Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Emilee's Bake of Shame

You would think. You would totally think wouldn't you! You would think...that by this time I would know better. I Emilee, a Pinstrositier WOULD %^$#*&^% KNOW BETTER!!!
 But alas, apparently I do not. There is something to be said about humility. 
And this experience has definitely given me my fair share (and then some). Here I am the co-creator of a blog all about how to NOT have Pinterest fails, and I break the cardinal rule of Pinning.
 I tried a pin without reading the directions. 
I hope all of you are laughing at me right now, because if I was a third party totally un-involved reader, I would be busting a gut and super excited to see what is about to be presented to me. 
So here it is, my bake of shame. 


I was invited to a cookie exchange at Marquette's sisters house, and decided to try a totally new recipe. One I had seen on Pinterest (famous last words).
**I would like to add that I am ADMITTEDLY NOT a baker, not in the least. Cooking is great grand and fantastic, but baking is not generally not my thing.
May I also add this is went down at 11:30 at night after a LONG day and I was exhausted?! Well it was, and I was. So add that in for another excuse yeah?
"Enough blabbing!! Show us the pictures Pinstrosity lady!!!" (Cue impatient blog hungry mob...jk jk, but no really.)

The Original
http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/04/andes-mint-cookies.html?showComment=1323739192245

Andes Mint Cookies, I am a Andes Mint JUNKIE. Like really, I hide wrappers and everything, and I may or may not go to Olive Garden just for the after meal complimentary mint, or seven.

So this GENIUS recipe calls for a Devil's Food Cake mix, Andes Mints, and the usual baking stuff; eggs, and oil. Tada, that's it!
Now, what you all have been waiting for:

The Pinstrosity

"They look like mini cakes?!" 
What's that you say?! They look like mini cakes? Hmm, well that's because they are.
I am a doofus.
I didn't even look at the recipe.
Nope totally didn't even glance.
I read the ingredients, made sure I had all that I needed, and I did, and just went to town like I was baking a freaking cake.
I had just finished mixing the "batter" and realized my mistake, and in desperate not-wanting-to-go-to-Wal-Mart-at-midnight fashion, I stuck them in the oven anyways, just in case they were awesome and it was a new miracle awesome cookie recipe sent down from the blessed cookie gods.
They weren't. 
At all.
Awesome.
So I dragged the honey with me to Wal-Mart at midnight, picked up a single box of cake mix, and headed home for round two.
At which point I READ THE &&%$# DIRECTIONS and got to work on the real cookies, which actually turned out awesome despite my perils from earlier that evening.

They were DELICIOUS! I didn't have a single one to go home with after the party, Success! Redemption (kinda)!
The trick?

I assumed that because I was using a cake mix I would mix it just like the cake ingredients and all.
Wrong. Wrong.Wrong.Wrong.

And as irony would have it the trick to this was later told to me at a church function by a 16 year old young lady who makes her own cookie recipes. At this point I feel about this big. Murphey's law this would happen 24 hours AFTER the cookie party.
I had humitliy for breakfast lunch AND dinner for the next tow days. I know we will always be our most demanding and most harsh critic, but on this one I think I deserved it.
She told me if you add 1/2 cup oil and 2 eggs to (almost) any cake mix, it becomes a cookie mix.

And if you have done it right, your dough should look something like this:


NOT this:
http://www.sodahead.com/fun/betty-crocker-or-pillsbury-cake-mix/question-2029755/?link=ibaf&q=&imgurl=http://images.sodahead.com/polls/002029755/5036634256_17448_licking_cake_batter_bowl_xlarge.jpeg

The moral of the story. Don't assume, read the directions, and don't bake past midnight.
I hope you enjoyed my serving of humble pie, and I hope I won't be having anymore for a while.

For new Pinners who are timid towards trying new things, don't be afraid to make a mistake, you may feel like a doof for a day or two, but in the end we have ALL been there done that. 

Happy Wednesday Pinstrosipeeps!











12 comments:

  1. oh, thank GOODNESS you gave us permission to laugh . . . because that was funny . . . there's a reason that we women joke about men not following directions!
    so glad your second go-round turned out deliciously! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love it. It happens to EVERYONE! Those cookie look great tho - I'll have to give them a try!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I have been right there too. I love your blog btw and tell everyone I can about it. It's one of the highlights of my day.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Nice work, Em :) I have actually made "Whoopie Pies" before, and they are pretty much what you did first. There may be a smidge less liquid, but you put the batter on parchment paper to prevent it from spreading too much and from baking to the pan. The result is a little cookie-shaped cake. But it's a far cry from a chewy cookie.

    I'm glad you learned the cake mix cookie recipe! It's a go-to for me when I'm in a pinch. I even frost the cookies with the cake frosting.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Do you add the 1/2 cup of oil and 2 eggs in addition to any added ingredients the cake mix asks for or just on their own to the dry mix?

    ReplyDelete
  6. This should make you feel a bit better. Here is my epic baking fail. http://kaffeeklatschathena.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/thanksgiving-prep-day-2-rolls-y-u-no-rise/

    ReplyDelete
  7. You said "almost any cake mix"... which ones would this NOT work for!?
    p.s., SO glad to know I'm not the only one who does things like this!

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is a CLASSIC holiday cookie at my house, only we make them completely from scratch. :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. "She told me if you add 1/2 cup oil and 2 eggs to (almost) any cake mix, it becomes a cookie mix." In the face of risking failure, this statement alone sounds like an experiment. I find myself wanting to try my favorate cake flavors.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Ahh, the directions! Why oh why do we always think we have the ability to just wing it. I just had my own fabulous crockpot meal fail the other day thanks to not actually reading through all the directions... And it's highly probable that I will absolutely do it again!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Cake mix cookies are the best, my kids do them all the time! White mix with chocolate chips & vanilla, pinapple cake with dried pineapple bits, coconut flakes, and macadamia nuts, variations are endless! Be warned, gluten free mixes don't work the same... So no cookies for the Mama. :-/

    ReplyDelete
  12. Loved this entry! Anytime im in need of a laugh, this site never fails!! Thanks for sharing! =)

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.