Golden Homemade Oreos

Nothing says kick back and settle in for the holidays than your favorite homemade recipe. And ours is a newfound favorite of an old, old love: Oreos! Who doesn't love to dunk an Oreo while watching a football game or hanging out with family, or twist off and scrape the inside filling? Even the most dessert-resistant among us, ahem, my Mom, can't resist an oreo {or 5} in a package. My brother & I decided to not only make our own, but to create the most irresistible version of homemade Oreos ever... and we think we did (we created 3 batches and taste tested each one)! Plus, you know how much I like gilding just about anything that isn't nailed down lately, so I bet you're not surprised that we've created Golden Homemade Oreos for the holidays! They are not only perfect for Hanukah, we think they are perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years... well, you get the idea. Just don't count on them sticking around for long, especially if my Mom is around.

Golden Homemade Oreos Recipe

Cookie: One box 16.5 to 19-ounce chocolate fudge cake mix 1/3 cup water 2 to 4 Tbsp shortening gold food color spray - we used Wilton Color Mist

Filling: 3-1/2 cups powdered sugar 1/2 Tbsp granulated sugar 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 1/2 cup shortening 4 Tbsp hot water

Instructions: 

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. Blend all the cookie ingredients with an electric mixer, then knead with your hands until it reaches the consistency of dough.

3. Roll the dough until it's a bit thicker than Oreo cookie thin (since they will thin out when cooking) and use a round cookie cutter to cut circles (we used a bottle cap). Place cookies 1/2" apart on greased cookie sheets. Bake for 4-6 minutes, or until as firm as you want (shorter for chewy, longer for crunchy).

4. Let cookies cool while you work on the filling.

5. Combine filling ingredients in an electric mixer and then mix with your hands until fully combined.

6. Once well combined, form balls about 1/2" - to 3/4" in diameter.

7. Place the filling ball in the center of the flat side of a cooled cookie and press with the flat side of another cookie until the filling spreads to the edge.

8. Take a piece of Glad Press & Seal and wrap tightly around the cookie and spray to achieve a 1/2 gold - 1/2 black cookie. To create an all gold cookie, just lightly spray your cookie. You could easily use cutouts and place them on the cookie held in place with some icing to create all sorts of shapes, but we like simple geometric boldness in our cookies!

The amount of cookies will depend on the size of your cookie cutter. Our homemade Oreos were about 2" in diameter and made approximately 15-20 cookies.

Recipe adapted from More Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur

And it's time again for our Holiday Extravaganza with our Fall Friends. Check out what some of our crafty blog friends have created this week for the fall & holidays and you might want to check in each Monday for more inspiration.

DIY Dinner napkins by Pink When

 

Thanksgiving conversation starter game (free printable) on The Pinning Mama

Fall pillow makeover on Sews N Bows

DIY Paper Flower Wreath by Fresh Idea Studio

White Chocolate Peach Scones

Another recipe from Kayla: Summer is pretty much over, which means a few things. First, there are a lot of peaches and secondly, school started. I decided to make the best of it and make a delicious breakfast before school using some of those delicious peaches. Scones are one of the fastest dishes to make, just combine the dry ingredients, add some butter and buttermilk, then fold in the peaches and chocolate. They bake for less than 15 minutes, so you can have your breakfast ready in under half an hour. If you would rather sleep a few extra minutes, just make the dough over the weekend or after school and bake it as you need it; the dough will probably last about four days in the refrigerator. These peach scones are a delicious way to start the day, and you'll never want to skip breakfast again!

Ingredients: 2 Cups Flour 1/3 Cup Dark Brown Sugar 1 T Baking Powder 1/2 tsp Salt 1/4 tsp Cinnamon 1/8 tsp Nutmeg Pinch Ginger 1 Stick Butter, Chilled & Cubed 3/4 Cup + 2 T Buttermilk 2 Peaches, Diced (1 1/2 Cups) 2/3 Cup White Chocolate Chips

Heat oven to 375F. Line a cookie tray with parchment.

Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Toss 2T of the mixture with the peaches. Set aside. Cut the butter into the flour, then add the buttermilk. Fold in the peaches mix and white chocolate.

Scoop the dough onto the prepared tray and bake for 12 minutes or until golden and cooked through.

Makes 12, Recipe Adapted from sweetpeasandsaffron

For more delicious recipes by our Teen Chef, Kayla, check out her blog, The Nerdy Chef!

Easiest Salad Recipe Ever

I am a foodie.

I know this sounds absolutely crazy, but if I had the option to own a super fancy purse or go out to eat for the next month, then I would probably choose to go out to eat. Call me insane, ‘cause I know it’s true.

However, I used to only really eat food that tasted good (i.e., unhealthy food). But wait, you say. Why does unhealthy food have to be the only food that tastes good? Well, you’re right. I used to think that unhealthy food was the only thing that actually tasted good. But guess what? I was wrong. Very wrong.

I have decided to go on a heathy streak and my Mom is SO happy... but we’ll see how long it actually lasts. This past week, I went to my Aunt and Uncle’s house and my Aunt and I made a her salad recipe together. This was no ordinary salad with tons of lettuce and croutons and all that "junk". It was a surprisingly delicious salad. Like I went out yesterday to the grocery store - by myself I might add - to buy all the ingredients.

This salad is the perfect mix of all things healthy, but it tastes like it could be a guilty pleasure. We’ll call it the “(not so) guilty pleasure salad.” That has a nice ring to it. ;)

But you can also call it the easiest salad recipe ever because not only does it taste great, but it’s SIMPLE to make! All you do is chop and dump.

Directions:

1. Chop cherry tomatoes, red and/or yellow peppers, and cucumbers. 2. Sprinkle some black olives and feta cheese on top. 3. Splash some olive oil and you’re donezo.

It’s that easy!

If you make this salad, be sure to tweet us or instagram us a picture! We promise you’ll love it!

xox, Chloe