Vanilla Cookies with Nutella Filling

I missed World Nutella Day yesterday.  Doh!

I also have had this recipe saved since *2012* specifically to post on the next World Nutella Day.  But dang, apparently I need a reminder on my phone or something to help me remember when it comes around each year!  So instead of making you wait yet another year for sharing this recipe, I'm sharing it a day late.  Because better late than never, right?

Brace yourself for surprise smooth nutella goodness enveloped in a vanilla cookie...yum!

Vanilla Cookies with Nutella Filling

Ingredients

• ½ cup (220g) nutella (I used homemade nutella!)
• 10 Tbsp. (140g) unsalted butter, softened 
• 1 cup (220g) granulated sugar 
• 1 large egg 
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract 
• 2 cup (250g) all-purpose flour 
• ½ tsp. baking soda 
• ½ tsp. salt

Directions

1. Line a small baking sheet with wax paper or silicone baking mat. 
2. Transfer the nutella to a small plastic bag. Cut off one corner of the plastic bag and gently squeeze the nutella out onto the wax paper or baking mat into 24 evenly-sized chips. Place the baking sheet in the freezer until the nutella is firm, about 30 minutes. 
3. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a baking sheet with butter, cooking spray, or line with another silicone baking mat. 
4. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and stir with a spoon until fully incorporated. Divide the dough into 24 even balls and flatten each into a disk. 
5. Remove the frozen nutella chips from the freezer. Working quickly, press each chip into one ball of dough and roll the dough into a ball around the nutella. Place the cookie dough balls 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. 
6. Bake, just until the edges start to turn slightly golden, 6-8 minutes (keep an eye on them towards the end – do NOT overbake these). Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Source: Slightly modified from Inquiring Chef

Pepperoni Pizza Sliders

Superbowl weekend is coming up.  Frankly, it wasn't even on my radar until I heard people talking about how this crazy polar vortex that we're going through may result in the game being played on a Saturday...or even a Friday...due to the extreme cold weather.

For those still looking for something quick and easy to put on their Superbowl spread, this ought to do the trick.  Same goes for the uber delicious Hawaian roll ham and cheese sliders.  There's something about mini sammies, melted cheese, and butter that makes for happy people.  Since both can be assembled in advance, you could have them in the fridge ready to bake for whenever that game ends up being.  It's sure to be a hit with your guests!

More Superbowl food ideas:

• Football Snackadium
• Taco Dip
• Mini Corn Dog Muffins
• Blooming Onion with Dipping Sauce

And umm...go...well...yeah.  I don't even know who's playing this year so guess I'm not rooting for anybody in particular!

Pepperoni Pizza Sliders

Ingredients

For the sandwiches

• 3/4 cup pizza sauce 
• 12 Hawaiian rolls 
• 48 slices large deli pepperoni (or 1 lb pepperoni slices) 
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese 
• Sliced onions, green peppers, olives (optional)

For the topping

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 
• 1/2 tablespoons onion powder 
• 1/2 tablespoons garlic powder 
• 1/2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
• A few dashes Worcestershire sauce  

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Spread pizza sauce onto both sides of the center of each roll. Place 2 large slices (or a few small slices) of pepperoni and a some shredded cheese inside of each roll. If you want, dress them up with your desired veggies.  Close rolls and put into a large baking dish or heavy cookie sheet so that the sandwiches are touching each other. 
3. In a small bowl, whisk together all of the topping ingredients. Pour evenly over all of the sandwiches, just enough to cover the tops; let sandwiches sit for at least 10 minutes to absorb the butter and seasonings. If desired, sandwiches can be assembled and buttered a day ahead, covered and kept in the fridge until ready to bake. 
4. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Uncover and cook for 2 additional minutes or until tops are slightly brown and crispy. Serve warm. 

Source: Barely Modified from What's Cookin' Chicago

SRC: S'mores Bites (Dairy-Free/Vegan)

It's a somewhat sad day for me because this is my last Secret Recipe Club.  After being a part of this group for a few years now I've decided that I needed to step away from it all.  I simply don't have the time to dedicate to creating things on a set schedule and commenting on others' posts like I used to.

For my final assignment I am honored to have my fellow Cincinnati blogging friend Desi of SteakNPotatoesKindaGurl.  We "met" through this club.  Though we live in the same city, we have never actually met in person.  She did, however, contribute a beautiful guest post of Grilled Filet with Bourbon Butter to my blog when I was on vacation.  If I learned anything about Desi it's that the girl LOVES bacon.  So when I went to choosing a recipe, I thought I'd make something with bacon in it.  Then I took a completely different direction when I saw her post for one of her other loves...s'mores.  I considered throwing some bacon crumbles in with the chocolate center and/or on top as a garnish as a tribute but tried to stay true to the recipe ;).

Many of you know that I've gone dairy-free for my son who is nursing and I suspect to be sensitive to it.  Since I could customized the cookies, I made mine dairy-free while using regular Hershey milk-chocolate for my husband's cookies.  I tried to make some substitutions of coconut oil instead of butter and dark chocolate instead of milk to keep it dairy-free (and vegan for that matter!).  Finding graham cracker crumbs that were dairy-free was also surprisingly challenging.  I usually buy store brand to save a few bucks but the store brand and most national brands for that matter had dairy in them.  Boo!  The only dairy-free graham crackers I could find were Nabisco Honey Maid.

The taste was awesome.  I actually loved the not-so-subtle coconut flavor.  It kind of reminded me of my favorite Girl Scout Cookie, samoas...which, I also can't eat right now.  Sad face.  The only problem was that my cookie crust was too crumbly and totally didn't hold together right on removal.  I'm not sure if substituting my coconut oil 1:1 for butter was the issue or if I just didn't bake it long enough.  Still experimenting with this whole dairy-free baking thing.  The fact that my cookie crumbled didn't stop me from enjoying these little s'mores bites straight out of the pan with a spoon ;).  Don't judge.

As I say goodbye to my SRC friends I want to thank you all for being awesome and for helping me to discover your wondering blogs.  And of course a special shout out to our hostess, Debbi.  I hope that you all will continue to follow me even as I leave the club...and probably post less frequently.

On an unrelated note...have you entered my Wildtree giveaway??

S'mores Bites (Dairy-Free/Vegan)

Ingredients

• 7 whole graham crackers or 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (Nabisco Honey Maid are dairy-free)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar 
• 6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted (use butter if you don't care about it being vegan/dairy-free) 
• 4 dark chocolate candy bars, divided (I used Lindt Excellence 85% Cacao Bars for my dairy-free ones and regular Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bars for the hubby)
• 12 large marshmallows, cut in half crosswise with kitchen scissors (Dandies brand are vegan)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  
2. If using whole graham crackers, place inside a ziplock bag and then crush with a rolling pin.  Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted coconut oil into a bowl. 
3. Divide crumb mixture into each cup of a 24 cup mini muffin pan. Press crumbs to form shallow cups.
4. Bake for 4-5 minutes or until edges are bubbling. 
5. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Break the rectangles in half. 
6. Remove pan from oven; place 2 rectangle halves into each cup. Place one marshmallow half, cut-side down, into each cup. Return to oven for 3 minutes or until marshmallows are just slightly softened.  If desired, flip on the broiler to lightly toast the tops.  Watch them carefully because they burn quickly!  
7. Using remaining candy bars, break into rectangles and top each marshmallow with a piece of chocolate.
8. Cool on a cooling rack for 15 minutes before carefully removing cups from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

Source: Modified from SteakNPotatoesKindaGurl