How to Easily Make HUGE Batches of Cookies, Brownies, etc.

I know I’ve already told you a lot about why I love my Bosch and how it makes my life easier, but what I wanted to tell you more about today is how nice it is to be able to make big batches of baked goods to take places or to freeze ahead of time, and save time in the kitchen.

(BUY THE BOSCH KITCHEN MIXER AND BREADMAKER)

Now, lest you think I’m a big hypocritical sweets junkie, I feel that I have to tell you WHY I’m making such big batches of baked goods at all, when we all know that too much of this stuff is a recipe for chronic illness. Maybe it will give you some ideas for ways you can make food ahead, too. (Note: I actually wrote this post a while ago, as you’ll be able to tell…)

I made 5 batches of brownies ALL AT ONCE in my Bosch:

1. One batch for grandparent’s day in my daughter’s first grade class.
2. One batch for the guys’ after-golf Octoberfest dinner next-door last weekend.
3. One batch for my day care kids’ treat, and enough so there was a fun smell/treat for my kids to walk into after school.
4. One batch for when we had friends over last Friday night.
5. One batch for a certain friend who knows who she is and would kill me if I said anymore.

The point, though, is that this didn’t take me anymore time than making ONE batch (except for the time it took to butter extra pans), because it was all in the same bowl! No extra clean up time, either!

Another thing I love is that after years of fighting with my little hand-held mixer (I always tried to make it do more than it could, and the dough would come up too high making a big mess, etc.), and standing over the bowl waiting for it to mix all the dough, now I just throw the ingredients in the Bosch and walk away. I can leave it to mix while I put the ingredients back where they go, load the dishwasher, answer homework questions, or whatever else I might need to do.

photo by compujeramey

Another day, I made 4 batches of cookies all at once:

1. One batch to take with us to a family get together. I froze this dough ahead of time in little balls, and then transferred to a big freezer baggie until I baked them the day we were going.
2. Another batch of cookies for the day it was our son’s turn to bring the after-game soccer treat. I couldn’t bring myself to buy the junk treats at the store. (Mine had no trans fats or HFCS, mostly whole wheat flour, real butter, etc.) I also made these ahead of time and froze them in individual freezer baggies. (In case you’re wondering, yes, it does actually drive me crazy that just because the kids play soccer for one hour they have to have a treat afterward. Why did this whole thing start, anyway? Back in the day, kids went home and got a snack after the game. When I mentioned at the beginning of the season that maybe we don’t need to do this, you should’ve seen the parent’s faces – you’d think I just admitted to child abuse! I was the ultimate party pooper soccer Mom!)
3. Another batch was for a family who just had a new baby, I took these cookies over along with a meal.
4. The rest I left as dough balls in the freezer to pull out when I need them for something.

Notice I make a LOT of stuff ahead and freeze (usually I freeze the dough to bake later), and now with my Bosch I can do that even easier. It’s just much better with my schedule to think ahead to what I’ll need and get it all done at once.

Now that it’s December I have another thing to add: it’s also great for when you’re invited to a cookie exchange and have to make many batches of cookies to share!

Do you have more ideas for making food ahead to save time in the kitchen? Tell us about it!

• Here’s where you can buy the Bosch – they also have some great end-of-year deals here ($20 off + a free blender, or $90 off with the slider/shredder – I have both and love them, too)
• Here’s the blender batter pancakes/waffles recipe I make with my Bosch blender – it calls for 100% whole grains (you can use some alternative grains in this recipe, too), and it actually tastes great, not heavy at all!
  
• January 1st is coming…you may want to look over these posts about losing weight
• More meal planning/kitchen tips
• How do YOU fit exercise into your life? Comment at this post to let us know!
  
• Many more topics along the right in the sidebar

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