March Bonus Post: Golden Mint Crinkles Part 2

It’s time for our March Bonus Post!  The sun finally came out in Texas today, so we feel like our spring break is just getting started.  We spent a little bit of time in downtown Dallas enjoying some sunshine in Klyde Warren Park.

Grandma Ruth is in town visiting and you know when Ruth is around great things happen for The Blind Pig Blog.  Need we remind you about last year when we made these delicious Kerrygold Cinnamon Rolls?

This week we have been up to lots of fun mixing and baking, you’ll see some of our great treasures in future posts.  However, for our bonus post we are going to remind you about our Golden Mint Crinkles which were such a huge hit during the holiday baking season.  These delicious treasures are also a big hit for celebrating your Irish heritage — or someone else’s.  Kiss us both. We’re Irish and needed another excuse to share these delicious cookies with you.

 

You Asked, We Answered

We love hearing from our readers through Facebook, Instagram and especially in person.  We have so much fun creating our blog posts and hope that you look forward to receiving them in your inbox each week.  This week we are taking a break from sharing more recipes with you to answer some commonly asked questions about The Blind Pig Blog.

  1.  What do you do with all of the drinks and food that you create for the blog?  That’s an easy answer… we drink and eat them.  Many of the drinks and recipes that we make for the blog have made it into our regular rotation.  We love to share the food we make on the blog with friends and family, so what are you doing next Friday?
  2. Does everything you make contain “The Blind Pig” twist?  No.  We make plenty of food and drinks on a daily basis that do not contain extra libations at all.  In fact, when we are not cooking things up for TBPBlog we try to eat fairly healthy.  Actually, Blind Piglet #2 prefers recipes that we make without a twist.
  3. Do all of the recipes and concoctions you make get featured on TBPBlog? No.  We try all of our recipes out at home before posting.  Many of the recipes we try get tweaked and adjusted before making it to the blog.  Some we try and nix altogether.  Some recipes we prepped, took photos, and then never made it into the queue.  We try to bring you relevant recipes with current trends and if we just don’t feel confident with a recipe, we don’t post it.
  4. Do you get paid to feature certain products on your blog?  Not currently.  Everything that we feature on our blog is because we believe in the quality of the product.  We like to feature products from smaller companies when we can.  When our blog grows up and we get the opportunity to be paid for a feature, we will be sure to be transparent about it with our readers.
  5. How do you decide what you want to blog about?  We think about what kind of entertaining our readers may be planning for in the near future.  If there is an upcoming holiday, we want to give you some ideas to serve your guests.  Throughout the year we are on the lookout for ideas to include in the blog.  Rhonda has a huge file of recipes that she has kept throughout the years.  When we need some inspiration we look through Rhonda’s files.  When we find something that interests us, we play with the recipe and tweak it to make it relevant and current.
  6. What is your favorite ingredient to use in TBPBlog posts?  For Rhonda it is Kerrygold Irish Cream.  The chocolate flavor makes it so easy to add to many dessert recipes, and we have been surprised how easy it is to incorporate into other things.
  7. What is your go-to drink when you are out and about?  Craig hands down loves to drink anything with Fernet Branca or Fernet and Coke.  He orders it everywhere we go.  Rhonda’s go-to drinks are usually a Templeton Rye and Ginger Beer (Maryann or Ginger) or a Correlajeo Skinny Agave Margarita.  It’s just easy to order and most bars are able to make it.
  8. Where is your favorite place to go out and have a drink?  Craig’s favorite place is Sable Kitchen and Bar in downtown Chicago at the Kimpton Hotel.  Rhonda’s favorite place is Village Burger Bar.  They have really good Corralejo Margaritas and I love their sweet potato fries.  Really she just loves anywhere with a great patio and fire pit.
  9. What have been your favorite posts?  Choosing a favorite post is a lot like choosing your favorite child. It’s difficult to pick just one. (Don’t tell, but Blind Piglet #3 is our fav.  Shhhh!) We do have a few favorites, though.  Some of the posts that are special to us are because of things that were going on in the background when we were prepping or taking photos.

Rhonda’s Favs:

  • Corralejo Skinny Agave Margarita:  This was our first official post and some of Rhonda’s girlfriends came over to help us kick off the post.
  • The Watermelon Wars:  Both of these drinks are delicious and it truly was a war between us to decide which recipe was better.
  • Mary Ann or Ginger:  To this day, this is still my go-to drink when out and about.
  • Golden Mint Crinkles:  This cookie recipe was a family favorite to begin with, and we were able to make it even better.
  • Salted Whiskey Caramel Corn:  We had a lot of activity in the house the weekend we made this post.  This post always makes me think of warmth, family, and home.  Not to mention all of the caramel corn was gone within two hours of the photo shoot.
  • Tequila Ceviche: We used this recipe all summer long.  It was so easy, tasty and fresh.
  • There are more, but we don’t want to bore you.

Craig’s favs:

Still have more questions?  Bring it on.  We would love to answer them!

Are you following us on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram?  If not, use the links below! Have an awesome week.  Next week we will be back with more yummy recipes for your taste buds and tummy with a February flair.  Love is in the air!

  

Disclaimer:  All beverages on this site are meant for adults 21 years of age and older.  We do not condone underage drinking, and never drink and drive.

Holiday Treats Worth Their Weight in Gold

Welcome back Blind Pig Friends.  How was your Thanksgiving? The big question is did you serve the Prosecco Peas?  We know some of you considered it, but did you follow through?  We had a great time eating turkey with family in the Show Me State!  We always enjoy visiting the Midwest to see family during the holidays.  We returned with a vehicle for Blind Pig #2.  You can see more about that on Instagram.  With our tummies full of turkey and Templeton Pecan Pie our sights now turn to the Christmas holiday season.  We have lots of great ideas and recipes lined up to share with you from now until NYE.

golden mint crinkles

To kick off the season, we have a special, golden, sweet, treat for you.  This cookie recipe has been in Rhonda’s stash for years and has long been a family favorite.  These cookies easily make their way into the friends and family goody basket each season, but this year they are new and improved.  When you put these goodies on Santa’s plate, they will not disappoint!

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What makes these cookies so special?  We slipped a little extra something in the dough by adding Kerrygold Irish Cream.  We’ve shared other recipes that featured Kerrygold  before, such as, our Twisted Mississippi Mud Brownies.  We dressed these cookies in their finest glittery holiday attire to add a festive flair. Our harshest critiques, Blind Pig #2 and Blind Pig #3 got in on the action of helping with this post by taste testing the results.  Both piglets agreed that the Golden Mint Crinkles are better than the original recipe. (No Blind Piglets were harmed in the making of this post.)

To start you will need the following ingredients: flour, unsweetened cocoa, baking soda, sugar, brown sugar, Kerrygold butter, vanilla, Kerrygold Irish Cream, eggs, package of Dove Dark Chocolate and Mint Swirl Chocolates, and gold sugar crystals. We found gold sugar crystals in the baking aisle at Kroger.

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  In a small bowl combine flour, cocoa, and baking soda. Blend well.

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In a large bowl, beat 1 cup sugar, brown sugar, butter until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and eggs; beat well.  Add Kerrygold Irish Cream and mix through.  Add flour mixture slowly and mix well.

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Chill the dough for about an hour.  Do not skip this step.  It is very helpful to have well chilled dough for the next step.

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Chill the dough for at least an hour

After dough has chilled and you have thoroughly washed your hands, unwrap the chocolates and place nearby in a bowl.  In order to easily prepare the cookies, make sure chocolates, cookie sheets, golden sugar crystals poured into a saucer and a tablespoon are in close proximity.  Before forming cookies, spray your hands with cooking spray.  This enables you to form the dough around the chocolates while avoiding a clumpy, sticky mess.  (We have learned this the hard way after years of making this recipe.)  Scoop a spoonful of dough and place a chocolate inside the dough.  Using your fingers, form the dough around the chocolate.  Dip the dough in the sugar crystals and place on a cookie sheet.  Continue until 12 cookies have been placed on the sheet.  (We place our dough back in the fridge in between filling the trays.)

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Ready for the oven

Bake cookies at 375 degrees for 7-10 minutes.  You do not want the cookies to be  over baked.  It is better to pull them from the oven looking a little under baked. You want the cookies to have a slightly crinkled or cracked look.  Leave the cookies on the cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes after removing from the oven to continue the baking process.  Next remove cookies from sheet and place on parchment paper to continue to cool.

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Cookies will be slightly cracked

The yummy creaminess of the Kerrygold Irish Cream complements the chocolate cookie, and who can resist the melted minty goodness surprise on the inside?

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These treats will delight family and friends throughout the holiday season, and have them begging for the recipe.  Golden Mint Crinkles are a hit at cookie exchanges.  If you are a lucky recipient of a Blind Pig Holiday Goody Basket, you may be receiving some of these goldies.

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If you are viewing this post in your email, visit us at theblindpig.blog to find the printable recipe.

Try out the Golden Mint Crinkles.  We would love to hear what you think!

If you are new to The Blind Pig Blog, welcome.  We are glad that you stopped by.  We would love to hear what you think about our blog and would love you even more if you became a permanent subscriber!

Here are some recent posts you may have missed:

Oh Pumpkin…Bread!

A Better Aperol Spritz

Hard Cider Donut Holes with Kerrygold Chocolate Sauce