Foodie Friday: Carrot Cake Cookies

"When life gives you shredded carrots, make carrot cake cookies." --Kristi

Carrot Cake Cookies from cdkitchen.com

Ingredients:

-1 c. packed brown sugar

-1 c. granulated sugar

-1 c. butter, room temperature

-2 large eggs, room temperature

-1 t. vanilla

-2 c. flour

-1 t. baking soda

-1 t. baking powder

-1/4 t. salt

-1 t. cinnamon

-1/2 t. nutmeg

-1/2 t. ginger

-2 c. old fashioned rolled oats

-1 1/2 c. finely grated carrots

-1 c. raisins

Cream Cheese Filling

-8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

-8 T. butter, cut into pieces, room temperature

-1 c. powdered sugar

-1 t. vanilla

Directions:

Mix sugars and butter; beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, beat at medium speed until well combined.

Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.

Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture; mix on a low speed until just blended. Mix in oats, carrots, and raisins. Chill dough in refrigerator until firm, at least 1 hour.

Using a 1/2-ounce cookie scoop, scoop dough onto prepared baking sheets lined with parchment, leaving two inches between cookies.

Bake at 350 until browned and crisped, 12 - 15 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

While cookies are cooling, soften cream cheese in mixer. Gradually add butter and continue beating until smooth and well blended. Gradually add powdered sugar, and continue beating until smooth. Add vanilla and stir to combine.

Once cookies are completely cooled, use an offset spatula to spread about 2 t. of cream cheese filling onto a cookie.

Sandwich together with a second cookie.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Oh Lovely Mud

Remember the state of our van in yesterday's post?

How on earth did it get so muddy? Sit back, relax, and let me tell you a little story. M was out of town for a business trip. (If you can call attending a trade show in Vegas a business trip.) And my mom was in town keeping Peachy and I company. We decided that it would be fun to hit up a few garage sales Saturday morning and loaded up the van to see what bargains we could find. I had looked up the address on Google, but decided that I knew a better route. (Bad decision #1.) Everything was going swimmingly until I decided to turn onto a gravel (and by gravel I mean mud) road. (Bad decision #2.) It looked iffy the moment we turned onto it. (It has been a very rainy few weeks here.) After driving a short distance we encountered a huge mud puddle across stretching across the road. Did I turn around realizing that it was not a good idea to transverse this muddy road? Oh no, I just powered up the van and charged on through. (Bad decision #3.) We made it through with a few slips here and there. We also made it through the next big mud puddle. "We are doing well," I thought to myself. "This van is powerful!" It was the third mud puddle (a mud pit, really) that did us in. I tried my best to power through. (Bad decision #4.) The van tried its best. But alas, we were stuck. I quickly called my father up on the phone to see if he had any neat tricks as to how to extricate a mini van from a mud pit. And he did. "Call a tow truck," he said. And call a tow truck is just what I did. "We can be there in about 45 minutes," I was told. Nothing to do but sit and wait. But soon a beacon of hope appeared on the horizon. A car was approaching us. In it were two high school aged boys. To their credit they did stop and ask if we were stuck. Hmmm, do you think? And then continued on their way. So we waited some more. I glimpsed what I thought was the profile of a tow truck on the horizon, but as it drew closer I realized it was just a Jeep out enjoying the muddy day. The driver stopped and came over to the van. I told him a tow truck was on the way, but he insisted in helping us out. He hooked up his tow rope, gave me some instructions and out we came. After thanking him profusely, we were both on our way. Only a short way down the road we encountered the biggest mud puddle yet. What to do? I knew that we would not be able to make it through, but the only alternative was to go back to the scene of the first incident. (That or sit and wait for the tow truck and ask him to pull me across the muddy pit.) I turned around, careful to avoid the steep drop off on either side of the road. When we got to the pit we were stuck in, mom got out and did some reconnaissance. If I stayed way to the side and didn't go into the ditch we might make it out. And that is just what I did. I crossed the three original puddles and was back on pavement. Hallelujah! I made a quick call to the tow truck dispatcher and cancelled the rescue mission. We did miss the garage sale, but that is a small price to pay. The van cleaned up nicely at the car wash and the mud was easily scrapped from my shoes.

Little Peachy decided that was enough adventure for the day and conked out in her car seat with her hood pulled over her eyes. (Obviously she didn't want to see where her mother was taking her next.)

Multiple Choice

Why do my shoes look like this? Why is my daughter sleeping with her hood over her eyes? Why does our van look like this?

A) This is how we entertain out of town guests.

B) I was testing the power of our van.

C) This is what happens when you drive on a gravel/dirt road after a week of rain.

Stay tuned for the answer.

Foodie Friday: Tuscan Soup (Guest Post)

Today, my great friend and wonderful cook/baker, Jenny, will be sharing a recipe from her kitchen for Foodie Friday!! Enjoy!

Earlier this week my dear friend and sister-in-law asked if I’d like to be a guest on Foodie Friday here at Bowl of Cherrys. I was delighted, honored, and uncertain of what to feature. Since I love to bake, love to cook, and firmly believe that recipes are a guide not a rule, I’m always coming up with new things in my kitchen. But what should I share with the loyal fans of Foodie Friday? It had to be special. Then a mutual friend suggested a soup since she is looking for new recipes. She was right. A soup, or stew, or chili would be great since (at least around my house in Wisconsin) Fall has fallen. This past week has been filled with days when a pot of warm simmering soup, some fresh bread, a cozy pair of slippers, and a sweater just feel right. I was looking for a homemade comfort food that would invite you to curl up and enjoy. Since this mutual friend happens to be a fan of the Olive Garden restaurant I picked a soup I’ve played with and modeled after the sausage-potato soup served on the lunch menu there. Olive Garden calls it ‘Zuppa Tuscana.’ Since I’m not actually Italian and want to avoid copyright infringement, I simply call mine ‘Tuscan Soup.’

Thanks for letting me into your kitchen.

Tuscan Soup
16 oz. ground Italian sausage
6 cups chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
½ pint fresh sliced mushrooms
1 small onion, chopped
1 T Italian seasoning
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/8 tsp caraway seed
5 small potatoes, washed and chopped
4 oz. cream cheese
½ bunch kale, sliced into thin strips
salt and pepper to taste

In a large soup pot cook sausage until no longer pink. Drain and return to pan. Add onion, garlic, and mushrooms. Sauté until vegetables are becoming tender. Add broth, soup, seasoning, and cream cheese. Stir to soften cream cheese and blend together soup. Add potatoes. Bring to medium boil and simmer gently until potatoes are to desired tenderness. Toss in kale and simmer 3-5 minutes until kale is to desired tenderness. Top each bowl with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and serve with warm bread.

Double Whammie

Two things that I have a hard time resisting: Target Dollar Spot and Fall Items. Put the two together, and Houston we've got a problem.

Here's the stash I recently picked up:

Two Halloween hats for Peachy, Three pairs of Halloween socks for Peachy, Three pairs of tights for Peachy, Halloween cookie cutters, Little metal Halloween Buckets, and Two bags of fake leaves.

Besides the hats and socks I have plans for all of the items. (And obviously I plan on having her wear those!!) Stay tuned to see what those plans are!