Dulce de Leche Cutout Cookies

I wanted to make Halloween cookies, but I wanted to try something new! So, I thought I'd try one of my favorite cookies that my sister-in-law Sarah over at High Heels and Grills makes. When I was dating my husband (her brother) we drove from Utah to her house in Fort Collins, Colorado and she made these cookies for us, I fell in love with them! And then when we got married, she made a ton of desserts and these were definitely on the table for refreshments.

Shortbread is so delicate and crumbly, and I literally carved out the faces for these cookies with a toothpick! It took longer than I'd expect it to, so unless you have a lot of time on your hands, use a Linzer Cookie Cutter and it'll be way easier. You can find different holiday ones too, but probably not pumpkin faces ;).

You can find the original recipe here from my SIL's blog. I halved it so that we didn't have cookies coming out of our ears. Best recipe for baking for two!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Easter Eggs- Reece's Copycat

Reece's chocolate eggs are my weakness. I like regular Reece's but the creamy eggs just speak to me. You know how they put Easter candy out shortly before Valentine's Day and everyone is upset? I'm not because it means I can buy myself a chocolate egg. This year, I decided to bring an Easter treat home to my family and thought I would give these eggs a go. My favorite thing about them is that they're super rich so you pretty much can only eat one and then stop instead of eating a whole pack like I normally do.
I love Easter. Coming from a small town, we have a city Easter egg hunt each year, and for as long as I can remember, I have helped stuff the eggs beforehand and set them out for the kids to pick up at the local park. My family is religious, so we always celebrate the Easter Bunny and egg hunting the day before Easter Sunday so we can focus on Christ on Easter Sunday where we read in the Bible and discuss His death and resurrection. I have enjoyed this tradition because it's fun to have fun, but also a great time to love and appreciate what Easter is about. Another reason why I love Easter is because of the movies. My favorite Easter movies are: "It's the Easter Beagle Charlie Brown", "Here Comes Peter Cottontail" (original version), and "The Easter Bunny is Comin' to Town"- this one is my absolute favorite because of the colors and graphics, it's adorable! Spring is beautiful and the flowers for Easter is another highlight of this time for me.
I would definately recommend getting an egg-shaped cookie cutter before starting these. I completely forgot and ended up cutting them all individually, which was honestly a little bit of a hassle. So, get a cookie cutter and it will make this a lot easier and way more enjoyable to make. Another hint: keep them in the freezer while dipping in chocolate. Don't take the whole sheet out, just one or two at a time so they stay frozen and don't break in the hot chocolate you're dipping them in. The recipe was found from The Recipe Critic.

Valentine's Cupcakes: Chocolate Peanut Butter

One of my favorite homemade desserts right here! I’m not too much of a cupcake fan, but making these for special occasions such as Valentine’s Day, gets my cupcake fix in for the year. They are chocolate (my favorite) with a peanut butter accent. They’re rich and have the perfect texture that’s not too crumbly. These are the cupcakes that children and adults will both enjoy! 

They are really great for any occasion, just by adding Valentine’s themed cupcake tins and hearts at the top, they are perfect for this holiday of love. You could simply color the frosting or add sprinkles to make them even more festive. This is definitely not a recipe for only two people since it makes 18 cupcakes. We saved some for ourselves and shared with friends and family! 

The original recipe from Baker By Nature calls for a peanut butter frosting-they're definately the Ultimate Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes! That’s a little too much for me, so I opted for a plain chocolate frosting and added peanut butter cups on top! Num’s the Word had a great Rolo Cupcake recipe, and I loved their frosting, so I decided to try that with these and it was perfect!