Big, Fat, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made these cookies back in May. Which turned out to be the month of Birthdays for me. Four friends and one brother all had birthdays in the month of May. What the heck? I didn't realize I knew so many May babies.

It was actually a good thing, because if it hadn't been for these birthdays, I likely wouldn't have seen a bunch of these friends during the course of that month. And am kind of wishing that I'd had lots of friends with birthdays in June and July, too! I have been insanely busy the past 3 months or so. But, I'm not complaining. Not at all actually... the things I've been doing have been awesome: I've been to California, Cincinnati, Utah, and New York. I've gotten to spend a lot of time with friends that I don't get to see very often on all these trips and I've ran in some really cool races and places. Aside from traveling, my workload has also increased greatly in the last few months. But, you know what? I'm really enjoying that, too. I'm learning new things and am just grateful that in this economy, my job and company is doing so incredibly well. I'm really blessed. And, I know it's easy to get stressed out when you're so busy, but I make a conscious effort to just enjoy it all and take it in. Being busy can be a really great thing, if you let it be.

So, even though I had all this stuff going on, I was still thrilled to get to celebrate my friends birthdays with them.

Normally, I would have made my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, but it requires a little extra time to chill out in the fridge, etc. So, I turned to one of my favorite bloggers, Deb at Smitten Kitchen and perused her recipe index for a suitable cookie recipe.

I found a recipe that sounded perfect, Crispy Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies. How could I go wrong, right? And I was right, these cookies were delicious. They weren't all that crispy (which was fine by me), but they were chewy and baked up really well. Nice and sturdy, but not too thick and delicious. The recipe is exactly how a chocolate chip cookie recipe should be: straight forward, easy to follow, with easily accessible ingredients. The perfect birthday cookie recipe.

Crispy Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Found on the Smitten Kitchen Website.

These cookies turned out sturdy and tasty. They definitely had a good chew to them which is of utmost importance to me. Don't be turned off by the "crispy" in the title, if you're a chewy fan. The crisp is subtle and they aren't greasy at all like some crispy cookies can be.

The only substitute I made was to use almond extract instead of vanilla. But, that's only because I was out of vanilla. Good even without the vanilla, but next time, I'll go to the store and buy some vanilla.

Recipe can be found here.

Milk Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies

*tap tap* Is this thing on, y'all?

Pardon me for my absence from the baking/blogging world. It's not you, it's me, I assure you.

I could ramble on and on with excuses that range from a very high workload to traveling a lot in the last few months to some serious writers block I've had lately. I've just been busy, overall. But, honestly, that's not the main reason I haven't been blogging 'round these parts much. Truthfully dear readers, I've started to cross over into the dark side...

It started innocently enough... I've been lollygagging around and hap-heartedly going about trying to lose the 20 extra pounds that I carry around on my belly for the last 2 years or so. I'd lose a few pounds from other parts of my body, but those stubborn pounds around my midsection would not budge. I'd tried everything... low carb, low cal, vegetarian, strength training, ab exercises, extra cardio (because apparently my body is completely oblivious to the fact that I run a shit-ton every week). And trust me... I know a thing or two about how to lose weight. Nutrition and exercise isn't a new thing to me.

Finally, I decided that I'd had enough and it was time to try something else. I amped up the vegetarianism... cutting out meat, but also cutting out most grains and loading up on fresh fruit and veggies. And then I started taking Hot Yoga classes everyday that I was in town. And I'll be damned if that wasn't the right combination for me. Slowly, the belly fat started shrinking. My body fat percentage started to decrease and instead of being miserable that I couldn't eat any sweets or pizza, I felt great. I didn't even want sweets or pizza. It was easy.

Aside from the physical aspects, I've come to realize that this way of eating is helping me break my food addiction. Finally, I'm not sitting around while I'm eating lunch, thinking about what I'm going to eat for dinner. I'm starting to feel like for once, I'm in control of my appetite, instead of my appetite being in control of me. It is wonderfully liberating.

Now, what does this mean? What happens when a girl who has a baking blog drastically changes her lifestyle and starts eliminating things like baked goods from her diet? Does she turn it into some kind of healthy lifestyle food blog? Does she blog about raw food or vegan goodies? Does she give up the blog?

To be completely honest, I have no idea what it means at this point. I love blogging and writing, so I cant imagine giving it up entirely. And there will still be plenty of occassions where I bake goodies (non vegan, I dont anticipate really getting into vegan baking) for other people to enjoy and I'd love to still have an outlet to share those. At this point, I'm in the middle of a 30 day vegan challenge (that also includes no alcohol or sugar). And once that's over, I anticipate that I'll occasionally eat cheese, butter, sugar, etc.. I just won't be consuming as much of it as I once did (hopefully).

All I know is that for now... things are going to be a little different around here. I'm not sure exactly what's going to happen, but I'm pretty sure I'll be around this little blog world and hopefully more frequently, since I've finally 'fessed up about what's going on.

I can't ever imagine giving up blogging in it's entirety.  It's really fun and fulfilling for me to carve out a little piece of myself into the world wide web. Hell, I've even met some great people through blogging that have become good friends in real life. Two of which, I made these cookies for.

After the Rocket City Marathon in December

(from left to right: Me, Melanie, and Matt)

I met Matt and Melanie through my other blog, Twenty Six Point Two. We started out as being running acquaintances, then into running partners, and now into friends! Even with as much running in Nashville as I do, it's still hard sometimes to meet other runners.

They both had birthdays back in May, and so I decided to whip them up a little something special to celebrate. It didn't take me long to figure out what to make them, either. When I think runners and baked goods for some reason I alway think peanut butter. But, aside from runners, who doesn't love peanut butter? Especially when there's some chocolate thrown in there, too? It didn't hurt that this was a recipe that I'd been wanting to make for a long time...

So, stick with me, South in Your Mouth might go through some changes in the next little bit... And, I'm not sure what's in store, but we can find out together. (I will tell you that I have a back-log of old recipes to get to, so there will still be plenty of yummy desserts to feature soon).

Peanut Butter Cookies with Milk Chocolate Chunks

Recipe from: “Baked” by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

I hate to admit to you, that I didn't actually taste these cookies, at all. However they were a dream to make. They come together easily and don't require any weird ingredients or methodology. Do take note, though, that they do require some fridge time before they're baked off.

Once baked they come out perfectly round, with a not-to-thin, not-to-thick consistency. I can only imagine that they taste as good as they look.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup creamy peanut butter
6 ounces good milk chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions:
Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.


In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars together until fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated. The mixture will look light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and peanut butter and beat until just incorporated.

Add half of the flour mixture and mix for 15 seconds. Add the remaining flour mixture and mix until just incorporated.

Using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in the chocolate. Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate for at least three hours. (I kept mine chilled overnight).

Preheat the oven to 375℉. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Drop the dough by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets, at least two inches apart. With the palm of your hand, very gently press each cookie down so it forms a very tall disk shape. Do not press too hard and do not press it flat.

Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with granulated sugar and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until the tops of the cookies just begin to brown.

Remove the pan from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Serve warm or use a spatula to transfer the individual cookies to the rack to cool completely.

Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Yield: 24 cookies.

TWD: Dorie's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have given lots of second chances in my life. Second chances to friends, boys, restaurants, television shows, books, even rock bands. To me... second chances come natural. I'm not one to hold grudges and always try to remember that shit happens. And it happens to everyone once in awhile. People make mistakes, we're all human and if you can reconcile things from your past without too much effort or heartbreak... it's almost always worth the effort. Even when the second chance doesn't work out... I rarely find myself kicking myself for giving it another go. Hell, sometimes I've even given 3rd chances!

So, yeah... I'm one of those... I like to refer to it as an open-mindness, a feeling that things and people can change, but other people refer to it as a sort of naivete or stupidity. Sure, I get burned sometimes. But what's a little burn every once in awhile, right? If it's not one thing, it's something else.

One thing I just realized this week, though, is that I NEVER give recipes a second chance if they wrong me the first time. I guess it's because with the number of recipes readily available out there through cookbooks and the internet, why would you ever try the same recipe twice, if it didn't work out the first time (and if you had a multitude of other similiar recipes to try)?

Well, up until this weekend... I hadn't. Ever. You see, the first recipe I made out of Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home To Yours cookbook was this recipe, Dorie's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies. And while it certainly wasn't awful, it wasn't my favorite either. The cookies came out flat and greasy. Not my Chocolate Chip Cookie ideal (I prefer crispy edges, chewy center). So what, right? There are literally a zillion Chocolate Chip Cookie recipes out there to try. And eventually I found the perfect ones for me (I have a couple of favorites... David Lebovitz's if I'm looking to whip up a batch today and eat it and The Jacques Torres New York Times Cookie if I have bread flour on hand and time to prepare and wait on the chilled dough).

No need to revisit Dorie's Chocolate Chip Recipe again, right?

Until Kait from Kait's Plate chose the recipe for her Tuesdays with Dorie selection. I debated for awhile... Like I said, I'd never tried a recipe that I didn't like twice. But I read through the recipe again and decided that I'd go for one of the "playing around" options this time.

I added toasted pecans and toasted coconut to the recipe. I hoped that this would bulk up the recipe a bit, since I found them a bit too thin the first time around. And HOT DAMN. If these weren't delicious! They were bulky and chewy and the toasted pecans added such a depth of toasty, nutty flavor to the cookies! Success!

So, while I didn't follow the exact same recipe this time... it was still basically the same recipe and the second time around was awesome! I now have the perfect coconut pecan chocolate chip cookie recipe for my arsenal.

Just goes to show... maybe I should give more recipes a second chance...

Dorie's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe from Dorie Greenspan

So, yeah, I added 1 1/2 cups of toasted coconut and followed the regular recipe per the pecans (I didn't add any nuts the first time around). A word about the coconut... you can't really detect it in the cookie, I mean... maybe you can get a hint of toasted coconut flavor, but my oldest brother who won't go near anything that has coconut in it with a 12 ft pole happily ate these and declared them very tasty. (Haha. Of course I didn't tell him there was coconut in it). I definitely suggest you toast both the coconut and the pecans though, it brings out such an intense flavor in the ingredients.

These are delicious cookies and super easy and straightforward to make. I couldn't keep from eating the dough or the cookies!

Recipe can be found here, on Kait's Blog.

Healthy-ish Oatmeal Cookies

I love oatmeal. Always have. Always will. When I was growing up, oatmeal was a regular at the breakfast table. And I get it. Some of you hate oatmeal and I totally understand why. Particularly every time I order it at a restaurant or plop out some into a bowl at a hotel's continental breakfast buffet. Plainly and simply: Other people's oatmeal SUCKS.

I mean, no wonder people hate oatmeal. Other people make it and its gloopy and pasty and flavorless. It's gross. When you make it at home... the way my mom always made it, with brown sugar, salt (FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON'T FORGET A HEALTHY PINCH OF SALT) and two slices of buttered whole wheat toast, it's heavenly. It's like a warm hug for your insides. I used to break up my buttered toast and toss it into the oatmeal and swirl it around, until it became soft, buttery bits in my oatmeal (I know, I have this gross obsession with things that are supposed to be crunchy being soggy. Don't even talk to me about my favorite part of a platter of nachos). Or, if I didn't do that, I'd slather the oatmeal onto my toast and eat it like a sandwich. Yum. Oatmeal sandwich.

Okay, so before I totally lose you oatmeal haters out there (if I haven't already), let's talk about other uses of oatmeal. Like... cookies. Oatmeal cookies. Yum. A cookie with oatmeal is hearty and filling... almost as much of a hug as the bowl of oatmeal is. There's something homey about an oatmeal cookie. And... bonus: Oatmeal is fairly good for you. It's got loads of fiber (which is supposed to make you feel fuller, but, dude... nothing makes this stomach of mine feel full) and probably some other good stuff in it that I'm too lazy to look up right now.

Sometimes, I'm just in the mood for a healthy treat. I mean, not MOST of the time. Most of the time I'm in the mood for something loaded down with butter and sugar, but SOMETIMES I want something a little healthier and when I think of a healthy baked good, I usually think: Oatmeal.

I found a recipe at David Lebovitz's site (although, generally... don't go there if you're looking for something healthy. Cause he'll easily distract you with ice cream recipes) that I decided to tweak a bit and attempt to make even healthier. I tried to used a ripened banana for most of the sugar. Good idea, right? Yeah, I thought so, too. Until I tasted the batter. And immediately pulled the sugar out of the cupboard and added some (just for good measure, ya know).

Chewy-Almost-Healthy-Oatmeal Cookies
original recipe from Nick Malgieri, adapted from David Lebovitz's adaptation.

This is the recipe I used, with the addition of the sugar that I originally tried to leave out. The cookies turn out very chewy and cakey. Very delicious. Normally, I'm not a cakey cookie kind of girl, but I find that when I'm eating something that I know has things in it that are good for me, I tend to ease my texture demands.

I will definitely make these again. And I might even experiment further to try and make these actually healthier.

1 cup of white whole wheat all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp of unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup packed, light brown sugar
1 ripe banana
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups rolled oats (not instant!)
3/4 cup dark raisins (I used chocolate chips, can use any dried fruit)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a baking sheet with non-stick spray.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, and banana until smooth-ish. Mix in the egg, applesauce and vanilla.

Stir in the dry ingredients, then the oats, then the raisins (or whatever you're using).

Drop the batter by the rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart on a greased baking sheet. Use a fork to gently flatten the dough.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Will there come a time when I put trust in my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe and balk at all other recipes? Probably not. Because, I'm just like that... I mean, I've had about 3 other favorites in the past and at some point, they've all been beaten out by another. I have to admit though, after making the Jacques Torre's cookies from the New York Times many times now, I really haven't been tempted by any other recipes.

Until this one.

It just so happened, when I stumbled upon the recipe on Patsy's Blog, I was already planning on making Chocolate Chip Cookies. My friend Jeff received his PhD from Johns Hopkins (yeah, all my friends are wayyy smarter than me) and since I couldn't be there for the defense (or whatever it's called), I decided to send him a card and a package of cookies. (He probably enjoyed that better than my company, anyway. haha).

This is the latest recipe from Cook's Illustrated. It involves yet another different technique (browning the butter), but aside from that... comes together really easily.

It doesn't take the crown away from Jacques, but they are delicious cookies. Very sturdy and thick, but still with a chew. You should definitely give them a try, maybe they'll be YOUR favorite recipe!

Patsy asked and recieved permission from Cook's Illustrated to post the recipe on her blog, so I'm linking to her blog post with the recipe.

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie from Cook's Illustrated

TWD: World Peace Cookies

First of all, I had every intention of making the chocolate gingerbread from last week. But, I waited till Monday and I was not feeling well... I ended up measuring out the flour and as soon as I measured the ginger... the smell made me nauseous and I immediately had to go to the bathroom and puke. Which is weird... I thought ginger was supposed to be soothing to the stomach? I guess not when you're sick.

Anyway... no puking this week (thank goodness).

For this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe, Jessica at Cookbook Habit chose World Peace Cookies.

I was pretty excited to make these cookies... I mean, I've made them before and I remembered liking them, but not being absolutely wowed by them. (Let's just say, I would have continued to call them by their original name of Korova cookies).

Okay, so here's the deal... these cookies are good, yes. But if you're looking for something quick to whip up, that's painless... I'd stay away. These cookies gave me an absolute fit, trying to cut them. Ugh. Soooooo crumbly, I ended up freezing them and cutting them immediately out of the freezer, then I pulled them from the oven and kind of took a fork around the edges and pushed around to make them more round.

I dont know, these are good. But not out of this world.

If you want to check out my first attempt at them back in 2007, here's the link:

My first attempt at World Peace Cookies

TWD: Chunky Peanut Butter & Oatmeal Chocolate Chipsters

I realize that I've gone on and on about how much I love the combination of chocolate and peanut butter. It's the ultimate in sweet and salty. So, I expected to LOVE these cookies chosen by Stefany of Proceed with Caution for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie. Unfortunately, I did not love these cookies.

First complaint: Not enough peanut butter. When you name a recipe and the first words in the recipe are PEANUT BUTTER, I expect to be able to taste peanut butter when I bite into the dish. Could I taste peanut butter? Nope. I mean, why add the freaking peanut butter if you can't taste it? It's not like it's a health food or something...

Second complaint: Too much other shit thrown into the cookie recipe, like cinnamon and nutmeg. Now, if you know me (and I think you do by now), you know that I don't like nutmeg, so of course I eliminated that ingredient (thank god), but against my better judgement, I did throw in the cinnamon. I mean, I love cinnamon! I thought it sounded a bit odd to go with chocolate chips and peanut butter, but whatever I didn't want to rebel too much. But, I should have gone with my first instinct. I mean, these cookies are like cinnamon chocolate cookies. That's all you can taste, cinnamon and chocolate. It actually made me wish that I had subbed raisins for chocolate chips (shocking, I know)! I mean... the cinnamon is so powerful in this recipe and I think it's probably one of the main reasons that you can't taste the peanut butter.

So, yeah, these cookies are edible and everything and the texture is great... but I'm just not a fan of cinnamon with chocolate and peanut butter. Now, if you love cinnamon and chocolate, give these cookies or try, or sub raisins for the chocolate chips. But, if you're looking for a delicious peanut buttery, chocolate chip and oatmeal cookie try these, they're delicious (but I'd still add more peanut butter to that recipe, too).

Chocolate Chip Cookie

This time it wasn’t my fault.

You see… I’m not the only one with a chocolate chip cookie obsession. A couple of weeks ago a little publication called The New York Times (maybe you’ve heard of it?) published this article along with a recipe for what it considered to be the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe (written by Jacques Torres no less).

The article talks about the wonders of chilling your dough. Which, I’ve been a big believer of, anyway. It suggests chilling your dough at least 24 hours, but 36-72 at best. Which is definitely longer than I’d chilled doughs in the past. Usually I would just chill my dough for 2-3 hours to let the butter firm back up.

I decided to not just make these cookies to test them; I decided to bake them along with the recipe that I had previously loved David Lebovitz's Chocolate Chip Cookies (recipe link below): So, I’d have a real comparison.

I made both batches at the same time and stuck them in the fridge where they chilled out for the full 72 hours (I know, I could BARELY stand it, but I can’t deny sneaking bites of dough every once in awhile when I walked by the fridge… god, I love chocolate chip cookie dough).

The recipes are pretty different. The Torres recipe calls for a mixture of bread flour and cake flour. The butter proportions were also different… but, I used the same chocolate chips in both recipes. I didn’t have those fancy dancy chocolate disks and I didn’t need them. My Ghirardelli semi sweet chocolate chips are good enough for me. And it was only fair to use the same chocolate in each recipe.

Both doughs were delicious. I mean, really… I couldn’t say that I liked one more than the either. The Torres dough seemed to be thicker, I think it had more flour than the Lebovitz recipe, but they both tasted great. I LOVE cookie dough, so it’s hard for me to pick a clear favorite there.

Then it was time for the baking. The Lebovitz recipe calls for a much lower temperature, so I baked them first and then cranked the oven up to bake the Torres cookies. I used a cookie scoop and tried to make both cookies the same size (about two scoops of dough per cookie, I have a small scoop). A note on the Torres recipe.. it calls for a sprinkling of sea salt on top. Which, I did do…. But, I didn’t do it to the Lebovitz cookies.

Okay enough with the recipe differences, etc… I know what you’re really here for…

the RESULTS.

Appearance:

The Lebovitz cookies came out huge and thin.

The Torres cookies came out thick and pretty. I have to admit, the flecks of sea salt kind of threw me off, but aside from that, they looked beautiful.

Appearance Winner: Torres cookie.

Taste:

Who cares about appearance, I mean the taste is what really matters with a chocolate chip cookie right?

The Lebovitz cookie tasted just as good as it always does. Slightly crunchy edges, very buttery flavor and super, super chewy. I love chewy, so this is a bonus for me.

The Torres cookie tasted absolutely phenomenal. It’s like the grown up version of the Lebovitz cookie (and admittedly…. I totally didn’t want to like this fancy recipe, I wanted Lebovitz to totally knock this cookie on its fancy French ass). The cookies are thick and crispy edged and crispy edged all around, but chewy in the center. With just enough chew… not too much (after eating this cookie, I felt that maybe Lebovitz’s were TOO chewy… maybe your jaw doesn’t have to hurt after eating a cookie for it to be perfectly chewy). And the salt... Wow. As soon as your tongue hits the salt, the saliva bursts in your mouth (sounds dirty, huh… kinda felt that way, too, but in an oooohhh so good way) and allows you to taste the sweetness of the cookie. It’s like the salt amplifies the flavors of the cookie… the sugar, the chocolate, the vanilla. It’s all amplified by the salty pockets on top.

Taste Winner: Torres Cookies

Milk Dunking and Milk-laden taste:

I’m a milk drinker, so this is an important category for me. I like my cookies to stand up in a glass of milk and for the flavor of the cookie to barrel through the milk flavor. It’s a delicate matter.

The Lebovitz cookie has a tendency to crumble into the glass, which I don’t like. And since it’s a thinner cookie with more butter proportionally, the milk doesn’t get absorbed too well into the cookie.

The Torres cookie… well, eating this cookie dunked in a glass of milk was seriously one of the best taste experiences I’ve ever had. And I’m not kidding. The cookie was thick enough to hold up to the milk and not crumble and held a good amount of milk within the cookie. Perfection. Sheer perfection.

Milk Dunking Winner: Torres Cookies

So, there you have it folks. In my opinion, the Torres cookies are the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had. Better than bakery cookies, better than toll house tube cookies, better than your mom’s recipe (sure, I’ve never had her cookies, but I can assure you that they aren’t this good). They are my perfect cookie.

Maybe my quest is finally over…

Here is the recipe for the Lebovitz cookie. Which, is a DELICIOUS cookie. Don’t get me wrong. If I needed to whip up a quick batch of cookies or didn’t have bread flour or cake flour on hand, I’d make these cookies.

But, this recipe for the Torres cookies…. is the best. Give it a try and let me know how it holds up against your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars

Something random happened to me this week… in anticipation of the new season premiere of Project Runway (one of my favorite shows), I decided to bake something. It happened rather suddenly, so I didn’t have a lot of time to plan (otherwise I would have gone to the craft store, bought some cute cookie cutters in fashion shapes and made and decorated sugar cookies!)… so, I just opted for a quick and easy bar recipe.

I think, I have decided to make this a kind of regular thing, so… I need to start thinking about the premiere of Mad Men in 10 (long) days and figure out what perfect thing to bake for it’s new season. Maybe cigarette shaped sugar cookies? Ha ha. I kid, I kid. Seriously though, that would be fitting. Hmmmm…

Back to Project Runway… these cookies are pretty much the antithesis of Project Runway. They are easy, homey and hardy.

I think I would have liked them better if I had taken them out of the oven a little quicker. Usually, I undercook my bars. This time around, I slightly overcooked them. The oats definitely lend a chewy, interesting texture to the bars… but, I’m beginning to think that maybe I don’t care for peanut butter in bar cookies. It makes them a little sandy for my tastes. I like gooey bars, not sandy ones.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars Recipe

Monster Cookies

Imagine this... a cookie with all your favorite things...

Chocolate Chips
M & Ms
Reese Pieces
Oatmeal
Peanut Butter

I know what you're thinking... Favorites overload, right?? But, amazingly... it's not! Somehow, these cookies with way too much stuff in them are well balanced and delicious. The peanut butter is mild, the oatmeal isn't too heavy. It works in a harmonious blend to create a super yummy, easy cookie.

And there's no flour (although, I'm sure the calories that would be in the flour, are just lurking in the peanut butter or the m & m's or whatever). So, this is a yummy cookie recipe. One that I will definitely make again.

Monster Cookies (I quartered this recipe, and it still made about 12 HUGE cookies, so keep that in mind).

Hazelnut Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

So, I know everyone and their brother is sick of hearing how I was in Oregon last month for a week. So, I’ll spare you the details, except… the one thing I wanted to buy while I was there… (well besides a UofO track t-shirt, chocolate covered hazelnuts and pinot noir) was hazelnuts. Fresh Oregon Hazelnuts. Yum.

I ended up buying some the morning I left at the Portland Airport. And... I know what you're thinking... hazelnuts at the airport?? But, there is this cool store in Oregon called conveniently... "Made in Oregon" where everything they sell is stuff produced in Oregon. Cool, huh? I went to one of these stores in Newport and didn't pick up any hazelnuts, thinking I'd go somewhere later in the week that would have a bigger selection. Turns out. I didn't. So, the Made in Oregon store in the Portland Airport had to do. I’ve had these hazelnuts sitting in my cabinet for a month now and I’ve vigorously searched for the right recipe to use some in. Finally, one day on Cookie Madness, Anna posted a recipe with Hazelnuts that she got from this website. I perused the website and decided on these cookies. Oatmeal, Toffee, Chocolate Chips and Hazelnuts... I mean, you can't go wrong there, right?

These cookies are delicious! I used Heath Brickle Bits instead of Heath Bars cut up, so I added more chocolate chips to the recipe. I must disclose, also, that I added probably a quarter cup more sugar than the recipe called for, because my nuts were salted (ha ha).

These cookies turned out chewy with a little crisp and the hazelnuts and the toffee really go well together. A definite winner.

Hazelnut Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

David Lebovitz's Chocolate Chip Cookies

I’ve been holding out on you…

And for that, I apologize.

It’s not because I’m trying to keep a recipe away from you… that’s not it at all. It’s more because I’m afraid you’ll think of me as a one trick pony. I mean, how many chocolate chip cookie recipes can a girl try?

So, to be sure… I made this recipe 4 times in one week. And while, one time, the cookies came out kind of thin (because I made them too small, I think), they’ve been delicious and easy everytime.

Please… don’t groan. It is another chocolate chip recipe, but this one is a really, really, really good one! And I’m not the only one who thinks so!

David Lebovitz, I thank you, sir. These cookies are delicious.

Recipe Notes: I’ve been on a kick lately where I’ve been using Ghiradelli’s Milk Chocolate Chips, but for this recipe, I use Ghiradelli Semi-Sweet. Also, make sure you make these cookies big. Three times I’ve made these, I’ve double my cookie scoop for the cookies and they turned out perfect. One time, I just used one scoop from my cookie scoop and they thinned out significantly.
They are very chewy, with the right amount of crisp that you would expect from a chocolate chip cookie.



Great Chocolate Chip Cookies from David Lebovitz's Great Book of Chocolate



1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar

1/2 cup (120 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar

8 tablespoons (1 stick) (115 grams) unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1/2-inch (1cm) pieces

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 cups (175 grams) all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups (200 grams) semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup(130 grams) walnuts or pecans, toasted and chopped


Adjust the oven rack to the top 1/3 of the oven and preheat to 300F (150C). Line three baking sheets with parchment paper.

Beat the sugars and butters together until smooth. Mix in the egg, vanilla, and baking soda. Stir together the flour and salt, then mix them into the batter. Mix in the chocolate chips and nuts.

Scoop the cookie dough into 2-tablespoon (5cm) balls and place 8 balls, spaced 4 inches (10cm) apart, on each of the baking sheets.

Bake for 18 minutes, or until pale golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Make about 20 cookies.

Lesson... Pay attention when measuring.

So, a couple of weeks ago, my friend Leigh was in town for the weekend. She was here during a stressful and sad time for both of us, but we managed to enjoy each other’s company and also enjoy catching up one-on-one, which we hadn’t gotten to do in years.

Usually when someone comes to visit me, I like to make something for the occasion. Cookies, muffins, whatever… I like to be the hostess with the mostest, ya know? But, this time around… I didn’t really have the time to make anything before she came into town. So, on Sunday afternoon, while we were relaxing, I decided to whip up a batch of chocolate chip cookies. I have two favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes. This one which is crispy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside and the one posted at the bottom of this post which I adapted from this recipe.

So, we were chatting away and she was talking about how she never makes chocolate chip cookies from scratch, etc.. and I was all like.. “ohhhhh.. they’re so easy, who needs cookies from a tube?” And while I was going on and on about how easy cookies are to make and how this recipe is awesome… I measured some ingredients wrong.

I thought that the dough seemed a little runny, but I was confident in my cookie making skills… I chilled the dough for a bit in the freezer and then started scooping them out. 8 minutes later when I checked the oven… I laughed my ass off:

And that is when I realized… hmmm… I seem to have measured either the wrong amount of butter or the wrong amount of flour. Whoops.

This recipe is awesome though if you like soft, chewy cookies. I made some last week with great results. Just make sure you measure everything carefully...

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup plus 2 tbsp of unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp vanilla
2 large eggs
2 cups chocolate chips
2 cups of flour
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Blend butter, sugars, baking soda and powder, vanilla and eggs until ingredients are mixed.
Add chocolate chips and mix.

Add flour and continue to mix until well blended.
Cover and chill in fridge for 45-60 minutes.

Use a cookie scoop or a tbsp to measure out dough and form a ball of the dough in your hands and then slightly flatten it and place it on non-stick baking sheet.

Bake for approximately 7-9 minutes. Cool on pan and then transfer to baking rack

Surfer Bars

I love love love a good bar cookie. Soft and chewy, sweet and easy to make. And these bars did not disappoint. I've had this recipe printed out for awhile now, but I never had mini marshmellows on hand, so I wasn't able to make them. Luckily, last weekend when I was in the grocery store, I actually remembered these bars and picked up a bag.

These bars are delicious. I'm not sure why they are called surfer bars, I kept trying to convince myself that it wasn't because they are so high in calories that only surfers will burn the calories, but I have a sneaking suspicion that that could be the case. Eek.

I didn't have butterscotch chips on hand, so I actually used peanut butter chips instead and they came out beautifully. I will definitely be making these cookies again. But, hopefully when I do, there will be other people around to help me eat them.

Surfer Bars

Andes Mints Chocolate Chip Cookies

St. Patrick's Day has been my favorite holiday for YEARS. We're talking wayyy back to like 6th grade or something. Before I even dreamt of the wonders of green beer. As the years have gone on, my love for St. Patrick's Day has turned into an obsession with all things Irish (and green). It's pretty bizarre, actually. I mean, there really isn't any good reason for me to be so obsessed with Ireland (besides the fact that it's a beautiful, friendly country that reminds me a lot of my home state of Tennessee). My ancestors were likely scottish, maybe some were irish, but even that doesn't matter, because my family has lived in TN since the 1780s. I love Irish writers, Irish beer, (if I'm going to have whiskey, I prefer Tennessee Whiskey.. aka... bourbon to irish whiskey), Irish and Celtic music. All of it. I freaking love it.

So, I get pretty excited when March rolls around. I'm having a small family get together at my place tonight to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, so there will be a Irish-themed Post on Monday. But, last night, I was craving some cookies. Not necessarily Chocolate Chip cookies, and not peanut butter or oatmeal cookies, either. So, I perused Recipezaar and found this recipe. I had some andes mints that I needed to use up, so I decided to give it a whirl.

Now, I'm starting to get comfortable in adjusting recipes a little bit. Which is very exciting. And after reading some of the reviews of this recipe, I made my own adjustments! And they turned out fabulous! Actually, This is the perfect chocolate chip cookie consistency. I plan on trying it again without the Andes Mints to make soft, chewy chocolate chip cookies. If they turn out like these, they will indeed be my favorite chocolate chip cookies, I think. I'll let you know how that recipe turns out.

Anyway, you can use the original link up there, or follow my adjusted recipe below.

And, after I put the first round in the oven, I couldn't help but throw some food color in the second round. When will I ever learn that green cookies just don't look appetizing? Oh well. At least they look cute in my shamrock server!

Andes Mint Cookies

Adapated from KC_Cooker's recipe on Recipezaar.

I made a half batch and got 14 cookies. This recipe is for a whole batch.

1 cup plus 2 tbsp of unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsps vanilla

2 large eggs

1 10 oz package of andes baking chips (I used crushed up andes mints)

1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 cups of flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Blend butter, sugars, baking soda and powder, vanilla and eggs until ingredients are mixed.

Add mints and chocolate chips and mix.

Add flour and continue to mix until well blended.

Cover and chill in fridge for 45-60 minutes.

Use a cookie scoop or a tbsp to measure out dough and form a ball of the dough in your hands and then slightly flatten it and place it on non-stick baking sheet.

Bake for approximately 7-9 minutes.

Cool on pan and then transfer to baking rack.

Peanut Butter- Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

There are two types of people in this world. Those who love Martha Stewart and those who don't. I happily fall into the first category. I love Martha Stewart. I love that she highlights that women can still be independent and successful (and single!) but also be very domestic as well. It's not one way or the other. You can be a career-minded woman while also having a completely straight and beautifully folded linen closet and also throw together a dinner party at the last minute. It is possible. And that's the woman I strive to be. Independent, successful, and also a whiz at home.

That being said, I peruse Martha's website quite often and came across this recipe. Now, what's not to love about cookies that have peanut butter, chocolate chips, and Oatmeal in the title?!?!

These cookies were absolutely delicious! They are definitely in my favorites category. They are sweet and chewy and so satisfying. Although, they really aren't that peanut buttery. But, it doesn't matter. They are delicious!

Notes on the recipe: I didnt use natural peanut butter and instead of adding peanuts, I added reese pieces. Yum.

Now... if only I could figure out a menu for my family st. patricks day dinner this weekend. Hmmm.... Maybe I should consult Martha...

Chocolate Chip Cookies by Bobby Flay

I warned you.

Yes, more chocolate chip cookies. This time brought to you courtesy of Bobby Flay.

Look at him

So cute and boyish. With his freckles and red hair.
I'm not sure what it is about him. I'm generally not attracted to pasty dudes, but there is something so all-american about him. Whenever I see him on television, I watch him. And the other day I caught the tail end of his show Throwdown (it's a show where he challenges cooks/bakers/chefs in a little contest) and this episode was Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Now, by this point, everyone is well aware of my recent chocolate chip cookie obsession. What is it???? I have no idea. But, it's like I can't get enough of chocolate chip cookies. I dream about them, I obsess over them, I seek out new recipes. So, when I saw this episode, I knew it was only a matter of time that I'd be making chocolate chip cookies again.

Little did I know it would be like 2 days later.

Anyway, the thing that struck me the most from the episode was everyone said that Bobby's were very buttery. This caught my attention. I loves me some butter.

These cookies were very buttery! And delicious! But, as I've noticed with all chocolate chip cookies, they could use a little chill time in the fridge before they go into the oven. I'll try that next time and hopefully they won't spread so much. Even with the spreading though, they still tasted chewy and oh so buttery. Yum. Incidentally, his cookies didn't win the throwdown, but the other cookies looked too cakey for me. I have some copycat recipes for the cookies that won, that I will eventually try and then I can do my own little throwdown experiment.

Bobby Flay's Chocolate Chip Cookie

Chocolate Chip Cookies, again.

I dont know what it is. But, I think it's safe to say that it's officially an obsession right now.

Yes, I made chocolate chip cookies again! This is the 2nd time this week and like the 4th time in two weeks. I know, I know, you're sick of chocolate chip cookies (surprisingly, I'm not), but I just had to test my favorite recipe with a little adaptation. I substituted a couple of the tbsps of butter for butter flavored shortening. Hoping that that would make the cookies less crispy on top. But, only just slightly. It didn't make the cookies softer, but the cookies did seem to have a little something extra in them. But, I can't put my finger on it.

Why mess with a good thing? Because, I want them to be perfect. And they are close, but they aren't quite there yet. I think I might try this ratio again, but I might actually add more butter to the recipe. Maybe I'll spare you blog readers with that experimentation.

Anyway, here's the recipe.

My notes:

-- I halved the recipe
-- I substituted 2 tbsp of butter for 2 tbsp butter flavored shortening.
-- I always chill the dough for at least 30 minutes before I bake them. (Have I mentioned that before?)

Dorie's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies: 2 ways.

Before I started this blog and started baking a lot, my knowledge of bakers was limited to those on television or Betty Crocker. I had never heard of Dorie Greenspan. How could I? She wasn't on the food network, right?

As I started reading other baking blogs, I started to come across her name... I'd see phrases like... "Another awesome Dorie recipe." or "I know this is like the 15th Dorie Recipe I've posted in as many days." I started wondering... who is this Dorie lady and why haven't I heard of her?

Eventually, I made her World Peace Cookies (which were really, really good)and her Chocolate Malted Cookies (which, were okay, but I'd like to make them again). I still didn't fully understand the buzz around her though. And then I happened to be in the car during rush hour one day and heard her segment on NPR (I think it was on all things considered, but don't quote me on that) and she was talking about Figgy Pudding (it was around Christmas, obviously). And her voice, her excitement, her knowledge, her chuckle... it all really mesmorized me and I said out loud to myself in the car. "I want to make Figgy Pudding, dammit!" I mean, seriously... who wants to make figgy pudding??? I had to get a Dorie cookbook. It's a pricy cookbook, though. So, it was kind of hard for me to just fork over the money for a cookbook (when I get so many of my recipes online these days).

Serendipitously, though, my friend Steph bought me Dorie's Baking: From My Home to Yours for my birthday! So, I've joined Tuesdays With Dorie and will be posting next Tuesday for the first time being a part of a blogging group!

So, Monday night, I decided to try out my first recipe using her actual cookbook. I decided to test her Chocolate Chip Cookies against my Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies. I decided to halve the recipe and then I split the recipe into two different kinds. One was your basic Chocolate Chip Cookies with Semi-Sweet and Milk Chocolate chips (I prefer milk chocolate, I know, I'm weird). And then I made the other half with Reese Pieces, Peanut Butter Chips, and M&Ms.

These cookies are good. Very good. But, not as good as my favorite cookies. These cookies come out a little flatter and crispier than my favorite cookies. My favorite cookies are nice and puffy. The flavor of these cookies is really good, though. I love the sugar blend in this cookie. It lends a rich, molasses-y type of flavor. Yum.

My Best Chocolate Chip Cookies: A Dorie Greenspan Recipe

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup light brown sugar
2 tsps pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
12 0z bittersweet chocolate or 2 cups of store bought chocolate chips
1 cup finely chopped nuts

Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 375. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.

Whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat butter on medium speed until smooth (about 1 minute). Add sugars and beat for another 2 minutes or so, until well blended. Beat in vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each egg goes in. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients in 3 portions, mixing only until each addition is incorporated. On low speed, or by hand with a rubber spatula mix in the chocolate and nuts.

Spoon the dough by slightly rounded tablespoons onto the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between spoonfuls.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on baking sheet for one minute before transfering to a cooling rack.

Makes about 45 cookies.

Chocolate Chip Cookies: My favorite recipe.

It took a lot of recipes before I could dub a clear cut winner in this category. I've made Martha's, Mrs. Fields, Alton Browns, and a couple others, but this one... this one takes the cake (err... the cookie, I guess). This cookie is officially my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I've blogged about it a few times, but just made another batch for my friend Jeff, who is recovering from surgery. I can easily say that this is the ultimate chocolate chip cookie recipe.

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside.

Previous posts about this recipe:
The first time I made them
The second time I made them

Inferior (but still tasty) chocolate chip cookie posts:
Mrs. Field's
Martha's