Trader Joe's Opening - Oops The Shelves Are EMPTY! And Make Your Own Chocolate Covered Joe Joe's

Living close to Nevada and California we have

loved and coveted Trader Joe's for years and years

and when we were traveling there we were sure to bring

a suitcase to bring home goodies.

So you can imagine how excited we were when they

finally announced that they were opening one in

Salt Lake City.  About the same time my sister Jean

in Texas said they were finally getting one too.

I knew what I wanted this time of year

Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Joe Joe's!

My friend and I were planning on going up the opening

day, but I had too much to do with my granddaughter's

baptism and another granddaughter's third birthday so

I skipped out.

Somebody blew it big time!  My other friends
Wally and his daughters went up
the day after it opened and this is what they found:

I really thought he was joking - 

These pictures are real!

It was on the news.

The cupboards are bare!

Have you ever seen anything 

like this?

It really was quite unbelievable!

We went to Salt Lake (a 45 minute drive)

with some trepidation on Monday morning (two days later)

and fortunately they

had restocked the shelves.  The lines were long and crazy

and when we asked about the 

Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint

Joe Joe's 

and they said they were 

gone for the season!!!!

What?!!!

A whole year?!!

They did have their Candy Cane Joe Joe's.

These are the regular chocolate sandwich cookies

not dipped in chocolate (as pictured above).

Of course we grabbed a few boxes 

of those (who knew

when you would see them again either!)

They said as soon as they came out they were gone 

off the shelves.

Wally had given us a box of the 

chocolate covered ones and honestly the plain cookies

 just don't compare.

An enterprising cook like me isn't going to let that stop me

from having this delicious holiday treat.

We can make our own!

Mine are on the left, theirs are on the right.

(I thought my candy canes had a little more color.)

Make Your Own Chocolate Covered Joe Joe's

1 box Candy Cane Joe Joe's 

or any sandwich cookie you like

such as mint Oreos or regular Oreos etc.

3 C. dark chocolate coating

or any flavor you like

(or you can use 3 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips plus 2 tsp. oil

which is a little trickier because you have to cool

it enough and keep stirring it so it won't develop streaks.)

3 drops peppermint oil

crushed candy canes

Melt the chocolate coating in a microwave safe bowl

for one minute, then stir and melt an additional 30 seconds

and stir.  Melt an 15 seconds if necessary. (Do the same for

chocolate chips, adding the oil.)

I had bought that handy dipping tool last year

for things like this that you can't hold onto or

you don't want to flip over.  This is the first time I used it.

It worked great for dipping cookies.  

I used a spoon to cover the cookie and even lifted the

cookie onto the dipping fork with the spoon.

Then I tapped the cookie quite a few times to shake off

a lot of the chocolate, then scraped the fork on the side of the

bowl.  Sprinkle with crushed candy cane right away.

I held the cookie on the fork over a small plate and sprinkled

the candy cane onto the cookie.  That way any excess

candy stays on the plate.

The cookie will slide right off the fork.  (I have read that you can use

a regular fork, but I have never tried it.) Let it slide onto 

parchment paper and let cool until the chocolate is solid.

If you need to you can push it off with a knife.  If the chocolate

gets too hard pop it in the microwave for about 7-10 seconds.  Stir

again. 

 (I made some with real chocolate and some with dark chocolate

coating and for easiness, the coating worked great and tasted

good too.)

This made about 30 chocolate covered cookies.

When these are gone, I can dip another batch!

I also dipped some as pops.  They were really easy as the 

candy sticks went right into the soft candy cane filling.  This makes

a really pretty presentation.  

I am definitely going to have more fun with this

dipping Oreos in Spring colors or white chocolate

or maybe some regular Joe Joe's.  Imagine

the possibilities.

After munching on one last night I turned over the box.

Since the writing is small, let me tell you what it says....

And like all holiday traditions, they disappear as fast as they appear

 and won't return until next year!

(They must have meant disappear off the shelves!!!)

In Trader Joe's defense, they said they had never seen

anything like this store opening!!!!

I will be posting this with

Foodie Fridays

Weekend Wrap Up

Sweets For a Saturday

Pink Saturday

Seasonal Sunday

On The Menu Monday

Grasshopper Cookies

Creamy mint frosting and chocolate ganache

on a cookie

that is so light you don't need to chew.  These cookies

literally melt in your mouth.

I wanted to try something new from all of my Pinterest

recipes 

for a luncheon I was going to 

and so I was perusing my board 

on Pinterest called 

Killer Cookies.

The beautiful chocolate and mint caught my eye and 

I had all of the ingredients.  

These elegant and luscious cookies  by

Six Sisters 

start with a chocolate cake mix.  I love Betty Crocker's

Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix.  

They are then topped with

a creamy mint frosting and topped with the chocolate ganache.

Mint brownies have always been one of my favorites but

these are even better.

Grasshopper Cookies Recipe

(slightly altered from Six Sisters recipe)

1 chocolate cake mix (I used Betty Crocker's 

Triple Chocolate Fudge)

1/2 C. almost melted butter (they used oil)

2 eggs

Heat oven to 350 and line pans with parchment paper.

Lightly spray parchment paper with Pam (they stuck a little

without Pam.)

Mix the above in your mixer until well blended.  If your butter was warm

let the dough cool a minute until you can make balls out of it.

Make about 18 golf ball sized balls and flatten slightly

on pan.  Bake for 7-8 minutes, just until they look dry.

Let them cool on the pans.  The cookies are so soft and delicate

that I popped them in the fridge to firm them up before frosting 

them.

Mint Frosting Recipe

1/2 C. soft butter

2 C. powdered sugar

2 T. water (they used milk - I like water

when working with mint flavoring)

1/2 tsp. Lorann oil, creme de menthe

or 5-6 drops peppermint oil

(They used peppermint extract.  I like the smoothness

of the creme de menthe oil if you can find it.  I think

it has a softer peppermint flavor.)

2-3 drops green food coloring

Whip the above in your mixer.  Add a little more water if the

frosting is too stiff.  You want a soft frosting so you don't tear

your delicate cookies.  If your frosting is too soft, add a little

more powdered sugar.

When the cookies are cool, frost each cookie.  I placed them

back in the fridge again

so that it would be easier to spread the chocolate

ganache.

Chocolate Ganache

1 1/8 C. semisweet chocolate chips

3/8 C. butter

Place the above in a microwave safe bowl and heat

at 30 second intervals, stirring in between so that

the chocolate doesn't scorch.  Let the ganache cool 

about 10 minutes after it is all melted so it doesn't melt

the frosting as you spoon it on.

Spoon it on and swirl it with the back of your spoon.

I popped them in the fridge one more time.

(I halved their ganache recipe and still had quite a bit

left.  I guess I will have to make another batch.)

After the lunch I asked my daughter if she wanted to take home

the leftover cookies to her children.

She said, "What leftovers, they are all gone!"

Definitely a keeper.

Thank you Six Sisters.  Visit their blog.  They have such

delicious looking recipes.

Posting with

Foodie Fridays

On The Menu Monday

Creme de Menthe Squares

Merry Christmas to Joycee at Granny Mountain. 
She is the winner of the Macy's Department Store's
$100 gift certificate.  Thank you to everyone who
participted.  It was fun to have so many enter and
leave such fun comments.  We had to sit and watch
Miracle on 34th Street as a family too!

It's time to light the fire and enjoy some holiday treats

in front of it while listening to holiday music.

We've been having snow this weekend and although

I hate driving in it, it is fun especially at the first of the

season.  It always puts me in the Christmas mood.

We made another of our favorite Christmas cookies.

These were also in the little magazine that the gas

company sent out one Christmas years ago.

The beauty of these is that you don't have to bake anything.
They are so easy to whip up and look elegant and special
on a tray of cookies.

Creme de Menthe Squares Recipe
Blend together in a medium bowl:

2 C. crushed graham crackers

1/2 C. powdered sugar

1/2 C. melted butter

1/2 C. cocoa powder
1 tsp. vanilla

Press into the bottom of an 8x8 inch pan.  Use the back
of a measuring cup to press down flat.

Combine in mixing bowl and beat until creamy:

1/2 C. melted butter

3 C. powdered sugar

1/3 C. Torani's creme de menthe or peppermint
syrup (this is found by the coffee section)

green food coloring (use if you use the peppermint
syrup as it is not as green)

Spread the mint mixture over the crumb crust.  Chill one
hour.

Melt together in the microwave stirring every
30 seconds whether it looks like it needs to be
stirred or not:

1 1/2 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 C. melted butter

Spread on top of the mint layer.  Chill one hour

until firm.  Remove from fridge and let soften about

20 minutes.  Using a sharp knife, run it under hot

water, then wipe with a paper towel and start to

cut the bars.  Wipe the knife inbetween each cut

and run under hot water again each time, wiping

between so that you get clean cuts.  I cut mine

into 25 squares. 

Store in the fridge.

Click here for printable recipe.

I also was lucky enough to win!  We were joking that the

only thing I have ever won is 2 little whisks at a Tupperware

party when we were first married.  Well, I was lucky enough

to win the Liz Lemon Swindle print of Mary and Baby Jesus,

"Be It Unto Me." 

The eyes make this so beautiful, both Mary's and Baby Jesus'

eyes are so arresting.  Of course, she is dressed in purple so

it will fit in my home beautifully.  I am also invited to go and

meet the artist and have her sign the print!  Merry Christmas

to me.  Thank you Liz for such a lovely giveaway.

Join me at

Just Something I Whipped Up Monday

Tasty Tuesday

International Christmas Cookie Party

12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies Party

Foodie Friday