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This is the mix I used to make the cookies. I found it at Fresh and Easy, where all Betty Crocker mixes were on sale, 4-$5! PS - box tops for education, too! (Photo Source: bettycrocker.com)

For this experiment, I took one box of Betty’s strawberry cake mix and prepared it with none of the water and one less egg to make my cookie dough; I kept the amount of oil the same as the cake recipe, one-third cup (see back of the box for full ingredients list). Just as I have before with my previous cake-mix-to-cookie tweaks, I refrigerated my dough for a little while to make sure it would be the density of a cookie dough and not too slippery to work with.

Strawberry cookies made from Betty Crocker's Strawberry Cake Mix.

Mission accomplished. I got a great dough and nice, cake-like-inside-but-crunchy-outside cookies as a result. As for the uniform, round shape, I used a small ice cream scoop to make my dough balls then pressed them flat before baking. For cookies in this method, and for either cut-outs or drop-style, I’ve found baking at 375 degrees for around 7-8 minutes is optimal, followed by cooling for about 10 minutes on wire racks afterwards.

Strawberry cookies topped with homemade vanilla buttercream frosting.

Though the cookies were tasty on their own, they definitely were missing something given their cake-like texture; that something was frosting. So on with the homemade portion of the program… the icing on the cookie, if you will: Vanilla Buttercream Frosting. I admit that I’ve not had a lot of success in the past creating a buttercream frosting that’s both tasty AND the proper texture depending on the goodie I’m trying to top, but I think I finally found my go-to recipe for cookies at any rate. Thanks to this blog, you, too can create enough frosting with this recipe to cover an entire cake. But since I didn’t need quite that much, I cut the recipe in half, which was plenty to frost between two to three dozen cookie rounds about three inches in diameter. I confess that I also halved the recipe as a form of damage control, as in so I wouldn’t damage my body by ingesting more frosting than one should be allowed to within a 24-hour period.

So just in case you want to do your own damage control, here’s the recipe for the frosting cut in half as I prepared it. Do note that I wound up adding all of the sugar and all of the milk in the end by alternating the small amounts into the mixture as directed.

Enjoy!

Strawberry Cookies with Homemade Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting (Small Batch for Cookies)
(Adapted from SavorySweetLife Blog)

Ingredients:

1 Stick (1/2 cup) Unsalted Butter, Softened (4-6 Hours at Room Temperature

1-2 Cups Confectioner’s (Powdered) Sugar, Sifted

Pinch-1/8 tsp. Table Salt

1-2 tsp. Vanilla Extract

2 tbsp. Milk or Heavy Cream (I used milk, low-fat in fact; it’s what I had on hand, and I’m appreciative that this recipe called for either-or so I didn’t have to do a store run!)

Directions:

1. Beat butter on medium speed with standing mixer with paddle attachment for a couple of minutes (I used a hand mixer; it worked just fine).
2. Add 1 ½ cups of the sugar to butter and mix on the LOWEST mixer speed until the sugar is incorporated into the butter.
3. Increase speed of mixer to medium and add vanilla, salt, and 1 tbsp. of the milk/ cream; beat together for 90 seconds to 2 minutes.
4. If frosting is too thin, add the remaining sugar one tbsp. at a time; if the frosting is too thick, add the remaining milk 1 tsp. at a time. Find a consistency that works for your needs and stop mixing there.

Frosts 2-3 dozen cookies, all depending on cookie size and thickness of spread per cookie.

At Ray Price Dealerships, we know it takes dedication and dollars to support school activities that give students more opportunities to learn. That’s why we’re teaming up with Ford and General Mills to support local schools with Box Tops for Education®. Ford has created a unique website designed to enable you to earn cash for your designated schools in a variety of ways by engaging with Ford’s products. This program will only run until December 1st, 2011!

For more information visit FordDrivesBoxTops.com or come into Ray Price Stroud Ford or Ray Price Mt. Pocono Ford!

Simply go to the Ford Drives Box Tops website and start earning points:

Watch a video: 5 eBoxTops
Request a brochure: 10 eBoxTops
Purchase a new Ford Vehicle: 250 eBoxTops

While you’re on the site, don’t forget to register for the Ford Drives Box Tops Sweepstakes. As part of the sweepstakes, one person will win 200,000 bonus Box Tops and five people will win 10,000 Box Tops, sent to the school of your choice.

We are honored to be a part of this promotion and can’t wait to give back to these deserving schools.

Please share this video with your friends and family! Each person who views our school’s video before November 15th can enter for a chance to win 5,000 Bonus Box Tops! Another simple way to make a big difference.

Please click on the link below:

http://boxtopsforeducation.com/share/makeadifference/Default.aspx?vid=1693

Last school year our school earned $300. So far this year we have earned $271! Keep up the good work!!

Special thanks to our Box Tops Team: Jose Perez, Norma Hernandez and Janet Forte.

Since I do not have hours of footage to pore over and mounds of self-reflecting to do tonight, I am going to do two things: pick out a cute outfit for tomorrow, and appeal to you for something very important to me: ice cream.

My school is having a Box Top collection competition.  And I like to win things.  Since my class came in second for the Kindergarten Homemade Applesauce competition, you can bet we’ve got some catching up to be done.  Second best will no longer do!  Also, if we collect the most, my class will win an ice cream party.  Could kindergarten get any better?! So from you, my faithful readers, I need you to go through each room of your house and cut or tear {carefully may I add} the official Box Tops off of items that have them.  You can find them on cereal, toilet paper, tissues, etc.  Here’s a link to a detailed list: http://www.boxtops4education.com/earn/clip/Brands.aspx

Box Tops for Education equal a monetary value and therefore a donation to your school.  My school needs your dinero and I need your helado {HELLO}.

Check it out, collect some tops, and contact me so I can get you an address for you to send them to me, if I think you’re legit.  Don’t want this to turn into Box Top Collection Stalker Style.  They need to be turned into my school by October 31, 6 days after the upcoming celebration of my birth, so get to it, and pronto!!

Thanks,
Caro

Here is a great way to help your local schools earn extra funds….

DEARBORN – Ford Motor Company has become the first automotive brand to partner with General Mills to provide needed funding to schools across the country through the Box Tops for Education® (BTFE) program.

“Since this company started, Ford has always looked for ways to support our country’s youth and the education they receive,” said Jim Farley, group vice president, Ford Global Marketing, Sales, and Service.  “We believe that through the Box Tops for Education program we will be able to reach and help students across the whole country.”

Starting Oct. 3, people can earn and collect Box Tops for their local school in three new ways.  They can request a brochure from the official Ford/BTFE sweepstakes website at www.FordDrivesBoxTops.com, watch product videos on the website or purchase a Ford vehicle at dealerships during October and November.

During the two-month “Ford Drives Box Tops” program, Ford will redeem participants’ Box Tops, which will be given to the school of their choice.  Five 10,000 Box Top prizes worth $1,000 and one 200,000 Box Tops prize worth $20,000 will be given out to the schools who have collected the most Box Tops through Ford at the end of the program.

“Ford continues to pilot innovative ways to support education in local communities,” said Farley.  “We believe that we will be most successful when we give something back to our customers.”

For years, Ford has been active in supporting education and the community.

The Drive One 4 UR School program – developed as a fun, engaging way to help high schools raise money to support their sports and extracurricular activities – has seen great success.  The program has received more than $7 million in donations since its inception in 2007. During those 4 years, 1,685 unique high schools have partnered with local dealerships across the United States to raise money for extracurricular school activities.

And Ford’s Driving Skills for Life program supports safe teen driving through its award-winning safe-driving curriculum, a free program that educates teens with a combination of ride-and-drive events, educational materials, customized in-school events and an interactive website.  Since 2003, more than 341,000 students have been trained in safe-driving practices.

A two-month program called Ford Drives Box Tops has been launched with a goal of generating $1 million to support schools throughout the U.S. It’s easy to participate: Ford vehicle owners and shoppers can earn and collect Box Tops by either requesting a brochure from the Ford Box Tops for Education website , by watching product videos on the website or by purchasing a Ford vehicle during October and November. Ford is also sponsoring the Ford Drives Box Tops sweepstakes, which will provide winners with electronic credits called eBoxTops that will be automatically credited to the school of their choice. Five 10,000 Box Top prizes worth $1,000 and one 200,000 Box Tops prize worth $20,000 will be given to the Box Tops for Education -eligible school of their choosing at the end of the sweepstakes. Schools will be able to use the money how they want.

Check out the Box Tops for Education-eligible new and pre-owned vehicles available for purchase in Indianapolis at Tom Wood Ford!

With any new Ford vehicle purchase and/or brochure request, customers will receive a code in the mail to redeem at forddrivesboxtops.com to earn eBox Tops for their schools. All codes MUST be redeemed by 3/31/12 to earn allocated Box Tops.

Box Tops Sweepstakes
Ford is also giving away 250,000 Box Tops in the Ford Drives Box Tops Sweepstakes. Consumers will automatically be entered for a chance to win one of several prize amounts each time they log on to
www.FordDrivesBoxTops.com. Consumers will have the ability to share the sweepstakes with friends to earn more entries.

To learn more visit www.FordDrivesBoxTops.com

Thank you for everyone who attended and volunteered for the Block Party!  The event was fun for everyone, and I don’t think we could have asked for better weather.   I worked in the hot dog stand and had a great time meeting everyone.

This Week’s Events:

September 29 – The North Fulton Counsel PTA is meeting from 6-7pm at DSES.  The keynote speaker is the new Fulton County school superintendent, Dr. Robert Arvossa.

September 30 – This is the last day of the Great American Fundraiser.  Turn in your forms!  And be sure to buy frozen cookie dough.  Not only is it tasty, but it also comes in handy when your child informs you at 9pm that she has to bring something for a school event in the morning.

September 30 – If you have been meaning to have your child join the DSES band (run by Music Matters and led by our very own Mr. Patrick McAvoy), now is the time to do it.  September 30 is the deadline.  For more information and to register, check out www.mmafterschool.com or contact Mr. McAvoy.

A few additional reminders:

-       Reflections:  Start your projects!  The deadline is October 10.

-       Box Tops:  Bring them in to earn money for the school.

Have a great weekend!  And for those observing Rosh Hashanah – Shanah Tovah!  Have a happy and healthy new year!

This week’s tip is geared toward all of you who have school-age children and want to help raise money for their schools. Box Tops for Education has helped America’s schools earn more than $400 million since 1996. You can earn cash for your child’s school by clipping Box Tops coupons from hundreds of participating products, such as cereal, snacks, baking products, dairy, etc.

If you were to check your pantry right now, I’d bet you’d find at least one item that has a Box Top coupon attached to it. For a full list of participating products, go to: http://www.boxtops4education.com/earn/clip/Brands.aspx)

If you don’t have school-age children, you can still contribute by joining Box Tops for Education online at: http://www.boxtops4education.com/learn/WhyJoin.aspx?WT.ac=UHP_WhyJoin

Or, think about helping out a neighbor’s or colleague’s kid. Most schools have contests throughout the school year and the student who brings in the most box tops can win a prizes, such as gift cards to local area stores, etc. Better yet, save them for me and I’ll make sure they are put to good use!

This is such a simple yet effective way of raising money for schools, so start clipping today!

Eat, drink and be merry!

Oh Betty Crocker®, how you have saved me in more ways than one. From your mouth watering brownies to your moist cakes, I have never been disappointed {except when I burned the cake but that was my fault}.

Recently Betty Crocker® has teamed up with Box Tops for Education

By purchasing Betty Crocker® dessert mixes, you can collect box tops and redeem them for money that your school can use to buy valuable resources such as new computers, new library books, or even a new playground! Betty Crocker® is the only brand in the baking aisle that offers Box Tops for Education® so all you have to do is look for boxes with the Red Spoon® logo. Last year, your contributions earned more than $59 million dollars for America’s schools!

Make sure you visit the Betty Crocker® website to get great baking tips, recipe ideas, and information on other yummy products. You can also learn more about the Box Tops for Education® program and how you can help your own local school by visiting the Box Tops website

With all the recent budget cuts schools have taken a huge hit. And our children will be the ones to suffer. Purchasing products with the Box Tops for Education® label you are helping put money back into your child’s school!

                                                               GIVEAWAY:
One lucky Party of 5 reader will win a Betty Crocker® Prize Pack which contains a box of Milk Chocolate Traditional Brownie Mix, cupcake i-clips, cupcake notepads, Box Tops for Education®  pencils, a Neoprene lunch sack, and a cupcake bag.

 
Easy Entries:

1~ Follow Party of 5 via GFC. Visit the Betty Crocker® website and leave a comment telling me which recipe you would like to try out.

2~ Like Party of 5 on Facebook

ends 9/22/11

** the product, prize pack,information, and giveaway have all been provided by Betty Crocker through MyBlogSpark. **