Lemon Burst Cookies

Happy Easter! I haven't been feeling very well today, but we did a lot of our Easter activities yesterday - including baking up these sunny lemon cookies. I hesitate to call them cookies, they're really little cakes. I've been craving something lemony and Easter seemed like the perfect occasion to try this recipe. I have not made cookies like this before... it's an interesting process in that the batter (not dough) is sticky and must be coated in powdered sugar before baking.

If you want to try them, make sure you take them out of the oven the second you see any brown around the edges because they can burn easily, and be warned: the powdered sugar gets all over the place! They're pretty and yummy, and super easy on a busy Easter weekend. :)


Recipe: (from BrownEyedBaker )

1 (18.25-ounce) package lemon cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
Zest of 2 lemons
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon lemon extract
1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.

2. Pour cake mix into a large bowl. Stir in eggs, oil, lemon zest, lemon juice and lemon extract until well blended.

3. Place confectioner’s sugar in a bowl.

4. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of dough into balls and roll in confectioner’s sugar until lightly coated and place on baking sheet.

5. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Cool for 2-3 minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Banana Bread

Rosalyn loves bananas, and banana bread is such a simple thing to make that we have it about once a month at our house. The thing I like about it is that if I happen to have three ripe bananas, all the other needed ingredients are already in my cabinet. It's kind of a surprise anytime I make it... it's like the bananas tell me it is time again to make banana bread :) Also - while I've always liked banana bread, this recipe is especially yummy. It could really be called banana cake!

Recipe:

Combine 1 cup sugar and 1/2 cup butter. Then add 3 ripened bananas, 2 eggs beaten and 1 1/4 cups flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp baking soda. Bake at 350 for 50 min

See? Really simple. I'm including a photo of the banana bread I made this morning (still working on those photography skills) and I'm hoping Rosalyn will let me snap a cute photo of her munching on some when she wakes up from her nap.

Cocoa Brownies

Cocoa Brownies from Bon Appetit

Ingredients

nonstick olive oil spray

1 stick butter, cut into 1 inch squares

1 1/4 cups sugar

3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

2 large eggs

1/3 cup all purpose flour

• Preheat oven to 325°. Line an 8x8x2 inches glass baking dish with foil, pressing firmly into pan and leaving a 2 inches overhang. Coat foil with nonstick spray; set baking dish aside.
• Melt butter in a small sauce-pan over medium heat. Let cool slightly. Whisk sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium bowl to combine. Pour butter in a steady stream into dry ingredients, whisking constantly to blend. Whisk in vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, beating vigorously to blend after each addition. Add flour and stir until just combined (do not overmix). Scrape batter into prepared pan; smooth top.
• Bake until top begins to crack and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 25-30 minutes.
• Transfer pan to a wire rack; let cool completely in pan. Using foil overhang, lift brownie out of pan; transfer to a cutting board. Cut into squares.