Copy-cat Lofthouse Sugar Cookies

I must admit, I’m not a big fan of store-bought cookies.  My mom spoiled us growing up and we always had homemade cookies in the house.  In fact, one of my close friends would always come to our house right after school because he knew that my mom would have cookies and tea waiting for us!

There is one kind of store-bought cookies that I do really like though, those pillow-soft Lofthouse sugar cookies, topped with a sweet frosting and sprinkles!  Oh, the temptation every time I see them in the store!  I’m not sure what it is about the cookies, perhaps because they are so soft and flaky that they seem homemade, but I have a hard time resisting them.

I’ve had a recipe for copy-cat Lofthouse cookies pinned for quite some time now, but I finally had time to make them this weekend.  They require a bit of planning ahead as the dough needs to be refrigerated for at least 2 hours prior to rolling it out.  The dough comes together quite easily, and though it is very sticky, a little bit of flour makes it manageable to work with.  I made about 3 dozen regular sized cookies and one giant one, but you’ll have to come back on Wednesday to see what I did with the giant cookie!

Copy-cat Lofthouse Sugar Cookies

Makes 5-6 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, room temperature

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1-1/2 cups sour cream

6 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1.  In the bowl of your stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

2.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until it is incorporated.

3.  Add the vanilla and sour cream and beat until combined.

4.  Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix on low speed until combined.  The dough will be sticky.

5.  Divide the dough in half and flatten into 1-1/2 inch thick rectangles.  (It will help if you work on a floured surface and flour your hands.)  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

6.  Remove one of the dough rectangles from the fridge and unwrap it.  Place the dough on a floured surface and roll out to about 1/4 inch thick. 

7.  Use a 2-1/2” cookie cutter (I actually just use a drinking glass, so mine were probably closer to 3") to cut out cookies.  Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  It is best to work in small batches and keep the dough cold until you’re ready to work with it.

8.  Bake at 425 for 8 minutes, until the cookies are lightly browned.

9.  Allow the cookies to cool completely before frosting them.  (Frosting recipe is below.)  Decorate as desired.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature.  You can also freeze unfrosted cookies.

Frosting

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 cups powdered sugar

6 Tablespoons heavy cream

Food coloring

1.  In the bowl of your stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and vanilla.

2.  Slowly beat in the powdered sugar until smooth and creamy.

3.  Mix in the heavy cream, one Tablespoon at a time, until the desired frosting consistency is achieved. 

4.  If desired, add in a few drops of food color and beat until evenly colored.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  Bring to room temperature before spreading.

Banana Bread Donuts

Do you have baking moods?  I do!  Since I have Fridays off from work, I usually spend a portion of the day baking.  Sometimes I wake up knowing exactly what I'm going to bake that day and other days I have no idea what sounds fun.  On the days I don't know what to make, I'll often narrow down my choices by the ingredients I have in the house or how much time and effort I feel like putting into a recipe.

These banana bread donuts came about because I had quite a few over ripe bananas and I wanted something easy to bake.  My added incentive was using my Baby Cakes donut maker for the first time!  I also wondered how it would work to take a banana bread recipe and make it in donut form.  It turns out that it works out pretty well!  I made the batter for my Healthier Banana Bread and just poured it into the donut pans.  The taste and texture was different than the banana bread, which I found interesting!  I topped some of the mini donuts with cream cheese frosting, and it added the perfect amount of sweetness.

Healthier Banana Bread Donuts

Makes 12 donuts

You will need:
1-1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1-1/2 cups mashed bananas (approximately 3 large bananas)
4 Tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs
1/4 cup low-fat plain yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla
cream cheese frosting

1. Whisk flour, whole wheat flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg together in a large bowl.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the mashed bananas, butter, eggs, yogurt and vanilla.

3. Gently fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture until just combined.

4.  Pour batter into greased donut pans.

5. Bake at 325 for 15-17 minutes, until golden brown and a donut springs back after being touched lightly.

6.  Cool donuts slightly before transferring to a wire rack and frosting.

Source: America's Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Cookie Frosting

Last weekend, Mike and I packed up the truck and drove 5 hours to go camping with my Mom's family in Canada.  It was hot, but thankfully we had a bit of shade on our lot.  We enjoyed catching up with everyone, swimming, campfires, and lots of good food (of course!).

My Dad's birthday was on Saturday and so I made him cupcakes to celebrate.  He loves chocolate and peanut butter (who doesn't?) so when I saw these cupcakes, I knew I had to make them.  I'm so happy that I did--these cupcakes were delicious, but the icing on the cake, literally, was the peanut butter frosting!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Cookie Frosting

Makes 24 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
1-1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 Tablespoons (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-1/2 cups packed brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

For the ganache:
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
For the peanut butter cookie frosting:
9 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
3 cups powered sugar

1.  In a small bowl, whisk together the coffee and cocoa powder until dissolved.  Set aside.

2.  In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking power and salt.  Set aside.

3.  In the bowl of your electric mixer, combine the butter, brown sugar, and sugar.  Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy.

4.  Beat in eggs one at a time until combined.  Blend in vanilla.

5.  Turn the mixer on to low speed and add the dry ingredients alternating with the coffee mixture.  Mix after each addition until just combined, being careful not to overmix.

6.  Divide the batter into paper lined cupcake tins, filling each 2/3 of the way full.

7.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcake comes out clean.  Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

8.  When the cupcakes have cooled, make the ganache.  First, place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl.

9.  Bring the heavy cream to simmer, pour it over the chopped chocolate, and let it stand for about 2 minutes.

10.  Whisk the heavy cream and chocolate until a smooth ganache forms.  If necessary, let the ganache sit at room temperature to thicken before using.

11.  To make the peanut butter cookie frosting, combine the peanut butter and butter in the bowl of your stand mixer and beat on medium for 1 minute.

12.  Add in the powdered sugar and mix on low until completely combined.  Increase the speed to medium and mix until smooth, about 2 minutes.

13.  Scoop about 1 Tablespoon of the peanut butter mixture and form it into a round patty.  Use the tines of a fork to make a crisscross pattern on top of the patty.  (You want it to look like a classic peanut butter cookie.)  Repeat with remaining mixture.

14.  Dip the tops of the cupcakes into the ganache to ice it.  (If your ganache is too thick to dip, use an offset spatula to spread it over the cupcakes.)  Place a peanut butter "cookie" on top of the ganache.

Store in a airtight container in the fridge.

Source:  Sweet Savory Life via Annie's Eats

Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting (5/11/09)
Out of 3 recipes I made today, this was the only one that turned out the way it was supposed to. Of course it turned out so well that I just had to share it!


Cupcakes
You will need:
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup whole milk

1. Mix together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.

2. In a large bowl mix together butter and sugar until fluffy.

3. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each egg is added.

4. Mix in vanilla.

5. Alternate mixing in milk and dry ingredients.

6. Mix ingredients thoroughly, then scoop into muffin tin. I use a 1/4 cup measuring cup and the amount is just about perfect.

7. Bake at 350 for 20-22 minutes, until poufy but not brown.


Buttercream Frosting

You will need:
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup margarine or butter (softened)
1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
4 cups powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons milk

1. In a large bowl cream shortening and margarine.

2. Mix in vanilla.

3. Gradually add sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating at medium speed. Icing may appear dry, but that's okay.

4. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.


Decorate cupcakes
Allow cupcakes to cool completely. Scoop frosting into frosting bag or tube. I used a star shaped tip. I then circled around the cupcake with the tip, outside to inside.