Monday, January 27, 2014

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies With Cute Packaging


Hey friends!
 Yesterday i made one of the best cookies i think i have ever made. I bake all the time because i have a major sweet tooth. I'll be honest its kind of a problem ,but what can i say everyone around me loves it because i end up packaging half of the batch up and giving them away. So its a win win for all! Anyway so yesterday we ended up going out for a friends birthday. There were strict instructions that there were to be no gifts. I hate coming empty handed to any event, basically because  its really just an excuse for me to make something. Our friend whose birthday it was is a huge foodie, so i knew i wanted it to be food related. I found out from his wife  that he loved white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies and snicker doodle cookies. I have never made either. I did a little research and found a recipe for both. Now the snicker doodle cookies were good, but i definitely over cooked them a tad, however the white chocolate macadamia nut cookies were a completely different story. HOLY COW  you guys!! They were amazing! They were everything you look for in this type of cookie. They were soft and each bite was filled with white chocolate and macadamia nuts, but i think what took this over the edge was the salty taste that lingered after each bite! My mouth is watering just thinking about them!

Since i was bringing cookies i wanted to package them up super cute. I was on a bit up a time crunch so it needed to be quick and easy. . Here is what i came up with.

All i used was a Kraft gift tag from Michael's . You can use any type ,but i have a thing for Kraft. 
Bakers twine. I used blue and cream. 
A sharpie 
A Glass Jar from Target. The one in the photo was only $5.00
And a Batch of cookies . 

I decided i wanted to write Happy Birthday on my gift tag. All i did was go to my favorite website www.pinterest.com and search for some cute typography. I free handed mine,but you could easily print yours or even use stickers,which can be found at Michael's. 


Sorry its vertical ,just tilt your head and it will be perfect for your eyes! I am still so new to the blogging world ,Bear with me. 

So now all your going to do is take your bakers twine and loop it through your tag. I decided on two colors so i twisted mine together to get the look of one string, but you can do whatever you want! 

Now dump those cookies in the jar . . .saving one for yourself of course:) 



place the lid on top and Presto, Perfection!

Super cute,crazy easy packaging for those delicious cookies. 

Here is that recipe for those amazing cookies i keep raving about!
Anyone have a favorite cookie recipe? I am always looking!
Perfect White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
YIELD: MAKES 3-4 DOZEN COOKIES
INGREDIENTS
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 12 ounces white chocolate chips
  • 1 cup macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
DIRECTIONS
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. In a large bowl, beat together the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar with a handheld mixer (or in the bowl of a stand mixer) until the mixture is well-combined.
  3. Add the vanilla and eggs and beat until the mixture is creamy and light in color, 2-3 minutes.
  4. Stir in the flour, salt and soda and mix until just combined; a few streaks of flour remaining are ok.
  5. Add the white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts and mix until combined and no streaks of flour remain.
  6. Roll tablespoon (or slightly larger) size balls of dough and place on silpat or parchment lined baking sheets, 1 to 2 inches apart.
  7. Bake for 9-11 minutes.
Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe



Wednesday, January 22, 2014

How it all started



Hey Guys,
Welcome to Golden Polka Dot! Let me take a few moments and tell you all about how this little blog got started and why. My name is Brittanny. I am twenty eight years old, i love acting, singing,dancing, cooking and photography. I am obsessed with my English bulldog (Rudy)and i like to consider myself somewhat of a foodie . I am horrible at spelling and grammar so i apologize now.

I  recently just married the love of my life. Let me Just tell you WEDDINGS ARE FANTASTIC! My husbands name is Mike and he is simply amazing . We dated six years before we FINALLY got engaged. I was so excited to start making my pinterest wedding board a reality. I am an artsy fartsy type person.  So for 11 Months with my mom by my side we started crafting on the weekdays and going to flee markets on the weekends. It was so much fun. I really wanted a rustic , Diy wedding. Personalizing my wedding was my number one priority. I designed a personalized monogram that would set the tone for the entire day. I was all about the details from start to finish. I didn't want to leave anything out. So my mom and i spent endless amount of hours making burlap tablecloth overlays , burlap garland, burlap pillows, hanging mason jars, photo booth props, table numbers ,Chalkboard signs, wood signs,dessert bags, dessert labels, and  interactive ceremony programs with custom pencils . Even Mike helped with the crafting. He and a groomsmen hollowed out all the wood logs for our centerpieces and he helped me salvage a fence from a neighbors dumpster that we turned that into our escort seating chart. I made special mason jars for all the bridesmaids and myself to hold our bouquets at the reception . However one of my favorite pieces of decor were the vintage marquee lights Mike had purchased as a wedding gift for me! They were absolutely perfect! My whole wedding was absolutely perfect . It came together better than i imagined.

So your probably wondering what does all this have to do with Golden Polka Dot .  Well, I spent so much time crafting for my wedding , that when it was over i asked myself now what ? I had so much fun the entire time making all these awesome things, that i didn't want it to come to an end . So that's when i realized, it didn't have to. I could still make crafts , maybe not for my wedding , but i could for others. I knew i didn't want to do etsy because i didn't want to mass produce products ,and i wanted to work one on one with people , not over the Internet . I also didn't want to limit it to just weddings. I just wanted to craft . I didn't care if it was for the house, a baby shower,a birthday party etc. I just wanted to make things! DIY is so in right now ,but a lot of people don't have the time or don't know how to  . So that's when Golden Polka Dot was born . Golden Polka Dot does custom Diy crafts for those who don't Diy! Be sure to check out some of the things i made down below. 

Until next time !