whipping cream
• sugar to taste

Mix eggs and sugar in a large bowl. Use mixer for about 15 to 20 minutes, until eggs and sugar are mixed well. Prepare a 9 or 10 inch springform pan by greasing it slightly and sprinkling flour in the pan. Sift flours and baking powder and mix well. Add to batter, making sure all flour is mixed in. Pour into baking pan and bake at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes, until light golden brown. Do not open the door before the time is up. Let cool. Cut in two layers. Whip the cream with a little sugar to taste. Fill bottom cake layer with thawed fruit mixed with a little whipped cream. Put top layer back on and decorate top and sides with whipped cream. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!

Double Chocolate - Chocolate Chip Cookies

This cookie recipe is so easy to make and eat. The trick is that the recipe uses a package of cake mix. I recently made these cookies for Lorelei's and Patrick's eighth grade graduation party. The cookies were a hit. Because they are so easy to eat, they slowly disappeared during the party and not many were left at the end.

I made these cookies on the small side because I like having small cookies that are easy to grab and eat. Jenny mentioned that she recently came across a similar recipe that used these cookies to make ice cream sandwiches. These cookies would make excellent ice cream sandwiches, but you might want to make larger cookies for such use. When I made these cookies, I left out the walnuts because not everyone likes nuts in cookies. 

Double Chocolate-Chocolate Chips 

• 1 package devil's food cake mix
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 package chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Combine all but the chips and walnuts. Blend thoroughly. Stir in chips and walnuts. Drop by teaspoonful onto lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 375 for 10 to 12 minutes. Enjoy!