In the last week I somehow got sucked into a conversation on prison reform as well as a relationship discussion about former boyfriend saying that they have changed…asking the question can people change? Our prison system relies on people being reformed. I think we can because I’m pretty sure I’m not the same person I was at 14…and yet in many ways I am. I’ve certainly changed my opinion of my body and yet it took over 10 years to get there and there are still days when the self-love is hard. So am I truly changed?
If change were easy the diet industry would not exist. Everyone would go on one diet and bam, done. Every drug addict who went to rehab…bam, done. Sadly I wish that were not the case. Some people have a life event that makes them change their habits. Like say you find out you are diabetic and suddenly become scared and completely change the way you eat. I’ve seen it time and time again…and I have time and time again seen those people go back to their old ways and just adjust their insulin instead. And no judgment here…change is hard.
And what about personality traits? Can you change those? If you were always the whiny, the sky is falling, everybody hates me kind of person…can you really just one day wake up and say every day is a blessing and I love everyone? If you’ve always been a Type A stressed out kind of person can you one day become a go with the flow no problem kind of person? A control freak can suddenly let go? A person who’s always mooched off of others suddenly be able to stand on their own?
I don’t really know. If I did I would probably be rich. 🙂 What I do know is that MDP is an awesome husband who just randomly brought me home candy corn marshmallows because it seemed like something I would want. He was right. Except I didn’t really know what to do with them. I also had candy corn M&M’s and just good ol’ candy corn. I first thought about a candy corn bark but have had a craving for cookies as of late. I decided it would be fun to make a cookie cake instead. It isn’t really a cake at all other than in size and that it’s baked in a cake pan (or in my case a springform…easier to get out). It’s like one giant cookie…which you can then say I only had one cookie I don’t know why my pants don’t fit. 🙂 Regardless it’s a fun treat to make for Halloween or a great way to use up candy corn after Halloween.
Candy Corn Cookie Cake
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup Demerara sugar (you can use brown if you don’t have)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 bag candy corn M&M’s (use 1 cup white chocolate chips if can’t find)
25 candy corn marshmallows (or mini marshmallows if can’t find)
25 candy corn
Preheat oven to 350F.
Grease a 9-inch cake pan or a Springform pan (I did this because it’s easier to remove that way).
Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add eggs one at a time and scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl after each addition.
Add the vanilla and beat for 30 seconds.
Add the baking soda, salt, and flour on low speed until just combined.
Fold in the candy corn M&M’s until they are mostly evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Press the cookie dough into the cake pan and make sure to make it even. I just used my hands. If it gets sticky just use a little water on your hands.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven (but don’t turn oven off) and check to see how done it is with a wooden skewer. It should be almost done at this point and the skewer will come out mostly clean. Add the candy corn to the cookie, pressing them down a little into the cookie cake.
Place back into oven and bake another 5 minutes.
Remove and sprinkle marshmallows on top and place back into oven for another 1-2 minutes just to melt them a little.
Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.
Cut into wedges and serve. Remember that even though this says cookie cake it really is just a cookie and therefore will not be moist like a cake. It will have the texture and taste of a cookie.
Donna @ What the Dog Ate says
Looks tasty, although I never have any “leftover” Halloween candy. I just eat it all. Ooops!
CakeSpy says
HOORAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It has all the major food groups!
Peabody says
I totally thought of you when making this @cakespy
Diane {Created by Diane} says
This is one fun cookie cake, I LOVE it!
amanda @ fake ginger says
I always find conversations like that so interesting. I’ve always been a giant stressball and I have no idea if I’ll ever be able to change that. It’d be nice but it hasn’t happened so far.
Love this cake! My kids ask for the candy corn marshmallows every time we go to the store but I’ve never had a reason to buy them. Now I can get them and make this!
Meagan @ A Zesty Bite says
I absolutely love this cookie cake. Candy corn is so addicting!
Carrie says
I’m reading a book (by a Buddhist monk) that asserts that through meditation and other Buddhist practices, people can change things that they consider core traits. It’s an interesting book because the author combines Buddhist practice and Western science.
On to less weighty matters … I am not much for candy corn (sorry!), but this recipe gives me a *reason* to buy those really cute pumpkin- and ghost-shaped marshmallows …
Peabody says
@Carrie- interesting on the book. It’s definitely a complicated question that’s for sure.
Kim Beaulieu says
Tough subject, I think people have to face some sort of mortality issue to change. My dad was not a nice man, and very tough on people. The last couple of weeks of his life that changed. I’d like to say it was his decision and he had some huge epiphany but it was basically me blowing up after a year of taking care of him and overhearing him treat my aunt poorly when she tried to help one day. After I lost my cool we talked and he said sorry for the first time in his life. It was weird, but good. I will say taking care of him changed me. I used to fill every waking minute with activity, now I’m capable of chilling. I also stopped putting up with negative people, that was hard to implement. It meant cutting some people out of my life, but it’s been the best thing I’ve ever done for my mental health. Very freeing.
Okay so ramble much….ha, I felt compelled to share. Now on to the recipe. Candy corn and cake. I’ll be right over.
Christiane ~ Taking On Magazines says
Can people change … yeah, that really is an interesting subject. Sure, I think they can. I don’t think others can change people, but people can change themselves. Not easy, but it can happen. I definitely don’t think our prison system is in the reformation business though. I see very little that points to them ‘trying’ to break the cycle of crime. It’s just punishment. I’d need to mull it all over a bit more though; maybe with a piece of that cookie cake? 🙂
Zainab says
I really do wonder that myself sometimes…do people really change? Or is it just the triggers that make these changes apparent and how long will it last? It would be great if we did change and for good but there are always those questions on the inside, those doubts and those slips in actions that make me wonder sometimes. Ahhh cookie!! I’ll have a slice of that instead 🙂
Tracey says
Have a huge bowl of candy corn sitting on the coffee table…..not sure how many bags this makes. It is for sure totally addicting. This recipe looks so amazing, I would probably eat the whole thing by myself before anyone got to the house. lol