Chocolate Toffee Cookies

1/2 c. flour

1 t. baking soda

1/4 t salt

1 lb bitter sweet chocolate

1/4 c. butter

1 3/4 c. brown sugar

4 eggs

1 t. vanilla

5 heath bars (1.4oz size) broken into pieces about the size of a chocolate chip

1 c. walnuts chopped

melt chocolate and butter together

beat sugar and eggs until frothy about 5 minutes

mix in chocolate mixture and add vanilla

add flour, baking soda and salt

stir in heath bars and walnuts

The dough will be extremely runny so refrigerate for about 45 min. (any longer and you will bend your spoon trying to get the dough out) then use a med size cookie scoop and bake on parchment paper for 14 minutes at 350. They should be soft and cracked on top. It's okay if they don't look quite done- they will set up on the pan and Don't forget the parchment- you will be really sad when they won't come off the bottom of the pan!!

makes about 3 1/2 dozen.

Dedicated with love to AS who prefers a brownie! these are for you! hope you can find bars of bittersweet chocolate in NZ.

Cookie of the Month

So, I have always wanted to be a member of the __________ of the month club - flowers, cheese, exotic fruits. I love to get packages and then this excitement is breed and fed by Red Envelope and Harry & David.

And to be honest I love to make cookies. (shocking I know) And I love to make GOOD cookies! And I love to discover a new GOOD cookie. And since I pretty much post a cookie recipie a month, I decided that you too might want to be a member of the ____________ of the month club too.

So here it is . . . . . . . the COOKIE of the MONTH CLUB!!

Now you too will get a little bit of goodness delivered to you monthly by someone who loves you- just to make you smile!!

Judy Brown's Soft Molassas Cookies ( aka supersoft gingersnaps)
(from Favorites)

1 1/2 c butter
2 c brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c molasses
4 1/2 c flour
4 teaspoons baking soda (this is not a typo!)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt

Cream butter and brown sugar. Add eggs and molasses and mix well. Add dry ingredients. Roll into balls with a cookie scoop and roll balls in sugar. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 375 for 10 minutes.

These make wonderful holiday cookies!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Rachaels' Pumpkin Cookies (from Favorites)

3 cups canned pumpkin
2 eggs
2 t vanilla
1 cup oil
2 t nutmeg
2 t cinnamon
2 t baking soda
2 t baking powder
3 cups sugar
1 t salt
5 cups flour
1 1/2 c chocolate chips

In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, oil, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, sugar and salt and mix well. Add flour and mix to combine. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop dough onto ungreased cookie sheets and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Browned Butter Frosting
1 c. butter
4 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c milk ( i use evaporated milk in frosting)
1 t vanilla

melt the butter on the stove in small sauce pan until melted and it begins to brown. (watch it close so it doesn't burn) add to powdered sugar and slowly add milk until smooth, add vanilla
Frost and enjoy!!!

Garden inspired Cooking!!

love, love the garden and it has been fun to cook with all of the fresh veggies. Almost everyday this past week I have been out looking for ripe tomatoes- and then I venture over to my neighbors yard to see what is ripe there . . . I really enjoy cooking, but when it comes to dinner, I get stuck deciding what to make and then being excited about it when the day rolls around.

Last week I really enjoyed being inspired by my garden.

Pork Enchiladas with fresh homemade salsa. (& Zucchini bread- Gretel I am still waiting for your choc. zuch bread recipe . . .)

Spaghetti Squash with Bolegnese. (hmmm! I thought: I love spaghetti squash and I like spaghetti sauce- this will probably be pretty good! Well it was really good- much better than I even imagined!!)

Fresh Pesto with chicken & bowtie pasta

Bruschetta Chicken Bake- I made bruschetta (kalamata olives, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, garlic, S&P) mixed it with breadcrumbs, spooned it over chicken and baked it! After it baked, I added a little bit of feta. This was supposed to be the meal of the week- and it was good but honestly I felt like it was missing something. I still think the idea sounds wonderful- so all you great cooks out there if you have any suggestions or recipes please send them to me!!

and tonight with the leftovers- PIZZA with pesto, chicken, artichoke hearts, pinenuts, bacon AWESOME!!

and Zucchini Cookies of course!
3 eggs
1 c. oil
3/4 c. sugar
2/3 c. brown sugar
2 g grated zucchuni
2 t vanilla
4-4 1/2 c. flour (the dough is super sticky)
3 t cinnamon
1 1/2 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1 t salt

mix together, scoop into balls & roll in cinnamon sugar mixture and bake at 325 for about 12 min
or add a cup of choc. chips and scoop onto pan & bake at 325 for 12 min

enjoy! love A

I'm smitten with Fall

It's true . . . I'm smitten. From the beautiful clear CRISP AIR in the mornings, WARM afternoons for riding bikes, LEAVES beginning to change into vibrant hues, DECORATING for fall with red, orange, yellow, green & brown- my house was inspired by the fall, wearing my favorite JEANS and t-shirt, the bright green GRASS that is no longer stressed by the summer heat, yummy SQUASH from my garden, the routine and SCHEDULE the new school year brings, the FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS of football season, FARM STANDS packed with pumpkins and gourds, and my own beautiful Cinderella PUMPKINS on the porch, sleeping with the window OPEN and listening to the CRICKETS, warm cozy SWEATERS, delicious and easy SOUP for dinner, and making a (huge) mess BAKING!!

Inspired by the fall we made these leaf shaped sugar cookies and shared them. Because as Kate & Annie remind me that is the best part of making treats.

A's Sugar Cookies:

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 t. vanilla

3 cups flour

1/2 t salt

1 t baking soda

cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, then vanilla, then gradually add flour salt and baking soda. Put the dough into a Ziploc bag and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.

Then roll out & cut into holiday shape of choice. I put my cookies on the pan in the fridge for 10-20 minutes before baking and it helps them to hold their shapes better. Then bake for 10 minutes at 350. cool completely before frosting.

Yummy butter cream frosting

1/2 cup butter softened

1t vanilla

1/4 t salt

1/3-1/2 cup EVAPORATED milk

4 cups powdered sugar

beat the butter until fluffy, add additional ingredients, alternate adding powdered sugar and milk until desired consistency, should be thin enough to spread so the frosting appears smooth on the top of the cookie. The frosting will harden slightly and you can used a pastry bag to pipe on additional decorations.

Grilled Chicken & Asparagus Pasta

I got this recipie from Studio 5. I rarely make things off of cooking shows but this was great!

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
1 1/2 pounds asparagus, ends trimmed
1 pound bow tie pasta
1/4 cup butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup heavy cream (I used 1 cup)
1/2 cup chicken stock
Zest of one lemon
Juice of one lemon (this was a little too much for me- just a Tbs or two was enough!)
Salt
Pepper
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Method:
Servings: 8 Prep Time: 30 minutes

1. In a large pot, bring six quarts of water to a boil. Add asparagus and cook to tender-crisp, about 2 minutes.

2. Take asparagus out of water and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking, set aside.

3. Return pot to stove and water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions.

4. In a large skillet, set over low heat, combine butter, garlic, cream and stock. Stir in salt, lemon zest and juice. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add chicken, cheese and drained pasta.

5. Cut cooked asparagus into 1 to 2 inch pieces on a diagonal. Add asparagus and parsley to the pasta and toss all ingredients together. Turn off heat and let pasta sit to allow the sauce to thicken and all ingredients to heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Tatiana's Sweet Pork Enchiladas

This recipe was passed along to me from my sister's neighbor. It is fast becoming a family favorite- so I thought I would share it for those whose weekly menu could use a little shake up. (ashlee- you will love these!!)

3 lb pork roast
28 oz can green enchilada sauce (I used las pamas)
brown sugar
can of black beans
cilantro
1 lb of cheese- Monterey jack, pepper jack or mozzarella

serve with:
cut up lettuce
Pico and rice

Cook the Pork Roast in the crock pot for 5-6 hours on low. I cook it with 1 c. water and salt and pepper

shred the roast and mix with 3/4 c. of the liquid in the crock pot, 3/4 c. enchilada sauce and 1/2 c. brown sugar- then add black beans (that have been drained and rinsed) and about 1/3 a bunch of cilantro cut small (use a pizza cutter- it works great)

Mix meat, beans and cilantro in a big bowl

add 1/3 c. brown sugar to remaining enchilada sauce and then pour about 1/2 c. of sweetened mixture on the bottom of 9x13

Place meat mixture in tortilla, sprinkle some shredded cheese on top and roll up in pan. (I made about 15 enchiladas from the 3 lb roast in two 9x13 pans)

Cover rolled tortillas with more sauce and then I turned them a couple of times in the pan to make sure the entire tortilla had sauce on it- sprinkle with more cheese

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes!!!
then serve with shredded lettuce, Pico, and rice- look out cafe rio! these are good!

Damn Good Cake

Chocolate Cake
chocolate cake mix
2 sm. instant chocolate puddings
4 eggs
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. oil
1 t. vanilla
1 c. sour cream
1 c. choc chips

Pour all ingredients into large bowl and mix well. Bake in a bundt (or other favorite cake) pan at 350 for 45-50 minutes. (hint: doesn't really work with cupcakes!)

And top it off with real frosting or sprinkled with powdered sugar

BUTTER FROSTING
1/3 c butter
4 1/2 c powdered sugar
1/4 c milk
1 t vanilla

Beat butter until fluffy, add vanilla, add half of the powdered sugar and milk, then beat it remaining powdered sugar. Add more milk if needed!

CHOCOLATE FROSTING
1/2 c butter
2/3 c Cocoa
3 c powdered sugar
1/3 c milk
1 t vanilla

melt butter and cocoa. Add half powdered sugar and milk and mix well. Add remaining powdered sugar and more milk if needed.