Salted Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Yep you read that right. This recipe caught my eye on foodgawker and I had to make it. Anything salted chocolate or salted caramel makes my heart sing these days. So, you must try this recipe immediately. You can thank me later via gifts, money, compliments, etc.:)


Salted Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies
www.annies-eats.com

Yield: about 24 cookies
Ingredients:
8 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
4 tbsp. unsalted butter
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. fleur de sel (sea salt), or Maldon sea salt plus more for sprinkling
2 large eggs, at room temperature
¾ cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
12 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Combine the 8 ounces chopped chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, and heat until the chocolate and butter are melted and smooth, stirring occasionally. (Alternatively, heat in the microwave in 25-second intervals, stirring in between.) In another mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the eggs, brown sugar and vanilla. Beat on medium-high speed until the sugar has completely dissolved, about 4-5 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and add the melted chocolate mixture, blending until incorporated. Add in the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Fold in the remaining chopped chocolate with a spatula. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, about 2-3 inches apart.

Bake, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until the cookies are just slightly soft in the center and crackly on top, about 10-12 minutes. Sprinkle lightly with additional salt and let cool on the baking sheets 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container

Peanut Butter + Chocolate = Love

I came across this recipe while browsing on www.foodgawker.com and it pretty much screamed at me "make me! make me! you have all my ingredients!" So I happily obliged.

Let's back up a second. I guess I'm assuming that you know what the miracle of foodgawker is, but in case your life isn't consumed by food blogs let me fill you in. Foodgawker is a site that is a collection of posts from various foodbloggers who submit a recent post and picture of a delicious looking food. It's basically a place where you can go, scan pictures and recipes, and then realize that you've been scanning for hours. It's basically a miracle.

Anyway, back to the recipe that caught my eye the other day. They're called Reese's Bars and the have totally rocked my world. They're a combination of a Reese's peanut butter cup, a brownie, and kind of remind me of muddy buddies. Best of all, it's like 5 ingredients and you don't have to bake them. Definitely one of my new fave's!

Reese's Bars
www.mommahenskitchen.blogspot.com

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
1 cup butter, melted
1 12 oz. bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Line a 9" x 12" baking dish with foil. Spray lightly with cooking spray. Combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, and peanut butter. Mix well. Blend in melted butter until well combined.

Press mixture evenly into pan. In a microwave proof bowl, heat chocolate chips at 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until melted. Spread evenly over top of peanut butter mixture.

Refrigerate just until chocolate is set. Cut into bars.

You might need to ask someone to keep you accountable when you make these. It's not safe to be left alone with them.

NOGs

What’s a NOG you ask. Well, I’m a proud member as well as a group of some of my closest friends. We’ve been doing an amazing Bible study this summer entitled No Other God’s (hence the NOG). It’s all about recognizing the idols in our lives, those things/people/activities that we put in the place of God. Well I’ve definitely recently recognized an idol that’s taking over my life . . .

It’s my new ice cream maker.

Since getting it about a month ago (35$ at Costco!!), all I can think about is ice cream. I’ve never been one to just sit down to a big bowl of ice cream, or choose it as a dessert . . . until now. It’s definitely affecting my waistline and is breaking my food budget which is all going to half and half and heavy cream. Despite these factors, I just can’t seem to stop. And really, I’m not that sad about it.

So far I’ve made vanilla, cookies and cream, chocolate peanut butter, double chocolate chip cookie dough and mint chip. Obsessed, right?

Ok, so here’s the classic vanilla recipe which is delicious by itself and a great starting point.

Either

1 C whole milk

2 C heavy cream

¾ C sugar

1-2 t vanilla

Or

3 C half and half

¾ C sugar

1-2 t vanilla

Mix and pour into your ice cream maker according to it’s directions. I actually prefer the half and half version, no cause it’s less fattening cause that’s just silly, but I think it has a better consistency. But that’s just me. Try it both ways and see what you like better.

Mint Chip

Follow the recipe for vanilla only omit the vanilla and replace with 1-1 ½ t pure peppermint extract. Chop up your favorite chocolate bar into tiny pieces and add during the last 5 minutes of mixing

So, just pretend it’s warm outside and make some ice cream! In most cases I would ask for accountability with an idol in my life, but in this case I think I’ll keep it:)

Can't figure it out

So I can't figure this blog thing out. I love having a place to share recipes that I make and love and having pictures to go with it, but the problem is that I'm lazy (shocker!:) I always forget to take pictures of what I make cause I'm rushing to get food on the table/shove it in my kids' face so they stop whining. And then I can't seem to find time to sit down and blog about it. AND I feel like since most of you I see every other day I can just tell you about what I made. Well, except for Erin all the way in Simi Valley who comments on my posts even when I haven't posted:) So this one's for you Erin while I figure out what to do about this little blogspot.

I roasted beets.

Is that weird?

Ryan and I went to a date night cooking class for valentine's day and made an amazing salad with roasted beets, goat cheese (the love of my life), and the best caramelized walnuts I've ever had. So I decided to make it for our annual Lake Pillsbury trip with the crew and the came out pretty darn good for beets.

Beet and Goat Cheese Salad with Candied Walnuts
makes 6 servings

4 trimmed medium red beets, scrubbed
1 T cider vinegar
1t lemon zest
2 1/2 t fresh lemon juice
1t fresh thyme leaves
1/4 t dry mustard
1/2 t kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 T walnut oil ( i left this out cause it costs like a million dollars)
2 T olive oil (I doubled this to make up for the walnut oil that costs a million dollars)
2 4-ounce logs fresh goat cheese, very cold
2 Cups mixed baby greens
1 Cup candied walnuts

preheat oven to 450 with rack in middle. Wrap beets in foil and roast until tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

Measure all the ingredients except oils into a small bowl. While whisking, drizzle in the oils until an emulsion forms. Once the beets are cool enough to handle, remove skins and slice crosswise into rounds and then into strips.

Toss vinaigrette with baby greens. Crumble in goat cheese and toss with beets and candied walnuts.

Candied Walnuts
yield 3 cups

1/3 C granulated sugar
2 1/2 T brown sugar
1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 t ground cinnamon
pinch cayenne
1 large egg white, at room temperature
1/2 pound walnut pieces

Heat the oven to 300. In a small bowl, mix both sugars with the salt, cinnamon, and cayenne. In a large bowl, whisk the egg white until frothy; whisk in 1 T water until combined. Add the walnuts and stir to coat. Sprinkle on the sugar mixture and stir to evenly distribute.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with a nonstick baking mat or parchment. Spread the sugared nuts in a single layer on the sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, stir the nuts, and continue baking until the nuts smell toasted and the sugar coating is caramelized, about another 10 minutes.

Let the nuts cool on the pan, separating them as they cool. When completely cool, transfer them to an airtight container.

You'll thank me later!

Banana Muffins with Cinnamon Crumble Topping

Oh yeah, I have a sort of food blog. I kinda forgot after these long weeks of sickness after sickness. So glad to be back. I made these a couple weeks ago and they were literally gone in a day. (I also live in a house with 7 other people, so maybe they weren't that good) But seriously, everyone raved about them and they were really simple. Got the recipe from Molly's blog so I knew they pretty much had to be good. Only change I made is that I did mini muffins instead of loaves.


Banana Bread with Cinnamon Crumble Topping
Adapted from Bakesale Betty and Bon Appétit, September 2008

For bread:
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 cup mashed ripe banana (about 3 medium bananas)2 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil¼ cup honey
¼ cup water

For topping:
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 ½ Tbsp. packed dark brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter and flour a 9- x 5-inch metal loaf pan. (Alternatively, you can spray the pan lightly with cooking spray and then line it with parchment paper, letting the excess hang over the sides. That’s what I did, and it made it very easy to remove the finished bread from the pan; I just grabbed the parchment and lifted. Also, because I don’t have a 9- x 5-inch pan - and because an 8 ½- x 4 ½-inch is a little too small - I used a 10- x 3-inch pan that I found once at a flea market.)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together the banana, eggs, oil, honey, and water. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and stir well. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

In a small bowl, mix together the topping ingredients. Sprinkle them evenly over the batter.

Bake the bread until a tester inserted into its center comes out clean, about 1 hour, give or take a little. Cool the bread in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Then carefully remove the bread from the pan, taking care not to dislodge the topping. Cool completely before slicing.

Italian Meatball Soup

Blue skies this morning = didn't bring any type of rain gear with me when I took the kids out for a play date. Driving home = hail + rain = crap how do I get my kids in the house? Cold + wet = soup!

My dad is a math teacher, can you tell?

So I didn't actually make this soup today but I was wishing I had all the ingredients cause it's just a soup kind of day.

This soup is really hearty and delicious with the perfect amount of tiny meatballs and veggies. Only tip I would give is that it takes awhile to make since you have to form the meatballs and brown them before you can get the soup started.

Italian Meatball Soup
www.thepioneerwoman.com

Ingredients

• Meatballs:
• ¾ pounds Ground Beef
• ½ cups Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 3 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, Minced
• 1 whole Egg
• 2 cloves Garlic
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• ½ teaspoons Black Pepper
• ¼ teaspoons Ground Oregano
• 2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
• SOUP
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 7 cups Low Sodium Beef Stock
• 2 cups Water
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
• ¾ cups Onion, Chopped
• ¾ cups Carrots, Chopped
• ¾ cups Celery, Chopped
• 1 cup Russet Potato, Chopped (do Not Peel)
• ½ pounds Cabbage Chopped
• Grated Parmesan Cheese To Serve
• TIED IN A CHEESECLOTH BUNDLE
• 4 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, Minced
• 2 whole Bay Leaves
• 1 teaspoon Peppercorns

Preparation Instructions

To make meatballs, combine all meatball ingredients and mix well. Shape into small balls and chill for 30 minutes.

Gather 4 tablespoons parsley, bay leaves, and peppercorns in a cheesecloth bundle. Tie to secure.

After chilling, heat olive oil over medium-low heat in a heavy pot. Briefly brown meatballs, then remove to a plate. To pot, add beef stock, water, salt, tomato paste, and herb bag. Bring to a boil, then simmer 30 minutes.

Add onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes. Simmer 15 more minutes. Remove herb bag.

Add cabbage and meatballs. Bring to a boil, then simmer 8 to 10 minutes.

Serve with plenty of freshly grated Parmesan cheese sprinkled over the top.

Fresh Baked Bread

No, I'm not kidding! I've always been scared and intimidated at the thought of making bread. All the yeast and rising and kneading and waiting. But when I saw this recipe on one of my new favorite blogs, honey & jam, I was curiously interested because the title said "No Knead Bread", it looked absolutely amazing, and it only had 4 ingredients. I took the challenge and it came out so good. It was crusty, chewy, and had a really great flavor for only using flour, yeast, salt and water. And we ate it straight out of the oven which pretty much is the best thing ever. Try this bread! It's awesome! Did I sell you on it yet?:)

No Knead French Bread

From Artisian Bread in 5 Minutes a Day

via: www.honeyandjam.comRecipe notes: It might seem difficult to incorporate all of the flour into the yeast mixture, but just keep mixing. You can add just a little bit of water at a time to help, if needed. The recipe calls for a pizza stone, but I don’t have one, so I just used a cast iron skillet instead. Also, my second rise took a bit longer than the 40 minutes suggested, probably about an hour and 15 minutes to get to the size I wanted.


3 cups of lukewarm water

1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast

1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt

6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour


Grab a very large mixing bowl, or a large container that you can cover. In it, mix the water, yeast, and salt. You don’t have to heat up the water to a precise optimal temperature for the yeast. I’ve even used just regular tap water, and it’s worked well for me. Just let that sit together for a while (you don’t have to wait for the yeast to dissolve completely), then dump the flour all at once and stir with a wooden spoon. You don’t need to knead this, and you’re not looking to make it come together into a dough ball. You just want everything mixed well, with no streaks of flour left, and you’re done.


Leave it in your container, covered (but not airtight, or it’ll pop), for a few hours. When it has risen and then deflated a bit, your dough is done. It’s ready to be used or stored in the refrigerator.

To bake the bread, just grab a chunk of dough, about the size of a grapefruit. Dust your hands with flour to help prevent sticking, and gently pull the sides of the dough toward the bottom, rotating the dough, until you get a roundish shape with a smooth surface. It should only take you about a minute or less to do this. The dough won’t be entirely in the bottom, where it may look bunched up, but don’t worry about it.


Put it on a cutting board that’s been dusted with cornmeal to prevent sticking, and let it rest for at least 40 minutes. No need to cover it. If the dough has been refrigerated, it helps to let it rest a little more, until it’s no longer chilled.


Twenty minutes before you are ready to bake, put a cast iron skillet (or a pizza stone) in the middle rack of your oven, and put a broiler pan (I used a cookie sheet) in the bottom rack. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Dust some flour on the top of your loaf, and slash the top, about 1/4-inch deep.

After twenty minutes of preheating, it’s time to bake. (You can put the bread in after 20 minutes, even if your oven hasn’t reached 450 degrees yet.) Slide the loaf onto the baking stone, and then quickly pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler pan. Then quickly shut the oven door to keep the steam inside.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until you get a nice brown crust. Remove and let cool completely, if you can wait that long.See, that doesn't sound so hard, does it? Even if it does, try it anyway! The only suggestion I would make is that if you wanted to you could probably just make one big loaf out of the dough just watch the time in the oven. Oh yeah, don't use a glass pyrex pan in the bottom of the oven for the hot water. It might explode. I may or may not have a friend who gave me that info;)