BYU Brownies and More!

The following was copied from the BYU Today monthly e-newsletter for BYU Alumni:

The most commonly requested recipe at BYU among its alumni is for its mint brownies. BYU Alumni is providing it, along with three other university favorites.

Bon Appetit!

Note: Many ingredients are listed in ounces. A cup contains eight ounces.

BYU Brownies
1 cup butter or margarine
½ cup cocoa
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups cake flour
½ tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions: Melt butter. Add cocoa and mix well. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
Pour batter into a greased 9X13 baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.
Let cool then ice with mint icing. Place into freezer for 5-10 minutes to stiffen the icing.
Remove from freezer and carefully smooth on a layer of chocolate icing.

Mint Icing
12 oz. powdered sugar
2 ½ oz. Crisco shortening
Dash of salt
2 oz. cold water
½ tsp. mint extract
1-2 drops green food coloring

Directions: Combine all ingredients except shortening. Mix until smooth. Add shortening and mix 10 more minutes until smooth and fluffy.

Chocolate Icing
12 oz. powdered sugar
1.5 oz. hot water
1.5 oz butter or margarine
1.5 oz. melted chocolate chips
1 tablespoon corn syrup
¼ teaspoon vanilla

Directions: Mix the hot water, margarine, and powdered sugar until smooth and margarine is fully melted. Add the fudge base, corn syrup, and vanilla. Mix until smooth.

Chocolate Road Bars
11 oz. butter
3.5 oz. cocoa paste
3 ½ cups granulated sugar
6 eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
3 cups chopped walnuts
5 oz. miniature marshmallows

Directions: melt butter and stir in the cocoa paste. Whip eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt until very light and fluffy and fold in the cocoa past mixture. Fold in the flour by hand until texture is smooth and consistent. Pour into greased half sheet pan. Sprinkle walnut pieces, mini marshmallows, and chocolate chips over the batter evenly. Bake at 300 degrees for 20 minutes, they turn up the heat to 350 degrees for another 20 to 25 minutes.

Cherry Chews
1.5 lbs. granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
12 oz. egg whites
½ teaspoon vanilla
14 oz. cake flour
8 oz. shortening
4 oz. butter or margarine
1 ¼ cups chopped walnuts
6 oz. red glazed cherries (can substitute drained maraschino cherries patted dry)

Directions: Melt the shortening and margarine; set aside for later. Beat sugar, salt, egg whites, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the shortening and margarine and mix until smooth. Add the flour and mix until just incorporated. Add the cherries and nuts to the mix, mixing just until combined. Pour into greased half sheet pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Pumpkin Crumble
2.5 lbs. white cake mix
12 oz butter or margarine
2 cups chopped walnuts
3 lbs canned pumpkin
5 eggs
3 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
15 oz. evaporated milk

Directions: mix the cake mix and the margarine until crumbly. Be very careful not to over mix.
Divide the crumb mixture in half. Press one half into the bottom of a greased 2 inch buffet pan.
Add the chopped walnuts to the remaining half and set it aside for later. Mix the pumpkin with the eggs, sugar, spice, and evaporated milk. Pour the pumpkin mixture over the flattened crumb mixture in the pan. Sprinkle the remaining crumb/ nut mixture over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour or until the pumpkin mixture is firm.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3-4 cups flour
12 oz bag chocolate chips

Cream sugars and butter. Add eggs and vanilla. Stir in all dry ingredients. Add chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees F for 8-10 minutes. Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

Sugar Cookie Frosting

4 cups confectioners sugar

1/2 cup shortening
5 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
food coloring

In a large bowl, cream together sugar and shortening until smooth. Gradually add milk and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth and stiff, about 5 minutes. Color with food coloring if desired.

Decorated Sugar Cookies

3 3/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Butter, softened
1 1/2 cups White Sugar
2 Eggs
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together, set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at at time, then stir in the vanilla. Gradually blend in the sifted ingredients until fully absorbed. Cover dough and chill for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets. On a clean floured surface, roll out small portions of chilled dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out desired shapes using cookie cutters.

Bake 6-8 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are barely brown. Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.  Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Frost using your favorite frosting (here's mine). To decorate like the ones in the picture, use this Royal Icing recipe. For tips and other directions on how to use the frosting, check out Sweetopia. That is where I learned all I know about frosting cookies with Royal Icing.

Royal Icing

3/4 cup warm water
5 Tablespoons Meringue Powder
1 teaspoon Cream of Tatar
9 cups Powdered Sugar
1 teaspoon Clear Vanilla
food coloring

In mixer bowl, pour in the warm water and the meringue powder. Mix it with a whisk by hand until it is frothy and thickened...about 30 seconds.
Add the cream of tartar and mix for 30 seconds more.
Pour in all the powdered sugar at once and place the bowl on the mixer.
Using the paddle attachment on the LOWEST spped, mix slowly for a full 10 minutes. Icing will get thinck and creamy.
Cover the bowl with a dampened tea-towel to prevent crusting and drying.
Tint with food colorings. Thin the icing with small amounts of warm water to reach the desired consistency.
Frosts about 10 dozen cookies. You can store the icing in plastic tubs for up to two weeks.

For tips and other directions on how to use the frosting, check out Sweetopia. That is where I learned all I know about frosting cookies with Royal Icing.

Orange Ginger Spice Cookies w/White Chocolate (courtesy of Our Best Bites)

3/4 C Butter flavored Crisco*
1 C sugar, plus more for rolling
1 large egg
1/4 C molasses
Zest of 3 large oranges
2 C flour
2 t baking soda
1 t ground cinnamon
1 t ground ginger
1/2 t ground cloves
1/2 t salt
1/2 bag of white chocolate chips

*I made these with butter once and they flattened like pancakes. Shortening actually turned out with a much better texture.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silpat.

With an electric mixer, combine shortening and sugar and cream until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Add the egg, zest, and the molasses and beat until completely incorporated.

Sift or whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt and then add to the mixture. Stir until combined. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and roll in sugar. Place on cookie sheets.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until just set around the edges and you start to see "crackling" on the top. They'll puff up while they're baking, and as they cool they'll flatten. Don't overbake! You want to keep them nice and chewy-soft in the middle.

Then melt the white chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals until melted and smooth. Take the cooled cookies and dip the edges in the chocolate; shake in the air a bit to let excess chocolate drip off. Lay the cookies on waxed paper or parchment until the chocolate is hardened.

Chinese Restaurant Almond Cookies

Submitted by Sarah Terry

INGREDIENTS
2 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup lard
1 egg
1 teaspoon almond extract
96 almonds

DIRECTIONS
Sift flour, sugar, baking soda and salt together into a bowl. Cut in the lard until mixture resembles cornmeal. Add egg and almond extract. Mix well.

Roll dough into 1 inch balls. Set them 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Place an almond on top of each cookie and press down to flatten slightly

Bake in a pre-heated 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) oven for 15-18 minutes. Cool on rack.

Chocolate Cherry Glazed Cookie Bites

1 pouch Betty Crocker double chocolate chunk cookie mix

1/3 cup chopped maraschino cherries, drained

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 Tablespoon maraschino cherry juice

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg

3/4 cup Betty Crocker Rich and Creamy chocolate frosting

24 maraschino cherries

Line 24 miniature muffin cups with paper baking cups, or spray with cooking spray. Make cookie dough by blending cookie mix, chopped cherries, oil, cherry juice, almond extract and egg until soft dough forms. Spoon dough into each muffin cup filling each about 3/4 full.

Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes or until dough is set. Cool 20 minutes. Remove from pan. Place cookies on cooling racks.

Heat 3/4 cup of frosting on High for 30 seconds; stir. Dip tops of cookies into frosting. Allow to set about 1 minute; top each bite with a cherry.