Homemade cookie mixes

I tried the top three recipes and made the chocolate chip and sugar cookies the other day for a library party we went too. They were both very good. I would definitely not melt the butter as they were way too runny when I did that.....Just soften it. I haven't made the oatmeal ones yet, but I'm sure they will be yummy too. Fake Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Cookies: 1 Cup Flour 1/4 Cup White Sugar 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda 1/2 teaspoon Salt 3/4 Cup Chocolate Chips Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag. Write instructions on the bag to add: 1 Stick Softened Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract. Mix & Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes Fake Betty Crocker Sugar Cookies: 1 1/2 Cups Flour 3/4 Cup White Sugar 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda 1/2 teaspoon Salt Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag. Write instructions on the bag to add: 1 Stick Softened Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract. Mix & Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes Fake Betty Crocker Oatmeal Cookies: 1 Cup Flour 1/2 Cup White Sugar 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar 1 1/2 Cup Rolled Oats 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda 1/2 teaspoon Salt 1 teaspoon Cinnamon Optional: 1/2 Cup Raisins and/or Nuts Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag. Write instructions on the bag to add: 1 Stick Melted Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract. Mix, Refrigerate for 30 Minutes & Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes. Fake Betty Crocker Gingerbread Cookies: 1 3/4 Cup Flour 3/4 Cup Dark Brown Sugar 3/4 teaspoon Baking Soda 1/2 teaspoon Salt 1/2 Tablespoon Ground Ginger 1 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon Ground Cloves Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag. Write instructions on the bag to add: 1/2 Stick Softened Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/8 Cup Molasses. Mix & Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes

Shake and Pour Pancakes

I loved the idea of this recipe. Combine most ingredients for pancakes in a quart jar, add some eggs and water in the morning, shake, and bake. Fresh, hot pancakes in a matter of minutes. Very doable for a school day--even for lazy people like us who like to sleep in until the last minute. I'm sad to say that it hasn't worked out for us perfectly yet. The boys have made them and they have a hard time getting all the powder incorporated and so they usually end up using a bowl anyway, but they say they are yummy and I'll probably still make them. Maybe they'll have to start lifting weights so they can shake harder or something! Ingredients 9 cups all-purpose flour 1/3 cup double-acting baking powder 4 tsp. salt 1 3/4 cups shortening—which does not require refrigeration 1 3/4 cups non-fat dry milk Directions Stir baking powder, non-fat dry milk, and salt into the flour. Cut shortening into flour mixture until all particles of shortening are thoroughly coated and the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. This can be done with a food processor, blender, electric mixer, pastry cutter, whisk, or fork. (I had the pleasure of using my new Blendtec blender for this process…and it worked like a dream!). Store in a tightly covered container, at room temperature for up to six weeks. You can also freeze it. Once you have your ready-quick mix put together, then you can proceed to make your “shake and pour” pancakes! To assemble your Shake and Pour Pancake Mix: Add 2 cups Ready-Quick Mix and 1 teaspoon of sugar to a 1 quart mason jar, put the lid on the jar, and shake the contents until it’s well-combined. Slap a label of some kind on it with these simple instructions: Add 1 cup water and 1 egg, replace lid, and shake vigorously! Makes about 6-7 jars.

Applesauce Bread

This is my new favorite bread recipe (for now). It is moist and very yummy. I haven't tried muffins yet. I sprinkled brown sugar on top just before baking. It gave it a nice top crust. Applesauce Quickbread Mix 2 C shortening 4 C sugar 7 C flour 4 teaspoons salt 4 teaspoons baking powder 2 teaspoons baking soda 2 teaspoons cinnamon 2 teaspoons nutmeg Combine all ingredients until thoroughly mixed and seal in ziploc or vacuum seal bag. Makes about 4-5 mixes. To Make the Applesauce Loaf or Muffins: Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine 3 1/3 c. Mix 2 eggs 1 c. applesauce. Blend well, (Add up to 2/3 c. chopped nuts, if desired). For Loaf: (greased & floured pan) Bake at 350F for 40-50 minutes For Muffins: Bake at 350F for 20-30 minutes Combine all ingredients and seal in ziploc or vacuum seal bag (or jar).

Homemade chocolate syrup

We (or I should say Matt) go through a lot of Hershey's syrup at our house, so this was one at the top of my list to try. It was a little runnier than I like, so I will probably add less water next time. Simply delicious! Homemade Chocolate Syrup at GloriousTreats.blogspot.com 1 1/2 cups sugar 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Ghirardelli) 1 cup water dash of salt 1 teaspoon vanilla In a small saucepan, add sugar, cocoa, and salt. Whisk together gently. Add water. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and cook 1 minute. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Cool. Store in the refrigerator. For chocolate milk, add 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup to 8 oz. of milk. Heat for hot chocolate. For milk shakes, combine 1 cup cold milk, 1/4 cup chocolate syrup and 2 cups (1 pint) of vanilla ice cream to a blender. Blend. This syrup would also make a delicious dessert garnish or ice cream topping. Recipe source- Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook, 1968.

So excited about mixes

A week or two ago I decided to start trying some recipes I have pinned on Pinterest. I have been listening to lots of videos for a government class I am trying to pass, and I've had lots of time to pin things while trying to stay awake learning about Marbury vs. Madison, arnicue curiae, and other fun things. I have pinned a million mixes you can make ahead of time. I love making stuff from scratch because it's healthier and cheaper (normally). In just a couple of hours I made cookie mixes, ranch dressing mix, apple bread mix, pancake batter mix, cream of mushroom soup mix, homemade chocolate syrup, a brownie mix, and some brown sugar/cinnamon oatmeal packets. I think that's all. During the week, I've had to try them all to make sure they were good! YUM!!!! They have all been delicious except for the ranch dressing. I CANNOT make a good ranch dressing no matter how hard I try. Anyone have a recipe to share? Over the next couple of weeks, I will share the recipes I used to the two or three of you who read this blog! HA! I will definitely be making more.

Chocolate Milk Powder Mix

Someone posted this recipe on Pinching Your Pennies. My kids have been drinking lots of chocolate milk lately, so I decided to try it. It got great reviews from everyone (even one neighbor kid) except Spencer (imagine that!). I tried it with semi-sweet chocolate chips at first. That was very sweet. White chocolate chips are better, I think. I also use only 1/4 c of mix per 1 c of milk, and I think that is plenty. I'm interested to see how the cost of this compares to Nesquik or something like that. I'll have to figure it out one day. Best-Ever Hot Cocoa Mix Cooks Country Magazine Makes about 20 servings 3 cups nonfat dry milk 2 cups confectioners' sugar 1 1/2 cups Dutch-processed cocoa powder 1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips 1/4 teaspoon Salt Combine ingredients in large bowl. Working in two batches, pulse ingredients in food processor until chocolate is finely ground. Store in airtight container for up to 3 months. To make hot cocoa, stir 1/3 cup of this mix into 1 cup of hot milk. Top with whipped cream or mini marshmallows.

Strawberry-Lemonade Concentrate

I thought this was really interesting--making your own juice concentrate. I have bottled a lot of things, but I have never even considered this even though we drink tons and tons of juice. I tried this a couple of weeks ago and decided that it cost way too much money to do it on a big scale. I haven't decided if it's my favorite juice yet. I need to tweak it a little bit. The recipe says to mix with water on a 1:1 ratio, and I thought it needed a lot more water. Has anyone else tried something like this? The lady says she does blackberries and limes and all different combinations. Think I may try that if I can find some cheap fruit somewhere. I thinking neighbor Christmas gifts if I can figure it out. (See more of this lady's canning recipes here: http://www.sbcanning.com/) Makes 6-8 pints or 3 quarts of canned concentrate 6 cups strawberries, cleaned and hulled 4 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice 6 cups sugar In a food processor, blender or bullet puree strawberries in batches. Transfer strawberry puree to a stainless steel saucepan over medium-high heat. DO NOT BOIL. Add lemon juice and sugar and stir to combine. Using a thermometer heat to 190 degrees Fahrenheit, stirring occasionally. Because this recipe has sugar it will get to temperature rather quickly so keep your eye on the thermometer. Remove from heat. Ladle mixture into jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe rim, add hot lids and tighten rings just finger tight. Process in water bath canner at a boil for 15 minutes. To reconstitute, mix one part concentrate with one part water, tonic water or ginger ale. Adjust concentrate to suit your taste. **If you do not want to process this concentrate in canning jars, freeze the concentrate in 1 to 2 cup portions. Isn't it pretty?