Chocolate Chip Cookies After a Long Break

I can't believe it's been almost two months since I've posted!  The truth is, sometimes life gets in the way of posting.  I think of things I want to share (like my favorite tomato soup recipe), and then Laela wants to finger paint, or Kyle actually has a few hours to spend with us, so the recipe and posting gets pushed to the back of my mind, and my family takes precedence.

So where to begin...well, Kyle worked 16 hours shifts, 7 days a week for about a month.  My mother-in-law and her husband came to visit for a week.  Then Kyle went to Shanghai and Laela and I hitailed it to Siesta Key for some sun and fun on the beach for a week.  Now we're awaiting Kyle's return from Shanghai after an entire day of delayed flights.

Delayed flights are not the easiest thing to explain to a two year old.  Thankfully, Laela's is easily made happy by finger painting, making play dough, dressing up, playing hairdresser, and playing with her princesses and princess castle. 

While we were on vacation, we met a really nice couple named Patty and Christopher from Kentucky.  They told me how they always played with their kids, and did their best to be present in every moment, because they knew that one day, their little ones would be grown ups, and they'd miss that time.  I think sometimes, it's very easy to get caught up in the day to day, and forget to really put some time in with the people that we love.  Life goes by too quickly.  I find that Gretchen Ruben says it best:  "the days are long, but the years are short."

While parenthood is a lifelong job, children aren't "yours" forever, so I intend to continue to do my best to really enjoy every moment that I have with my little girl.

Today, while we wait (and hope) to find out when Kyle will be home, we're going to make some chocolate chip cookies, pepper soup, and some of Kyle and Laela's very favorite anniversary chicken with macaroni and cheese and broccoli.  A very dear friend of mine once told me that the memory of licking the spoon while baking with his mom is one of his favorite memories.  I hope that Laela remembers baking and cooking with me as fondly as that.

So you might be wondering...what chocolate chip cookie recipe do I use?  Tollhouse!  This really is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe in the whole wide world.  I usually use twice the amount of chocolate chips.  Remember two things:  1.  Cookies are still baking for a few minutes when you take them out of the oven.  2.  If you can smell the cookies, they are probably done baking.

Nestle Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels (I use two packages)
• 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:


PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

PAN COOKIE VARIATION: Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan. Prepare dough as above. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack. Makes 4 dozen bars.

SLICE AND BAKE COOKIE VARIATION:

PREPARE dough as above. Divide in half; wrap in waxed paper. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm. Shape each half into 15-inch log; wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.* Preheat oven to 375° F. Cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices; place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

* May be stored in refrigerator for up to 1 week or in freezer for up to 8 weeks.

FOR HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING (5,200 feet): Increase flour to 2 1/2 cups. Add 2 teaspoons water with flour and reduce both granulated sugar and brown sugar to 2/3 cup each. Bake drop cookies for 8 to 10 minutes and pan cookie for 17 to 19 minutes.


**If you want the cookies to stay chewy, put them in an air tight container while still slightly warm.

Enjoy!!

Happiness and Breakfast Sandwiches.

The days are long, but the years are short.

I just finished reading Gretchen Rubin's "Happiness Project."  I figured that I'd enjoy it since I enjoy her blog so much, that I should give the book a go.

How often have you thought about happiness?  Unhappiness?  What makes you happy?

Almost every morning since Laela was born, I have woken up our household with the good morning song.  It's silly, the lyrics often change, but it's our little ritual that gets our day started right (even if we're all grumbalinas, are sick, and in need of a BIG coffee.)  It usually gets a giggle or a twirl out of our daughter, and Kyle usually gets a little smile on his face before he grudgingly gets out of bed.  We sing songs and snuggle- how could the start to the day get any better than that?

I love my family.  It makes me happier than anything on the planet.  We just had our two year wedding anniversary, and since we were away for the weekend looking for an apartment in Greenville, we spent the day as a family- and it was perfect.

My point with all this happiness talk, is that life is busy.  There's a lot of hustle and bustle and insanity packed into every day- and it's not going anywhere- so appreciate that each day has these really special, remarkable moments that you'll miss if you don't take the ten seconds to appreciate them.

Ironically, this week's subject of focus on Gretchen's blog is "set aside a specific time for something that's important to you."  I almost never do that (which is why my blog has gone a bit to the wayside lately.)  I, like a lot of other parents, are busy focusing on running a household, taking care of a little one, etc.

That said, here's a super fast, super delicious, easy (and easy going) breakfast:

Breakfast Sandwich:
makes 1 sandwich
takes about 5 min.

You'll need:

• 1 egg (2 if you're super hungry)
• 1 big slice of tomato
• 1 slice cheese (I used American, Kyle prefers cheddar)
• Whole wheat English muffin
• Salt and Pepper
• Cooking spray

Directions:

• Heat your skillet to medium heat.
• Spray with cooking spray.
• Put English muffin in the toaster (I like mine super crispy, but make it however you like it)
• Crack egg(s) into skillet.
• Depending on how runny you want your egg, cook it for about 2 minutes on one side and 1 minute on the other (this should make a reasonably runny egg without any clear egg white).  Cook longer if you want a firmer yolk.
• Sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper on the egg if desired.
• You can do the cheese 2 ways.  You can just slap the piece of cheese on there while the egg finishes cooking on the raw side, or you can wait and put it on the egg after the egg has been put on the english muffin.
• After your egg and cheese are on the muffin, slice a piece of tomato, put it on the egg, close up the sandwich, and chow down!

*optional additions:

• I LOVE hot sauce, so instead of salt and pepper, I dump a lot of hot sauce on my sandwich.
• Kyle really likes chipolte hot sauce on his- with NO tomato, and extra bacon, ham, or whatever meat we have on hand.
• I've made this with salsa, chorizo and avocado.  Delicious!
• Laela likes hers with lots of ketchup.
• For make ahead meat, you can make your bacon/sausage/ham/whatever blows your hair back days before and just reheat it in the skillet with the egg(s) or in the microwave.