[Cookie 101] Cream Cheese Swirl Blondies

So, I don't know if anyone noticed or cared, but I'm not doing the roundup of the past 10 recipes and reviewing them all. I barely have enough time (read: I barely have enough willpower) to write the regular blog posts here, so I'm getting rid of the excess baggage. I don't think I'm letting anyone down. Right? Yeah, I doubt anyone even knows what I'm talking about. Good.

Aaaanyways, let's get on to the first cookie of the new centennial! Cream Cheese Swirl Blondies are probably not one of the recipes you've been itching to make. Me neither--they definitely weren't one of the recipes I've had my eye on for a while. They just sort of slipped under my radar and I always figured I'd make them some time, just not now. Well, I finally made them on a whim one afternoon, and they totally warranted my indifference. They were bland, boring looking, and pretty drab. I mean seriously--look at them! Totally lame.

I guess this is the part where I generally try to convince you to make these cookies because they are actually better than they look or something, but I'm not going to try and deceive you. If you want blondies, make these (even though I screwed up that recipe royally, I think that they are probably supposed to be delicious). But these guys, these guys here...they taste more like a quick bread, like banana bread without the bananas. And who would want that? Nobody! And the cream cheese? Well, at least they had that, but it wasn't enough to keep me interested.

Now, maybe you're not convinced not to make these, and you still want to. Well, maybe you could spice them up a bit--literally, add a little nutmeg or cinnamon. Or maybe stir in some chocolate swirls, or even add some nuts. Something. Anything. Oh, or try adding a streusel topping! That always makes things better.

Well, I guess I don't have much to say other than that. The recipe is super simple and it's always mildly entertaining getting to swirl two batters together like this. But other than that, I'd pass this guy up.

I'm starting to realize that all the recipes I have left to bake are either: A) Totally time consuming and tedious; B) Way too fatty to make just for 3 people; C) Or both. Hm. Well, my obsessive-compulsive desire to finish the project still prevails, so I guess you'll see how this all turns out.

c u l8r

Cream Cheese Swirl Blondies

Makes 9 large or 16 small squares

Ingredients

11 tablespoons (1 stick plus 3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan

1 2/3 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup packed light-brown sugar

3 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1/4 cup sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a buttered 8-inch square baking pan with parchment, allowing a 2-inch overhang. Butter lining (excluding overhang); set pan aside.

Whisk together 1 2/3 cups flour, the baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl, and set aside.

Put 9 tablespoons butter and the brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla; mix until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, mix, scraping down sides of bowl, until well combined. Transfer to a large bowl.

Put cream cheese, granulated sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons flour, 1 egg, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla into the clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat on medium speed until just smooth.

Pour half the blondie batter into prepared pan, and spread evenly with an offset spatula. Spoon two-thirds of cream-cheese mixture on top, and spread evenly. Drop dollops of remaining batter on top (spacing about 1 inch apart), and spread. Top with dollops of remaining cream-cheese mixture, about 1 inch apart.

Gently swirl cream cheese mixture into batter with a butter knife, running the knife lengthwise and crosswise through layers. Bake until golden brown and a cake tester inserted into center comes out with a few crumbs but is not wet, 45 to 47 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack before cutting into squares. Blondies can be stored between layers of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.

****

{End Results}
Baking Difficultly: 2/5
Ingredient Accessibility: 4/5
Tastiness: 2/5
Attractiveness: 2/5
Is it worth it?: To put it plainly, no. But then again, they require zero effort.

{Pairings}

Drink: Nothing. Seltzer?

Song: Saw the Smith Westerns play last night, and now I am even more in love with them than before. Their single Weekend is adorable x 100000 and has a great music video.
Activity: Skip making these, and just listen to them ^

[Cookie 095] Chocolate Waffle Cookies

Hey team. Happy New Years!! Oh-ten is so last week; oh-leven is here to stay! 2011! Twenty-in-heaven! Two-thousand-agendum! I smell good things for this year, and a lot of those things have chocolate in them, so get ready.

But first: Remember those Gingersnap Palmiers? You better, because it was only last week. Well get this: I made the second batch of dough on New Year's Eve, intending to take them to a party I was going to. And I decided that they might taste better if I didn't brush them with more of that molasses-ginger syrup (since that made them a little soggy), but instead sprinkle some turbinado sugar on them and bake them as is. Well, that worked out brilliantly and the cookies came out light, crispy, and delicious. I let them sit on the counter to cool and went about my business. I come downstairs, and half the batch is gone. Thanks Mom and Dad! They were very sorry and apparently had no idea I wanted to bring them to a NYE party (we won't get into my skepticism on that matter). Anyways, I leave for the party without cookies--am I really going to bring 10 cookies to a party? No!--have a nice time, ring in oh-leven with McDonald's fries (weird, I know), and then come home exhausted the next day only to find that....THEY ATE THE REST OF THE BATCH. Seriously, what the hell?? You can give a mouse/parents a cookie, and then something something something....end result: no cookies for you! Sad baker.

Ranting. Sorry, bad way to start off my first post of the new year. Well, here's a better way to start off the new year: Chocolate Waffle Cookies! Yeah, fuck that new year's resolution diet thing! Eat these and you'll be happier anyways, and that should be everyones biggest resolution for oh-leven right? Happier, sappier, dapper! No waffling; just pick this recipe and go for it!

Okay, but resolutions aside, how could you even turn down a cookie as cute as this? It looks like a baby waffle, but tastier!! I would have to admit, however, that these probably shouldn't be called cookies, since they are essentially just cake. But I'm not complaining! They are really fun to make and have a lovely flavor. There is a hefty amount of cinnamon in the dough, which really deepens the taste of the cookie when it is a day old. The glaze is nice too, but you could totally skip it or just glaze half the batch (that's what I did, since I ran out of glaze); with the unglazed ones, just pop them in the toaster oven and they get all warm and slightly crisped on the outside. Perfection. Add hot chocolate, or maybe just a glass of milk, and you're on your way to being Happiest Baker 2011 edition.

So you're convinced now? You've dug up that old waffle maker hiding in the depths of that hard-to-reach pantry and you've turned your regular cocoa powder into Dutch-processed (do it, save yourself a lot of money!). Great! Here are a few pointers: Once you've made the batter, make sure your waffle iron has really gotten to its proper heat. I have a pretty ancient one and turns out it takes it about 3 days to preheat, so make sure you get it fully hot before you start making the cookies. If it isn't preheated, it will continue to rise in temperature and burn your cookies, or just make it so you're never quite sure when they'll be done. If you see smoke, it's too hot/finished!

Another tip: Use a cookie scoop to drop the batter onto the waffle iron. It makes your "waffles" perfectly shaped and helps the whole process be a lot easier/less messy.

Hurray! Your first cookies of the new year are beautiful and tasty! You are happier, I am happier knowing that you liked this recipe. On our way to being better people. Awesome.

Chocolate Waffle Cookies

Makes about 4 dozen (mine made only 3 dozen)

Ingredients

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

18 tablespoons (2 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus 2 tablespoons for icing

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting

1 1/2 tablespoons milk

Vegetable oil cooking spray

Directions

Melt chocolate with 1 cup butter (2 sticks) in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Let cool slightly.

Put eggs, vanilla, and granulated sugar in bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale, 4 to 5 minutes. Mix in chocolate mixture, salt, cinnamon, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, and the flour.

Heat a waffle iron until hot. Lightly coat grids with cooking spray. Spoon about 1 tablespoon batter onto center of each waffle-iron square to make 1 1/2-inch rounds. Close cover; cook until set, about 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, bottom sides up. Let cool completely. Repeat with remaining batter, coating grids with cooking spray after each batch.

Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add confectioners' sugar and remaining 2 tablespoons cocoa powder; stir until smooth. Stir in milk.

Gently dip 1 surface of each cookie in icing so that just the waffle lines (not gaps) are coated. Repeat with remaining cookies and icing. Transfer to wire racks; let stand until set, about 10 minutes. Dust iced surfaces of cookies with confectioner's sugar. Cookies can be stored in single layers in airtight containers at room temperature up to 2 days.

****

{End Results}
Baking Difficultly: 2/5
Ingredient Accessibility: 5/5
Tastiness: 4/5
Attractiveness: 4.5/5
Is it worth it?: Yes

{Pairings}

Drink: Hot chocolate, or coffee. Or milk. You know the "flavor palette" I'm goin' for here...

Song: In the New Year -- The Walkmen
Activity: Waffle waffle waffle. Saying the word waffle a lot. Good activity.

[Cookie 084] Oatmeal Bars with Dates and Walnuts

Eighty-four. 84. Feels good. Nice number. Still powering on, though--no stopping! I will finish this project! Eighty-four isn't even half (AH!!!!!), but 87.5 is, so let's just hold off the enormous celebrations and parades until then, okay? Great.

Now on to something more related: Dates. Do you like them? I had my first date (fruit! I'm referring to the fruit) just when making these Oatmeal Bars with Dates and Walnuts, though I have had date-flavored and date-filled sweets before. This was just my first time eating one whole and unfettered. And pitting one.

Does anyone else get totally grossed out by them!? Something about them really really grosses me out. I don't want to get into the specifics for fear of ruining this recipe for you (or even dates entirely), so I'll just let this picture do the talking.

It's just...icky. I'm not a huge fan. And the thing is, if it was just the pitting that bothered me, it wouldn't be so much an issue--but I'm not the biggest fan of how they taste either. I dunno, I suppose they just aren't my cup of tea. That being said, these bars would go great with a cup of tea as part of an afternoon snack! Maybe it will all just work out in the end!

These bars have a few bits of chopped up dates in them, but they work really well in tandem with the walnuts. It's a crunchy-savory and chewy-sweet combination at work. I also really like how Martha has you grind up some oats to make oatflour, which is used in addition to whole wheat flour--very wheaty indeed. These are super hearty, soft, sweet, and tasty bars; they actually seem more like a cake to me, though. Not a bad thing! I liked them. But then again, I could eat only granola for my entire life and be pretty happy.

The only issue I had with these was that my dad didn't like them (he's not so much a fan of the whole-wheaty, grainy, oatsy, hippie stuff. This meant that the entire batch rested on the shoulders of my mom and I, which is just too much to handle! I ate more than my fair share, but after sitting on the counter at room temperature for nearly a week, my mom kindly suggested that they might not be...safe...to eat. I thought they still tasted good! Maybe mold is just a natural flavor pairing with dates! Whatever. I retired the rest of the batch to the trash can. Moral of the story: make these bars for bake sales, parties, and for large gatherings of people. They are hard to eat a lot of in a short amount of time.

Yep, that's it. My foray into the world of dates was a little disturbing, but yielded tasty results! (Haha, remember that Simpson's episode where Marge is watching soap operas on TV and keeps writing down "with Sexy Results!" Ah memories...)

[ Oh, and a little bit of shameless self-promotion: I just started another blog solely for my photos and other little bits of nonsense. It's a Wordpress blog, because I figured WHY KEEP IT SIMPLE AND EASY, when you can make your life slightly more convoluted by using multiple websites for the same purpose?! Oh, well whatever, this is the URL: zziee.wordpress.com Drop by and say herro! ]

Oatmeal Bars with Dates and Walnuts

Makes 2 dozen

Ingredients

1 cup finely ground old-fashioned rolled oats

3/4 cup whole-wheat flour

1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

2 cups packed light-brown sugar

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3 large eggs

2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups walnuts (5 1/2 ounces), toasted and chopped

1 cup dates (5 ounces), pitted and chopped

Vegetable-oil cooking spray

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together ground oats, flour, 1 cup whole oats, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and allspice in a large bowl; set aside.

Put brown sugar and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Mix in eggs and vanilla, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

Reduce speed to low. Add oat mixture, and mix until just combined. Mix in walnuts and dates.

Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spread batter evenly in dish. Scatter remaining 1/2 cup whole oats over top. Bake until golden and a cake tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes.Cool completely in pan on a wire rack; cut into bars.

****

{End Results}
Baking Difficultly: 3/5
Ingredient Accessibility: 3/5
Tastiness: 3.5/5
Attractiveness: 2/5
Is it worth it?: Yeah, for an afternoon snack, bake sale, road trip, whatever. They ain't dainty though, so don't say I didn't warn you (?)

{Pairings}
Drink: Irish Breakfast tea or Apple Cider (despite the time I year I chose to make these, I think they are an autumn cookie for sure!)

Song: I Wanna Be Sedated -- The Ramones (SORRY bad pun, great song)
Activity: You come home from school, it's October, the leaves are changing, wind is blowing a little, breezy and cool. You've got your lil' JanSport backpack filled with brand new Lisa Frank folders and jelly pens. You throw your stuff on to the floor in your bedroom and run downstairs to tell your mom/dad how your day went, and SURPRISE, kick-ass oatmeal bars waiting for you on a tray, complete with a cup of apple juice and some carrots or celery. You take the snack over to the TV, turn on some late afternoon cartoons and zone out before you have to go do homework. Ah, yes, that would have been great...

[Cookie 060] Lemon Madeleines

For my birthday, my brother was kind enough to give me an ample gift certificate to the chic gourmet foods mecca that is Dean & Deluca. Awesome. Lord knows that in no lifetime of mine, or of yours, or of the entire universe's for that matter, would I ever be able to actual afford to shop there purely out of my own pocket. Let me elaborate: 27 Chocolate-Dipped Mint Sandwich Cookies = $65.00. Uh. Twenty seven total. Uh. Okay, maybe they're dipped in platinum, or infused with unicorn blood, or made by ghosts of dead presidents (????????)--the point is, good thing I made that EXACT COOKIE already, and am going to post about it next week! But be forewarned, I did infuse mine with unicorn blood.

Okay, sorry about the tangent. What I'm getting at is that while I was perusing the store today, meandering through their aisles of Truffle-infused Sea Salt (yes, really) and Sage Jam (drool), I took a quick glimpse at their produce prices. Pale, wan tomatoes were going for $5/lb, and all I could think about were my Mom's amazing tomatoes that we enjoy every summer. And when winter rolls around, her Meyer Lemon tree goes crazy producing copious amounts of this citrus fruit. So when I'm at home, I don't get depressed about not being able to shop for ingredients at Dean & Deluca, because I can just grab some FOR FREE (practically) from her garden, and I don't even need to try Deluca's because I'm sure my mom's produce is better. End of story. Don't even try to argue me on this one.

Plus, how awesome is it to not only make your own fancy cookies like Lemon Madeleines that would probably sell for $18/lb at a high-end gourmet food store, but to make them also from ingredients that you grew yourself?! It's all you in your cookies! It takes the term "made from scratch" to a whole new level, and most likely will give you better tasting cookies in the end anyway! How proud you will be of the treats you make!

Now, not all of you have lemon trees in your back yard, this I know. But I still strongly suggest that you give this recipe a go. It's a quick and fun recipe and you can really up your British aristocratic snob-status by bringing them to a party. The recipe is easy peasy and I nearly drank the batter by the bowlful, but I dare say that's a sure-fire way to absolutely demolish your British aristocratic snob-status, and I simply just can't have that. Pish-posh!

(One minor thing to note: I forgot to stir up the batter after I let it sit for 30 minutes (see recipe) so as you can see in the picture above, the top 2 cookies have smooth batter and the bottom are thicker and chunkier. The chunkier ones turned out better! Stir it up!)

Okay, so what if you don't have a madeleine pan. Well, you're screwed. You really should just go and buy one, because if you try to pour the cookies into any other mold/pan, they might still taste good, but Queen Elizabeth will spit on you (notice the first name similarity--ahem). No, you don't have to buy your pan at Dean & Deluca. Just get one. You could even get a mini-Madeleine pan and be extra cute!

In conclusion, I love Dean & Deluca. Oh, you didn't get that vibe from my writing? Yeah, they're way crazy pricey, but their White Bean & Duck Confit soup kicks ass. Wait, wrong conclusion. In better conclusion, growing food is way more awesome! Even more awesome than that soup! Wait, I've got. The real conclusion is: you should make these babies. Yeah, that's it. Good!

Lemon Madeleines

Makes 2 dozen

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), melted, plus more for pans
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted (not self-rising)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 3 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (2 to 3 lemons total)
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two madeleine pans; set aside.
   Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl; set aside.
2. Put eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest and juice in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until pale and thickened, about 5 minutes. Mix in butter. Using a spatula, fold flour mixture into egg mixture. Let rest 30 minutes.
3. Pour batter into buttered pans, filling the molds 3/4 full. Bake cookies, rotating pans halfway through, until edges are crisp and golden, 7 to 8 minutes. Let cookies cool slightly in pans on wire racks. Invert, and unmold. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to one day.

****

{End Results}
Baking Difficultly: 2/5
Ingredient Accessibility: 5/5 (Even if you don't have a tree, I doubt you'll have a problem getting any of these ingredients)
Tastiness: 4/5
Attractiveness: 4/5
Is it worth it?: Yep!! Don't forget to dust them with powdered sugar (I forgot).

{Pairings}
Drink: English Breakfast Tea, or any other type of tea

Song: English House -- Fleet Foxes (ooh I love this song so dearly)
Activity: Gardening! Take a gander at my Mom's blog for some handy tips and gorgeous photos!

[Cookie 017] Fresh-Peach Drop Cookies

I'm so glad that it's summer! The first week that I came home from New York, I have to admit I was kind of depressed and not really looking forward to a summer that was completely void of plans, commitments, employment, and/or traveling, but I'm slowly getting into my groove and finding things to occupy my time with. Obviously, baking is one of these things, but I'm also crafting things and shooting photos and taking on other projects. In fact, I'm going to be restarting my old blog one of these days, and eventually start selling things on my old Etsy site soon.

But another reason I love summer is most definitely the fruits. I am a fruit fanatic, and could probably survive on various incarnations of Fruit Salad for my entire life; but alas, summer fruits are so time sensitive, and if you forget to eat one fast enough, it's gone! Gone forever! Mushy and terrible, harboring mold and brown spots and other woeful terminal illnesses! So, when my mom comes home from the market with fruits, I eat them up as fast as I can, and try to bake the ones that are a little past their peak.

I had been eyeing this Fresh-Peach Drop Cookie recipe for some time now, and couldn't wait until summer to try it out with some delicious fresh peaches. In all honesty, making anything with a pit-fruit is a pain in the ass because you have to deal with the pit in a way that is usually rather cumbersome. Cutting the pits out of these peaches wasn't too bad, but peeling them was kind of annoying, especially with the peaches that were a little on the over-ripe side. The harder ones peeled quite easily, but the whole ordeal is a slippery mess, to be sure. Also, the recipe calls for 2 large peaches, about 8 oz each, but mine were half the size, so I had to peel, pit, and dice 4 peaches instead.

Other than that, the recipe is very simple. It also calls for peach jam, and I could only find some high-fructose corn syrup-filled jam at my supermarket, which was disappointing. Next time I'd like to try them with a nice (perhaps homemade? Summer project anyone?) peach preserve, but after the cookies are baked, they still taste great.

I think my only issue with them would be their consistency. These cookies are listed in the cakey and tender category of the cookbook, but they were a little too cakey for my liking. My dad said they tasted like pancakes a bit, and I would have to agree. Not that there's anything wrong with pancakes, of course! These cookies still taste delicious and sweet, but they are just a little too squishy for my personal taste. But they will probably ship well, because of their elasticity and durability--at least I hope that's the case, because I'm mailing these to a friend of mine for her birthday.

Fresh-Peach Drop Cookies
Makes about 4 dozen

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus 2 tablespoons
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large ripe peaches, peeled, pitted, and cut into 1/4-inch dice (about 1 3/4 cups)
• 1/3 cup peach jam or preserves
• 2 tablespoons fine sanding sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375. Whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda.
2. Beat butter and granulated sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add flour mixture, and beat until just combined. Add peaches and jam, and beat until just combined.
3. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment, spacing about 2 inches apart. (If not baking all of the cookies at once, refrigerate dough between batches; dough can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 days.) Combine sanding sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle each cookie with 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon-sugar mixture.
4. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until golden brown and just set, 11 to 13 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, and then transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

****

{End Results}
Baking Difficultly: 3/5 (It's just the peaches that are a tad tricky)
Ingredient Accessibility: 4/5
Tastiness: 4/5
Attractiveness: 2/5 (Mine were a little wonky-shaped)
Is it worth it?: Yep! Perfect summer cookie!

****

Addendum: So, I've been thinking about this blog a lot lately, and with 158 more cookies to bake, I'm worried about my blog posts going stale. I don't want this to get boring! So, my question for you, is what do you think I should write about/do in my blog to make it more interesting? Should I write more about things happening in my everyday life? Or maybe have more funny anecdotes to accompany the recipes? Or should I stop talking about myself so much and do something completely radically different? I'm open to any and all suggestions! Let me know!

[Cookie 011] Cakey Chocolate Chip Cookies

Okay, Martha, you redeemed yourself from last week's debacle. I knew you could, especially when it comes to such a traditional cookie like the Chocolate Chip. You're alright in my book, Martha, but I'm still not going to forget last week (even though one of my friends called those her favorite cookies [she crazy]). But seriously, these Cakey Chocolate Chip Cookies were really yummy, and just as their title suggests, super cakey too!

I guess it's pretty hard to go wrong with a good old chocolate chip cookie, but I really love how you have 3 or 4 recipes for them in your book, but each is made with a specific consistency. These were definitely cakey, so I can't wait to try out the thin and crispy ones, and the chewier ones as well. Because these were so cakey, I added some toasted walnuts (also because I have an over abundance of them due to a Trader Joe's mishap), and I think they really added to the texture of the cookie. Giving them a little crunch was a nice constrast!

Obviously, these were not difficult to make in the slightest. The recipe is pretty much the same as most other chocolate chip cookies, but there is less butter and brown sugar, which is what makes them fluffier and cakier. The recipe makes a bunch of really huge, hearty cookies that would probably hold up just swell if shipped to someone in need (ie. anyone/everyone). Or, you could just save the dough and eat it, because honestly, chocolate chip cookie dough is the king of all cookie doughs, and I think everyone knows it.

I also thought I share with you a little bit about my very own Kitchen Stadium. One the highlights of my world-class cooking/baking setup, is my cooling rack for all the cookies I make. Check it out!

I AM USING MY DISH DRAIN TO DRY COOKIES.

Okay, maybe I shouldn't have shared that with the whole world, considering that several of the people who eat/rate my cookies read my blog as well, but I don't care. The point is, if I am baking 1-2 batches of cookies per week, I should probably invest in a decent cooling rack, as well as maybe a Silpat (ooh yes yes! I want!). I did, however, just come across a brand new, quite nice cookie sheet at the Salvation Army for a mere $3, which is pretty awesome.

Cakey Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 3 dozen

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (about 12 ounces) semisweet and/or milk chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter with both sugars; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low; add the salt, vanilla, and eggs. Beat until well mixed, about 1 minute. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
2. Drop heaping tablespoon-size balls of dough about 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
3. Bake until cookies are golden around the edges and set in the center, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool on baking sheet 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.

****

{End Results}
Baking Difficultly: 1/5
Ingredient Accessibility: 4.5/5
Tastiness: 4/5
Attractiveness: 3/5 (They look like they all do!)
Is it worth it?: Yes! Everyone likes these, and if you are particularly partial to cakey cookies, these are perfect

****

P.S. I have been having a lot of trouble commenting on any Blogger blogs, let alone my own, which is really annoying because I want to respond to your comments but I can't!! I'll work on it, but until then, sorry! It has been taken care of (at least for now)! I can respond to comments again!