Ahhhh...silence. Tim's sister Jamie and her family just left after an evening of fun festivities. Jamie's husband Paul and Tim both love UFC (Championship Fighting) and wanted to watch the big match tonight. We decided to make it a family affair, and Jamie came too - along with her three boys -- Zack (almost 5), Shane (almost 3) and of course, Baby Ryan (just a few weeks old).
It is amazing how fast my clean, orderly little house became toy central - and the messes - enough to push this poor neat freak into a panic. Even poor Rio seemed jostled. Let's just say she got "rubbed the wrong way" literally. I hope she will forgive us.
Little Shane really has me in the palm of his hand though. He is such a sweet boy. He always sits on my lap puts his head under my chin. It is so adorable. And of course, our godson Ryan - who is just a smidge fussy right now - but truly darling just the same.
In honor of the kiddos, I decided to make scratch chocolate chip cookies and Haagen Daas vanilla ice cream. Let's just say, I baked 18 - there are 2 left (any takers?)
and I had ZERO (thanks Jenny Craig).
It's a recipe I would definately recommend. I have also done this recipe adding dried cherries OR using BOTH white and semi-sweet chips - just to spruce it up.Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup plus 2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
8 Tbs. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Ingredients:
1 cup plus 2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
8 Tbs. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
Adjust 2 oven racks to be in the center of the oven. Turn the oven on to 350°F. Generously grease the baking sheets with shortening.Put the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium mixing bowl. Stir with the wooden spoon to mix the ingredients. Set the bowl aside.Put the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl. With an electric mixer set on medium-high speed, beat until the mixture is well blended. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. (As you beat, turn off the mixer occasionally and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.) With the mixer set on low speed, gradually add the flour mixture and beat until blended. Stir in the chocolate chips.Drop the dough by very rounded tablespoonfuls onto the greased baking sheets, spacing the mounds about 2 inches apart.Place the baking sheets in the preheated oven. Bake until the cookies are nicely browned, 11 to 15 minutes.Put hot pads and cooling racks on your counter. Using pot holders, remove the baking sheets from the oven and put them on the hot pads. Let the cookies cool for 3 to 4 minutes. Carefully slip a spatula under each cookie and transfer it to a rack. Let the cookies cool completely. Makes about 18 cookies.
Adjust 2 oven racks to be in the center of the oven. Turn the oven on to 350°F. Generously grease the baking sheets with shortening.Put the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium mixing bowl. Stir with the wooden spoon to mix the ingredients. Set the bowl aside.Put the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl. With an electric mixer set on medium-high speed, beat until the mixture is well blended. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. (As you beat, turn off the mixer occasionally and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.) With the mixer set on low speed, gradually add the flour mixture and beat until blended. Stir in the chocolate chips.Drop the dough by very rounded tablespoonfuls onto the greased baking sheets, spacing the mounds about 2 inches apart.Place the baking sheets in the preheated oven. Bake until the cookies are nicely browned, 11 to 15 minutes.Put hot pads and cooling racks on your counter. Using pot holders, remove the baking sheets from the oven and put them on the hot pads. Let the cookies cool for 3 to 4 minutes. Carefully slip a spatula under each cookie and transfer it to a rack. Let the cookies cool completely. Makes about 18 cookies.
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library Series, Kids Cookies, by Susan Manlin Katzman (Time-Life Books, 1998).
No comments:
Post a Comment