Tuesday Cook Off ~ Snickers Chocolate Chip Cookies

Tuesday Cook Off ~ Snickers Chocolate Chip Cookies

My youngest son just loves Snicker candy bars.   It’s a new love for him 🙂   Not that I am going to be buying Snicker candy bars a lot but when my friend gave me this recipe (and the cookies as a gift) I knew my youngest would be hooked.

So Monday when I was looking what to bake for the boy’s lunches, I thought of the recipe and decided to surprise my youngest.  He was very surprised and happy!  Normally, I bake for the boy’s lunches on Sunday but since we were in California all last week and didn’t get home until late Sunday afternoon, baking had to wait until Monday.

We went to Orange County and we did something we have never done before…whale watching.   I guess I should tell you we use to live in Orange County and our oldest son was born there.   Plus, we go there about 4 times a year.  It’s an easy drive from the Phoenix, AZ area and it’s a nice change of weather for us in the summer.  In all the years we lived in California and all the times we have visit, we have never gone whale watching.  We always talked about it but never went.  It was so worth it!  We saw all kinds of whales and dolphins.

Snickers Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe from Cooking Classy.  Yields about 30 cookies

Ingredients

• 2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/4 cups light-brown sugar
• 1/4 granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 6 – 8 oz Snickers candy bars, chopped (about 1 1/2 – 2 cups)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped, unsalted or lightly salted peanuts (optional)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt for 30 seconds, set aside. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, whip together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy. Stir in eggs one at a time mixing until combined after each addition. Blend in vanilla. With mixer set on low speed, slowly add in dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Add in chopped Snickers, chocolate chips and peanuts and blend on low speed just until mixed in.
• Shape dough into balls about 3 Tbsp each and place on a Silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet spacing at least 2 inches apart. Bake in preheated oven 10 – 12 minutes until edges are lightly golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool several minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container.

Do you have a great recipe you would like to share?  Just email us at Linda@mybabypajamas.com.  Please attach a photo if you can.  If your recipe is chosen, you will win a $25.00 Gift Certificate to our website.   Who doesn’t want free kids pajamas?  Please share this contest/giveaway!

Don’t forget where to find great footie pajamas, toddler pajamas and more at My Baby Pajamas.

Whale Watching on our trip

Dolphins on our trip

Tuesday Cook Off ~ Peanut Butter Pretzel M&M Cookies

Tuesday Cook Off ~ Peanut Butter Pretzel M&M Cookies

It’s almost a month after Christmas and I still have Christmas M&M’s.   I need a recipe that I could use the M&M’s up so I don’t keep eating them by the handfuls!  Enter Sally’s Baking Addiction and her fabulous Peanut Butter Pretzel M&M cookies.   If you love peanut butter, chocolate and/or pretzels then this cookie is for you.   If you have been reading my blog you know my family LOVES pretzels and peanut butter.   This was the recipe for me to bake and stop eating those M&M’s by the handfuls 🙂   My boys gave the cookies a thumbs up!

Recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction: 

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup salted butter, softened to room temperature ( I used 1/2 cup of unsalted butter and added 1/4 teaspoon to the flour)

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup M&M’s

3/4 cup pretzel pieces

Directions: 

In a large bowl using a hand-mixer or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed.  Add the peanut butter, 1 large egg and vanilla in that exact order.  Next you need to add the flour and baking soda but make sure you do not over mix batter.

Fold in the M&M’s and pretzel pieces slowly without over mixing the batter.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.  I chilled mine for 2 hours.

Preheat oven at 350 degrees.   Use a small tablespoon and spoon the chilled dough onto the cookie sheets.  Next you want to flatten the dough a little bit.  I used a small glass bottom to lightly flatten my dough.   Bake for 8-9 minutes and your cookies will look a little undone and soft. Let the cookies cool completely on the cookie sheet.   The cookies will firm up as they cool.    Cookies stay fresh at room temperature in an airtight container for 10 days.

Makes 3 dozen small cookies

Do you have a great recipe you would like to share?  Just email us at Linda@mybabypajamas.com.  Please attach a photo if you can.  If your recipe is chosen, you will win a $25.00 Gift Certificate to our website.   Who doesn’t want free kids pajamas?  Please share this contest/giveaway!

Don’t forget where to find great footie pajamas, toddler pajamas and more at My Baby Pajamas.

Kickee Pants Ruffle Footies and Claesen’s Girl Boxers

Kickee Pants Natural Jacks Ruffle Footie

My Baby Pajamas received a few new items in stock.   We now have in stock Kickee Pants Natural Jacks Ruffle footie pajamas for girls.   This footie comes in sizes 3-6 Month to size 4T.   It’s priced at $38.00.   If you haven’t tried Kickee Pants yet, you really should and I promise you will not be disappointed.

My Baby Pajamas also received some Claesen’s girl boxers in stock.   You are going to want to shop now because Claesen’s girl boxers sell out fast!  Be sure to check out the Claesen’s Yellow Dot Girl Hipster Boxer and the Claesen’s Flower Print Girl Hipster Boxer.  Both these boxers come in sizes 2 years to 14 years.  The boxers are a 2 pack and are priced at $24.00.

Shop now for all our new items at My Baby Pajamas.

Claesen’s Yellow Dots Girl Hipster Boxer 2 Pack

Claesen’s Flower Prints Girl Hipster Boxers 2 Pack

National Popcorn Day ~ January 19

Chocolate Caramel Popcorn

Today is National Popcorn Day and who doesn’t like popcorn!  It’s actually one of my husband’s favorite snacks (first being pretzels).  Of course it’s a necessity to have while watching a movie.   Can you really watch a movie without popcorn?  Especially at the movie theater were they drench your popcorn in butter.   Anyway, in honor of National Popcorn Day I thought I would give you some fun facts about popcorn and a delicious recipe for Chocolate Carmel Popcorn. Yum!

Fun Facts about popcorn:

• Americans consume some 16 billion quarts of this whole grain, good-for-you treat. That’s 51 quarts per man, woman, and child.
• Compared to most snack foods, popcorn is low in calories. Air-popped popcorn has only 31 calories per cup. Oil-popped is only 55 per cup.
• Popcorn is a type of maize (or corn), a member of the grass family, and is scientifically known as Zea mays everta.
• Of the 6 types of maize/corn—pod, sweet, flour, dent, flint, and popcorn—only popcorn pops.
• Most U.S. popcorn is grown in the Midwest, primarily in Indiana, Nebraska, Ohio, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky and Missouri.
• The peak period for popcorn sales for home consumption is in the fall.
• Most popcorn comes in two basic shapes when it’s popped: snowflake and mushroom. Snowflake is used in movie theaters and ballparks because it looks and pops bigger. Mushroom is used for candy confections because it doesn’t crumble.
• Popping popcorn is one of the number one uses for microwave ovens. Most microwave ovens have a “popcorn” control button.
• How high popcorn kernels can pop? Up to 3 feet in the air.
• The world’s largest popcorn ball was created by volunteers in Sac City, Iowa in February, 2009.  It weighed 5,000 lbs., stood over 8 ft. tall, and measured 28.8 ft. in circumference.
• If you made a trail of popcorn from New York City to Los Angeles, you would need more than 352,028,160 popped kernels!

Chocolate Caramel Popcorn Recipe:

Recipe from: Mom on Timeout

Ingredients: 

• 10 cups popped popcorn
• 2 cups coarsely chopped mixed nuts (optional)
• 1 package (8 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate squares
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Karo® Corn Syrup
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 225ºF. Spray a 15 x 10-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
2. Combine popcorn and nuts in baking pan and place in oven to keep warm.
3. Heat chocolate, brown sugar, corn syrup and butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat until boiling, stirring occasionally
4. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
5. Remove from heat and immediately stir in baking soda.
6. Pour chocolate-caramel mixture carefully over popcorn and nuts.
7. Use cooking spray-coated tongs or a spatula to toss the popcorn and chocolate-caramel mixture.
8. Bake popcorn for 60 minutes stirring popcorn about halfway through.
9. Let popcorn cool completely on wire rack.
10. Break popcorn into bite-sized pieces and store in an airtight container.

I hope you enjoy the popcorn as much as we did in our house!  Until next time…keep popping 🙂

Tuesday Cook Off ~ Skinny Double Chocolate Chip Muffins

Tuesday Cook Off ~ Skinny Double Chocolate Chip Muffins

Usually I am not a big fan of baked goods that are “healthier” for you.  It always seems like something is missing to me.  Well, this recipe will not disappoint at all.   I came across the recipe on Sally’s Baking Addiction (I just love her blog) and the pictures made the muffins look so good I thought I would give them a taste.

I made the muffins without my family knowing they were from a skinny recipe.   As they were baking they absolutely smelled delicious!  The real taste test would be my boys and if they ate them.  Well, my boys crushed them and I mean crushed them.  I think the twelve muffins were gone within 48 hours.   After they were all gone I finally told everyone that these muffins were from a skinny recipe… they asked me to make them again soon 🙂 That’s a winner!!

Recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction

Yields a dozen muffins

Ingredients: 

• 3/4 cup (133g) unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (85g) honey
• 2 large egg whites (or 1 large egg)
• 3/4 cup (183g) vanilla Greek yogurt (or regular yogurt, plain or vanilla)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (62g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (64g) whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup (64g) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup (90g) mini chocolate chips, plus a few more for sprinkling on top

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425F degrees. Spray 12-count muffin pan with nonstick spray. Do not use liners.

In a large bowl, combine applesauce, sugar, honey, egg whites, greek yogurt, and vanilla extract. Whisk them all together until smooth, with no yogurt lumps remaining.

Sift* the flours, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder together. Slowly stir in the wet ingredients, being careful not to overmix. Get any dry pockets of flour out. Fold in the mini chocolate chips. The batter will be a little chunky. This is ok.

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups – fill them all the way to the top if you can. Bake for 5 minutes at 425F. Keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the temperature down to 375 and continue to bake for 13 more minutes. Insert a toothpick into the center of one muffin. If it comes out clean, they are done. If not, bake for only 2 more minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 3 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 12 muffins. Muffins stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Muffins freeze well up to 3 months: heat up for 45 seconds to thaw.

Do you have a great recipe you would like to share?  Just email us at Linda@mybabypajamas.com.  Please attach a photo if you can.  If your recipe is chosen, you will win a $25.00 Gift Certificate to our website.   Who doesn’t want free kids pajamas?  Please share this contest/giveaway!

Don’t forget where to find great footie pajamas, toddler pajamas and more at My Baby Pajamas.

Skinny Double Chocolate Chip Muffins

Claesen’s Boxers for Boys

Claesen’s Blue Stripe Boy Boxer 2 Pack $25.00

I just wanted to let everyone know that My Baby Pajamas just received a small shipment of Claesen’s boy boxers.   My Baby Pajamas received the Claesen’s Blue Stripe Boy Boxers in sizes 2 Years to 14 Years.   The 2 pack of boxer briefs is $25.00.  Also, My Baby Pajamas received more Claesen’s Star Boy Boxers and Claesen’s Denim Boy Boxers.

If your son or grandson has never tried Claesen’s boy boxer briefs they are missing out!   My youngest son lives in his Claesen’s boxers.   And I mean lives in them.   The minute he gets home from school, karate, errands, you name it, the clothes come off and he only wears his Claesen’s boy boxers around the house.   He evens sleeps in them and just them!

Just in case you don’t believe me, here is my youngest right after he came in the house from school.  Yes, he didn’t even take his shoes off!  Love this kid 🙂

My youngest in his favorite Claesen’s boy boxers

Tuesday Cook Off ~ Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Tuesday Cook Off ~ Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

I just love the taste of chocolate and salt together.   I have to be honest; at first I didn’t think I would like this combination at all but I love it.  My family loves it also.  In fact, my husband has been doing this combination for years and I always thought it was weird.  He would eat some pretzel sticks and then have pieces of chocolate right after.  I always thought this was strange when we were first married.  We will be married 21 years in February so he has been having this combination for a long time!!  Anyway, when I started to see recipes for pretzels with chocolate I just knew I had to make the recipes for my husband and finally try it too.   Well, I am a huge fan and so are our boys!!

This recipe is simple to make and is absolutely delicious 🙂

I found this recipe on Pinterest by Just a Taste:

Yields: 16 bars

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, divided
1 cup crushed salted pretzels, divided
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Directions: 

Preheat oven at 350 degrees

Using your stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk together the melted butter and sugars until smooth.  This should take about 2 minutes.   Whisk in the eggs and vanilla until combined.

Next remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the flour and the salt until combined.  Next stir in 1 cup of the chocolate chips and 1/2 cup of the crushed pretzels.  Stir just until combined.

Line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper and stray with cooking spray.   Pour the batter into the pan, smoothing the top and making even.   Sprinkle the remaining 1/2-cup of crushed pretzels on top, pressing lightly into the batter.

Bake for 30 minutes or until you can stick a toothpick into the center and it comes out clean.  Remove the cookie bars from the oven and allow them to cool completely in the pan.  This could take about 20 minutes or more.   Remove the cookies using the parchment paper and lay on the counter.

While the cookie bars are still cooling, melt the last 1/2-cup of chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl with the vegetable oil.   After the bars are completely cooled, drizzle the melted chocolate over the cookie bars.

I then stuck the bars in the fridge for about 10 minutes to help the chocolate drizzle set.   Then cut the bars into 16 pieces and enjoy!!

Do you have a great recipe you would like to share?  Just email us at Linda@mybabypajamas.com.  Please attach a photo if you can.  If your recipe is chosen, you will win a $25.00 Gift Certificate to our website.   Who doesn’t want free kids pajamas?  Please share this contest/giveaway!

Don’t forget where to find great footie pajamas, toddler pajamas and more at My Baby Pajamas.

My Baby Pajamas January 2014 Freebie Friday Giveaway

My Baby Pajamas January 2014 Freebie Friday Giveaway

My Baby Pajamas January 2014 Freebie Friday giveaway starts today, Friday January 3, 2014.  This month My Baby Pajamas is giving away one pair (1) of size 10 Boys Skivvydoodles Sea Life pajamas.  These pajamas are a two piece set with long sleeves and long pants.   Perfect for the winter months.   What better way to start off the new year!

Here is how to enter to win:

• Main entry: Answer the question on this blog post: Do you make New Year’s Resolutions?  If so, what is yours?
• extra entry: subscribe to our newsletter for our website ( already subscribe, let us know).
• extra entry: Follow us on Twitter
• extra entry: Like us on Facebook
• extra entry: Follow us on Pinterest
• Must have a U.S. Mailing address and be 18 years or older to enter.   Good Luck!

This giveaway will end on Friday, January 31, 2014.   We will announce our winner by Monday, February 3, 2014.   Winner will be picked by Random.org

Good luck to everyone!!!

Congratulations to Anne Dall! She is the winner of the My Baby Pajamas January 2014 giveaway.