Ballpark Cookies Recipes

BALLPARK COOKIES

Steps:

• Crush cereal. (To easily crush cereal, place in plastic bag or between sheets of waxed paper, and crush with rolling pin.) In large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth. Beat in granulated sugar until fluffy. Beat in vanilla and egg. Stir in flour, crushed cereal and baking powder. Divide dough into thirds. Wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 2 hours.
• Heat oven to 375°F. Roll out dough, 1/3 at a time, on well floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into rounds using 3-inch cookie cutter. On ungreased cookie sheet, place 2 inches apart.
• Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until bottoms are light golden brown. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Cool completely.
• In medium bowl, beat powdered sugar and milk until smooth. Spread over cookies. Let stand until dry. Decorate with decorating gel. Let stand until dry. Store in single layer in airtight container.

BEACH BALL COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg, oil and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture., Divide dough into 5 equal portions. Tint each portion a different color with food coloring. Divide each portion into 24 equal pieces; roll each piece into a ball. Gently press together 1 ball of each color to form a larger ball; place 1 in. apart on greased baking sheets. Flatten slightly with bottom of a glass., Bake until bottoms are lightly browned, 10-12 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

BALLPARK PRETZELS

Steps:

• Chuck Hughes' yummy Ballpark Pretzels are just as much fun to bake as they are to eat!
• Combine the warm water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the dry yeast on top. Let sit until the mixture begins to foam, about 5 minutes. Add the flour and butter. Next, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until it's well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, 4 to 5 minutes. (Kneading the dough can also be done by hand.)
• Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper and lightly brush with vegetable oil. Set aside.
• When the dough is ready, lightly flour your working surface and divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope and, holding the ends, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place the pretzels on the baking tray and leave it at room temperature for 1 hour. This dries out the surface and makes them easier to handle.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• In an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan, bring 10 cups water to a boil. Cut the heat and slowly add the baking soda to prevent from overflowing. Bring it back to a boil and add the pretzels to the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula and put it back on the baking tray. This step will create a shiny, brown crunchy pretzel shell.
• Beat the egg yolk s with 1 tablespoons water and brush the top of each pretzel. Sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake until dark golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving with the Super Cheesy Sauce.
• For the cheesy sauce, in a saucepan over medium heat, bring the beer to a simmer. In a bowl, mix the cheese with the flour. Add the cheese mixture to the beer with the remaining ingredients. Stir until all the cheese has melted and the texture is smooth, about 5 minutes. Keep warm until ready to serve.