I made these for FHE last night and they are delicious!  Really, really love them.  And since we have an orange tree, I'll be making them every year.  Could definitely be one of my Christmas plate cookies in 2014!  YUM!

Reminded me of my Mom's favorite orange stick candy.

Photos and recipe by Sweet Treats and More.

Chocolate-Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies

Photos and recipe by Sweet Treats and More. 

It’s a chocolate cookie infused with fresh orange zest, a splash of orange juice,  rolled into a zesty orange-sugar coating.  You get bursts of orange flavor with every bite.  

 And loads of dark chocolate chips too.  Lately, I’m really loving dark chocolate.  

Chocolate meets orange meets fudgy meets zesty meets best. cookie. ever.  Definitely a new favorite.  

So Santa baby, please stuff my stalking with a dozen of these this year.  Thankyouverymuch. 

Chocolate-Orange Chocolate chip Cookies

Ingredients

Zest of one large orange

2/3 cup butter, soft

1 1/3 cup granulated sugar (1/3 cup reserved)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp freshly squeezed orange juice

1 1/2 cups flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 (10 oz) package dark chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix 1/3 cup granulated sugar with 1 tsp orange zest and set aside.

In a stand mixer, beat butter, 1 cup sugar, and remaining orange zest until creamy.

Beat in the egg, vanilla, and orange juice.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

Slowly mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients.

Stir in dark chocolate chips. Roll dough into 1 1/2 in balls and roll into the sugar-zest mixture.

Place dough balls on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper, 3 inches apart.

Using the bottom of a glass flatten dough balls to about 1/2 inch thick. Bake for 9-11 minutes.

Let cool for several minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.

Slightly Adapted from Dulce Dough
yields: 2 1/2 dozen

Death by Chocolate

Death by Chocolate

1 Box chocolate cake mix

2 pkgs. Milk choc. pudding mix

2 lg. containers cool whip [12 oz. ea]

4 Skor candy bars broken into small pieces [1.4 oz. ]

Bake cake, cool. Crumble into lg. bowl or trifle dish.

Layer 1/2 crumbled cake, pudding, cool whip, and candy bars

into bowl. then layer the next 1/2 cake, pudding, cool whip,

candy bars. Makes a large bowl [ the size of our bread mixing bowls]

One recipe will serve 20 persons

*We served it in clear party cups, was really good.

Marian's Brownies (Texas Sheet Cake)

I've never made these but I've had them many times. Emily uses this as her go to recipe for brownies (and frosting with graham crackers). She tried them years ago at my mother-in-law's house and wanted the recipe.

Marian's Brownies

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup margarine

1 cup water

3 Tbsp. cocoa

2 eggs

1 tsp. soda

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix water, cocoa and margarine and bring to a boil; pour over flour and sugar and salt. Mix eggs, soda, vanilla and milk in bowl. Add to rest of mixture and mix together. Pour into 2--9x13 pans and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Icing:

1/2 cup margarine

3 Tbsp. cocoa

6 Tbsp. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1 lb. powdered sugar

Chocolate Bird's Nests

Chocolate Birds Nests

Makes 5 large or 10 small

* 5 oz. crunchy chow mein noodles (1 small can)
*1 c. chocolate chips (½ a bag)
* 1 tsp. vegetable shortening
* Candy eggs (medium-sized speckled jelly-beans,
or Cadbury Mini-Eggs in Easter pastels work nicely)

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Melt the chocolate and shortening together in a microwave or over a double boiler, stirring until melted. Allow to cool slightly, but do not let it set up. Stir in the chow mein noodles until evenly coated. Drop the coated noodles onto the baking sheet with a large spoon. For 5 large nests, form into circle about the size of an adult palm or half that amount for 10 small. Use your fingers to sculpt the noodles into a round shape and to form an indentation in the middle of the nest. Place eggs in the
nest while chocolate is still wet. Place nests in the refrigerator to harden.

Okay, this cake is amazing. We have made 2 apple cakes in the last few weeks and this won the vote as best. Both were rated really high -- one on Allrecipes.com and this one from Cooking Light. If you are not already familiar with Cooking Light, 170 is A LOT of reviews for them. And they are all 5 stars!

A lot of reviewers say they use this cake for Thanksgiving and it is definitely worthy of an autumn holiday meal. It is often used for brunch as well. The presentation is as beautiful as the picture indicates if you use a spring-form pan. So easy too!

I need more recipes like this one.

Here is the link to the original recipe: http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=10000000222502

Cinnamon-Apple Cake

Outstanding

• Rate the Recipe
• Read Reviews (170)

This 5-star cinnamon apple cake is one of our best-ever recipes and can be served as dessert or a breakfast coffee cake. The cream cheese in the batter gives the cake lots of moisture.

Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups sugar, divided
• 1/2 cup stick margarine, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 ounces block-style fat-free cream cheese, softened (about 3/4 cup)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups chopped peeled Rome apple (about 2 large) Note: I used 3 Granny Smith apples!
• Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

Beat 1 1/2 cups sugar, margarine, vanilla, and cream cheese at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended (about 4 minutes). Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition (I beat for 1 minute after each egg). Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture, beating at low speed until blended.

Combine 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Combine 2 tablespoons cinnamon mixture and apple in a bowl, and stir apple mixture into batter. Pour batter into an 8-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray, and sprinkle with remaining cinnamon mixture. I only had a 10-inch springform pan but it still turned out beautiful!

Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan. Cool the cake completely on a wire rack, and cut using a serrated knife. WARNING: A lot of the reviews said it only took about 1 hour to cook. I set my timer for 55 minutes and it was done (note my different size pan though). Start checking the cake early.

Note: You can also make this cake in a 9-inch square cake pan or a 9-inch springform pan; just reduce the cooking time by 5 minutes.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

281 (28% from fat)

Fat:

8.7g (sat 1.8g,mono 3.7g,poly 2.6g)

Protein:

4.8g

Carbohydrate:

46.3g

Fiber:

1.2g

Cholesterol:

39mg

Iron:

1.1mg

Sodium:

234mg

Calcium:

89mg

Cooking Light, OCTOBER 1997

Louisiana Yum Yum

Louisiana Yum Yum

First layer –Mix together and press into 9x13 pan and bake for about 15 minuets at 325 degrees

1 cup flour 1 cup diced pecans

½ cup margarine, Softened

Second layer—Mix and spread over cooled crust

1 (8 oz.) Pkg. Creamed cheese 1 cup cool whip (1 8oz.)

1 cup powdered Sugar

Third layer—stir in bowl until slightly thick, then spread on top of Second layer

1 large pkg. Instant chocolate pudding

3 cups milk

1 large pkg. Instant vanilla pudding

Fourth layer—Spread Cool whip (one 8 oz.) over top and sprinkle either chopped pecans or chocolate shavings to decorate.

Keeps in refrigerator well for many days

Pumpkin Roll

Pumpkin Roll

1 c. Sugar

3 eggs

2\3 c. Pumpkin

3\4 c. flour

2 tsp. Cinnamon

1 t. ginger

1\2 t. nutmeg

1/2 t. Baking powder

1/2 t. soda

1 t. lemon juice

3\4 c. chopped nuts

Filling

1 1/2 c. powder sugar

1 (8 oz.) cream cheese

4 T. butter

1\2 t. vanilla

Beat eggs well (about 5 min.)

Add sugar, pumpkin. Set a side and mix together flour, spices, and baking powder and lemon juice then add to egg mixture. Mix well.

Grease and flour a 15x10x1 pan pour mixture into pan. Spread evening sprinkle nuts on top. Bake at 375 for 15 min. DO NOT OVER COOK

On a towel sprinkle powdered sugar ( this is not the sugar for the filling) turn cake out onto sugar. Roll cake while still warm so it will get used to being rolled up.

Mix filling, unroll cake and spread filling onto cake evenly and roll up again. Put in refrigerator.

Very taste……..

Death by Chocolate

Death by Chocolate

1 Box chocolate cake mix

2 pkgs. Milk choc. pudding mix

2 lg. containers cool whip [12 oz. ea]

4 Skor candy bars broken into small pieces [1.4 oz. ]

Bake cake, cool. Crumble into lg. bowl or trifle dish.

Layer 1/2 crumbled cake, pudding, cool whip, and candy bars

into bowl. then layer the next 1/2 cake, pudding, cool whip,

candy bars. Makes a large bowl [ the size of our bread mixing bowls]

One recipe will serve 20 persons

*We served it in clear party cups, was really good.