Puffy, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Book Update: Spring break is here! I am sad in a way because the temperature for this week hovers around freezing for a high. Personally, I was hoping to take the kids to the zoo, museum, etc. Instead… I’m not so sure. Even the beach looks pathetic — their high temperature is only 60. Unfortunately, my children took my blonde hair away from me… and my seasonal allergies. I’ve never had allergies since I had Maddox 6 years ago. But, the two of them have had puffy, red eyes and drippy noses ever since our Easter Egg hunt this afternoon. I tried researching seasonal allergies and diet, but nothing really came up except for eating local honey.

Last night I finished reading “Love Trumps Grief” by Kristin Akin. She is a fellow St. Louis mom whose children had a rare immune disorder called HLH. Both of her boys died from complications of their bone marrow transplants and the book is her journey through it all. Just horrific. It is a story of faith, medicine and morality. How do you decide when enough is enough? Good question.

Hopefully a little more cheerful: I checked out from the library “The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite” by David Kessler. It might take a while since I recently discovered Masterpiece Theater’s “Downton Abbey.” 😉

Recipe: These chocolate chip cookies were delicious. If you love thicky, puffy, chewy chocolate chip cookies, then these are for you! Everyone LOVED them. Personally, I like Alton Brown’s recipe just a little bit more. But make no mistake, these cookies were gone in less than 5 minutes at my rehearsal.

Oh, feel free to explore this website some more! I have finally gone through EVERY post I have ever written and added categories to all of them. No more “Uncategorized” posts! Woo hoo!

Puffy, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
36 cookies

3/4 cup butter, soft
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg, room temp.
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups (10 oz.) AP flour
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 and 1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

1. It’s the creaming method! Woo hoo! Take a large bowl and toss in your butter and sugar. Beat that for about 1-2 minutes on medium until light and fluffy.
2. Add your egg and vanilla. Scrape the bowl to make sure everything is mixed well.
3. In another smaller bowl, mix your dry stuff: flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Add the dry to the wet, and mix on low. Stick the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. There’s no baking powder involved, so even making them the next day shouldn’t hurt. Or put the dough on a baking sheet to flash freeze the dough ball and ~~eat~~ bake them later.
4. Turn your oven on to 350.
5. Make 1 Tb. size dough balls. I use my medium cookie scoop for this. Bake them for 8-9 minutes. Cool on the cookie sheet for about 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.