Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe comes from a friend here in Bozeman. But I think I copied down the recipe wrong, because they didn't turn out as delicious as hers that I ate that morning at her house. So, now this recipe has morphed into something else that Jared devours. I myself am not a huge cookie lover, but Jared is and he said these should be in the go-to list. So, here it is.

2 1/2 sticks (1.5 cups) salted butter at room temperature
1/2 c. sugar
1 c. light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 t. vanilla extract
2 t. espresso powder (optional)
1 T. hot water (to dissolve espresso powder in)
1 c. rolled oats
2 c. all purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
3 c. any combo - white, semisweet, or milk chocolate chips
1 c. toasted walnuts or pecans

Preheat oven to 325.

Cream butter and sugars just until large lumps disappear. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and mix until just incorporated, being careful not to overbeat.

Dissolve the espresso powder, if desired, in hot water and add to butter mix.

Add oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and mix well, being sure to stir from the bottom. Stir in chips and nuts.

Spoon large tablespoons of dough on cookie sheet and bake about 12 minutes.

Store up to 6 days.

Homemade Power Snack

I'm not quite sure what to call these treats - they sort of taste like a Luna bar or a Power bar, except they're probably cheaper, homemade, and maybe even healthier. It does make me think though to make these for my next mountain bike outing instead of using Goo.

This recipe calls for carob powder, which is a healthy alternative for cocoa. It tastes like chocolate, but unlike chocolate, carob is caffeine-free, oxalate-free, cholesterol-free, and full of vitamins and minerals. Click here to learn more. I'm so glad I've learned about it because I love chocolate, I just don't like the way it makes me feel.

You can find carob in the baking isle. I use Bob's Red Mill Toasted Carob Powder, but any will do I'm sure. These minibars are so easy to make, and I love that they're a healthy alternative that fills that sweet tooth craving.

The fruit/nut mixture I used at the end of this recipe was anything I had in my cupboard - in this case, coconut, raisins, walnuts, almonds, flax seed, sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds. So that it wasn't super chunky, I combined them all and pulsed them in my handheld cuisanart bowl first. The extra mixture that I didn't use in these treats I just saved to throw in our breakfast oatmeal or a salad. After all, you can't go wrong with a little nut mix.

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup honey (you could probably use Agave too, but I buy honey from town just to keep it local)
1 cup carob powder
Nuts, seeds, almonds, raisins, coconut (amount desirable)

Warm peanut butter on low until smooth. Add carob powder. Mix in the rest of the mixture.

Besties Double Chocolate Pudding

This chocolate pudding is really, really good! Discovered in my friend's (Jenn) fridge at a college reunion, I've made it ever since. And I just made it again and I forgot how addictive it is. I can't even wait for it to chill and become pudding, I keep grabbing spoonfuls tonight.

If you're one of those people who buys a Ben & Jerry's pint and finds yourself at the bottom of it an hour and a half later (read: lack of self control over sinful desserts), then you might not want to make this. If you revel in a full pint of Ben & Jerry's, then make this! Not that it tastes anything like Ben & Jerry's - it's just that that would be my other dessert vice. Probably not a dessert to let your children or husband in on, because like Jenn's fridge pudding, she didn't get any of it, because her besties ate all of it. Oh well - at least we left her house clean...

Note that the recipe calls for Dutch-processed cocoa which is cocoa where the acid has been neutralized. You can probably buy it at Trader Joes or Whole Foods. I just use my regular Hershey's cocoa plus a couple of pinches of baking soda. The actual ratio for making dutch processed cocoa from natural cocoa is to add a pinch of baking soda (1/8 teaspoon) per 3 Tablespoons of natural cocoa. I just estimate.

(from: http://www.marthastewart.com)

Prep: 20 minutes
Total: 20 minutes, plus chilling 

2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa (spooned and leveled)
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups whole milk
4 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped, plus shavings

Place a fine-mesh sieve over a medium bowl; set aside. In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt. Gradually whisk in milk, taking care to dissolve cornstarch. Whisk in egg yolks. 

Whisking constantly, heat over medium until the first large bubble sputters, about 8 minutes. Reduce heat to low; cook, whisking, 1 minute. Remove from heat; immediately pour through sieve into bowl. Add butter, vanilla, and chocolate; stir until smooth. 

Place plastic wrap on surface of pudding (to prevent a skin from forming); chill at least 3 hours (or up to 3 days). To serve, whisk until smooth; divide among serving cups, and garnish with shavings.

Old-Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake

(from myrecipes.com)

3 1/2  cups  halved strawberries, divided
1/3  cup  sugar
1/3  cup  orange juice
2  teaspoons  vanilla extract
1  teaspoon  lemon juice
1 1/4  cups  all-purpose flour
3  tablespoons  sugar
1  teaspoon  baking powder
1/4  teaspoon  baking soda
1/8  teaspoon  salt
3  tablespoons  chilled stick margarine or butter, cut into small pieces
1/2  cup  low-fat buttermilk
Cooking spray
6  tablespoons  frozen reduced-calorie whipped topping, thawed
Whole strawberries (optional)

Combine 1 cup strawberry halves, 1/3 cup sugar, orange juice, vanilla, and lemon juice in a bowl, and mash with a potato masher. Stir in 2 1/2 cups strawberry halves. Cover and chill.

Preheat oven to 425°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl; cut in margarine with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add buttermilk, stirring just until moist (dough will be sticky).

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead lightly 4 times with floured hands. Pat dough into a 6 x 4-inch rectangle. Cut dough into 6 squares. Place 1 inch apart on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 425° for 12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Split shortcakes in half horizontally using a serrated knife; place each bottom half on a dessert plate. Spoon 1/4 cup strawberry mixture over each bottom half. Top with shortcake tops; spoon 1/4 cup strawberry mixture over each top. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon whipped topping; garnish with whole strawberries, if desired.

Mini Meat Loaves

These are an easy weeknight meal and they're great the next night too.

(adapted from cookinglight.com)

Cooking meat loaf in single-serving portions cuts cooking time in half and keeps the meat juicy. The tangy ketchup and mustard glaze helps these loaves brown nicely, too.

1/2 cup ketchup
1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 pound ground sirloin
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine ketchup and mustard, stirring well with a whisk. Reserve 2 1/2 tablespoons ketchup mixture. Combine remaining ketchup mixture, beef, and next 6 ingredients (beef through egg) in a large bowl, stirring to combine.

Divide beef mixture into 4 equal portions. Shape each portion into a 4 x 2 1/2-inch loaf; place loaves on a jelly roll pan coated with cooking spray.

Spread about 2 teaspoons reserved ketchup mixture evenly over each loaf. Bake at 400° for 25 minutes or until done.

Yield:  4 servings (serving size: 1 loaf)

Skor Bars

This recipe used to be on the back of the toffe package, but is there no longer. Maybe someday it will re-emerge. Until then, these are delicious, completely unhealthy, and perfect for taking to a dinner to share with everyone (so you don't have to eat them for breakfast the rest of the week).

prep time: 15 minutes
serving: 8-10

- 2 1/3 cups flour
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup butter
- 1 egg beaten
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided in half
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 3/4 cup skor (or heath bar) toffee chips (1 package)


Preheat oven to 350.
Combine flour and brown sugar in bowl.
Cut in butter until mixture looks like soft crumbles.
Add egg; mix well.
Stir in 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips.
Set aside 1/2 cup mixture
Press crumb mix in 13x9 in pan
Bake at 350 for 10 min.

Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over crust
Top with 1 1/2 cups toffee
Spread crumb mix over the top
1/2 cup chocolate chips on top of all that
Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown
Remove and sprinkle last bit of toffee on top

Dollies

I say healthy, but I also mean yummy too. So, here's my first recipe: Dollies. Jared's family put me onto these and so I made them last night for his birthday. The next few recipes will also be from the shindig that we put on for my hubs.

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter melted
1 - 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups semi-sweet choc chips
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
1 cups chopped nuts (walnuts or other nuts work well too)

Heat oven to 350. Melt butter and spread in bottom of 9x13 pan (I use the heat of the oven to melt the butter). Layer graham crackers and crush into pan. Layer chocolate chips, coconut, nuts. drizzle milk evenly over crumb mixture. Bake for 25 to 30 min until lightly browned.