The Best {{Snickerdoodles}} Ever

I think it's in my kids DNA that Snickerdoodles are a favorite, so they are a staple in our kitchen.  A few years ago when my little sister got married I helped put together a cookbook for her and some how Snickerdoodles didn't make it in there. I use the cookbook all the time and I keep searching for that amazing recipe and I think I found it to add to the family cookbook! 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2  cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt

For Rolling:

1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:

Combine butter and sugars on medium-high until mixture is creamy and well combined.  Add the egg and vanilla and scrape down the sides of the bowl.  Mix until light and fluffy.  Add flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt and beat on low speed just until combined.  Scoop up 2 inch balls (should make approx 14 even cookie balls) and place on a plate and cover for 1 hour or up to 5 days in the refrigerator.  

Preheat oven to 350 and roll the dough in the sugar mixture.  Place dough balls on the cookie sheet about 2 inches apart and bake for 9 minutes.  You can flatten them a little with the bottom of a cup before putting them in the oven, but I love the center of my cookies slightly doughy, so I leave mine round.  Let cool on cookie sheet for a few minutes and slide on to cooling rack.  

Hint: Cookies can be completely prepped and put into the freezer for later to bake one at a time or a few at a time (who can have just one) while still in the dough phase. Dough keeps well in an air tight container (we use ziploc) for 4 months.  This is the perfect solution for when company comes unexpectedly and you want something warm to share.

Homemade Instant Oatmeal

I've been looking at my food storage and ways to utilize it better to help stretch my budget, so I started looking at options. Almost every morning Carson and I share a bowl of oatmeal and since I have 12 #10 cans of instant oatmeal in my closet I need start using it.
I looked all over the internet for options and I came across this recipe from Momables and I am excited to have breakfast in the morning with my Carson.

Homemade Instant Oatmeal Packets

21-24 snack sized Ziploc bags
10 cups quick oats
1 t. salt
1 cup brown sugar
2 t. cinnamon
1 cup powdered milk

Instructions

1. Put 6 cups of the oats into a large bowl.
2. Add the remaining 4 cups of oats into a blender.
3. Blend until almost powdery, then pour into the large bowl.
4. Add salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, and powdered milk.
5. Mix well until everything is combined.
6. Measure 1/2 cup of the oatmeal mixture into each snack sized plastic baggie and seal.

To use DIY Instant Oatmeal Packets:

1. Pour packet into a bowl and add desired hit water. Stir and serve.

 This recipe almost cleared out an entire #10 can! 11 more cans to go...hummm.  Gorilla Poop it is, my kids will be sad I'm sure.

Swig Sugar Cookies

Now that we live in Southern Utah there are a new things that just seem to be expected.  A. We are Mormon and B. we love Swig.  Sadly both are true, so I was excited to find this recipe so we can make these cookies whenever my kids want them.  I think the trick is the cream of tartar in the cookie that makes them so good, it is basically a Snickerdoodle without being rolled in the cinnamon and sugar. So let us begin!

Swig Sugar Cookies 

1 c. Butter at room temp

3/4 c. Vegetable Oil (I used Olive Oil cause that's what I have)

1 1/4 c. Sugar

3/4 c. Powdered Sugar

2 T. Water

2 Eggs

1/2 t. Baking Soda

1/2 t. Cream of Tartar

1 t. Salt

5 1/2 c. Flour

1. Cream together butter, oil, sugars, water and eggs. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture and mix until everything is well combined.  The dough should be a little crumbly and not sticky at all. 

2. Roll dough into golf ball sized balls and place on cookie sheets.  With the bottom of a glass dip into 1/4 c. sugar and a pinch of salt (in addition to the ingredients listed above) and firmly press the cookie so that the edges crack.

3. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes or until the bottoms are barely browning.  Move cookies to a cooling rack and into the refrigerator once completely cooled.

Now lets make that famous pink frosting!

Sour Cream Frosting

1/2 c. Butter at room temp

3/4 c. Sour Cream

2 lbs. Powdered Sugar (approximately 7.5 cups)

1 t. Salt

1/4 c. Milk

Red Food Coloring

Start by creaming together butter, sour cream and salt and then slowly add powdered sugar.  When it gets so thick its not like frosting add a slash of milk.  Alternate this process until your frosting is the desired consistency.  Add 2 drop of red food coloring and whip on high for 1 minute.

Keep cookies in a sealed container until they are ready to serve.  The magic of a Swig Sugar Cookie is that the cookies are cold and the frosting is room temperature.  Frost cookies right before serving (if you need to make them in advance and need to refrigerate the frosting make sure you give it time to warm up a little before serving).