Guac Talk

Hi, I'm Ginny and I'm a guacamole fan.  Make that a guacamole addict, and I'm roping my husband in on it, too.

Good LORD I love guacamole.  And if it's homemade, even better!  Actually, now that I've been making it myself for some time, I don't think I'll ever buy store-made again.  I don't even use a recipe.  Just a few avocados, a chopped tomato, finely-chopped onion (red is better but white will do in a pinch), fresh lime juice and salt, and fresh cilantro.  I mix 'em together and bring on the chips!

I didn't think my husband would ever eat avocado, but now we edge each other out at the bowl.  Funny how things change over the years!

I'm thinking now that the avocado could shine in other dishes.  Perhaps a salad with avocado and either grapefruit, orange or mango, and definitely the red onion.  My wheels are turning for this summer.

Holiday Baking: Day One

Today's Baking:

Old-Fashioned Sugar Cookies

I've used Alton Brown's recipe for these cookies for years, it's truly the best based on both taste and technique.  This is a really good episode of "Good Eats and worth catching.

I made up the dough yesterday and put it in the fridge for the obligatory  "2-4 hour chill."  And to be honest....I forgot about them.  Until I was walking around Target this afternoon, trying to finish up the last of the Christmas shopping.  No matter, the cookie dough just needed to be worked a little before getting rolled out and cut with holiday cookie cutters.

Decorating never happens same-day, as these need to cool.  Next up.....snickerdoodles or coconut macaroons.....but not today!  My mood will decide which one we'll be making.

Homemade Lemonade: Is it Better?

67.  make lemonade from scratch (7/29/13)

As a kid, I can remember my mother bringing out a bottle of Minute Maid lemon juice at dinner time, to put on broccoli with a little butter.  I'd read the back of it, and there would always be a recipe for lemonade.  Always intrigued me, but I never did it.

Brian and I love fresh lemonade, but the closest thing we come to is Newman's Own.  And let's face it, Newman's Own extra virgin lemonade is pretty awesome stuff.  Still, I thought that someday, someday I'd like to make my own.

Well, tonight was the night.  I had purchased 12 lemons at the grocery store last week for that purpose last week, and I just wasn't going to let $6.00 worth of lemons go bad!

The Lemons.

I've always thought that cobalt blue and yellow are a cheery combination.  As is navy blue and yellow.

The Helpers

These two are always willing to lend a hand in the kitchen.

Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens cookbook in hand, we moved to turn these into drink!

They were a little harder to juice than I realized....but we got the job done.  While we were juicing, the simple syrup boiled on the stove.  After that cooled for a bit, we mixed it with the lemon juice.

It's important to note:  this just makes lemonade base.  If you drink this straight, you'll pucker for sure.   Equal parts base and water is key.  I made sure to tell Hubby that before he just grabbed the pitcher in the fridge and helped himself to a cold cup of base.  (bleeecchhhh)

First Tall Glass

One sip and it told me two things:  1, it needed more sugar.  and 2.  sooooo fresh!

Look at it....it's pale and not at all yellow.  That tells you how much artificial coloring is added to lemonade mixes.  I'm not afraid of some artificial color....it certainly has its place.  But lemonade mix just doesn't taste like this.  Hubby said it tasted like summer.  And it does!

So....was it worth it to make my own?  I'd say yes.  I certainly won't be doing it like this all the time.  But it makes for a happy treat.  And now, I want to make limeade.  I love fresh limes!

A Woman of my Word

I said last week that we'd make meatballs, and I keep my word.  Last night:  meatballs.  :)  I originally wanted to make these on Sunday but we as a family (read:  Crafty Mama)  tend(s) to overcram Sundays.  So last night after dinner, it was meatball city!

No recipes...just flying by the seat of our pants.  A package of ground pork, a package of ground beef.  And I got really daring and didn't measure ingredients.  Sometimes it's best that way.  Some bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, two eggs, oregano, rosemary, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Brian rolled them and fried them in vegetable oil while I worked on feeding kids and doing dishes.  (We make a good team that way.)    He used his induction cooker to better control the temperature, which seems like it was a good idea.  Next time Brian wants to make them like his mom made them growing up:  added to sauce and simmering in a crockpot for several hours.  I've had Mom G's meatballs, they are pretty good!

All in all, I'd say the process only took about an hour, give or take.  I wish I had taken a photo of the meatball assembly line, but alas, I did not so you will have to imagine it.    Now there are several bags of (hopefully) good-quality meatballs in my freezer, and one bag to go with cheese tortellini and leftover marinara tonight.  Looking forward to it!

Day Ten: Quick Dinner

After having a great time at the cottage, it's always tough to come back to reality at home.  Especially on Sundays, where there's so much to be done.  Laundry, dishes, groceries, straightening up, baths, etc etc .  Tonight we also have the joy of having to fix a toilet....one of those "laugh a minute" things about owning your own home.  So tonight it's about the convenience foods:  pre-made chicken cutlets flavored with honey mustard and panko, frozen mashed potatoes and a bag of "Steamfresh" carrot coins.

When I started this month-long challenge of posting dinner every night I was kind of hoping that there would be some more interesting dinners.  But guess what....we're not super-interesting people apparently.  Two working parents, two picky kids, not a ton of time....it's like we're a real family!  I aspire to be a Mom who has nutritious, palate-pleasing cuisine every night but it just doesn't happen.  We love good, flavorful food but sometimes are short on time to get what we are going after.  So tonight is about filling the belly and nourishment to keep up the work around the house.

"I'm not eating it. And you can't make me."

As I experiment with food and feed my family, I get some surprises sometimes.  Sometimes, something that looks only so-so ends up being something that I rave about.  And other times, something that I expect to be amazing turns out to be well, not.  Here's to looking back at some of our surprises

There is a small window of time that while babies are learning to eat solids and table foods that they will eat pretty much anything you put in front of them.  (This is how it's been in my house, anyway.)  Sean used to love bitty pasta shapes and frozen peas.  Now, he pushes away the peas and cries.  Or, more likely, squishes them.  I was a bit taken aback by the slamming-down of the window this time.  After all, Sean eats so many more things than Will ever did, mostly because we experimented with food more with the second child than the first. 

Will loves apples.  A sliced apple with dinner and he is a happy boy.  But homemade applesauce?  Forget about it. Only those "Mott's Cups" will do with this kid.  When I dropped him off at school this morning the teacher was reading a book about apple picking.  Will was excited and told everyone "My mommy just made applesauce with the apples that we picked!" It was hard for me not to add, "Yeah Buddy, and you refused to touch it!" 

Also, the child that doesn't like homemade applesauce also hates corn. But he loves popcorn, go figure.  And cornbread?  I baked some to go with chili and chili leftovers at the beginning of the week.  (mmm, there's nothing like crumbled cornbread over a bowl o' red!)  I caught him sneaking a piece twice, he's obsessed with it.  If I could find a way to sneak in veggies to the cornbread, I'd have it made!

No green veggies for either kid, unless it's canned green beans.  However, both kids like zucchini bread.  Because they don't know about the zucchini!  Mwahahahaha.  :)  Same goes for sweet potato muffins and pumpkin waffles, bread, pancakes, etc. 

What are some of the surprises in your family, or for yourself, that you have experienced?

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.....

I've been following the "Thirty Day Blog Challenge" on Life in the Carpool Lane, and today's topic seemed perfect for the Blue Plate Special as well.


Day 29:  List ten people, living or dead, that you would invite to dinner.  Include the menu.

I'm not much for hosting BIG dinner parties.  But if I had ten people to invite (immediate family not included in the ten, since they live here and would be here anyway), here's my list:

1.  Alton Brown, for obvious reasons  (and probably more for Hubby than for me)
2.  My maternal grandfather, (aka "Pa") whom I've mentioned cooks a mean roast.  Plus I've always wished that he could have met my husband.
3.  My mother and father
4.  My old friend Jen R of Crafty Mom of 3, who I don't see often and also loves Alton Brown
5.  Jen R's husband Scott, a fellow foodie and lover of the Food Network
6.  Jennifer Weiner, my current favorite chick-lit writer
7.  Stephanie Pearl McPhee (aka The Yarn Harlot)
8.  my brother
9.  my sister-in-law
10.  Julia Roberts

Also, Jen R and her husband Scott have three kids, and of course they would be welcome too.  They'd play together with my kids, so we could all have adult conversation.  And yes, I'm aware that I included my Mom and Dad as one person.  Yes, I'm aware it's cheating.  Oh well!

Now, Dinner.  This is harder to come up with than the list, but I will give it a shot.  We're going buffet style.

The name of the menu:  All of Crafty Mama's Favorite Things!

Appetizer:  chicken nachos from Chilis,   (I really wanted these the other night!) shrimp cocktail, fried mac n cheese and a big heaping bucket of Price Edward Island mussels.

Salad:  Caesar with fresh croutons and plenty of shaved parmesan

Entree:  Roast Beef (my Pa is going to show me how he made his so I can have it whenever I want.)  BBQ Chicken,  mac and cheese, fresh bread and roasted garlic to smash on it, mashed potatoes, roasted mediterranean veggies, baked shrimp and feta over rice, cornbread, Brian's "Kabobs from heaven" (pineapple, green pepper, chicken, bacon and scallops)  and Chicken Francese.  Hot dogs and tacos for the kids, though they'd better save me a "Chicago-style hot dog!"  Oh, and ratatouille over pasta for the Yarn Harlot, the only vegetarian in the group.

Dessert:  Ice cream in several flavors, double-chocolate brownies, cookies for the kids, a flan and individual pumpkin creme brulees.


Now, who's hungry?

(Cross-Posted at "The Blue Plate Special")

Stockin' Up

In almost every cookbook, every food-themed magazine, I have read about the importance of fresh chicken stock.

Mark Bittman swears that it makes every dish that he makes taste that much better and keeps it on-hand in the freezer.  In "Kitchen Confidential" Anthony Bourdain insists that people who are serious about their cooking use it.  And though I haven't heard it myself, I'm sure Brian's hero, good ol' Alton Brown, probably has an episode in the can of how easy and how much better homemade chicken stock really tastes.

Let's face it, canned or boxed chicken broth has something that homemade stock doesn't: CONVENIENCE.  In a household where both parents work full-time and quite often dinner is a 20-minute affair, convenience of an ingredient weighs in heavily in preparation. But....making my own applesauce tasted so fresh and unlike its jarred counterpart.  And pumpkin processed by us instead of paying for a can at Thanksgiving time?  Heavenly!!

So, I have my eye out for a sale on whole chickens.  There's going to be a weekend experiment; not just for flavor, but how much more difficult is it than just reaching for your can opener?  Does it freeze well, and how much stock does one pot make?  Is it worth coming off "the box?"    Coming soon to a stockpot near you......

A Marriage of Coconut and Chocolate

I love it when Brian bakes.  Even though it's hot, and turning on the oven is almost UNTHINKABLE, I can sit on the other side of the house with a cool breeze blowing in the window, smelling whatever's in the oven.  I love benefitting from his baked treats.  And last night was no exception.

He's been tinkering with two of his favorite cookie recipes:  chocolate chip and coconut macaroons.  Both of them are awesome in their own right.  But what about putting them together?  Sounds fabulous.  Probably not going to be quite fabulous until a few tries though, so let the first batch commence!

The trick was to figure out how long they needed to bake in order for neither cookie to be raw OR burned.  So what ended up happening was to drop the dough in spoonfuls like normal, and then  pipe chocolate chip cookie batter out of a plastic bag with one corner cut out.  The chips kept clogging the hole, so they blew out several Target-brand storage bags.  Perhaps there's a pastry bag in Brian's birthday future!)  The first batch came out slightly underdone, but still tasty. 

Add just a little more baking time and VOILA!  Perfectly browned cookies.  However, they were slightly tough.  He tinkered with the butter amount in the chocolate chip cookies, substituting shortening for part of the butter so that they wouldn't spread out so much.  Next time he'll add back in some butter.  And then....the best cookie of the night was drizzled with some additional melted chocolate!

 

Same cookies, after dinner tonight.  Tonight's cookie was a little softer, perhaps from sitting in a container in a humid house all day.  Or perhaps these cookies are the kind of thing that's better the second day?  Only time (and a lot more baking and taste-testing) will tell!

Currently, this cookie doesn't have a name.  Any ideas?

Best Sandwich in the World

IMHO, the best sandwich ever created is the #9 Pocket at D'Angelo's.  Lean steak, american cheese, peppers, onions and mushrooms.  Mmmm....I'm in heaven!  Happiest.  Lunch.  in a Long TIME!!  :)

I've tried to duplicate this simple, out-of-this-world goodness, but it never turns out the same.

Finishing Touches

Little touches make all the difference.  A little garnish can turn a good meal into a great one.  Like a little bit of diced onion and cheese on top of a bowl of chili.  Hershey's syrup on a bowl of plain ice cream.  A little honey drizzled on a biscuit.

Or, in this case, chopped chives and sesame seeds sprinkled on top of an ordinary pork stir-fry.   The chives add some color to an already vibrant dish, and a mild onion flavor.  The sesame adds a little crunch.  Perfect! 

Making a Good Team

The Scene:  Saturday Night at our house.  Our kitchen.  The Big Kid is watching TV and the Little Kid is settled in his bouncy seat while Brian and I are cooking dinner.  Dinner:  Steak Stir-Fry.

Brian:  We're a little short on veggies for the stir-fry, so I cut up a carrot, too.

Ginny:  We're short because there's still two cucumbers in the fridge.  Those are supposed to go in there, too.

Brian:  Cucumbers in stir-fry?  No, that sounds bad.

Ginny:  Trust me, you've had it this way and you like it, you just don't remember.

So the cucumbers are peeled and seeded, and chopped coarsely to be added.  Brian starts cooking the veggies and I start making the sauce from scratch.  We had bottled stuff in the house, but it comes out better with homemade stir-fry sauce, and we have the stuff on hand.  In a large mixing cup goes soy sauce, hoisin, minced garlic, ginger paste and, since we finished up the onions with chili earlier in the week, a pinch of onion powder for flavor. The meal serves up nicely with some white rice and some toasted sesame seeds sprinkled on top.   Then Brian says something really nice, "You know what?  We make a great team in the kitchen.  I know a lot of technique and skills, and you really know what flavors go together."

I got to thinking about that, and he's absolutely right, we do make a good team!  He knows how to properly flip an omelette, bake something to the perfect degree of golden brown deliciousness and what's the best tool for the job.  If I tried to flip a pancake or an egg in the air and catch it like he does, I'd watch it fly to the floor.  And, I would have done it way too early so there'd be batter all over the side of the fridge from it's clumsy journey.  He always knows which knife to use from the knifeblock, I'm one of those irritating types that uses the steak knife to cut up everything!  He does a better job breading meat so it's coated evenly, mine looks like a hack job.  But flavors....that's my department.  I once stopped him from making a dish that he was throwing together with fresh tomatoes, honey and sesame seeds.   When we made "garlic chicken stew" last month, he wanted to make a rice dish with garlic and lime in it.  The recipe already had forty cloves of fresh garlic, why add something with jarred garlic, not to mention lime doesn't go well with that at all!  And herbs/spices, he always asks me what sounds good together, and does tarragon go well with scrambled eggs, etc.  

But the biggest reason why we make a good team in the kitchen is because we both love good food.  There's nothing we enjoy better  than preparing a meal together, something fabulous that tastes like restaurant dining in our own home.  Plus, being in the kitchen together, chatting about our respective days, giggling over something the boys did, it just is such a sparkle in my day.  We don't get to do a lot of cooking together like we used to, with a toddler and an infant in the house.  So when it comes together like today, that's a sweet thing. 

In Preparation of Holiday Dinner...

...Brian informed me the other day that our lazy susan is just that:  lazy.  Our cabinets are SOOOO full that the damn thing won't turn anymore.  Our snack cabinet by the fridgeis bursting at the seams.  So, in honor of Christmas dinner (which is how he put it) we need to do some weeding out.

I found a cranberry-orange bread mix on the lazy susan due to expire on 12/28.  Baked that quick last night, and Will's having it for breakfast with the last of the  banana cheerios, so I could get rid of the bulky box.  I'm making Salsa Bean Dip for the Knitting Party I'm having on Wednesday night here at the house.  (Hey----no jokes about knitting, we DO know how to have a good time) The dip will take care of a can each of black beans, black-eyed peas and corn.  I made soup and a grilled cheese sandwich for Brian for lunch yesterday, so we're finally out of soup.  And Will has enough Easy-Mac to get him through the Apocalypse.  A few things I don't know what do to with:  three cans of beef broth, a can of pineapple chunks and more cake mixes than I can name.  I tend to go a little crazy when cake mix is on sale because of the Cake Mix Doctor.  I've asked for her new book for Christmas though, and plan on living a little after the baby is born and diabetes is a thing of the past. 

What do you do when your kitchen is about to explode with overabundance and you can't fit any more?

Pantry Staples

Years ago, Cooking Light ran an article about "The Well-Stocked Pantry."  I still remember this article well, and learned a lot about keeping certain foods on hand.  Most nights, your dinner is only as good as your stocked pantry.  Because, who wants to start EVERY meal with a trip to the grocery store?


Here are a few staples in our house: 


Canned Tomatoes.  I try to have several cans of tomatoes, all different kinds.  Stewed, crushed, diced....and sometimes I get them with the spices mixed in.  A can of diced tomato with green chiles added to sliced kielbasa, onion and peppers made a speedy dinner over rice tonight.  And there's leftovers for tomorrow!  Canned tomatoes also make a quick pasta sauce or chili base too.

Chicken Broth.  LOTS of recipes need chicken broth, sometimes even just a couple of spoonfuls to moisten something.  It makes for a quick soup base too, though I don't cook soup a whole lot.

Dried Pasta and frozen meatballs.  Need I say more?  This is a go-to dinner whenever we have NO idea what to cook!

Soy sauce and jarred minced ginger.  When the mood for Asian inspired cuisine hits.  I absolutely abhor peeling fresh ginger, plus I never seem to use up what I buy.  This helps me waste a lot less. 

What are some go-to ingredients that you always have on hand?

Flavors of Summer

One of my favorite summer things: a scoop of cookies n cream ice cream over a sliced banana. Mmmm....is there anything better??

Marshmallows roasted over our outdoor fireplace and then squooshed into s'mores.

Grilled barbecue chicken. Sliced peaches. A tall glass of cold iced tea and kicking back after a long, hot day. Chicken caesar salad for dinner because it's too hot to cook. Oh yeah, that's the stuff!

Summer's not here just yet, but what are your favorites?

Eggies

I re-learned an important lesson today. I was at the grocery store and was thrilled to find that eggs had little $.75 off! coupons on them. Of course there's a catch...they expire next Tuesday. But hey, you can get through a dozen eggs in a few days if you have some egg salad, scrambled eggs for breakfast maybe, and do some baking? Absolutely!

Eeeehhh......you can do that if you don't already have 18 eggs at home, and a dozen of them are set to expire on Monday!! Note to self: check out the fridge before you head out to the grocery store. I'm trying to make the best of it, having a breakfast casserole tomorrow, baking some cookies and maybe Joey will get a scrambly-egg treat. Oops.

Thatsa Spicy

I forgot a biggie rule about freezing food: if you freeze something spicy, remember that it will be spicier when you defrost it! I made a batch of turkey chili and froze some for later. Boy, was I surprised! So, if you make something spicy and you intend on freezing it, adjust accordingly. Word to the Wise!

Ask the Cook, Part II

I haven't done any questions in a while, so here goes:

What are some of your favorite things to make, that you really don't get sick of making? Simple stuff that turns out delicious and like you made a whole lot of effort to pull off. Stuff like roast chicken, pasta dishes and brownies.

What's something you really hate to make? Egg salad. I can't stand the smell of the stuff, nevermind the taste. But it's one of Brian's favorites, so I make it sometimes and call it "My labor of love." :)

What are three things that are always in your fridge: 2% milk, American Cheese and probably two dozen eggs.

What condiment can you not live without? Probably ketcup, it's got so many uses. Or soy sauce. Don't make me choose!

Name a guilty pleasure in your kitchen: ice cream. I've tried to give it up or cut back a few times, but it's the only thing I just can't cut out. (Sweet ice cream....how I love thee)

Lastly, what pantry item do you stock up on the most? I always seem to have a bunch of half-empty boxes of pasta floating around. I've started dating the top of the box with a Sharpie when I open it so I'll use them in order. I think those dates are going to scare me sooner or later!

Christmas Cookies, Part II

Today was more of a lazy day than a baking day.......we didn't get around to making sugar cookie dough until the afternoon, and then it had to chill for 2-4 hours. No bother. There's no reason to rush through the cookies and make ourselves crazy. We did bake the Peanut Butter Blossoms, and they are to die for! I'm not the biggest fan of peanut butter on the planet, but I do love a peanut butter cookie. We scrapped the idea of the honey nut cluster cookies. We can make them another time for ourselves but frankly, we're happy with five kinds. So here's the cookies by the numbers: In the past 24 hours, we have gone through 12 cups of flour, 10 eggs, 7 cups of sugar/brown sugar and 9 sticks of butter! And what have we achieved? Lots of Christmas cookie memories and a tradition we hope to share with our child(ren) someday. And now.....the Rollo cookie recipe that friends have asked for. They are my ultimate favorite Christmas cookie! TIP: Unless you have a big stand mixer like a KitchenAid, do not use a handmixer for these cookies. The dough gets so heavy, it will smoke out your motor and render your mixer useless!

Rollo Cookies

2 1/2 c. flour
3/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1 t baking soda
1 c. sugar
1 c brown sugar
1 c (two sticks) butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
48 unwrapped rollos
1 c. chopped pecans
1 T. sugar

Preheat oven to 375. In med bowl, combine flour, cocoa and baking soda. Mix well and set aside. In lg bowl, blend 1 c. sugar, brown sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs. Beat well. Add flour mix, a little at a time and blend well.

For each cookie, shape dough around a rollo, covering completely. (Helps to coat hands with cooking spray!!) In small (cereal-sized) bowl, combine chopped pecans with T. of sugar. Press one side of each ball in pecan mix. Place nut-side-up on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 7-10 minutes.

Christmas Cookies, Part I

It's Cookie Time!!!

It's that time of year where Brian and I have our holiday tradition of baking cookies to share with friends and family. In the past, we would take a Saturday and bake till we dropped from exhaustion. We'd start churning out cookies right after breakfast and be cleaning the kitchen around 11pm. Things have changed in the last couple of years because well.....we don't have a full Saturday anymore! Last year we were fortunate to both have jobs that enabled us to bake during the week, but since we're both now "nine to fivers" full-time, we decided to split the baking over a weekend and bake just a little less. I have to say, I like the format of stretching the baking over two days instead of killing ourselves over one day. This also makes us able to stick a fork in another "tradition:" the "Post-Cookie Exhaustion Argument." You know the one I mean, folks...the sqaubbly, gripe-y fight that is inevitable when you are both sore, tired and hungry. Not a tradition that I'm sorry to see go away!

So, in order to make fewer batches of cookies but still enjoy every minute, we made a list of cookies that we wanted to make and ranked them. (We're big, organized dorks in this house and take our cookie-baking seriously. And if you make fun, you may not get any cookies!!) First, we each chose a kind of cookie that it just wouldn't be Christmas for us if we didn't bake them. For me, that would be Rollo Cookies and for him, that would be Coconut Macarooons. Then we looked at a couple of other classic recipes and also decided on a couple of new recipes to try this year. Here is the list:

1. Rollo Cokies: I've been making these for years. I used to think they were some sort of family secret, but then I found out that my Mom got them on the back of a flour bag. Ah well. They're a chocolately, pecan cookie with a Rollo candy stuffed inside. Pure heaven.

2. Coconut Macaroons: Brian's absolute favorite, he could make these every week and still never have enough! They're crispy, coconutty and come together quickly.

3. Pecan Caramel Surprises: These are a new one for us this year, kind of like a rollo cookie but they aren't chocolate and they have a caramel square in the middle.

4. Rolled Sugar Cookies: A holiday tradition, the sugar cookies that you roll out and use cookie cutters and then decorate. I used to hate roll-out cookies until Alton Brown had a show dedicated with all sorts of tips and tricks to making them. We're not really picky about decorating them, usually it's frosting with sprinkles instead of a lot of detail.

5. Peanut Butter Blossoms: the traditional, peanut butter-and-hershey kiss variety. You know, the ones that tend to disappear from the platter first!!

6. Honey-Nut Clusters: This is also a new one for us this year.


Tonight we made the macaroons and the Rollo cookies, as we didn't remember until late that the sugar cookie dough needs to be refrigerated for 2-4 hours!! So we'll make the dough as soon as Will is napping tomorrow. Since we're supposed to get just a little snow tomorrow, it'll be fun to hang out at home and bake.

As I've already stated--we're pretty serious cookie bakers around the holidays. We double most of the recipes, plan grocery lists and only use the best ingredients. This is really the only time of the year that we bake like this, so we don't scrimp on quality. My feelings are, if you are going to bake a cookie, use what the recipe calls for and no substitution like margarine. Or applesauce, and if it calls for shortening, use it! I very rarely bake cookies, most of the time I can't be bothered. ('Cept for the occasional batch of Toll House Cookies!!) These are a real treat. :)

So what happens to all of these cookies?? Well, I'm glad that you asked. We make up platters and tins for friends and family. We also ship them in holiday packages to friends and family in places as far away as Maine, Pennsylvania and Illinois. And we keep some to indulge ourselves at home, sometimes with guests. There's nothing like sitting with your family by the tree, lights low and some cookies and milk. Mmmmm.............