Sugar Cookie Bars

Just made this last night for FHE.

It's basically a sugar cookie without quite all the work.  The boys LOVED it.  Per the instructions, I was so afraid to over bake it that I ended up under baking it instead.  I would bake it closer to the 13 (maybe even 14?) minutes, not the 10.  

Ingredients

Bars:
• 3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks), softened to cool room temperature
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 tablespoon lemon zest (optional)
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
Frosting:
• 6 tablespoons butter, softened
• 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk or cream
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Sprinkles (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, granulated sugar and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the lemon zest, flour, baking powder and salt. Mix until combined.
3. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Press and/or spread the sugar cookie mixture gently into an even layer into the bottom of the pan.
4. Bake for 10-13 minutes. Don't overbake! The bars shouldn't have any color around the edges and barely be set in the middle. Let the bars cool completely before frosting.
5. For the frosting, cream together the butter and powdered sugar until smooth (if the mixture has trouble coming together, add a drop or two of milk). Add in the vanilla and mix. Add the milk or cream and mix until the frosting is light and fluffy. Add food coloring, if desired.

~From melskitchencafe.com

Chocolate-Coconut Mousse

Alright, alright. Here's the chocolatey coconuty mousse. It's pretty fast and easy, but still kind of nice. I served it with strawberries, but it was also delicious just by itself. I thought so at least. Becky and Micah might say otherwise :) I didn't measure everything very well. I just kind of dumped, but the recipe with exact measurements is below. I wasn't sure how much it made, so to be safe I used 3 cans of coconut milk and dumped in the rest until I liked the taste. That served Becky, Micah, and I at Easter, plus some tastes from my roommates, and then I had some leftover still that I served to my FHE group with another fruit dip, so it made more than I thought. Let's seeeee, how else can I talk about this? Fine, on to the recipe. Wait! Here's the link to the website just in case you need it. 

http://www.superhealthykids.com/recipes-blog/vegan-thick-and-creamy-chocolate-mousse.php

Thick and Creamy Chocolate Mousse

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Instructions

• 2 cans full-fat coconut milk (chilled)
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 4-5 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 4 Tbsp honey

1. Place coconut milk in the freezer for about an hour prior to making the mousse
2. Spoon the coconut cream out of the can and place in a large bowl or mixer
3. Add honey, vanilla, and cocoa powder
4. Beat until smooth and creamy
5. Serve with fruit

Welcome!

'Sup guys.  Here I was sitting here trying to menu plan for the week, and struggling.  After my morning was wasted and only four lousy meals were planned, all I could think about were Rachel's oatmeal pancakes and Michelle's chocolate coconut mousse.  So how 'bout a family recipe blog?  Eh?