Baking alone can be soothing and nice in itself. You can lose yourself into the baking process and enjoy just simple time by yourself and not worry about everything around you or things happening in life that stress you out. There is certainly nothing wrong with baking on your own and enjoying that time of creating in solitude. But baking with a group or just one other friend is sure to be even more fun! Baking with your friends makes for a time that is more fun than ever with a lot of laughs and interesting sweet creations coming out of the oven that you can enjoy together.
Below is a list of several recipes that you and your friends can bake together that are guaranteed to create a fun time every single time!
1. Soft and chewy snickerdoodle cookies
This recipe will make you and your friends about 24 cookies, which sounds like a lot but the whole group will love them so much that they just will not last for long! Here is how to make a great batch of savory sweet snickerdoodles that everyone will love!
Ingredients:
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 cup butter (softened to room temperature)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
How to make the cookies:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
In 1 bowl, mix together your sugar and cinnamon making sure that it is fully incorporated together. Set this bowl to the side
In a larger bowl, mix together the softened butter with the vanilla until the mixture is light and fluffy
Add in the sugar and light brown sugar into the butter mixture and mix until it is all very well combined
Add the eggs into the party and mix well
In separate bowl, mix together flour, cream of tartar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Once combined, soft the mixture into other bowl and combine all ingredients until evenly mixed
Take your hands (yes everyone may get a little bit messy) and grab ping pong sized pieces of dough, Roll pieces into a nice ball/
Dip the ball-shaped pieces of dough into the cinnamon sugar mixture that has been set aside until each ball is covered completely
Put cookie dough balls onto a baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper
Bake for 10-12 minutes!
You can certainly try to let these little balls of goodness cool off before you and your friends dig in, but they will look and smell so delicious that that may be impossible! These are the perfect cookies for your next friends night to munch on during movies, games, talks, and whatever else you may do together!
2. Apple Dumplings
Apple dumplings are as comforting and easy as they are delicious! With this recipe, you and your friends will:
divide six apples between you and peel and core them.
3 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
little pinch of nutmeg
3 tablespoons butter (work together to cut it all in 1/2 tablespoon pats)
Topping:
1 quart apple cider
4 tablespoons butter (salted or unsalted)
Generous pinch of salt
Vanilla extract
As much whip cream (or ice cream) on top as you want
How to whip it all together:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. and grease a casserole dish generously with butter
Roll out dough until it is 1/4 in. thick (using a lightly floured surface is recommended to avoid sticking). Fold left edge of dough 1/3 of the way over, and do the same on the right side. Much like folding paper before putting it in an envelope. Do this process two more times
Keep dough cold by refrigerating it for 10-15 minutes if it becomes too sticky to work with, once all folded, refrigerate dough for 20-30 minutes.
Once chilled, 1 friend will roll out dough once more to 1/4 in. thickness.
The other person will cut the rolled out dough into large circles (large enough to wrap up an entire apple or about 4-5 inches in diameter)
Stir sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a small bowl
Put apples in the center of the dough. Pour 2 teaspoons sugar mixture over the apple
Put 1 piece of butter on the center of the apple
Stretch dough out, and bring it to the top. Allow it to sit and pleat naturally at the top and pinch to seal. Repeat process on the rest of the apples
Put apples on baking dish, and put egg wash on all of the tough, sprinkle with sugar.
Bake for 35-40 minutes depending on size of apple
Serve the dumplings warm and topped with topping sauce, and as much whip cream as you both desire
This is one of the best apple dumpling recipes out there! It does have quite a lot of steps to make it, though that is the perfect reason to grab your best friends and get to baking! Afterwards, you have an amazingly delicious treat so you can cozy down and watch movies, drink hot apple cider, and enjoy the fact that fall is right around the corner!
3. Doughnuts from scratch...that actually taste good!
Are you and your friends the type of friends that love to get together and spend the entire day together, starting with a tasty breakfast? Well, why not enjoy your first meal of the day by starting off right and baking together? One of the best things you can bake for breakfast (or any other time of day for that matter) is doughnuts! The recipe below has stood the test of time and is fun for everyone to jump in and help with!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups WHOLE milk
1/3 cup water
4 tablespoons butter
5 cups all-purpose flour (yes it is a lot!)
1 generous pinch nutmeg
1 generous pinch cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon active dry years
2 eggs
6 cups of vegetable oil to fry them up (keep out the oil as you may need more)
How to whip them up:
Heat milk, water, and butter, on the stove in a small pot just until the butter is melted. Take off heat and allow to cool of until just warm
Mix together dry ingredients: flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, sugar, and yeast
Once mixed, add in the warm milk mixture and mix until just combined
Add in the eggs, scrape the bowl to make sure everything is combined
Mix dough until it begins to pull off of the sides of the bowl
Transfer dough into a very greased container. Cover and allow to rise for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Once risen, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface until it is 1/2 inch thick
Use doughnut cutter (or rim of 1 large glass and 1 shot glass) to cut out the shape of the doughnuts and the hole in the middle
Heat oil to 360 degrees F. Do a test run with the doughnut holes or left over dough- if dough floats straight to the top, it is ready, if it browns too fast it is too hot
Fry the doughnuts, flipping them over when halfway done, until golden brown
Remove from oil and allow to drain on a plate lined with paper towels
Popular toppings you can add:
Powdered: throw slightly cooled doughnut into powdered sugar until fully coated
Glazed: add 3/4 cup powdered sugar to 3-4 tablespoons milk, dip doughnut until top is glazed to your liking
Chocolate glazed: mix together 3/4 cup powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons dark cocoa, 4-5 tablespoons milk, Dip to desired glaze
Coconut: 1 cup powdered sugar, 1/4 cup coconut milk, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Dip in coconut glaze, dip into toasted coconut flakes for added crunch
Caramel glaze: melt 1 cup caramel candy and 1/3 cup heavy cream in microwave, add in milk or heavy cream if needs to be thinned. Dip until coated to your desire
These doughnuts are just about as good as they get! You can certainly store them in the refrigerator for a few days, but they will fly off the plate so fast by you and your friends that you will probably not have to worry about that. It is a great way to share some laughs, and allow each friend to get as creative as they want with their own doughnuts! You will have great memories with this recipe as well as a great meal!
4. Strawberry Cheesecake Macarons
If you and your friends are feeling a little extra fancy, and want to venture into a dessert that may be a little bit more elegant but still just as tasty, then a macaron is the way to go! You will feel elegant and refined as you all scarf them off the plate!
Cookie Ingredients:
3 egg whites (once separated from the yolk, allow to sit for 1-2 hours until at room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 and 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup almond flour (sift the flour so that it is a superfine consistency)
3 drops red food coloring
Filling ingredients:
1 8-ounce pack of cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
Strawberry jam
How to make:
Preheat oven to 275 degrees F
On 1 bowl, beat egg whites on high speed until they are frothy and rise up
Keep beating high, and slowly add in sugar until small peaks start to form
Mix together sifted flour and powdered sugar
Once combined, sift again over the egg white mixture
Fold in the dry ingredients. Do not over mix it or the cookies will not rise
Batter should look almost like a lava consistency. Put half of the batter on 1 bowl and in food coloring. Mix until just combined
Quickly put pink batter and white batter into different sandwich bags. cut 1 corner of each bah and squeeze onto parchment paper-lined baking sheet
Let macarons rest for 30 minutes-1 hour
While the cookies are resting, make the filling
Once cookies have rested for 30 minutes-1 hour, bake for 13-15 minutes
Let rest for 10 minutes after baking
Once cooled slightly, place mixture on top of one cookie, and sandwich with another macaron
All of the recipes above are fun to make and will leave you and your friends with fun memories and sweet thoughts for years to come!