The BEST Easter Cookies 🐰 No-bake, mini-egg HAYSTACK COOKIES

These no-bake mini egg Easter cookies are an annual tradition at my house. My boys and I bake them together, we eat too many, and we share them with friends. They are easy to make and absolutely delicious... and today I'm sharing the recipe, serving ideas and a short 2 minute instructional video.

To make these adorable Easter cookies:

1)  Mix together the following dry ingredients, and set aside:

• 3 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
• 1/4 tsp salt

2)  Put the following ingredients in a saucepan, and bring to a boil:

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

3)  Remove from heat, and stir in dry ingredients.

4)  Before the mixture starts to dry out, drop the mixture from heaping teaspoons onto wax paper (or use a cookie scoop), and add three candy covered chocolate eggs to the middle of each cookie. 

Allow to cool completely.

And... before you venture into the kitchen, take a peek at this short, instructional video.

These cookies are great served up with some hot chocolate.

And they make a great addition to a dessert charcuterie board too!

Do you have a favorite Easter Cookie recipe?  This one is definitely at the top of my list. If you give them a try, let me know what you think.

♥ 

Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

***Find more Easter ideas here.

Chocolate CHRISTMAS Crackle Cookies

Who doesn't love a good Christmas cookie recipe? Baking (and eating) cookies is one of my favourite parts of the holiday season. This year, my boys and I are loving these chocolate Christmas crackle cookies. They are simple to make, fudgey in the middle, crispy on the edges... and they look great on a Christmas cookie tray.

To make Chocolate Christmas Crackle Cookies:

 

Gather your ingredients:

•         ½ vegetable oil
•         2 cups granulated sugar
•         4 eggs
•         2 tsp real vanilla
•         2 cups flour
•         1 cup unsweetened cocoa
•         2 tsp baking powder
•         1 tsp salt
•         1 tsp cinnamon
•         Approx. ½ icing sugar for coating

Then:

1.      Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2.      In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla.
3.      In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
4.      Combine the wet and dry ingredients, and chill the dough for 30 minutes.
5.      Roll the dough into 1-inch balls (using a cookie scoop), and then completely coat each ball by rolling it in icing sugar.
6.      Place the balls on a parchment lined cookie sheet (leaving room for spreading), and bake for 8-10 minutes. The cookies should be crispy on the edges and soft in the middle. Cool on the cookie sheet for 3 minutes, and then transfer them to a cooling rack.

I think a cookie chacuterie board is wonderful for holiday entertaining, and these cookies make a great addition to a tray of goodies. 

Check out the cookie board I made for my boys this year. I filled a couple of dishes with chocolates, stacked my chocolate Christmas crackle cookies in the middle, and filled the extra spaces with store bought cookies. Cute, right?

Do you have a favourite cookies? I highly recommend giving these chocolate Christmas crackle cookies a try. If you make them, let me know what you think.

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

You might also enjoy the awesome Christmas cookie recipes here.

5 Ideas for Breakfast for Dinner

Dinnertime can be a challenge for busy families, so it's always fantastic to have quick meal ideas ready to go. Breakfast foods are easy to make and don't require a lot of ingredients, so breakfast for dinner is a wonderful mealtime solution. Today, I'm sharing FIVE of my favourite ideas for breakfast for dinner.

Quiche - Quiche is a wonderful family friendly supper idea. What's not to like about bacon mixed with egg and cheese? You can find my favorite SIMPLE bacon quiche recipe here. Add some fruit, a salad, or veggies... and you are good to go!

French Toast - French toast paired with fruit (and a bit of maple syrup) is one of my kids' favourite meals. 

To make French Toast, I like to use Brioche bread... but any bread works well. For each two pieces of bread, beat together: 1 egg, 1 tbsp milk, and a 1/8 tsp cinnamon. Then, dip the bread slices into the egg mixture, and cook them in a lightly buttered pan until they are brown on both sides. I serve them with a light dusting of powered sugar and real maple syrup.

Scrambled egg wraps - This is a simple option... and younger children love it. Scramble eggs, and pop them in a wrap with some grated cheese. I like adding some salsa... but that is optional.

For younger kids, these little clips from the dollar are great and make the wraps must easier for littles ones to eat.

Pancakes - Pancakes paired with fruit is another simple meal option that is popular with children and adults. I like to have homemade pancake mix in the pantry to make meal time even easier. You can find my favourite pantry pancake mix recipe here.

Egg in a Hole - This id something my dad used to make for me when I was a child, and it was always a favourite of mine. Now, I make it for you my family. Butter the bread, cut out the middle, and pop and egg in the middle. I love this simple breakfast for dinner meal idea!

Is your family a fan of "breakfast for dinner"? What are your favourites? If you haven't tried all of the ideas I'm sharing today, give them a try. I'd love to hear what you think.

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Find more family friendly recipes here.

How you can challenge yourself (and your kids) to learn something new

I am a big advocate of life-long learning... but sometimes it's a struggle to find the time to learn something new. So for March break, I decided to challenge my boys to learn something new, and I decided to challenge myself too. With some literary inspiration from DK Books*, my boys are going to learn to cook/bake a few things, and I am going to learn a bit of embroidery and knitting. You can read more about my "learn something new challenge" (and our book choices) below.

*Disclosure: I was given these books (at no cost) by DK books in exchange for my truthful review. I have also included Amazon links in this post. If you purchase one of these books using my link, I will receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you). Thank you!


My plan is to have each of my boys choose a recipe from the cookbooks I ordered for them, shop for the ingredients, and follow the recipe (with only a small amount of supervision from me). The boys can serve their creations to the family, and when they have all completed their recipes, they can choose something for me to make for them. Fun, right?

These are the two books I chose for my boys: 

1) Bake It: More Than 150 Recipes for Kids from Simple Cookies to Creative Cakes! 

2) Kids' Fun and Healthy Cookbook Canadian Edition

I have been wanting to get my boys cooking more, and I think this "learn something new" challenge is a great way to do it.

I think my boys will enjoy following the recipes in these books (with their simple instructions and pictures).

These are the two books I chose for me.

1) The Knitting Book: Over 250 Step-by-Step Techniques
2) Embroidery: A Step-by-Step Guide to More than 200 Stitches

I have all four of our new books sitting on my coffee table, and as soon as we have the time, my boys and I are going to work on completing our challenges. I believe that you can learn new things at any age, don't you?

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

No Bake Chocolate and Coconut Cookies (Haystacks / Cow Plops / Spider Cookies)

Every Spring, my boys and I make bird nest cookies. They are filled with chocolate covered eggs, but the base of the cookies is what makes them so special. In fact, as a stand alone cookie, these "no bake" chocolate oatmeal cookies are a winner any time of year. They go by lots of names, but my family always called them "haystacks", "cow plops" or "spider cookies". Whatever you call them, they are delicious, and I'm sharing the recipe below.

The secret to these cookies is to have the dry ingredients ready, so when the chocolate mixture boils, the two mixtures can be combined and spooned out before the mixture starts to dry out.

To make these no bake chocolate coconut cookies:

1) Mix together the following dry ingredients, and set aside:
3 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/4 tsp salt

2) Put the following ingredients in a saucepan, and bring to a boil:
2 cups white sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

3) Remove from heat, and stir in dry ingredients.

4) Before the mixture starts to dry out, drop the mixture from heaping teaspoons onto wax paper, and allow to cool completely.

These cookies are easy to make, and they are packed a rich chocolate flavour. Have you ever had these yummy no bake chocolate and coconut cookies? What do you call them?

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

M & M Christmas Cookies

Tried and true recipes are my favourite, and I absolutely love my soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe. I literally bake it a couple of times a month, and it is an absolute favourite in our home. So, last week, I thought I would take my classic chocolate chip cookie recipe and turn it into a Christmas classic. Today, I am sharing my recipe for super-easy M&M Christmas cookies. This is the perfect recipe to bake with kids... and these cookies would be perfect to leave for Santa.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter (at room temperature... NOT melted)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups green and red M&Ms (or other holiday candy coated chocolate)

Here's the recipe:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2) In a medium bowl, whisk together the following dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, and salt.

3) In a separate bowl, use electric beaters to combine the butter, white sugar and brown sugar.

4) Add eggs and real vanilla extract to the butter/sugar mixture. Beat with electric beaters until well combined.

5) Using a wooden spoon, mix wet and dry ingredients together (just until combined). Then, add green and red M&Ms (or any candy coated chocolate candies).

6) Drop tablespoon-size balls onto a Silpat or parchment lined cookie sheet, and bake for approx. 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.



This is such a classic cookie recipe... and kids will love them!



They freeze really well too... and they are a perfect choice for leaving for Santa. A glass of milk and a few of these cookies will give Santa all the energy he needs to deliver presents on Christmas Eve.

Happy Holidays!!!

♥ 
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Note: If you notice that your cookies are flattening out, try putting the batter in the fridge for half an hour before baking. Also, use fresh baking soda, don't melt the butter, and don't put batter onto a hot cookie sheet.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Valentine's Day Cookies

My family loves the combination of chocolate and peanut, so on Valentine's Day, these chocolate peanut butter cookies are a big hit. The delicious peanut butter cookies pair perfectly with the peanut butter filled chocolate hearts. They are easy to make too!

The kids will love helping you bake these cookies too!

To make these cookies, you can start with your favourite peanut butter cookie recipe. Here is the one I use (because it is simple, delicious, and only dirties one bowl):

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

2) In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to combine butter, peanut butter, and sugars.
3) Add baking soda and baking powder, and beat until combined.
4) Add egg and vanilla, and beat again.
5) Stir in flour.

6) Scoop dough onto a cookie sheet.
7) Bake at 375 degrees for 8-12 minutes.
8) Push peanut butter filled chocolate hearts into cookies while they are still soft (i.e. before they are completely cooled).
9) Transfer to wire rack to cool.

Check out this video to see exactly how we did it. I did the scooping, and my 8 year old placed all the chocolate hearts.

Are you a fan of chocolate and peanut butter? Who will you make these delicious Valentine's Day cookies for? I'll definitely be baking a batch for my boys on February 14th!

♥

Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup No-Churn Ice Cream

I love cooking with my boys, so I thought it would be a lot of fun to make homemade ice cream with them this summer. I have seen many "no churn" recipes on Pinterest that use cream and sweetened condensed milk, so I decided to experiment with creating our my version. Today I am sharing our SIMPLE recipe for Reese's Peanut Butter Cup No-Churn Ice Cream.

You'll need:

1) one small can (300mL) sweetened condensed milk

2) one small carton (237mL) whipping cream

3) 1 tsp vanilla

4) 3-4 crumbled Reese's peanut butter cups

Then:
1) Empty the can of condensed milk into a large bowl, and mix in the vanilla.
2) Use a hand mixer to whip the cream (for approximately 3 minutes).
3) Gradually fold the whip cream into the condensed milk (just until combined). It starts out lumpy, but if you keep mixing, it will get smooth.
4) Pour half of the mixture into a loaf pan, sprinkle the chocolate on top, and add the remaining mixture. Use a knife to swirl in the chocolate pieces.
5) Cover the top of the ice cream with a piece of wax paper, and press it down.
6) Freeze for at least 5-6 hours.
7) Enjoy!

My boys had a wonderful time making this ice cream, and they loved the ice cream's rich and creamy flavour!

Have you ever made ice cream this way? Making ice cream from cream and sweetened condensed milk was much easier than I thought it would be, and there was no special equipment required. The boys have already requested another batch. If you give this recipe a try, let me know how it turns out.

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Homemade "Instant" Oatmeal

My youngest son likes oatmeal, but I don't like giving him the "just add water" packages, so recently, I have started making this homemade "instant" oatmeal in the microwave.  It literally only takes a couple minutes to make.

Here's what you'll need:

1/2 cup quick oats
3/4 cup 1% milk
1 tsp brown sugar
pinch of salt (optional)
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Then:

1) Mix oats and milk in a bowl, and microwave on high for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes.
2) Remove from microwave, add brown sugar and cinnamon, and stir.

That's it!  I cool mine down by adding a little milk, and sometimes I sprinkle a little more brown sugar  or a drizzle of real maple syrup on top, but these are both optional.  

This homemade oatmeal is perfect for busy mornings, and it is a favorite of my 5 year old. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)