dessert

Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Do you ever have one of those weeks where nothing seems to go your way? It’s definitely been one of those weeks for me. Despite all the things that went wrong, let me tell you something good about life. Chocolate chip cookies. First of all, anything that starts with the word “chocolate” is amazing. It doesn’t even matter what the phrase ends with…chocolate bar, chocolate chip, chocolate covered bacon, chocolate pretzel, chocolate cupcake, chocolate ice cream, chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate lava cake, chocolate fountain, chocolate in my mouth. I think you got the point. That little exercise of coming up with chocolate goodies actually already helped my mood!

This is not one of those quinoa and celery stick recipes that you lose weight just reading about. This is a pick me up, I need chocolate goodness in the form of a cookie, I am hording all of these cookies to myself kind of treat. Maybe not that last one. I may have gone too far. Either way, I don’t think you could be disappointed with these.

This recipe is actually from Travis’ family and I think it was a requirement that I learn how to make these cookies before he married me. Just joking…kind of. At any rate, since baking and cooking are kind of like an obsession of mine I really didn’t have any reason not to learn something new!

When I first made these cookies the ingredients kind of took me by surprise. If you couldn’t tell I’m the kind of person who is into fresh and pure ingredients and the fact that there was shortening AND margarine was CraZY to me! In fact, I even tried to make this recipe substituting butter for some of the fat because I needed to try. Try as I might, the recipe stands. And it’s a winner. So pardon my shortening and margarine but this recipe just needs to be shared with the world.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Yields 36
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Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
10 min
Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
10 min
Ingredients
  1. 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
  2. 2 1/2 tablespoons margarine
  3. 1/2 cup sugar
  4. 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  5. 1 egg
  6. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  7. 1 3/4 cups flour
  8. 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  9. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  10. 1 cup chocolate chips (I used mini)
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Cream shortening, margarine, sugar, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla with mixer.
  3. Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt until just combined.
  4. Stir in chocolate chips.
  5. Roll into 1 inch balls and bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 8-10 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
Notes
  1. Before baking, I will sometimes slightly push the dough balls down (so they look like a hockey puck) so that they spread out more. You can also just leave them as balls and they turn out fine!
  2. You can freeze the dough after forming it into 1 inch balls. Then when you need to make cookies, you have perfectly formed cookie dough balls! I've baked them straight from the freezer but it's probably best to let them defrost slightly before going in the oven.
Flavor From Scratch https://www.flavorfromscratch.com/

 

 

Peach & Blueberry Crumble for Two

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This one was inspired by my garden. My teeny tiny garden that doesn’t get any sun because of the massive maple trees we have in both our front and backyard. I love the shade from the trees…do not love that I have about one square foot of sun in my yard to try to plant the many fruits, vegetables, and herbs I want to plant.

However, even with sun at a premium in our yard I DID actually produce the herbs that went into this delicious crumble! We also do have a peach tree and blueberry bushes (see picture above). Note that I said “inspired by” when I started this story because as you can see, there are no actual peaches on the tree. Also, the blueberries you see in the picture are THE blueberries on the bushes we have. I ate one. In fact I ate the blue one you see there. Not even good. It was such a sad moment in my life. I think I need some help in the blueberry arena. Any suggestions, let me know. Anyways, the peaches and blueberries had to come from the store if you couldn’t gather that from my ramblings. Luckily they were both in season!
 
The peach tree, despite being peachless, was actually started from a peach pit! My husband’s grandma started it a few years back and gave it to us to plant in our yard. The tree grows like crazy! It’s a little lopsided but it’s wonderful. Travis already told me that we are digging it up and taking it with us when we move someday. I’m totally cool with that. Someday, maybe there will even be peaches! Wouldn’t that be great? I think so.
 
This crumble is kind of a mix of many crumbles I’ve made. Not too sweet and the herbs make you stop for a minute and ponder what might be making that delicious combination of flavors. It can be our little secret. But you can also share the secret. It’s really up to you. I wouldn’t have shared this recipe if I really wanted it a secret. Either way, I hope you enjoy this little sweet treat perfect for two!
 
Peach and Blueberry Crumble for Two
Serves 2
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
30 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
30 min
Fruit mixture
  1. 1 heaping cup of peaches (about 1 large peach)
  2. 1/2 cup blueberries
  3. 1/2 teaspoon mint leaves, minced
  4. 1/2 teaspoon basil, minced
  5. 2 teaspoons honey
  6. 1-2 tablespoons flour
  7. pinch of salt
Crumble Topping
  1. 1/4 cup oats (old-fashioned)
  2. 2 tablespoons flour
  3. 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  4. 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  5. 2 tablespoons butter
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Mix together fruit mixture ingredients in a medium sized bowl. The flour should just coat the fruit to help make a thicker syrup. Use 1-2 tablespoons depending on how wet the fruit you use is.
  3. Place the fruit mixture into 2 small ramekins. I filled mine up most of the way with fruit.
  4. Mix together the crumble topping ingredients until the butter is mostly incorporated with pea size bits remaining. I find it easiest to use my hands for this.
  5. Place crumble on top of fruit mixture in ramekins. I went all the way to the top, but do not push the crumble down too much.
  6. Place ramekins on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil (to help with drips) and bake for 18-20 minutes or until the fruit is bubbling and the crumble is lightly browned.
Notes
  1. You can really use any fruit with this recipe. When trying to figure out how much fruit to use, I will often put the fruit in the ramekins as I am cutting it up then transfer it back to a bowl to add the other ingredients. This way I am sure I have the exact right amount! If you are making more of this recipe you can certainly use an 8x8" pan (or any size pan)! When cooking, look for a bubbling fruit mixture and lightly browned top to tell when it is finished.
Flavor From Scratch https://www.flavorfromscratch.com/


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