Oatmeal cookies with mini peanut butter cups

Who said you can't use any left over Halloween candy to start your Christmas baking?  Well, I thought so, but then I thought why not?  I have the chocolate candy and what stops me from using them into my cookies.  I also wanted to use m&m's candy but I didn't have enough.  So here it is Oatmeal cookies with mini peanut butter cups.  Enjoy!  

1 cup butter softened

1 cup powdered (icing) sugar

1 ½ cups flour*

½ tsp baking soda

2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup oats (quick cooking oats)

10 oz mini reeses pieces peanut butter cups

Preheat oven to 325°F.  Soften the butter in the microwave for 30 seconds or leave at room temperature for a couple of hours.  In a bowl beat together the softened butter with the sifted icing sugar.  Add the flour, baking soda, vanilla and the quick cooking oats.  Beat well.  Add the Reese's pieces peanut butter cups after you cut them in half.  Fold them into the dough. 

Take a tablespoon of the dough and roll it into your palms into a ball. Place them in a cookie sheet lined with wax paper about two inches apart.  Flatten them with a fork.  The cookies will spread in the oven.  Bake them in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes till lightly browned.  Remove from the oven and enjoy. 

Makes 29-30 cookies 3” wide about 1oz each cookie. 

*Note:  you can substitute gluten free flour like King Arthur gluten free all purpose flour instead of regular flour.  I have used gluten free flour before on oatmeal cookies.  

Nutrition Facts
Servings 30.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 149
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 9 g	14 %
Saturated Fat 5 g	27 %
Monounsaturated Fat 2 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 17 mg	6 %
Sodium 46 mg	2 %
Potassium 2 mg	0 %
Total Carbohydrate 15 g	5 %
Dietary Fiber 1 g	3 %
Sugars 9 g
Protein 2 g	4 %
Vitamin A	4 %
Vitamin C	0 %
Calcium	1 %
Iron	1

Greek Style Oven Fried Chicken

I was craving some fried chicken the other day. So I decided to make it with my usual Greek twist in it. The oregano, the cumin and the lemon juice shouts Greek. This dish can easily be made gluten free. Use gluten free all purpose flour (like King Arthur's) and gluten free breadcrumbs.

Makes 8 servings (approximately 6.2 oz each serving)

2 ¼ lbs chicken pieces
½ cup flour
½ tsp pepper
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cumin
2 eggs
1 tsp water
2 cups bread crumbs
2 tsp oregano

Wash and skin the chicken pieces or you can buy them skinless and boneless. I used a whole chicken that I cut up into pieces. Whatever chicken I had leftover I boiled it for my little shih tzu and kept the chicken stock in the freezer for future use.

In a bowl, mix together the flour with the ground pepper, salt and cumin. Set aside. Beat the 2 eggs with the water in another bowl and set aside. Mix the breadcrumbs with the oregano into a third bowl and set aside.

Coat the chicken pieces with the flour mixture first. Then dip them into the egg mixture and then into the breadcrumb mixture. Place them on a cookie sheet, lined with aluminum foil, into a single layer. Bake at 400°F preheated oven for about 1 hour. Turn once. Remove from the oven, place the chicken in a platter and squeeze some fresh lemon juice. Serve and Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 6.173 oz (175g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 395
Calories from Fat 109
Total Fat 12.1g
Saturated Fat 3.3g
Cholesterol 154mg
Sodium 471mg
Total Carbohydrates 25.9g
Dietary Fiber 1.6g
Sugars 1.8g
Protein 42.8g

Before it goes into the oven

Ready to eat! Enjoy!

Gluten free Oatmeal Cookies with Craisins and Walnuts

As the holidays are upon us, we rush to finish our Christmas shopping and our baking. When a big snowstorm hits us, we await anxiously for it to pass so that we can finish our shopping. Some of us welcome the onset of a snowstorm that might leave us home-bound. On those days, we take out our baking pans and begin experimenting on recipes. That’s how I came up with this Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookie recipe. I had this recipe in my files along with some of my other old recipes that I have kept over the years. This time I wanted to try making them with gluten free flour. I substituted regular flour with King Arthur gluten free all-purpose flour. I added dried cranberries (craisins) and chopped walnuts. The cookies turned out full of flavor, chewy and crunchy. They go well with coffee or tea during an afternoon break, or as a morning treat. Enjoy!

Gluten free Oatmeal Cookies with Craisins and Walnuts

Makes 30 servings approximately 1.4 oz each

½ cup butter + 6 tbsp. butter melted
½ cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar firmly packed
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1½ cups King Arthur gluten free all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
3 cups Quaker oats old fashioned (the ones you cook)
1 cup craisins (dried cranberries)
1 cup walnuts

Preheat oven to 350°F. Melt the butter. Combine the butter with the sugars in a bowl till creamy. Add the eggs and the vanilla and beat well. Combine the gluten free all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together. Add to the mix and blend well. Add the oatmeal, the craisins, and the walnuts. Blend well together.

In a greased cookie sheet or lined with wax paper cookie sheet, drop the dough by 1 tablespoon. I used an ice cream scooper. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes till the edges are browned. Remove from the oven and wait to cool before removing from the pan.

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 serving (40.4 g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 166
Calories from Fat 78
Total Fat 8.7g
Saturated Fat 3.7g
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 25mg
Sodium 124mg
Total Carbohydrates 19.7g
Dietary Fiber 1.3g
Sugars 7.2g
Protein 3.1g