chocolate chip something

As you can tell by this post's title, I'm really good at naming things. Posts, cookie recipes, etc. Chocolate chip cookies were the base of this recipe, but I'm a huge fan of toffee, and my mom really wanted walnuts. These are what I came up with, using the Toll House Chocolate Chip recipe as my jumping off point, and tweaking until my heart's content. I baked these twice in one week, that's how quickly they went. I don't mind when everyone else eats all of my cookies because I'm usually eating them while I bake. I get my fill and the rest is for everyone else. You can absolutely replicate the Toll House recipe, add the toffee, and boom, you'll be good. Or you can follow the recipe tweaks that I made(I'll italicize differences):

INGREDIENTS:
2 1/3 cup All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt (I nix the salt because I use salted butter)
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar (I prefer DARK brown sugar and 2:1 brown to granulated sugar)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 12oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 package Heath bits w/milk chocolate
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS:
Combine flour and baking soda in small bowl. Beat melted butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla together in a larger bowl. Add flour mixture until combined. Stir in chocolate chips, toffee, and walnuts one at a time until combined. Drop 1 rounded tablespoon of dough onto pan to yield approximately 60 cookies, or drop 2 rounded tablespoons of dough to yield approximately 30 large cookies. Bake 10 minutes at 375F, or until golden brown.

*You may be wondering about the things I changed and why. Melting the butter allows the cookies to stay chewy, even a week after they were baked (if they last that long). Melting the butter changes how the cookies spread out, so I add just a touch more flour than the original recipe calls for. The dark brown sugar is a taste preference as it makes the cookies richer and brings out the toffee flavor. 

cookies and such

The weather is freaking weird. It was really warm yesterday to the point where I was leaving work at around 10:30, wearing just my scarf and hoodie. Yep. Today, it's kind of chilly again, but pouring rain. It's really bizarre, but it's Wisconsin. Typical. I've spent the day inside doodling and I'm coming up with possibly a new, doodled header. We'll see if I come up with anything I actually like, but I've just been playing around with a couple ideas in my sketchbook. I'm trying to draw things and ideas more because it does seem to help me to come up with a solution in the end.

It has been a while since I have baked any thing. Stupid winter and lack of motivation. I bought the ingredients for these cookies a couple of weeks ago and have just been so lazy. I finally got down to business today and finally whipped up a batch. A few are just plain chocolate chip, but the rest have walnuts because if it's one thing my mom always complains about my cookies is that they lack nuts. Nothing to complain about now. Just a glass of milk and some cookies. yum!

get fit!

I was inspired by an old co-worker (if you read this, yeah, it's YOU, AP!). She has been sticking to her workouts and diet changes and looks AMAZING. Not that she wasn't a beautiful person before, but if you're not happy without how you look, change it. I've been feeling like a shlub lately. Aside from trying to maintain a consistent yoga routine, I haven't been keeping track of what I eat. I usually tell people I'm on a "see"-food diet- I see food and then I eat it. That always cracks me up, but it's true. I don't deprive myself. If I do, I end up binging and that is not a good feeling. I got a new app called My Fitness Pal and it's great to keep track of what I eat. It's pretty cool and although yesterday was my first day using it, I can see how it will benefit me in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Since I'll be tracking what I eat, I'll be less inclined to just eat a Pop Tart and then a Hot Pocket later in the day. To have to look back on that would be embarrassing. So here's to new beginnings and bettering yourself for yourself. The only way you'll succeed if you are truly committed. I'm ready to commit. Bring it on, healthy lifestyle.
Side note: the salad pictured above is topped with grilled chicken, the recommended serving size of shredded cheese (although normally, it'd be twice that), and two hard boiled eggs. It was so tasty and filling. I'm not a dressing fan so a lack of dressing is a-okay with me. Now I just need some sunflower seeds. Ahh, so good in salads!

food and feels

These cookies (chocolate toffee) are my specialty. Matt wanted to bake the other night, but was so absorbed in his iphone game that I ended up making the cookies my damn self. Also, he broke a silicone spatula. How the eff did he do it? I don't really know. I always have to remind him that a delicate hand is required for baking, but he can get a little bit rambunctious and broke the tip off of it. I've broken the handle of a spatula before, but never the top part. Just oy. I took over, with a wooden spoon. My brother came over to look at some video that I shot. There was miscommunication and I got really upset, yet continued to make my cookies although I was crying. The entire time, I'm thinking,"Please don't let my mood influence how these taste, please please please." I'm a firm believer in your mood effecting the way your food tastes. Let me 'splain:
One time, I made tacos, but I really didn't want to. I wasn't in the mood to cook and my mom basically forced me to do them. Those tacos I did not enjoy. It wasn't cooked with care- it was done grumpily and with an attitude of just needing to get it done. In turn, my food turned out crappily. Luckily, the cookies were put together when I was in a lighter, happier mood. I put them in the oven upset. They turned out spectacularly. Both Matt and my eldest brother couldn't stop eating them. The recipe yields approximately 60 cookies. I now have just enough to give to my pal, Brian. I guess they were good.
Seriously, though, when you cook or bake, do it with love and care. Sure, the ingredients and cooking/baking time factor into how your food is going to taste, but so does your mood. Shitty mood? Fuck it. Just order take out. It'd be better than whatever porquería you slap together.

matt's birthday

Wednesday was Matt's birthday! We went out for brunch (which is when I shot the above photograph with my phone), went to the record store, and went clothes shopping. If you follow me on instagram, then you will have seen the Wu-Tang shirt that Matt bought me when we were out for his birthday. SO SO happy that I now have a Wu-Tang tee & hoodie. We got his free pound of coffee from Alterra. They always send out an email that you've got a free pound of coffee for your birthday, just sitting on your loyalty card. Ahhh, so exciting! We watched Pitch Perfect, baked his very first cake, and then saw Despicable Me 2. I felt like I was pretty boring (we read a lot in between the main activities), but Matt insists that it was a fun birthday. I'm glad! I also made him a shelving unit for all of his vinyl. I'm still working on staining it, but he did get to see it and I'm becoming quite the builder. Bob Elis the Builder!
I would have posted all of this last night, but Flickr was down for maintenance. When I glanced at twitter, Tieka of Selective Potential was in the same boat. I have more photos from the day, but I'd just like to point out that the cake recipe is from Smitten Kitchen. It was a Chocolate Butter Cake and it was delicious. My mom rarely compliments my baking (that sounds mean, but she's really picky about her sweets), but she thought it was tasty. The frosting was a quick, rich vanilla frosting from America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. If you use that recipe for the frosting, buying heavy cream for 2 tablespoons is ridiculous. Just use the milk you have on hand. The more fat content, the better. I drink whole milk (most people cringe at that) so it turned out perfectly.

happy anniversary

Matt and I celebrated our one year anniversary today, although it's actually on July 4th. Matt worked, but we got to spend a little bit of time together. Today, he made French toast and we went out for dinner. It was a relaxing, fun day.

OREO stuffed brownies

I hope you did a double take because yes, the title does say OREO stuffed brownies. A simple, not necessarily from scratch recipe that I found on Pinterest. I adapted my brownies from this recipe at With Sprinkles on Top. Here is what I did:

1 box brownie mix (I actually followed the site's suggestion and used Ghirardelli Double Chocolate brownie mix).
I prepared the brownie mix just as the box instructed.
I used a cupcake pan and liners.
I scooped just enough batter to cover the bottom of each liner.
I then placed one OREO on top of each batter filled liner.
With the rest of the brownie batter, cover the OREOS.
Bake according to brownie mix instructions.

Enjoy these with a glass of milk or vanilla bean ice cream. Either way, it is quick and tasty! I once had a variation that added peanut butter, but I was just in the mood for loads of chocolate yesterday. I'll have to try the peanut butter thing another time.

toffee chocolate chip cookies with brown butter

It has been a while since I have made cookies. Matt kept harassing me about it, but I guess it's because my mom's kitchen is so much smaller with way less counter space than the apartment. My mom always complains when I make too big of a mess, too. Chocolate can get messy! I can't help that! The last time I saw my dear Erin, she told me the next time I baked something that I should brown the butter. It makes it taste amazing. Well, Erin is a little chef in the making so I listened to her advice and it brought out the greatest flavors in the chocolate and toffee. I always use dark brown sugar, as opposed to your run of the mill light or golden brown sugar. I just prefer the way it flavors things, so rich and dark. I decided to make a variation of my chocolate toffee cookies, except I skipped the cocoa powder. Here we go:

Ingredients
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup(2 sticks) butter, browned*
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/3 cup toffee bits
*This site had really simple instructions on how to brown butter properly. It gives the cookies a nutty flavor that enhances the toffee.

1.Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2.Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
3.Beat butter, sugars, and vanilla extract in a large bowl until creamy.
4.Add one egg at a time, stirring to combine between each addition.
5.Combine flour mixture with butter-sugars-egg mixture using a plastic spatula. Add chocolate chips and toffee bits.
6.Drop a rounded tablespoonful of dough onto cookie sheet with parchment paper. Bake approximately 9-12 minutes.

tacos without store-bought seasoning

Tacos. Tacos are so good. I love a good taco. I have to stop myself from eating five. No joke. I cap myself at two...maybe three ;) My mom came home from lunch and asked me to make tacos like I made them with these thinly sliced steaks, but with ground sirloin instead. After cleaning, unpacking, and throwing so much crap away, I finally got to cooking. Cooking is so relaxing to me. I get in the zone and just go to town. I get seriously pissed if someone messes up my flow, but I was home alone to work without interruption. So, here we go:
Ingredients:

ground sirloin (ground chuck or ground beef also work)

tomato sauce

red onion (or whatever your preference)

green pepper (once again, your preference)

Adobo

Sofrito

The sofrito that I use is something that my mom makes in huge batches. If you scroll down the wiki page to the Puerto Rican version of the sofrito, it's pretty spot on for how my mom makes it, however, she just blends it all up in the food processor with olive oil and freezes it until she needs it. Ugh, so amazing, so flavorful.

The Prep:

You can brown your meat in a skillet, but I use a caldero for pretty much everything, hehe. Once the meat is browned and the excess grease is drained, add the onions and the peppers. Allow them to simmer with the meat so that it can absorb the flavors. Next, add the sofrito and allow those flavors to simmer and combine. With the tomato sauce, stir in some Adobo. The amount of Adobo is really up to you. I had to keep adding some until it was right for me. Just remember that Adobo has salt in it so you don't want to overpower everything with too much salt. So add a little at a time, to taste. Allow it all to simmer together for about five minutes and VOILA! Chow down time!

I keep my tacos simple: sour cream, cheese, and avocado if we've got it. I found out way too late that we did have some. My mom ate hers with just avocado and tomatoes. The meat comes out so flavorful that you don't really need to add a whole lot. Well, there it is. Tacos without the little store bought packets.

banana chocolate chip biscuits

I have to stay away from baking books and magazines. They give me ideas and then I have to go and execute them. As a rule, a good cookbook/cooking magazine must have pictures for every recipe. I can't believe how many cookbooks out there don't have pictures and that's fine and all, but those will stay at the bookstore. I prefer ones with pictures. So I saw a baking magazine and thought to peruse it. Mistake number one. Just flipping through it, I came across banana chocolate chip biscuits and thought that sounded amazing. I need this recipe. Mistake number two. I go to the grocery store in the middle of the night (insomnia) to gather ingredients. Mistake number three. I just finished the first round to go in the oven and holy cow, they were delicious. I added more chocolate than the recipe calls for, but that's just what I do.

I also used my new flash for bounce flash in these pictures. So many new things!

guacamole & cookies

A little tip: if your avocados aren't quite ripe, place them in a paper bag in a dark, warm place. It helps to speed the process.

Apparently, I make good guacamole. Aside from avocados, I use red onions, garlic, cilantro, lime, and salt to taste. I made enough to feed my coworkers, but I guess it wasn't enough. There were no leftovers! I guess that's a good sign.

These are my chocolate chip & toffee cookies. I've been playing around with my chocolate chip cookie recipe. Thanks to everyone who is letting me use them as my guinea pig :)

chai ice cream

Lately, I've been trying to follow Elsie's advice on 10 things not to do in photography. I think I have a good handle on my skills, but I always love to hear what others have to say. Different perspectives are important(in photography & life)! I am a major fan of successful young women who do what they love. I think that Elsie and Emma epitomize that. I constantly seek inspiration, so I frequent their blogs for such inspiration.

Shooting during the day. What a concept? I am always envious of the lighting in many pictures. My head literally goes,"The light, man! It's the light!" Sunday, I made some chai ice cream for Jessica since she was coming home from Panama. We were also going to watch Mad Men (loved it!) once she was home. I ended up also baking a white cake with chocolate frosting. Everything made from scratch! I haven't been baking a lot lately, but man, it was great!

Oh, and the chai ice cream? So delicious!