Peanut Butter Chip Oatmeal Nutella Cookies

I will start off by warning you that this is not a healthy recipe. Not in the least. However, the cookies turned out so yummy that I felt it was my duty to share this recipe with the masses (aka my few loyal subscribers). You could replace the butter with applesauce to make this healthier, but to be honest, the buttery deliciousness of these cookies was what made these so excellent!

The original recipe looked great, but I decided to give them a bit more peanut butter flavor by using a peanut butter/chocolate swirl chip. If you can't find them in the grocery store, a peanut butter chip or chocolate chip should also work. I was also craving Nutella at the time, so I added some in, and I was glad that I did!

These cookies were easy to make, and received rave reviews when I brought them to a family function. My only complaint was that they didn't make many cookies, and they went fast as soon as I put them out on the table, so I would double the recipe the next time I made them for a group. (Or maybe I'll just make the recipe for myself :))

You should definitely bake these cookies if you're looking for a splurge! (And I promise I'll be back to posting healthier recipes soon.)

Peanut Butter Chip Oatmeal Nutella Cookies

(adapted from The Modest Homestead)

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4  tsp. salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2  cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 egg

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 cup peanut butter/chocolate swirl chips

1/4 cup Nutella

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with Silpat liners or spray with cooking spray.

2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

3. On medium speed, cream together the butter, peanut butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract, until a consistent mixture. Add the egg and beat to combine. On low speed, gradually add the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the oats, then the chips, and finally the Nutella.

4. Scoop dough with medium cookie scoop (approx. 2 tbsp balls) and drop dough onto prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake for approximately 10 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden.

*Makes approximately 20 cookies.

Light Peanut Butter Cookies

I love baking for others. I also love baking for myself, but because of my lack of willpower when it comes to fresh baked goods, I try to only bake when I have somewhere to bring (and leave) the treats. So when we made plans to visit my in-laws last weekend, it was the perfect excuse to pull out the mixing bowls. 

I craved peanut butter cookies, but I wanted to make a diabetic-friendly recipe, so I found a great flour-free recipe. I swapped out the regular sugar for Splenda, and I had the perfect, healthier peanut butter cookies. I used my new Silpat liner, which created a perfect, lightly browned bottom to each cookie.

My in-laws were excited to see us, and was perhaps equally excited to see the peanut butter cookies that we brought for them! I may be required to bake this recipe any time we make the trip to Pennsylvania :)

The only mistake I made was in forgetting to keep any cookies at home for Rick and I to eat!

Light Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients:

2 cups peanut butter
2 cups Splenda
2 eggs
2 teaspoons baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Stir peanut butter and Splenda together in a bowl until mixed together well. 
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until mixed, then add in baking soda, salt, and vanilla.
4. Roll the peanut butter mixture into one-inch balls and place on a greased cookie sheet. 
5. Press the back of a fork into each ball, flattening and creating a criss-cross shape in each cookie. 
6. Bake 7-9 minutes, until the cookies are slightly browned. 

*Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies.

(Healthier) Cake Mix Cookies

My mom is quite an excellent baker, but one of my favorite of her recipes is one of her simplest - cake mix cookies. 3 ingredients and less than half an hour is all you need to make this delicious dessert!

The initial recipe called for 1/2 cup of vegetable oil, but I wanted to make them a bit healthier so I swapped out the oil for unsweetened applesauce. In my opinion, the swap doesn't change the taste at all, although it does make the cookies slightly chewier. My taste testers certainly didn't complain!

I was making these for Valentine's Day, so I made a few of the cookies much larger than the others, baked them, and after letting them cool for 2 minutes I used a heart-shaped cutout to turn these into a fun Valentine's-themed dessert. I topped the cookies with powdered sugar and they were ready to serve!

One thing I love about cake mix cookies -besides how easy they are to make- is that you can make an endless number of variations. You can use any type of cake mix to bake cake mix cookies. This time I used devil's food cake, but I also love using yellow cake mix, and I'm guessing that red velvet cake mix would turn out equally delicious. You can also mix in any toppings that suit your fancy - I love to use M&Ms and chocolate or peanut butter chips, but nuts or dried fruits (such as Craisins) would also be good. 

(Healthier) Cake Mix Cookies

Ingredients:

1 box of your favorite kind of cake mix (I used Devil's Food Cake)
1/2 cup applesauce
2 eggs
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (or other toppings of choice, including nuts, candy pieces, or dried fruit)
Powdered sugar for topping (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix ingredients together in a large bowl until well blended.
3. Drop rounded tablespoons of cookie dough onto ungreased cookie sheets.
4. Bake cookies for approximately 8 minutes, until the edges start to brown.
5. Let cool, and enjoy!

*Makes approximately 2 dozen cookies

Snickers Peanut Butter Pie

My husband's birthday was last week, so I wanted to surprise him with a special birthday dessert. Rick loves peanut butter, and we had some leftover Halloween candy in the house, so I started searching online for recipes. I found several that sounded good, so I mixed and matched from a few of the most promising ones to create this Snickers Peanut Butter Pie. 

The pie is definitely indulgent, but I did try to make a couple of healthier swaps that wouldn't take away from the taste of the dessert. I don't think reduced fat cream cheese tastes any different from regular cream cheese in a recipe, and fat free Cool Whip worked perfectly. If you want to make this even healthier, you could use reduced fat peanut butter, but I didn't have any in the house and I figured we should splurge for Rick's birthday, anyways.

It took me less than 20 minutes prep time (though it does have to freeze for a few hours), and Rick was thrilled with the result - double win! I also loved this recipe because the pie will stay good in the freezer for at least a month, so there's no pressure to eat it all immediately. (Despite this, we did actually eat the entire pie over the course of the past week!)

Snickers Peanut Butter Pie

Ingredients:

1 Oreo pie crust (alternatively, you can make your own crust with Oreos and melted butter)

6 oz. reduced fat cream cheese
6 oz. fat free Cool Whip
1 tsp. vanilla extract
⅓ cup peanut butter
½ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 cup fun size Snickers, chopped (approximately 5 fun size Snickers)

Directions:

1. Combine cream cheese, Cool Whip, peanut butter, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy.

2. Slowly add in the confectioners’ sugar and beat on low speed until smooth and combined.

3. Spoon the mixture into the Oreo pie crust.

4. Evenly sprinkle the Snickers on the top of the pie.

5. Cover the pie and place it in freezer for a minimum of 3 hours to set before slicing.

6. When ready to serve the pie, remove it from the freezer and let it sit out for about 15 minutes, then slice. You can keep the pie in freezer for up to a month or two (if it lasts that long!).

Light Caramel Apple Cupcakes

One of the things that I love most about the fall is apples. I typically eat an apple every day, and I enjoy applesauce and apple butter, but I also love the not-so-healthy apple desserts. Apple pie, apple crisp, apple cake...my mouth is watering just thinking of the options!

This fall though, after a month of pretty unhealthy eating, I am on a mission to find apple desserts that won't be so detrimental to my waistline. My sister got me the Hungry Girl "Just Desserts" cookbook as an early birthday present, so I figured that I would start my search there. (Side note - I highly recommend the Hungry Girl cookbooks; the author is all about easy-to-make recipes with few ingredients.) And my first recipe attempt was a success!

Inspired by my in-laws' purchase of caramel apples during our recent apple picking adventure, I decided to try the Caramel Apple Cupcakes. The most time-consuming part of the recipe was peeling and dicing the apples, but otherwise it was a very easy process. Hungry Girl called for the cupcakes to be topped with chopped peanuts, but I didn't think they would add much so I left them off of the recipe, and I didn't hear any complaints! 

The result was delicious, low-cal cupcakes with just the right amount of apple flavor and enough sweetness to satisfy my dessert craving.

Light Caramel Apple Cupcakes

(adapted from Hungry Girl "Just Desserts: 200 Recipes Under 200 Calories")

Ingredients:

2 cups peeled and diced apples (approx. 2-3 apples; I used a combination of sweet and tart apples)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 3/4 cups moist-style yellow cake mix
1/2 cup egg whites
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tbsp. fat-free, low-fat, or light caramel dip

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with foil baking cups, and spray with nonstick spray. *Note - don't forget to spray the cups with spray, because otherwise the cupcakes will stick!

2. In a medium bowl, sprinkle apples with 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and toss to coat.

3. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, egg whites, baking powder, vanilla extract, remaining 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 3/4 cup of water. Whisk until smooth. 

4. Stir in the apple mixture. Evenly distribute mixture among cups in the muffin pan.

5. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean, approximately 14-16 minutes.

6. Let the cupcakes cool completely (about 10 minutes in the pan and 30 minutes after being removed from the pan).

7. Spread cupcakes with caramel dip.

*Makes 12-14 cupcakes