Safe, Homemade Frozen Cookie Dough Cups

My family and I are those kind of people who prefer to just eat the dough, but I am one of THOSE dweebs who is terrified of raw eggs. So we had a problem. The kids would sit licking the bowl, while I sat and wondered when the salmonella would kick in!

We tried buying those little frozen cookie dough cups from a school fundraiser, and they were great. But they were also super expensive. Why spend so much when cookie dough is so cheap to make? So began my quest for good, safe cookie dough...

 I experimented making frozen cookie dough, just simply skipping the eggs. I was left with a dry ball of goo. Tasted OK, but the texture was awful. My next attempt, I added pasteurized egg substitute, and the results were better, but the dough got too creamy.

Audrey, adding the margarine

My next attempt, I tried using real butter to give it a stiffer consistency, but it was almost impossible to eat. So I had to chisel away at it with a butter knife to eat it!

So now that I worked out the kinks, I will share my recipe with the blog world :) If you follow my directions, you should end up with 12, 2 tablespoon servings of creamy, frozen dough, that still has that little bit of a sugar "crunch" that brings me so much happiness :) Enjoy!

In your mixing bowl, cream 2 sticks of MARGARINE (sorry, I usually prefer butter, but in this case, you have to go the fake route) While doing this mix 2 1/4 cups of flour, 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp salt in a separate bowl and set aside.

I like to use times like this to teach my kids that you do NOT lick your fingers while baking ;)

Beating at a slow speed (2 on  my kitchen-aid stand mixer) add 3/4 cup of sugar, and 3/4 cup packed brown sugar.

Stop your mixer while you measure ingredients, because to get that crunchy texture you CAN NOT OVER MIX!

Add 1 tsp vanilla.

Now time for your egg substitute. My recipe calls for 2 eggs. On the egg carton, it says 1/2 cup = 1 large egg. I use slightly LESS than 1/2 cup, or the dough gets too runny.

Now slowly add your flour mixture, but make sure you are still on low speed.

Add your chips. Stop mixing as soon as you add the chips.

My little sidekick, Audrey :)

To store I like to use bathroom cups. They are the perfect size for 2 tablespoons of dough, which is MORE THAN enough for an indulgent treat :) I'm all about portion control...

                                         

 After you fill the cups, take Press and Seal wrap and rip off an 8 inch section. cut that into thirds, so you have little squares.

Cover your cups and freeze. Pull one out when the craving strikes.

How I Make My Own Laundry Soap and Fabric Softner

I am a sucker for all things handmade, so when a friend (now I have to plug her FB page...she is too cute!) Rita posted on Facebook that she makes her own detergent, I was intrigued! So I asked her for the recipe, and was shocked at how easy and fun it can be to make your own detergent. The hardest part is going to a couple different stores to get your ingredients...they can be a little tricky to find. And with my kids PILES of laundry, the cost per load savings are Grrrrr-eat!

How do such little bodies make so much laundry?!?!?

Here is Rita's recipe:

1 bar Fels Naptha Soap (finely grated in a food processor)

1 cup Washing SODA (Arm and Hammer brand)
1 cup Borax
...
Mix in a sealed container (or even an old commercial brand box works).

I have an HE/front loader and use approx 1-2 T of powder per load.

Easy-peasy, right? And I swear by it. It even removes the f-u-n-k-y odors I find lingering in my kids clothes! Amy and I make this together, everything is ALWAYS more fun with a friend :)  We like to go online and get ideas, to experiment and change up the recipe a little.

Me and Amy...

To go along with my new soap, I hated to add chemical laden commercial softener, so I did some research online and figured out how to make my own :) I will show you the recipe further down, but first I needed to show off the cute containers I made...total THRIFT STORE finds! I then took my cricut, and cut out vinyl letters as labels and made my  little glass containers cute enough to store on my laundry room counter.

And now for the fabric softener/deoderizer recipe I promised: Get out your paper and pencil, you will need to make a list.

1. White distilled vinegar

Thats it! I love my bottle of vinegar for many things, such as counter cleaner, carpet freshner, you name it, I'm the vinegar queen! So when I realized that I could use it to soften and deoderize my laundry, I was stoked! So I just removed the ugly Heinz label, slapped some vinyl on my vinegar bottle, and I then pour it directly into my machines softener dispenser.

 And before you ask, your clothes WILL NOT smell like a salad. The smell magically dissipates after vinegar dries,  leaving them simply smelling fresh and clean :)

If anyone has anything to add, or any fun laundry room tips, I'd love to hear them! I am also ALWAYS on the lookout for recipies for making my own cleaning products....hint,hint :)