Yellow Cake Mix Mac Nuts White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Because the chocolate cake mix cookies were so delicious, I've decided to do one with the yellow cake mix and pack them up for Christmas!

Please refer the my recipe here and replace the chocolate cake mix with yellow cake mix and add in white chocolate chips and chopped macadamia nuts.

Then I packed them in these Martha Stewart cupcake boxes I got from Macy's. Aren't they cute?! I planned on making cupcakes with the rest of the boxes...but we'll see if I can manage to squeeze in more time during this crazy holiday season. Otherwise the rest of the boxes will have to be saved for next year!
























Happy Holidays once again!

Chocolate Cake Mix Pecan & Walnut Cookies

I have been trying to bake chewy cookies for awhile now but it is either chewy and flat, or thick and crunchy. I wouldn't figure out what I am missing. But the other day I decided to try something different--using boxed cake mix to bake cookies. I was AMAZED at how easy it is to make chewy cookies!! Semi-homemade is all good with me!

1 box of chocolate cake mix (any kind)
2 eggs
1/2 cup of oil
Chopped Pecans*
Chopped Walnuts*

1) DO NOT FOLLOW CAKE MIX INSTRUCTIONS =)
2) In a bowl, put in cake mix, eggs, and oil and mix until blended (it will be pretty thick)
3) Mix in chopped pecans and walnuts
4) Place them on an UNGREASED cookie sheet (if you accidentally greased it, it is okay. I did that with half of the batch), about an inch apart
5) Bake for about 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees
6) Let it cool on sheet and it will be ready to be devoured!!

*You can add almost anything in your "cookie dough" such as mac nuts, chocolate chips, white chocoate chips, etc. Possibilities are endless!!

I am going to try the white or the yellow cake mix next, just to see if the results would be the same! I am so happy I can finally bake chewy cookies!!!!

Cookies and things

C is for cookies, it's good enough for me!

I used to bake alot, but not anymore. Lately I have been making various desserts for Lil P to compliment his dinner so I decided to bake some shortbread cookies to share with his cousins.

















Shortbread chocolate chunk cookies


1/2 c of butter, soften
1/4 c sugar
3/4 c flour
1/4 c cornstarch
2 squares of semi-sweet chocolate (I used Baker's), chopped


1) In a big bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy
2) Combin flour with cornstarch, then toss into the butter mixture
3) Add in chopped chocolates
4) Use your hand (with glove) and mix dough evenly
5) Use a spoon, (or a cookie scooper) and place cookies on a cookie sheet about 1.5 inch apart
6) bake on 325 degrees for about 25-30 mins


They're not too sweet, just the way I like 'em. Lil P also confirms that he likes them. His cousins, however, had mixed reviews. Couple of them did not like cookies that are crunchy. I guess I can't please *everyone*...


On another note, Lil P needs extra fiber to get him going, aside from his normal consumption of fruits and veggies. So I always have to add some extra boost each day. I give him an extra 9 grams of fiber each day, such as Pop-tarts Extra Fiber, Double Fiber bread or english muffins, Fiber One bar or cereal, and Target brand fiber bar. I don't give Lil P the same thing everyday. He actually enjoyed the fiber bars (chocolate chips, peanut butter, or caramel) in the beginning, but he's showing signs of getting tired of them because he always end up bringing the bars back home, most of the time it's smashed or flattened. I was quite disappointed because I need him to eat it when given to him and would ask him to "EAT IT!" But sigh, I can't always win. So instead of throwing away the flattened bars, I just recreate them into something he would eat. All I did was add some mini M&Ms on top and reshape them. Lil P is a sucker at M&Ms so whenever he sees them, he'd dive into them.



















Sure enough, he gobbled them all up!! So I guess it does the trick...for now. Does anyone have any other ways to load kids up on fiber?

Hamburger Steak

I've been cooking alot more frequent lately, thanks to lil P's sports break. Last night I made spaghetti, but it's nothing out of the ordinary so I didn't post anything. This morning I knew exactly what I'm going to make-Hamburger Steak. But I didn't have any onions and needed to pick up at my nearest grocery store, Safeway.

I was very proud of myself for not spending any money at work this week, I have been bringing home lunch. So I was quite disappointed I needed to go to the store. And you know how it goes, once you go to the store, you'll *always* pick up something else. They had these Fuel containers right in the front by the produce section, how can I not look? It's a two-tier bowl container where you can put soup on the bottom and dry snacks on the top...so it says. It also says that the bottom tier is microwave safe. That means I can put whatever else I want in it. Yup, i got it. I guess it can go into my container collection (I am a fan of Fit N Fresh products). So...I guess they're consider bento collection too, right?

Top tier I have soy beans, carrots, and mangoes (my favorite!!). The bottom tier is hapa rice (half brown and half white rice) topped with hamburger steak, gravy with mushrooms and onions. Below you can take a better look at the hamburger steak.

I kinda winged the hamburger patty, but here is a jist of what I have in it.

1 lb ground beef

1 piece of bread end (since you don't eat that part anyway)

1 egg

2 garlic (diced)

half an onion (diced)

2 tsp salt

2 tsp black pepper

2 tbsp worchestershire sauce

3 tbsp of puree broccoli (optional, but great for kids)

1) Mix them all together with your hand (I used a disposable glove)

2) Divide them up into 4 equal parts

3) Shaped each into a ball

4) flatten with hand

5) Slightly indent the center of the patt (about the size of half dollar coin, or using the back of a tablespoon). Doing this will help keep the patty from forming a dome.

6) Put it on a skillet/grill and LEAVE IT ALONE until it's cooked halfway. (don't press it down to make the sizzling sound, this will push out all the juice from the patty)

7) Flip it and cook through

8) Serve it over rice, top with sauteed onions and mushrooms, drizzle brown gravy on top.

Of course, you can't end a good meal without a nice dessert. A quick cookie sandwich ice cream (chips-a-hoy cookies with chocolate moose track ice cream) made lil P VERY HAPPY!