Lesson #127: Oatmeal and M&M cookies

In between removing wallpaper, putting up drywall, sanding, and priming the kitchen, I whipped up these cookies. I had extra pastel M&M's left over from Easter (and this caramel corn), so I decided to incorporate the candies into an oatmeal cookie.

I was glad I did! The cookies are crispy and chewy with just the right amount of chocolate. The uncooked dough balls freeze beautifully so you can bake them off as you need them. DELICIOUS!

LESSON LEARNED: Let these cookies cool completely on the cookie sheet. If you try to remove them early, they will fall apart!

Recipe for Oatmeal and M&M cookies

Lesson #125: Caramel Easter Popcorn

I really love my usual caramel corn recipe, so I didn't know how this caramel corn recipe would measure up. I was a little skeptical because you didn't bake the caramel corn and you mixed in mini-marshmallows into the hot caramel to create a gooey-caramel mixture. On top of that, I planned to make it a day before I served it, so I wasn't sure if it would taste stale after sitting around.

Well, it turned out to be super YUMMY I would say it's a cross between caramel corn and rice krispies treats, but that's not a bad combination in my book. I love the saltiness that the crushed pretzels add and the touch of chocolate from the M&M's. And yes, it still tastes good if you make it ahead of time!

LESSON LEARNED: After the caramel corn has cooled, break it up into small pieces so it's easy to grab a handful from a bowl.

Recipe for Caramel Easter Popcorn

Lesson #124: Cadbury Creme Egg Cupcakes

These cupcakes are so CUTE! Not only do they look like eggs, they have a surprise in the middle!

I made them as part of our Easter celebration along with a few other desserts I'll be posting this week. The cupcake base was a "new-to-me" recipe and uses chocolate syrup as part of the batter. These cupcakes are incredibly moist. I made them Friday night and by today they were still great.

LESSON LEARNED: Be warned - these are extremely rich! They might be good as mini-cupcakes or eaten with a glass of milk.

Recipe for Cadbury Creme Egg Cupcakes

Lesson #121: M&M Oat Bars

These cookie bars are the perfect SWEET treat. A mixture of oatmeal and chopped pecans are layered with smashed M&M's and sweetened condensed milk, topped with more oatmeal/pecans, and sprinkled with M&M's. They are very colorful and would be so pretty with pastel colored M&M's or whatever seasonal variety is available. The cookie bars were super simple to make - the hardest part was waiting for them to cool before cutting!

LESSON LEARNED: Wait for these bars to completely cool before cutting. They are kind of ooey-gooey - which is super yummy - just really messy to cut.

Recipe for M&M Oat Bars