Important Change To Our Golf Tournament!

We have changed the date of our Great American Golf Tournament!  

Great American Golf Tournament

Bradford Golf Club

Friday, October 12th

12:00 Shotgun

~*~

We also want to remind everyone that our Bake Walk for No Kid Hungry is 2 weeks away!!  

Pop into a participating business June 14th -  June 17th and receive a chocolate chip cookie with your $1 donation.  Give the Bake Walk Map a click to see whose involved, and please feel free to contact us if you would like to add your business to the list!

View Bake Walk For No Kid Hungry 6/15-6/17 in a larger map

A special thank you to all the businesses already involved.

We Bought, We Baked, We Sold

Hosting a Great American Bake Sale is as easy as:

1. Buy
2. Bake
3. Sell



Myself, Mia, Jazmin and my mom Sharon

And that is exactly how we rocked out our bake table at North Andover's 40th Annual Sheep Sheering Festival raising $724 for No Kid Hungry!  Our table was loaded with some incredible product - courtesy of the imagination of my children- and come the end of the day only one basket of assorted goodies was left.    Here are some pictures from the day complete with Bake Sale Tips, of course! (Find the complete Facebook Album HERE).   

*Don't forget to jot down the super easy bake sale sell out recipe down at the bottom of the post*

If your piggybacking on a larger event, incorporate the theme into your bake sale.  Ours was at a sheep shearing festival and let's just say these guys didn't last long

If the kids come, the parents will buy!  Make it bright, put it on a stick and it will sell out every time!

Go subliminal with your messaging - say with apple shaped platters.

Put the kids to work with fun and easy tasks like putting No Kid Hungry stickers on your takeaway bags.

Scatter informational material throughout your table so people can learn while they browse.

We got LOTS of compliments on our individual cupcake packaging.  You can pick these ones up in small batches for cheap money at www.clearbags.com.  FYI - the bags come with both the insert and a small sealing sticker.

Let kids 'Show Their Strength' with a Wall of Hands!

Save on table space by stacking things high! Don't have any tiers? Ask your friends and family - you'd be surprised how many you get!

Make a menu and hang it where everyone can see it!  If you have a lot of items, this is a great way to keep shoppers from being overwhelmed. It also helps when you throw the menu on an obnoxiously bright piece of cardboard ;)

Super Easy Apple Turnovers:
Makes 18

Thank You to Solo Foods for their donation to our 2012 GABS

We took our wicked pain in the neck Apple Turnover recipe and knocked it down to 4 ingredients...Sandra Lee would be proud!



Ingredients:

• Solo Foods Apple Pie Filling
• 1 Package Puff Pastry Sheets (2 Sheets), thawed
•  2 Tbsp. Milk
• Cinnamon Sugar

Directions :

1. Unfold your pastry sheets on a cutting board, cut into 9 squares
2. Put a 1-2 tsp. dollop of Solo Foods Apple Pie Filling in the center of a pastry square.  Fold into a triangle, squeezing the edges together to seal. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat.
3. Brush the tops of your turnovers with milk, then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
4. Bake at 400^ until golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Cool and package. 

 Footnotes:

• Pastry sheets come tri-folded so if you cut along the fold lines, making 9 even squares will be a breeze.

• Make the turnovers ONE at a time!  The longer the filling sits on the dough, the stickier it will become turning your quick and easy fold and pinch turnover into a ooey gooey mess (something we found out shortly after taking this picture...)

• Putting the filling in the fridge beforehand will keep it from oozing out when you are sealing your edges.

Bake Sale Fever!

Our first Great American Bake Sale of the season is on the horizon and there is some serious bake sale fever going on in the Cookie Central kitchen!  We are going absolutely nuts with our menu for the day, incorporating some new fan favorites and lots of things you WILL NOT see on our menu...ever!  We are also highlighting some great new recipes using the enormous amount of product the incredibly generous Solo Foods has donated to our campaign. So bring your empty stomachs to:

Cookie Central's Great American Bake Sale

Sunday, May 20th

10:00am - 4:00pm

on The North Andover Common

Don't forget to check in on FourSquare!!

Oh Yes - These beauties will be there!!

It's been way to long since our last post! 

To follow up real quick regarding where the heck we've been: Did you know we were the Hunger Message Chair for the greatest culinary benefit of all time?  Taste of the Nation Boston took place April 19th at the Hynes Convention Center - and it was spectacular!  

Here we have our Culinary Emcee Tommy Grella yucking it up with Honorary Chef Chairs Gordon Hamersley and Jody Adams.  Stay tuned for the new TOTN Boston YouTube channel where you'll find some incredible footage of the night and interviews with some of Boston's best chefs!

BJ's Wholesale Club's Salem Taste of the Town.

BJ's has been such a huge supporter (and sponsor!) of our Great American Bake Sale campaign.  In fact, it's because of them we have the ability to host as many bake sales and promotions as we do. At this year's Taste of the Town, we decked out our table with all sorts of Great American Bake Sale and Share Our Strength swag and a small jars labeled "Coins For Kids".  Really we expected people to toss in whatever change they had, but it wasn't long before that jar was jam packed with dollars.  Without even asking we raised $60.75.  We also had the pleasure of meeting some really great people like the woman from Head Start who is planing her organizations first participation in a Cooking Matters class and another woman who has been hosting Great American Bake Sales with the children at her school. 

The big push has begun for our Community Bake Walk. If you are a North Andover business and would like to participate (for FREE), please shoot me an email at mycookiecentral@gmail.com.  

Community Bake Walk is scheduled for June 15th - June 17th.  All we need from participants is a small table or counter space to plop down a basket of homemade, fresh baked chocolate chip cookies and a donation jar.  Details about the event can be found HERE and a printable registration form can be found HERE

We will be awarding the business that raises the most money with a Dessert Party!!

Great American Golf Tournament is Back!

Join Us:

Friday, July 13th

Bradford Golf Club - Haverhill, MA

1:00pm Shotgun  

>REGISTER NOW<

We are currently looking for a handful of people to help with pre-event planning.  Find a full list of volunteer opportunities HERE and give us a shout if you would like to join Team Cookie Central!

If you would like to donate a gift certificate or product CLICK HERE.

CLICK HERE to see sponsorship opportunities.

4 Ways To Bake A Difference With Solo Foods

Those of you who follow us on Facebook and Twitter have most likely heard that Solo Foods, huge supporter and corporate sponsor of Great American Bake Sale, has made an incredible donation of products to our 2012 season. With this opportunity we have decided to make it our mission to take each product and create fun new recipes and blog about them!  If you will be Baking a Difference this year please check back in for even more tasty new treats to pop onto your table.  And remember to come visit a Cookie Central Great American Bake Sale to grab one of these treats already made! 

Learn more about Solo Foods, fan them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

Register today to host a Great American Bake Sale to support  

Share Our Strength's efforts to end childhood hunger in America >> HERE

Chocolate Cherry Bars:   This recipe makes one 13x9 pan of bars and can be easily doubled.  I prefer to cut mine in to 20 squares, package them individually, and sell them for $1.00.

Preheat Oven To: 350

Ingredients:

• 1.5 C. Flour
• 1 tsp. Baking Powder
• 2 Sticks Unsalted Butter
• 1 C. Unsweetened Cocoa
• 4 Eggs
• 1.5 C. Sugar
• 2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1 tsp. Almond Extract
• 1 Can Solo Food Cherry Cake & Pastry Filling
• 1/2 Jar Baker Naturals Cherry Pie Filling
  

Directions:

1. Whisk together flour and baking soda.
2. Melt butter in a large, deep pan over medium heat.  Remove from heat and whisk in cocoa until smooth.
3. Whisk in eggs, sugar, pastry filling and extracts.
4. Stir in flour, then pie filling.
5. Spread in a parchment lined 13x9" baking dish. 
6. Bake 40 minutes, rotating halfway.  Cool and cut to desired size.
   

                                                                                                                                                                     

Blueberry Cobbler Bars: My 5 y/o made these all by herself!  While she 'used' 3 cups of pie filling, there was some confusion about how much filling actually made onto the bars, so the recipe was adjusted.  If you find the filling looks a little thin, use more!

Preheat oven to: 375

Ingredients:

• 3 C. Flour
• 1 C. Sugar
• 1 C. Shortening
• 1 Egg
• 1 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1/4tsp. Salt
• Zest of 1 Lemon
• 2 C. Baker Naturals Blueberry Pie Filling
  

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients - NOT the filling -  in a large bowl.  Mix until dough forms. *my daughter found it easiest to use her hands*
2. Spread half the dough in the bottom of a 13x9" parchment lined baking dish. Spread Blueberry Pie Filling evenly over the bottom layer.  Crumble the remaining dough over the top.
3. Rotating halfway through, bake until top is slightly brown, approximately 40 minutes. Cut to desired size

                                                                                                                                                                     

Brown Butter Butterscotch Marshmallow Bars:
 
Ooey, gooey sticky goodness!  Take the time to brown the butter - it makes the bars!

Notes:

• It takes a while for the butter to start to brown, but once it does it goes quick so keep an eye on it!
• Gently swirl in the marshmallow creme through the batter, taking care to to mix it in completely.

Preheat Oven To: 350
Ingredients:

• 2.5 Sticks Unsalted Butter
• 2.25 C. Flour
• 1.5 tsp Baking Powder
• 1.5 tsp. Salt
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 2 C. Brown Sugar
• 1/2 C. Sugar
• 3 Eggs
• 2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1 - 11.5oz. Package Butterscotch Chips
• 1 Container Solo Foods Toasted Marshmallow Creme

Directions:

1. In a large shallow pan, cook butter over medium heat until golden brown.
2. Pour brown butter in a mixing bowl, scraping the browned bits of the bottom of the pan as you do.
3. Add sugars and extract and mix on medium-high for 3 minutes.  Add eggs, beat until combined.
4. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt. Fold in butterscotch chips and marshmallow creme. Spread into a 13x9" parchment lined pan.
5. Bake 40 minutes, rotating halfway through. Cut into desired size.

                                                                                                                                                                    

Rugelach Bars:  
We made these as bars, but they came out really well when we dropped them as cookies too.  To try out the cookie form, drop the batter 2" apart in 1.5" balls on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes...rotating halfway through of course.

Preheat Oven To: 350
Ingredients:

• 2 Sticks Unsalted Butter
• 3/4 C. Sugar
• 2 Eggs + 1 Yolk
• 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• Zest of one Lemon
• 2.5 C. Flour
• 1/4 tsp. Salt   
• 1.5 C. Semisweet Chocolate Chips
• 1 C. Finely Chopped Walnuts
• 2 Tbsp. Brown sugar
• 1 Can Solo Foods Prune Plum Cake & Pastry Filling
• 2 Tbsp. Milk
• 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl mix together Chocolate, Walnuts, Brown Sugar, Prune Filling, Milk, and cinnamon until combined.
2. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (3-5 minutes).  Add eggs, yolk, vanilla and zest. Mix well. 
3. Mix in flour and salt until just combined. Gently swirl in the chocolate mixture taking care to not combine completely.
4. Spread in a 13x9" parchment lined baking dish. Bake until center springs back when pressed, approximately 25 minutes.

And The Winner Of Our No Kid Hungry Cookie Jar Is...

Thank You To Everyone Who Participated!