Cake Mix Vanilla Chip Sprinkle Cookies

Hello my dear friends!

It is about 5pm in the evening. I am listening to some classical piano music, only a lamp on in my "office".  One sister just visited, and we spent the afternoon just chatting, watching some TV, etc.  We had some coffee, and just had a really nice visit.  I was just thinking how nice it is to unplug, power down, and just talk.  Find out what is going on in each others lives, etc.  We seem to find less and less time to do this.  Call someone you haven't seen or "talked" to lately, have coffee or a soda together.  Don't text them or call them, see them, face to face if you can.  It is like the lost art of human contact.  I have no idea what got me off on that tangent or what in the heck it has to do with my cookies but....  I think I am just in a deep thoughts kind of mood.  Yea, maybe that is it.

So here are my cookies!  Finally, right?  I was inspired by the Pillsbury website, when I got a link for these in my spam folder.  I am in another "use up" phase so I modified the recipe to my taste, and what I needed to use up!  They are sweet for sure, but I think they are delish.  I think they would be fun to do with chocolate cake mix, and add cherry flavor and maybe a cherry on top.  Add some white chips maybe?  Oh, as always the possibilities are endless but this is my version, I hope you try it!

Ingredients:
1 box white cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract (choose any flavor you like)
1/2 cup vanilla chips
3 T. sprinkles
flour
flat bottom glass or your fingers

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Lay your cookie sheets with parchment paper or spray with nonstick cooking spray. 

In your stand mixer or large bowl combine dry cake mix, eggs, oil, vanilla chips and sprinkles.  Stir or mix just until combined.  Your dough will be a week bit sticky, no problem.

Using a cooking scoop or roll about 1 inch size balls of dough.  Fill up your trays and then tip your fingers OR your flat bottom glass in flour and press the balls down until they are about 1/4 inch thick.  Nobody is coming to your house to measure, so just flatten them out a bit, not all the way but a bit.  Sprinkle the top with extra sprinkles so that everyone knows that fun that is inside!  Bake for 8 minutes.  Mine took literally exactly that amount of time.  They won't get really browned, unless you burn them, they will just get slightly golden!  Let cook for 5 minutes on a cookie sheet to cool before removing.

These are easy and fun, and I wish I had this recipe back in the day of "oh I need to take 2 dozen of something to this meeting in an hour".  They are happy, tasty and cheery.  Most of all they are easy and easy to customize!

This recipe should yield you 2 dozen cookies.  (unless you eat some dough and only get 23)

ENJOY!

Vanilla Snickerdoodles

As a woman, there are few things in life, that cure what ails us better than chocolate.  Right?  Isn't that how it is supposed to be?  I agree, somewhat.  But for me, it is vanilla, or cinnamon.  I swear, something about cinnamon toast, absolutely takes me to the happiest place ever, when I need some comfort.  Don't get me wrong, I love chocolate, but, it isn't my cure all, as it is for many. 

When I decided to make snicker doodles, which I obviously, LOVE, I wanted to make a twist on them.  Well it was no question, it had to be add vanilla.  Easy, right?  Add vanilla to my regular plain old recipe which I got from www.cooks.com a hundred years ago and call it good.  No, no, no.  That wasn't just going do the trick, I needed to bite vanilla.  Cinnamon and vanilla, I die.  I DIE.  So with the addition of some of my fantastic homemade vanilla extract and some vanilla chips, these are addictive, healing, love, fluffy bunny slippers and pink clouds all rolled into one bite. 

Oh and for the record, I don't know how many this makes.  My kids were over, they started eating them warm, before I realized it, and suddenly, there were so many gone, I couldn't tell how many there WERE!  I will say it made about

You will need:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp. cream of tarter
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
10-12 oz. package vanilla chips

In a separate small bowl:
2 T sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

Mix together to combine.  You will roll your dough balls in this!

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.  In a bowl combine, butter, shortening, eggs, vanilla and sugar until creamed together smoothly.  In a separate bowl, combine flour, cream of tarter, baking soda and salt.  Sift together into the wet mixture and mix just until combined.  Fold in vanilla chips.  Roll dough into balls, dip in the cinnamon sugar mixture and place on a parchment or silicone mat lined cookie sheet.  (can also use nonstick cooking spray)  Bake for 8-10 minutes.  I bake for 8 since I like very soft cookies.  Cook on a rack and consume, as many as possible as soon as possible. 

Enjoy!