Red Velvet Polka Dot Cookies

I follow the Runaway Spoon (@therunawayspoon) on Twitter and I came across this recipe. I love red velvet cake, so I knew I had to try out these cookies. The cookies weren't quite as awesome as I was expecting. I guess I was hoping for a goey, cake-like cookie, but I thought I would still post the recipe for others to try for themselves :)

Here is the Recipe:

Red Velvet Polka Dot Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 (1-ounce) bottle red food coloring

1 (11-ounce) white chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light-colored.  Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until fluffy and light.

In a small bowl, use a fork to mix together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.  Use the fork to break up lumps of cocoa powder.  Add the dry ingredients to the butter in the mixer a little at a time, mixing well after each addition and occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl.  When the dough is thoroughly mixed, add the food coloring, beating until the dough is a dark red color.  If you have some place important to be or just had a manicure, I’d recommend wearing gloves.  That red food coloring will show up in the oddest places.  When the dough is evenly colored, stir in all but about ½ cup of the white chocolate chips until mixed in.

Scoop the dough onto the lined baking sheets using a 2 Tablespoon cookie scoop or spoon.  Place the cookies apart from each other to allow room for spreading.  You will have enough dough to use on a third pan of cookies after these have cooked.  Wet your fingers and lightly press down the top of each cookie mound, then press the remaining white chips into each cookie to create the polka dots. The cookies spread, so press a lot of chips into the cookies.

Bake the cookies for 10 – 12 minutes until firm in the center.  Cool on the pans for a few minutes until firm, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.  When one pan has cooled, repeat with the rest of the cookie dough. Stored in an airtight container, the cookies will keep for several days.

Makes 30 cookies

Giving Thanks

This past weekend was spent at the Chatfield home in Pellston, MI. Since the whole family was there, that made a total of 15 people in one for house for the Thanksgiving meal. It was SO crazy, but also very fun (and  definitely entertaining!)

Wednesday night we heard a very convicting message. I was reminded how I shouldn't just be thankful for everything God gives me only once a year. I need to be continually thanking Him for everything he gives me all the time. It's such a simple message, but one that is too easily forgotten.
There was a special time set aside for prayer after the message, and I was crying out to God thanking Him for the gift of health He has given me. What happened in July is not something I would ever want for myself or for my family, but God's ways are not mine- and I'm very thankful for that. He was in control of the whole situation and He knew how everything would turn out. Mine and Nate's relationship was strengthened after that week in the hospital, and our relationship with our Lord was strengthened. God will often put things in our lives to show us that we are not in control, but he most definitely is. I pray that God received glory from that situation, and I pray that I will continue to give Him glory in every area of my life.

Thursday was spent preparing for the Thanksgiving meal and eating it! Oh, and I would be a bad wife if I didn't mention the Lions game. :) Steph and I were in charge of desserts. I made cake balls, and my first ever pecan pie. Guess they were both tasty, because by the end of the weekend everything was gone.

Late Thursday night into early Friday morning was spent Black Friday shopping with Steph, Paul, & Aaron and grocery shopping at Mejer at 1:00 a.m.- LOVE that store!!

On Friday, Steph, Noah, Eliana and I went downtown Petoskey to do some shopping. Downton Petoskey is always so pretty, but especially during the Christmas season!

Saturday was a bit of a recovery day. :) We watched the Michigan vs Ohio State football game and helped set up things for Alaina's 5th birthday.

Went to church Sunday morning to worship our Lord and Savior. And then after lunch, we took off back to Northland.

I'm so thankful for everything God has given me. He has given me more than I deserve. I'm so thankful for a God that loves me and died for me that I might live; for my salvation; a loving, faithful, wise husband; a beautiful, heathy baby girl; loving parents; my health; a roof over my head; food to eat; and clothes to wear. There is so much to be thankful for, and I'm praising my God for giving me life to enjoy the things He has given me.

Here are some pictures from Thanksgiving....

                                                       So thankful for my sweet family

                                                              Eliana's First Thanksgiving

                                                                       Love this girl!

                                                               The Dessert Table

Snickerdoodle Muffins

Nate loves snickerdoodle cookies, so I knew this was a no-brainer. The muffins were really good! The top was a little crusty (in a good way) and crunchy, so it reminded me of the actual cookie and then the inside was nice and moist. 

Here is the recipe:
2 sticks unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp cream of tarter
3/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 1/4 cup sour cream
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar and 1 TBSP cinnamon mixed together for rolling

1. Cream the butter and sugar until soft about 3 to 5 minutes. Add in the vanilla. Add in the eggs one at a time and mix until each is incorporated.

2.In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cream of tarter, & nutmeg.

3.Add the flour mixture and the sour cream alternately to the egg-butter mixture in the additions. Start with the flour and end with the flour. Scrape the bowl occasionally.

4. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out muffin batter one at a time and drop into a shallow bowl filled with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Roll the muffin around in the mixture until it is covered completely in cinnamon sugar. Place muffin into muffin tin. Depending on the size of your tins, you should get about 12 to 14 muffins. (I used the large cookie scoop from Pampered Chef and it made about 20 muffins) Bake them for approx. 20-22 minutes in a 350F oven or until they are golden brown.

Thanks Pinterest...

Ok, so I'm a huge fan of Pinterest! It's just like looking at this humongous magazine, that's FREE, and saving all of those great ideas and pictures to your very own pin boards. LOVE it! Thank you to the genius who came up with this great web site.

I have been wanting to put a wreath on our apartment door since we moved in (yeah, that was like 2 1/2 years ago...I'm just a little behind) and now, thanks to Pinterest, I put together a wreath that I really like!

 The "C" is a little bigger than I would've liked, but it will have to do :)

And the second thing I did this week was put together a new bow holder for Eliana's room. Poor girl has so many bows and flowers that there just wasn't enough room on her old bow holder. But can a girl really have too many accessories? Um, I don't think so.  

30-Day Husband Encouragement Challenge

I know I don't encourage Nate like I should, so I would definitely like to take the "challenge." Anyone care to join me?! :)

I hope to keep track of what God has done in my life and in our marriage. So if you think about it...I'd love your prayers that I would love my husband the way that I should, and that I would keep God first in my life and in our marriage.

30-Day Husband Encouragement Challenge

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Welcome to the Chatfield Corner. I hope to share words of encouragement, recipes, craft ideas, and little bits and pieces of our lives.