In thinking about today’s post, I thought it was a little ironic that I wrote about getting your kids more active on Friday and am writing about sweets today. But irony aside, these things can really coexist. Afterall, raising a healthy family and leading a healthy life is not about deprivation. It’s about moderation, balance, joy … all wonderful things. So, yes, you can have a delicious cookie bar and a slim waistline.

When I decided to have a healthier 2010, it never once crossed my mind to stop baking things like these bars. My kids love to cook and I love to cook with them. Seems like a win-win, right?

Last weekend, Will and I made Chocolate Covered S’mores Grahams and they were dessert for most of the week. He actually wanted to make them again, but I spied a recipe for Butterscotch Blondies in Gorgeous: The Sum of All Your Glorious Parts, a book that I reviewed a few years ago. The idea sounded good, but I wanted a bar that was just a little different. So, I got out my trusty notebook, made some alterations to the recipe (adding chocolate, taking out nuts, trading half of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat, etc).

When the time came to bake on Sunday, I got out an big bowl for Will to mix in. The ingredients filled only a small portion of the bowl, but using an oversized bowl is one of tricks of cooking with kids that makes it easier and more stress-free. Yes, the smaller mixing bowl would have been perfect for this recipe, but the larger bowl gives him room to move the whisk around in. That way, he learns how to work in this confined space, while allowing margin for error. The result? Far less flour spilled. And I noticed as he mixed that his movements are becoming more fluid. He really is learning how to sift gently. How awesome is that?

There are so many opportunities for kids to help with a recipe like this. I’ve notated in the recipe the sections that are perfect for kids to help with. And working together like that, to create something, is a great experience for them.

Anyway, back to the recipe. Once we finished mixing, pressing and baking, we were left with sweet cookie bars that are brimming with buttery richness and chocolatey goodness. I liked them. Shawn liked them. The kids adored them … What more could I ask for?

These will make a fab dessert for the kids this week. And for the adults too.

Chocolate Butterscotch Cookie Bars
yields 24 bars
recipe adapted from Gorgeous: The Sum of All Your Glorious Parts

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 11×9x2 inch baking pan with cooking oil spray.

Kid Step: Using a large bowl (you want it to be bigger than you need so that your child has room to sift without making a huge mess) and a wire whisk, sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until it’s smooth and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat on medium until combined. Turn off.

Kid Step: Turn the mixer on its lowest speed. Using a big spoon, add the flour mixture one spoonful at a time until it’s all been added. It’s a good idea for the adult to hold the bowl close to the mixer while the kid-cook adds the flour. Turn off.

Kid Step: Measure out the chocolate chips and butterscotch kids. Add to the dough. Then, turn the mixer on to quickly incorporate (if you are cooking really really young kids, the adult should turn it on after the kid as added the chips).

Spread the dough out into the prepared pan in an even layer. Use your hand to press it into the corners, if necessary.

Slide the pan into the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes, until cooked through. A toothpick inserted in the center of the pan should come out clean.

Let cool completely and then cut into 12 bars.

Ever since Will was old enough to stand, he’s been helping me in the kitchen. Paige too. They can spin salads to remove water like nobody’s business. They know how to tear lettuce into bite-sized pieces, measure ingredients and sift. They can mix and fold. Will knows how to add the flour mixture to wet ingredients s-l-o-w-l-y and without making a mess.

They love to cook, and so do I.

One of my goals for 2010 is to share more about cooking with kids, including recipes that lay out how kids can help you. Cooking with kids is a great way to spend quality time … and it gives them a great sense of accomplishment when they can say that they helped make it. You should see how my kids beam when they’ve made something delicious.

This first recipe is easy, easy, easy and totally kid-friendly. Kids will love being able to help make it, and then will love being able to eat the sweet, crunchy, chocolate-coated grahams too. Does it get any better than that?

First, you break graham crackers along the perforated lines into rectangles. If you have grahams that break easily, then this could be a kid-step, but mine weren’t easy to break. In fact, this was the hardest part for me. It took a whole sleeve of grahams to get the 24 that we needed for this recipe. Will didn’t mind though … he got to eat the causalities.

My advice? When you are breaking the grahams, take your time and be gentle. Really. I mean it.

Next, you line a baking sheet with waxed paper. You aren’t going to bake anything, but this is a good staging area for the grahams at all the stages of making them. If you tear off the paper, then your child can do the lining (and almost certainly ask “What’s next?”).

The next step is a kid-step too: spreading marshmallow fluff on the crackers. Will used a training knife, that came with a toddler silverware set. If you don’t have one, don’t worry — a dull plastic knife will work too. Don’t worry if they get a little overzealous with it — more is better. And bonus: for preschoolers, this is a great fine motor skill building exercise. We all know how important that is.

Also, you might want to have a spoon handy to let your child lick a little marshmallow off. They will probably want to lick the knife … and that just isn’t a good habit to get into.

The last step is for adults. You melt up some milk chocolate (I use the Trader Joe’s Pound Plus bar — about half a bar is perfect for this) in double boiler set over water. Don’t have a double boiler? Use a nonreactive metal bowl over a pan of water. Just don’t let the water touch the bowl.

Finally, you coat the grahams in chocolate, let them cool and then refrigerate them. As you are coating them, be careful not to touch the area where the marshmallow fluff is. It’s way easier than that sounds. I swear. Also, these actually get better with age, so make them the day before you want to serve them (don’t worry, it’s okay to snack on a few in the meantime!).

How do your kids help in the kitchen? Share!

Chocolate-Covered S’mores Grahams
yields 24

8 full graham crackers, broken along the lines into small rectangles
marshmallow fluff
8 oz milk chocolate

Kid Step: Line a baking sheet with waxed paper (an adult should tear the paper from the roll) and set on a table or work surface.

Kid Step: Using a kid-sized knife (either a toddler-training knife or a plastic knife), spread marshmallow fluff on one side of each cracker. Line them up on the baking sheet.

In the top of a double boiler, over water, melt the milk chocolate until just smooth. Remove from the heat.

Drop the grahams in the chocolate one at a time, using a fork to gently turn them to fully coat. Lift carefully from the pan (touching only the side WITHOUT the marshmallow fluff), tapping the fork on the side a few times to smooth the chocolate and drop any excess off. Lay carefully back onto the waxed paper-lined pan. Do not let the grahams touch each other.

Once all the grahams are covered in chocolate, let them harden at room temperature for about an hour. Then transfer to the refrigerator (on the tray) until fully hardened. Store them in an airtight container, until ready to eat.

Twas the afternoon before Christmas. No, really. It was.

While Paige napped on Christmas Eve, Will and I set about to make some Oatmeal Scotchies – one of my very favorite cookies. We measured and mixed, and everything was going perfectly … until I discovered that we were out of the rolled oats (as in the canister of unflavored oatmeal). What we did have was a canister of quick-cooking steel-cut oats from Trader Joe’s. Without another thought, I measured and mixed the oats into the dough and we finished making cookies.

I didn’t question the plan until I slid the first tray into the oven. Would the oats cook enough not to have that raw, crunchiness? Would the flavor be off? Would they totally flatline in the oven?

Twelve minutes later, I had my answer. These cookies are dense, with a slightly different texture that mimics the oatmeal that you make with this cut of oat. The flavor is rich, though less buttery than the traditional recipe, and dotted with the sweet little hints of butterscotch. They were good. Very good.

But the true test is what everyone else thinks, right? Will and Paige enjoyed them, and Shawn raved about them.

These get better with age, so make them a day ahead and store them in an air tight container. Also, you should know that these are more filling than your average cookie, so don’t be surprised if your kids only eat half of one. With the size of the batch, you can easily freeze some to have on hand when the sweet tooth strikes.

Steel Cut Oatmeal Scotchies
yields about 4 dozen
adapted from the Very Best Baking recipe

Be sure to choose quick-cooking steel cut oats, which cook in about seven minutes, when making these.

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups quick-cooking steel cut oats (I used Trader Joe’s brand)
1 11-oz. pkg butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. A wire whisk does well for that.

In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl), combine the butter, sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Then, with the mixer running on low, slowly add the flour mixture, until just combined. Turn off the machine when you are down with these additions. Add the steel cut oats and butterscotch chips. Mix gently (on a low speed) to incorporate.

Using a cookie scoop, drop the cookies about two inches apart on the cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until lightly browned. Let cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Cool completely before storing.

These can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week.

Today felt like summer again, with temperatures that encouraged us to shed the socks and pants and re-embrace our leg-baring attire. When I felt how warm it was, I silently wished that the weather would make up its mind: is it winter or summer? But I didn’t really mean it. Summer can stick around all it wants, and I am happy to oblige.

It seems like everyone shares in my sentiments about this past summer: it felt too brief, cut short by the incessant rains of June and the short-lived hot spell. I was happy to barely run the air conditioner this summer, but would have loved a few more hot days where the best relief you can find is in a crystal clear pool. There just wasn’t enough of that.

Despite the summery temperatures today, it was an in-the-kitchen day for me today. I was able to purchase a big crate of tomatoes for a song this weekend, so they needed to be tended to (tune in tomorrow to learn all about that). But I also wanted to make something sweet. Peanut Butter Cup Cookies at Sweetnicks recently caught my eye, and having just picked up a bag of dark and milk chocolate Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Miniatures, that seemed perfect. Unfortunately, when I went to the kitchen, I discovered that we were missing a key ingredient: Peanut butter.

Maybe the warm air hit me in the right way or something, but as I contemplated what to do, I remembered a treat from my childhood summers. There were these shortbread cookies with a center of creamy chocolate that debuted when I was in elementary school. Totally smitten, I couldn’t get enough of them and ate them compulsively. I loved the way the milk chocolate was in smooth contrast to the crumbly cookie.

So, that’s how I ended up doing a shortbread cookie with a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Miniature pushed into the center. The cookie itself is buttery with a punch of vanilla. It’s crumbly and on the dry side, but it holds its shape. Next to the smooth chocolate and peanut butter center, it’s just dreamy.

Not into the peanut butter cups? No worries, these work equally well with other small chocolate bites — Hershey’s Kisses, other miniatures, even Lindt Truffles. Heck, if you were in a pinch, you could just chop up a bar of chocolate and push a square into the center. Don’t you just love versatility?

Shortbread Candy Cookies
yields about 26 cookies

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp kosher salt
about 26 candies unwrapped (such as Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Miniatures or Hershey Kisses)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Add the butter and vanilla extract to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream together until smooth. In a separate bowl, sift together confectioners sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt. Add the sugar mixture to the butter mixture slowly, by the spoonful, with the mixer running on low.

Use a small ice cream scoop to drop the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet, leaving about two inches between each ball. Cook in the preheated oven for about 12 minutes.

As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, press a candy into the center of the cookie. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Then transfer to a plate and place in the refrigerator to harden up the candy.

To Store: Place in an airtight container and keep in the fridge.

I had every intention of posting my usual Fertile Friday post on Friday. It’s something that I have loved doing all summer, since I am so happy with the progress I’ve made this year. And it’s something that I want to continue until the growing is done. But this past week, I just needed a break.

Ok, break is a word I use somewhat loosely. I have been swamped with work over the past few weeks and I am in desperate need of  some R&R. I really value my time that’s spent relaxing and doing other things on weekends and although I got that these past two weekends, it was punctuated with deadlines and last-minute writing.

So, here I am. Offering you these delectable cookies as a peace offering. There are soft and chewy peanut butter cookies bursting with chocolate. Each bite reminds me of a rethought peanut butter cup. They are just fantastic. But beware — they are totally addictive, so plan to share.

I have a lot of delicious things planned for this week and I promise to have a new Fertile Friday post up bright and early on Friday. Thanks for being so understanding.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
yields about 2 dozen
Adapted from AllRecipes

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, sugar and peanut butter and beat until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix to incorporate. While the mixer is on low, slowly add the flour mixture until fully incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop the cookie dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet using a small ice cream scoop (about 2 tsp capacity) about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned.

Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

Some people are bakers. They savor the exacting measurements that come along with creating perfect, moist, delectable breads and sweets. Other people are cooks, who find joy in the chopping, sauteing and forgiving nature of creating savory dishes. I know very few people who really love to both cook and bake. For me, I definitely fall into the cooking realm of things. I love the instinct of cooking, being able to add a bit of this and that and come out with excellent dishes.

Last weekend though, I really wanted some cookies. It was the night before a friend was coming to visit and go foraging with me. Out of chocolate (seriously, I have no idea how that happened!), I decided on peanut butter cookies. When Shawn saw me baking, he asked if I was trying to prove that I can bake too (she’s an excellent baker).

Okay, I know I don’t bake often, hun, but that is so not me.

Honestly, I just wanted the cookies, which turned out to be wonderfully crisp and full of peanut buttery goodness. I would choose cooking over baking any day. Although I do love to bake a lot at Christmas … otherwise, baking involves way too much measuring and cleanup for me.

So, which are you? The cook or the baker?

Peanut Butter Cookies
yields about 3 dozen
adapted ever so slightly from Better Food For Kids

1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Combine the peanut butter, butter, brown sugar and granulated sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer and cream together until well-combined and almost fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat to incorporate.

In a smaller bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Turn the mixer on low and add the flour mixture slowly (as in one spoon at a time) to the peanut butter mixture, until all the mixtures are fully incorporated.

Using a small ice cream scoop or two tablespoons, drop balls of dough onto a nonstick baking sheet. Use a fork to press down the dough, and create the traditional crosshatch marks. Bake for 8-10 minutes until golden. Let the cookies sit on the cookie sheet for one minute before transferring to a cooling rack.

Devour.

I first learned about snickerdoodles when I was about seven and read the recipe in my elementary school’s fundraiser cookbook. As much as I wanted to try to make them then and there, they were a little intimidating (partially because they were unlike any cookie I had ever had and partially because the only cookies I’d made to that point were from a roll in the refrigerator section).

Fast forward 22 years and I can now say that I have finally had my first snickerdoodle … and I made it myself. Although I was drawn to the recipe originally because of the unusual name, it was the cinnamon and sugar crust that ultimately pushed me to give these cookies a try. Seriously, you can’t go wrong with cinnamon and sugar. And can I just say YUM!

I know it seems like a lot of steps, but these come together at lightning speed. I made them for my kids and their same-aged cousins … and they all devoured them.

Sounds like a keeper.

Snickerdoodles
yields about 40 cookies
Adapted from Fine Cooking’s Cookies Magazine 2008

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 2/3 cups all purpose flour (I used Eagle Ultragrain All Purpose Flour)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp table salt
2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Line a cookie sheet with nonstick aluminum foil or parchment paper (alternatively, grease the pan).

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar using the paddle attachment until well combined, light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat until combined.

In a seperate medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and cream of tartar. With the standmixer set to the lowest speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture until just combined.

In a seperate bowl, stir together the granulated sugar and cinnamon. Use a small ice cream scoop to scoop out cookie dough and drop into the mixture. Roll it around to coat all sides and then place on the baking sheet. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.

Bake in the center of the oven for 15-18 minutes, until golden on the edges. Let cool for one minute before transferring to a wire cooking rack.

When I started baking from scratch, I was a preteen. I scoured the Joy of Cooking for an easy cookie recipe that included ingredients we kept in the house. I found that in a sugar drop cookie recipe. Before long, I was adapting the recipe to make thumbprint cookies, decorated cookies and more.

One year, my very good friend Allison and I decided to have a baking blitz to produce dozens of Christmas cookies in one single day. It was just days before Christmas, and I’d like to think it was snowing hard outside while we mixed, rolled and baked. To be honest, though, I am not sure if that’s the case or not. Nonetheless, we baked nearly all day – sugar cookies, chocolate chip, and more. The kitchen, with it’s makeshift kitchen island table, and glorious dark cherry cabinets, was covered in flour, sugar and more. Everything was crying for a cleanup, but we pressed on for one last recipe – meringue cookies.

Neither of us had ever made meringue before and we really didn’t know what were looking for when the recipe called for stiff, glossy peaks from the egg whites. We beat and beat and beat, but the result was nothing that resembled what I know now to be stiff and glossy. Still, we pushed on. When we tried to pipe the cookies onto the baking sheet, they created one very flat layer. But did we take pause? Nah. Into the oven they went. I don’t remember exactly what went wrong after that, but the result was a tan-colored, overcooked, foul smelling mess.

I haven’t attempted meringue since that day. I was traumatized by the whole experience. Instead of light, crisp cookies, Allison and I had produced a colossal disaster. Fortunately, we’d made many, many batches of delicious cookies to fall back on.

That was 15 years ago. Back then, out of the box cooking for me was trying to make French fries with Adobo seasoning in a bit of oil on the stove. Inevitably, they made me ill. Guess what? Adobo and I are not friends. So, I’ve grown and learned since then. Today, I am a far better cook than anyone ever expected me to be (lest you think I am bragging, I’m not. The expectations weren’t too high). Still, the trepidation from that first attempt at meringue has hung with me for all these years.

Recently, I decided to conquer my fear. Why should I be afraid of this airy little cookie? Am I not a capable, confident woman with all the right tools?

This batch wasn’t without flaw – the recipe wasn’t that good and some of the cookies literally exploded when touched. And I discovered that I didn’t have the right sized pastry bag or pastry tip — right as I was about to start piping. That’s why there won’t be any recipe for this.

But my fear? Gone. It turns out that when you understand what the recipe is asking you to do, the cookies are ridiculously easy.

Do you have a food or recipe that you fear making? A bad kitchen experience that turned you off of making something? Share in the comments below!

Will pulled up a chair to the counter the other day, as he often does when I am cooking. He was waiting patiently for me to give him the go-ahead to add chocolate chips to the firm cookie dough whirling in my KitchenAid Artisan Mixer. Usually, he helps sift and add the flour mixture to the dough, but on that day he was just too busy playing, which is A-ok. When the time came, he carefully poured the chips into the dough and then went to put the cup in the sink.

It’s amazing to me how far he’s come in his status as kitchen helper. It wasn’t that long ago that I worried constantly about whether he’d get hurt, or add something unsavory to the food. But he’s patient when he waits, watching with interest and listen to my play by play. I tell him why I use unsalted butter in the cookies we make and why we don’t use the extra virgin olive oil for everything.

I hope his kitchen interest doesn’t wane as he grows. Having him in the kitchen is a joy.

It’s Christmas cookie time and oh, how I love these cookies. They are ripe with peppermint flavor, but it’s not overpowering. They are chocolate, and studded with more chocolate. Mmm, the chocolate. And when I eat them, I am tempted to channel my inner-Yo Gabba Gabba (“There’s a party in my tummy! So yummy! So yummy!).

Deconstructed Chocolate Peppermint Bark Cookies
yields about three dozen

1 cup butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp peppermint extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup white chocolate chips
5 peppermint candy canes, crushed

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and peppermint. Beat on medium until mixture has a light and fluffy appearance.

Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Pour into mixer bowl, a little at a time, mixing on low until just incorporated. Add white and semi-sweet chocolate chips and crushed candy canes and mix on medium until combined.

Drop by the spoonful onto the prepared baking sheet.

Cook in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, until set.

Let cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

It’s been quite a while since I last baked. Baking takes precision, measuring, several bowls … all excesses that I just haven’t had time for recently. I’ve been working hard on writing, taking care of my children all the while. Life, it just keeps moving no matter how much you wish it would slow down for at least a little while. I have fantasies of sitting down and reading a book at night. Or watching a show without my fingers tap-tapping on the keyboard at the same thing.

But today, I decided to push all that other stuff aside and just bake. Given that it’s nearly Halloween, I thought it would be fitting to make some tasty pumpkin cookies. These cake-like cookies are just lightly sweet, something that is enhanced by the sweet vanilla icing drizzled onto them.

When the kids woke from their naps today, I had these waiting in the kitchen. They both dove right in, devouring bite after bite. Love that. And love that these aren’t too bad for you to boot.

Try them with a cup of tea . . .

Iced Pumpkin Cookies
yields 2-3 dozen

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 tbsp applesauce
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Use a wire whisk to combine flour, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, baking soda and baking powder in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar using a hand mixer on medium speed (or do this in the bowl of your stand mixer). Add pumpkin, applesauce, egg and vanilla extract and beat with the mixer until well combined.

Use a low speed on your mixer to add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Do not over mix.

Drop by the spoonful onto a baking sheet.

Cook in the oven for 10-15 minutes until slightly browned. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack.

Vanilla Glaze

1 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Stir all the ingredients together until smooth. Drizzle over cookies (I used a makeshift pastry bag made from a Ziploc bag).