With the extra free time that I have been baking more because it is something, I love to do. I have also been making breakfast more because it is the most important meal of the day! Even if you are just doing online classes all day it is important to make yourself a breakfast that will give you a lot of energy or take a break in the afternoon to bake something yummy! So, here are my favorite recent recipes.
Peanut Butter Cups
They are pretty simple, all you need is ¾ cup peanut butter, 1 TBSP pure maple syrup, ½ of melted coconut oil, ½ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder, and 3 TBSP of honey.
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Line muffin tins with paper liners. Mix peanut butter and maple syrup in a small bowl. Then, place 1 tbsp in each muffin liner and freeze for thirty minutes.
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Next, in another bowl whisk together coconut oil, cocoa powder, and honey until smooth and glossy. I would recommend adding less coconut oil if you wanted more of the classic peanut butter chocolate taste.
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Then, pour 1 tbsp of chocolate glaze on top of each hardened peanut butter cup and freeze for another twenty minutes. Makes about twelve.
Classic Italian Lemon Cookies
Ingredients for cookie dough: 2 ¼ cups of all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, ¼ teaspoon of salt, 3 large eggs, ½ cup of sugar, ½ cup of unsalted butter softened, not melted, 1.5 teaspoons of lemon extract. I have also tried almond extract with the recipe and also super tasty. Icing: 2 cups of powdered sugar, 2 to 3 tablespoons of milk, 1 teaspoon of lemon extract. You will also need 4 teaspoons of nonpareils or sprinkles for decorating. To make the cookie dough
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Mix the baking powder, salt, and flour in a small bowl and set aside
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Using an electric mixer, combine the eggs, sugar, butter, and extract on medium speed for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy
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Add the flour/baking powder and combine slowly just until mixed.
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Using a tablespoon, roll the dough into balls and place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 1 inch apart.
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Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour
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When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350F, and then bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
To Frost
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Mix the ingredients for the frosting, adding the milk one tablespoon at a time
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I prefer to use a teaspoon and pour a bit of frosting over the cooled cookies but some like to dunk their cookies in the frosting to frost
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Make sure that the cookies are completely cooled before frosting otherwise, the frosting will just drip off
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Add sprinkles/nonpareils while the frosting is still wet or they won’t stick. I usually frost a few at a time and then decorate so the frosting doesn’t dry before I have a chance to decorate. The dough can be a little sticky. You can wet your hands a bit to help with rolling or if you have cooking spray, spray your hands lightly to help facilitate rolling the cookies. I use a cookie scoop, which helps a lot.
Cookie Brownies
These are probably the simplest, but super tasty. You just need a box of brownie mix, cookie dough, and Oreos.
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Make three layers in the brownie pan.
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First cookie dough, then Oreos, then brownie mix.
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Follow the baking instructions on the brownie mix.
The Best Avocado Toast
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Pick your choice of bread or bagel.
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Cut up one avocado and mix in a TBSP lemon juice, salt, pepper, basil, and red pepper flakes, about a teaspoon each of those. Spread the mixture on toast and for a little extra spice sprinkle more red pepper flakes on top.
My Two Favorite Smoothie Recipes
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Peanut butter banana smoothie
Blend 1 banana, 3 ice cubes, 1 cup of milk, ¾ cup of peanut butter, 1 tsp of chia seeds, and 1 tsp of flax seeds.
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Strawberry Banana
Blend 1 banana, 3 ice cubes, 1 cup of orange peach-mango juice, ¾ cup of strawberries, 1 tsp of flax seeds, and 1 tsp of chia seeds.