Copycat Lofthouse Sugar Cookies

I hate that we live far away from family.  I LOVE when they come visit :)  This time they came up to visit in the heart of October, so I tried to plan lots of fun fall time activities.  We went and pressed apple cider, decorated cookies, painted pumpkins, went hiking, and ate lots of good food.  We made these cookies, and they are soooo good!  Homemade frosting completed the yummy cookies, and it was great to have lots of helpers around to eat all these cookies...otherwise I would have!

Copycat Lofthouse Sugar Cookies

For the Cookies:

6 cups flour, divided

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup butter, at room temperature

2 cups granulated sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups light sour cream

For the Frosting:

1 cup butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups powdered sugar

6 tablespoons heavy cream

Several drops food coloring

Sprinkles

In a medium bowl, whisk 5 cups of flour, baking soda, and baking powder; set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the flat beater attached, cream the butter and granulated sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time beating until each is incorporated. Add the vanilla and sour cream and beat at low speed until combined.

Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl as needed. Dough needs to obtain the right consistency for rolling, so add additional flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until this is achieved (up to 1 cup more flour). Divide dough into two sections. Flatten into rectangles about 1 1/2 inches thick, then wrap with plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator overnight.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or spray them with nonstick cooking spray, set aside.

Generously flour a work area and rolling pin. With a rolling pin, roll the dough out to 1/4-inch thickness. Using a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out circles and transfer to a baking sheet. Bake for 7-8 minutes, until pale golden. Immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.

To make the frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and vanilla. Slowly beat in the powdered sugar. Once smooth and creamy, add in heavy cream, 1 tablespoon at a time until the desired spreading consistency is achieved. If desired, add food coloring and beat until combined.

Once cookies have cooled completely, frost and add sprinkles. Allow frosting to set, then store in an air-tight container. Let cookies sit for several hours before serving to allow the flavors to develop.

Recipe Source: Sweet Peas Kitchen

Pumpkin Spice Buddies

Welp...here is yet another fall-time treat!  This variation of the tradition Muddy Buddy is perfect for any occasion...I just have been snacking on these yummy little snacks while I get caught up on my latest Netflix flick :)  They are tasty, but I will throw out there that I still think the original peanut butter/chocolate version will always be my favorite!


Pumpkin Spice Buddies

1 box (13.5 oz) Cinnamon Chex® Cereal
1½ cups white chocolate chips
1 cup dried unsweetened cranberries
1 cup roasted and salted pumpkin seeds
2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
½ cup powdered sugar, divided

In a large bowl combine Cinnamon Chex Cereal, cranberries and pumpkin seeds. Set aside.
In a double broiler or microvave carefully melt the white choocolate. Add the pumpkin pie spice until fully incorporated.

Pour the white chocolate mix over the chex cereal and fold it into the cereal, fruit, and seeds are all covered evenly.

Divide the powdered sugar between 2 large bags. Add half of the cereal to each bag. Shake until the powdered sugar fully coats the cereal.

Lay on a baking sheet to dry. Store in airtight container.

Recipe Source:  The Recipe Critic

Fall Mix Popcorn

I love making seasonal popcorns and almond barks! If you will recall, last year I shared this Halloween bark with you, and this year...here's the popcorn! There are so many variations, so not really a recipe here...just an idea for you to let your creative juices loose :)



Fall Mix Popcorn

1/2 cup unpopped popcorn kernels, or 2 bags tender white popcorn
12 oz. Plain Vanilla Candy Melts, such as Wilton (or almond bark, or white chocolate candy coating)
1 1/3 cups pretzel squares or sticks, broken into pieces
1 12 oz. bag plain Milk Chocolate M&Ms or Mini M&Ms (for Bunny Bait use pastel M&Ms)
1/2 cup peanuts
about 1 cup candy corns

Pop popcorn in a popcorn popper into a large bowl (or alternately in the microwave if using microwave bags of popcorn) according to manufactures directions. Remove any unpopped popcorn kernels. Toss in broken pretzel pieces, peanuts, candy corns, and M&Ms.

Melt Vanilla Candy Melts in a microwave safe bowl on HIGH power in 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval until melted and smooth. Drizzle half of melted chips over popcorn mixture, then stir, tossing gently a few times with a rubber spatula. Then drizzle remaining half of melted chips over popcorn, and gently stir mixture until evenly coated (don't over stir though or your sprinkles wont stick if the white chips begin to set and harden). Pour mixture into a single layer onto wax paper. Allow to cool and harden, then gently break into pieces and store in an airtight container.

Halloween Bark

First off, check me out over at Kiki Creates today!  Click below :)

Today, do I ever have a yummy Halloween treat for you!  This Halloween bark would be adorable in a cellophane bag, tied up with some ribbon.  It is also cute sitting in a Halloween bowl for parties.  This treat is perfect for neighbors, those you visit teach, teacher gifts, and Halloween parties...the possibilities are limitless!  

I have been holding onto this recipe since last year, and am thrilled to finally share it with you!  I am a sucker for salty-sweet combination snacks, and this one has just that.  The pretzels are the star in this snack, you will not be disappointed :)  My favorite part with the whole thing is the visual appeal...it just LOOKS wonderful, so it must taste great, right?!  

  

Halloween Bark

From:  Your Home Based Mom

1 pound melting chocolate or almond bark

14 Oreos

1 1/2 cups pretzel sticks, broken

1 cup candy corn

Halloween colored sprinkles

Cover a cookie sheet with wax paper. Break Oreos and pretzels and toss them along with 3/4 cup of the candy corn onto the cookie sheet. Melt chocolate and drizzle over the top and sprinkle with remaining candy corn and some sprinkles. Allow to cool and harden completely before breaking into pieces.

Candy Corn Cupcakes

Okay, so maybe I'm a follower.  I have seen these on pretty much every blog I've looked at lately, but they are so cute!  The version I decided to use was from I Heart Naptime.  They used sour cream in theirs, which I love!  It made them very tasty I must say!  They were the hit of the trunk-or-treat!  Maybe one day I will learn how to properly frost my cupcakes to make them look pretty, but in the meantime, I'm just happy they look and taste great! 


1 box yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 c vegetable oil
1/4 c water
1 c sour cream


Food coloring (orange and yellow)
Frosting of choice


With an electric mixer, beat all ingredients for about 2 min. Divide batter into two separate bowls. Add about a 1/2 tsp of food coloring in to each bowl. Stir Well. Spoon about 1 TB of yellow into the bottom of each cupcake liner. Then spoon about 1 TB of orange batter on top of that. Bake for 20 min, remove and let cool completely before frosting.