I know ... I'm a liar. Will Cookie Dough Cupcakes help?

I know, I know! I said I'd be posting more and then I'm all like, nevermind. But I'm trying! Life, man.

Anyway! I made these crazy-good cupcakes tonight. Now, to be fair, I only ate the cake part because the frosting? Totally not my thing. So why did I make them and how do I know they're good?

Because I made them for my kiddos. And they ate them happily -- they may have even eaten the frosting from a tube, directly into their mouths.

Because these dark chocolate caramel fudge cupcakes are topped with cookie dough. Oh yeah. I said it. COOKIE DOUGH. Best part? EGGLESS cookie dough. So it's totally safe to eat for anyone who's actually into that sort of thing.

But I mean, come on. I hate cookie dough and all ... but even these look appetizing to me. A little. If I squint.

But they loved them. And really, isn't that what a Valentine's Day gift is for -- making the ones you love happy?

Want to make these yummies? Of course you do. Click-arino.

Halloween Cookie Bars

Everyone loves Halloween -- at least everyone in my house.

My kids have gone through hundreds dozens of costume ideas. Power Rangers, monkeys, puppies, Princess Belle, astronaut daddies ... the list went on and on.

But because I'm lazy thrifty, I convinced my kids the best idea of all was one they hadn't thought of -- pirates. I mean, it's $.99/each. How can you not buy that? My son said, "Oh, yes! I can be the pirate and you can all be my mateys!" Maties? Either way, he's pumped. He watches a lot of Jake and the Neverland Pirates. So much so that his curse word of choice is, "COCONUTS!"

His class is having a Halloween party in a few weeks, and I'm tasked with bringing cupcakes. Which is SUPER exciting, but I didn't want to wait for a few weeks to start making treats. So, I give you:

Halloween Cookie Bars

Ingredients:
1 package white almond bark, melted
1 package crushed Halloween Oreo cookies
1 bag Reese's Pieces
1/2 cup crushed pretzels
1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Halloween sprinkles

Directions:
Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, add crushed cookies and almond bark and stir to coat.
Pour the cookie mixture on the parchment paper and smooth out until flat with a rubber spatula.
Sprinkle the toppings on the mixture while the chocolate is still warm, then put in fridge for 10 minutes until hard.
Remove from the fridge and cut into triangles or 1" x 1" squares.

These would be great for Christmas by subbing out M&Ms, red Oreos and Christmas sprinkles. It's super sweet, but my kids don't seem to mind.