12.11.2007
TRAMBLINGS...
Well, a couple things have happened since the Walk Out. I am back to being B.Smith/Martha Stewart/June Cleever which has made the Crown Prince and Kobe very, very happy. Home cooked meals. A clean house. I am back to cooking and I am back to blogging and that ain't bad. Sunday I spent the afternoon baking a big batch of cookies. This is my own recipe (after trying and failing with others) that combines two of my favorite things...chocolate chips and coconut. I also do a version with oatmeal but this time I kept it a little more simple. I took the cookies to my fellow writers yesterday and I haven't received any angry emails. That's a good sign, right? Anyway, here is the recipe that works for me. I found recipes for chocolate chip cookies, macaroons, oatmeal cookies and coconut cookies. This is the final result.
COCONUT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
1 cup of butter (2 sticks)
1 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp coconut extract
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups chocolate chips
2 cups coconut
NOTE: I used milk chocolate chips and I buy unsweetened coconut from the bins at Whole Foods. If you buy coconut from the baking aisle at the local grocery store put it in the blender or food processor to get a finer consistency.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cream butter, white sugar and brown sugar together in one bowl. Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in vanilla. Stir in coconut extract.
In separate bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt. Stir into butter mixture. Fold in chocolate chips and coconut. Drop onto cookie sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes.
SECOND NOTE: For crunchy cookies flatten on cookie sheet with your hand and then bake for 12 minutes. For softer chewier cookies bake for 8-9 minutes.
Grab a cold glass of milk and pick up Calvin Trillin's THE TUMMY TRILOGY to read while you eat. Or there's IN MY MOTHER'S KITCHEN: WRITERS ON LOVE, COOKING AND FAMILY.
(Photo Courtesy of Food Network)
A couple years ago I found a recipe for CHICKEN BOG somewhere on the internet. I have never been able to find the link again but Paula Deen has the RECIPE on her site. It's the exact same recipe but I know it wasn't a Food Network site. Anyway, beyond chili this is my favorite cold-weather-one-pot meal. Chicken Bog is a regional dish from the the South Carolina Low Country. My mom calls it the Poor Man Gumbo because it doesn't contain seafood. Either name works for me.
Until next time...
Well, a couple things have happened since the Walk Out. I am back to being B.Smith/Martha Stewart/June Cleever which has made the Crown Prince and Kobe very, very happy. Home cooked meals. A clean house. I am back to cooking and I am back to blogging and that ain't bad. Sunday I spent the afternoon baking a big batch of cookies. This is my own recipe (after trying and failing with others) that combines two of my favorite things...chocolate chips and coconut. I also do a version with oatmeal but this time I kept it a little more simple. I took the cookies to my fellow writers yesterday and I haven't received any angry emails. That's a good sign, right? Anyway, here is the recipe that works for me. I found recipes for chocolate chip cookies, macaroons, oatmeal cookies and coconut cookies. This is the final result.
COCONUT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
1 cup of butter (2 sticks)
1 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp coconut extract
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups chocolate chips
2 cups coconut
NOTE: I used milk chocolate chips and I buy unsweetened coconut from the bins at Whole Foods. If you buy coconut from the baking aisle at the local grocery store put it in the blender or food processor to get a finer consistency.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cream butter, white sugar and brown sugar together in one bowl. Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in vanilla. Stir in coconut extract.
In separate bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt. Stir into butter mixture. Fold in chocolate chips and coconut. Drop onto cookie sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes.
SECOND NOTE: For crunchy cookies flatten on cookie sheet with your hand and then bake for 12 minutes. For softer chewier cookies bake for 8-9 minutes.
Grab a cold glass of milk and pick up Calvin Trillin's THE TUMMY TRILOGY to read while you eat. Or there's IN MY MOTHER'S KITCHEN: WRITERS ON LOVE, COOKING AND FAMILY.
(Photo Courtesy of Food Network)
A couple years ago I found a recipe for CHICKEN BOG somewhere on the internet. I have never been able to find the link again but Paula Deen has the RECIPE on her site. It's the exact same recipe but I know it wasn't a Food Network site. Anyway, beyond chili this is my favorite cold-weather-one-pot meal. Chicken Bog is a regional dish from the the South Carolina Low Country. My mom calls it the Poor Man Gumbo because it doesn't contain seafood. Either name works for me.
Until next time...
