The. Best. Chocolate. Chip. Cookies. Ever.

Everyone likes their Chocolate Chip Cookies a certain way and these are definitely the favorite in our house.  If your idea of a chocolate chip cookie involves a soft, chewy, melt in your mouth texture, and a rich vanilla base with just the right amount of milk chocolate chips (the mistake of adding too many, or God forbid, using semisweet chips will totally ruin the cookie karma), then this is the recipe for you.   If you prefer a crunchy, crispy, chockful of semisweet chips cookie, then just walk away now.  I won’t take offense that you have a poor palate and can’t appreciate the best cookie ever. 

The bad news about this recipe is that it’s highly addictive, so be prepared for the baking requests, marriage proposals, and promotions to start pouring in once you make these.  I made a quadruple batch of these last weekend and my coworkers managed to polish off every single one in an 8 hour work day.  The President of our Agency loved them so much that he brought them into a Client meeting because the catered lunch included cookies that said “just didn’t compare” and then he demanded that I include the recipe in his Christmas card this year.  That’s not all…A random woman in my office approached me and said “You don’t know who I am as I work on the floor below, but I have a confession…I saw your cookies sitting out the other day and decided to sneak one and I can’t stop thinking about them!  I even dreamt about them last night!”  A tad creepy, but still you get the point.  Make these and people will love you. 

Some tips I’ve discovered along the way: 1.) I always use salted butter.  It pairs well with the sweeter flavors.  2.) Always refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours before baking (I prefer to chill it overnight).  If you don’t listen to my wise advise, the cookies will spread all over the place when you try to bake them and will look like flying saucers. 3.) Line your baking sheets with parchment paper to prevent burnt bottoms and sticking.  4.) Make sure your eggs are room temperature before adding them.  Why?  Because I said so.  5.) Watch the cookies carefully while baking, as you want to pull them out just when the edges are lightly toasted and the middle is still soft.  The cookie should look underdone when you pull them out, but they will continue to cook on the baking sheet.  Let them rest for at least 15 minutes on the baking sheet before cooling on a wire rack. 

 

 

The. Best. Chocolate. Chip. Cookies. Ever.  (yes, that is the official name)

• 2 cups All Purpose Flour
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 3/4 cup Salted Butter, melted
• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 1/2 cup White Sugar
• 1 tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 3/4 cup Milk Chocolate Chips

 

1. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl.
2. Cream together the melted butter, brown sugar, and white sugar in a mixer.  Once it’s well blended, add the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk and beat until the mixture is light and creamy. 
3. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until it’s completely blended.  Fold in the chocolate chips with a spoon. 
4. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours or overnight. 
5. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Mold dough into golf ball size balls and place on baking sheets.  Place at least 3 inches apart.  (I can fit 6 cookies on 1 commercial size baking sheet.)
7. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until the edges are lightly toasted.  Cool on the sheets for at least 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. 
8. To maintain the chewiness of this cookie, seal in an airtight container. 

Chocolate Mousse Trifle…a fancy name for Chocolatey Goodness.

This has to be one of the richest, creamiest, chocolatiest (I don’t know if that’s a word, but I’m making it one) desserts that I’ve ever made.  That said, it’s easy to make and looks oh-so-pretty in a footed trifle dish.  I registered for this trifle dish with this exact type of recipe in mind, so I just had to make it and stop using that darn trifle dish to hold boring fruit salad.  Now, the recipe calls for a pan of brownies and while you could just throw together a boxed version, I really like this Hershey’s recipe (sans frosting and nuts) and it really is just as easy as the boxed mixes.  The trifle recipe is great for parties, as you need to make it ahead of time so it has time to chill.  My husband and his friends also enjoying eating the leftovers with huge serving spoons, right out of the dish, while watching ESPN.  At least nothing goes to waste in my house!

 

Chocolate Mousse Trifle

• 1 pan of prepared brownies
• 2 (3.9 oz.) packages of Jello Chocolate Instant Pudding
• 1.5 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 (14 oz.) can Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 2 (8 oz.) containers of Cool Whip, thawed
• 1 jar of Caramel Sauce
• 1 bag of Heath Toffee Bits

 

1. Prepare brownies and once cool, cut into 1 inch squares.
2. In a mixing bowl, whip the heavy cream until it’s light and fluffy.  In a separate mixing bowl, combine the pudding mix, condensed milk, and water together.  Fold in the whipped cream until no streaks remain throughout the mousse. 
3. In a trifle bowl or glass serving dish, layer the brownies, caramel sauce, toffee bits, chocolate mousse, and cool whip.  Repeat layers. 
4. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours before serving. 

Healthy Mexican Food?!? Yes, please.

I know that it doesn’t sound possible, but this dish is quite healthy while still being spicy, cheesy, refried beany, sour creamy and meaty (without the beef, of course)!   I kinda just made up this Mexican Lasagna while trying to think of healthy dishes that are still satisfying.  It’s low in carbs and fat, but high in fiber and protein, and it tackles my monthly Mexican craving without having to hit up a Taco Bell drive through. 

 

Mexican Lasagna

• 20 oz. Extra Lean Ground Turkey Breast
• Salt/Pepper/Chili Powder/Paprika/Garlic/Onion Powder to taste
• 1 can Fat Free Re-fried Beans
• 4 Low Carb Whole Wheat Tortillas (I use the smaller Soft Taco size ones, rather than the huge burrito size ones) 
• Your favorite jar of salsa or taco sauce (I love using the bottled Taco Bell brand Mild and Hot sauce.  It’s low in calories and it tastes just like the stuff in the little packets.)
• 1/4 cup Reduced Fat Mexican Cheese
• A dollop of Non-fat Greek Yogurt for the topping (This stuff is amazing…It’s just as creamy and tangy as Sour Cream and yet it’s fat free and full of protein and calcium.)

 

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Brown the turkey in a large skillet and season to taste. 
2. Drain the grease from the meat and remove from the pan. 
3. In a small round baking dish, layer one tortilla and spread with a layer of beans.  Sprinkle the ground turkey and a bit of cheese over the bean layer.  Pour a layer of taco sauce/salsa on next and then layer with another tortilla.  Repeat the layers of beans, turkey, cheese, sauce into 3 layers.  Top the last layer with a tortilla, cover with sauce and the remaining cheese. 
4. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.  Cut into 4 quarters and serve with a dollop of fat free Greek Yogurt. 

Beef: It’s what’s for dinner…at least for Gus.

If you know me, you know that I just don’t enjoy the taste of red meat.  I don’t feel bad for cows or anything…I just don’t care for the taste of them.  My husband, on the other hand, loves his beef.  He has compromised his love and will tolerate my substituition of ground turkey in many dishes, but his favorite meal is Pot Roast…or “Beef Stew”, as he prefers to call it.  The dish is not very stew like, so I refuse to call it that, but he knows the dish as “Beef Stew” from his childhood, so we agree to disagree on the name.  It is a very easy dish to prepare, which is great for me since I usually end up making another beef-free dinner the same night so I don’t end up with cereal for dinner.  It’s also really easy to prepare it in the morning before leaving for work and then you come home to a dinner that’s almost done.  It’s a great Fall or Winter meal, but my husband loves it so much that he requests it in August, so clearly you don’t have to play by the rules.  My version is a little heavy on the carrots since that’s how Gus prefers it, but you could really get away with 1 bag.  I also use baby carrots because 1.) they are sweeter and 2.) no prep work.  This recipe makes about 5-6 hefty portions and it freezes well. 

 

 

Pot Roast (or Beef Stew, if your name is Gus)

• 3 lb. Chuck Roast
• 2 tablespoons Butter
• Salt/Pepper/Garlic to taste
• 1 bag Petite Yukon Gold Potatoes, chopped
• 2 bags Baby Carrots
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 packet Onion Soup Mix
• Half a can of Beef Broth
• Few teaspoons of flour or cornstarch to make Gravy

 

1. Take the chuck roast and season with salt/pepper/garlic to taste.  Coat a large skillet with butter and brown the meat on all sides over medium-high heat.
2. In a large bowl, coat the carrots, onions, and potatoes in 3/4 of the onion soup mix.
3. Place the meat in the slow cooker and sprinkle the remaining soup mix over the beef.  Add the beef broth, carrots, onions, and potatoes.
4. Cover and cook on low setting for 8-10 hours. 
5. When done, remove all beef and veggies to a serving bowl.  Turn the slow cooker on the high setting and using the remaining liquid, whisk in a teaspoon at a time of flour/cornstarch to thicken it into gravy.  Once it’s thickened, pour over beef and veggies. 

The grocery store forced me to make muffins.

 

Why?  Because they refuse to sell buttermilk in smaller jugs, so I ended up with practically an entire carton leftover and rather than toss it, I decided to make 4 dozen muffins.  We love muffins in our house, but half a dozen was enough for us, so the rest went to work, as my coworkers love anything edible that is free.  This was the first time I made muffins from scratch, so I did a lot of research and was very careful to not over mix, as this results in a flat, dense muffin.  When incorporating the wet ingredients with the dry, I would recommend not mixing over 12 strokes. 

 

Blueberry Crumb Muffins

I used the same base for the Blueberry Crumb and Raspberry Chocolate Chip flavors, and think you could use just about any fruit combination with this base.  The recipe below would make 6 muffins, using a jumbo sized muffin pan. 

 

 

Muffin Base:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1/3 cup buttermilk

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1.5 cup fresh blueberries

Crumb Topping:

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup butter, cubed and softened

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners.
2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl.  Stir together. 
3. Place vegetable oil in a measuring cup and add the egg, buttermilk, and vanilla.  Beat together slightly to incorporate the egg with the wet ingredients. 
4. To make the crumb topping, mix together the brown sugar, flour, butter, and cinnamon with a fork.  
5. Mix the wet ingredients with the flour mixture.  Fold in the blueberries.  Fill muffin cups right to the top and sprinkle with the crumb topping.  (Don’t go too heavy on the topping or else it will cause your muffin tops to collapse.)
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes in a preheated oven, or until done. 

 

 

 

Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins

• Use the same base as above, just swap out the blueberries for 1.5 cups of fresh raspberries and 1 cup of mini chocolate chips.  Before folding in the chocolate chips, lightly coat them in 1 tsp of flour so they don’t sink to the bottom of the muffins. 
• Rather than use the crumb topping, I sprinkled white granulated sugar crystals on top of the muffins, prior to baking.  I found these in the baking department at Joann’s or any store that carries Wilton products should have them. 
• Follow the same baking instructions as above.  

 

 

 

 

Double Chocolate Chunk Muffins

For the Double Chocolate Chunk Muffins, I used a popular Dorie Greenspan recipe from one of her great cookbooks, with some slight modifications.  Dorie describes the muffin as “slightly sweet” and I didn’t want the flavor to be too dark or rich, so I used half semisweet and half bittersweet chocolate chunks.  I also topped these with sugar crystals and mini chocolate chips before baking for a more finished look.  I used jumbo sized muffin pans and got 12 muffins from this recipe.  

 

 

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

3 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsley chopped

2 cups flour

2/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1/4 cups buttermilk

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

 

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners
2. Melt the butter and half the chopped chocolate together in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water; or do this in a microwave. Remove from the heat.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
4. In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk the buttermilk, egg and vanilla extract together until well combined.
5. Pour the liquid ingredients and the melted butter and chocolate over the dry ingredients and, with the whisk or a rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend. Don’t worry about being thorough — a few lumps are better than over mixing the batter.
6. Stir in the remaining chopped chocolate. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin molds.
7. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin from its mold.

What the heck is this?

Tis a blog.  Well, I like to cook and bake and eat and share recipes and take photos, so this is a fun little place where I can do just that.  So enjoy and mangia, mangia!  (eat, eat!  The only Italian I know is either food related or curse words.  I’ll try to refrain from using the later on this site…unless I really mess up a recipe.)