“The secret ingredient is always love. ”
I love to bake. I feel it is one of my lifelong passions and a way for me to love others. For me, baking is such an interesting intersection between science and art. I have linked several recipes below. I am not affiliated with any of these sites, I just like to share the sites I enjoy and support the bakers and creators out there making great stuff.
Go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe
As a self proclaimed Cookie Monster, a go-to recipe for great chocolate chip cookies is a must.
I like a soft middle, crispy edges, deep buttery flavor, and lots of gooey chocolate. I’ve tried many recipes including the one on the back of the Nestle chocolate chip bag. My most recent favorite recipe comes from the site JoyFoodSunshine (what a great name!). Here’s the link:
This recipe works for several reasons. The best is that it consistently works. The combination of brown and white sugar gives depth of flavor as well as chewiness. The salted butter provides a savory balance. And the cookie base provides a jumping off point for adding chocolate chunks, other types of chips, or even sprinkles. Enjoy!
This is my very own Cookie Monster who makes my baking time even more fun!
A family tradition for over 70 years
Every year before Christmas rolls around, my mom and I make thousands of these little butter cookies. Before that, it was the two of us plus my grandmother. And before that it was just my mom and her mom.
These butter cookies cure in tins until they are packaged up and given out to family and friends.
I love the whole process involved. From making the dough and putting it in the cookie press, extruding out perfect little forms, the smell of them baking and the extra sugar burning at the bottom of the oven, and then long anticipated wait for them to cure. But above all that, I love that it is a tradition to give them all away. It is a great way to close out a year and share some joy with people we care about.
Carrot cake made with coconut oil, delicious!
Homemade Oreos fit for any Cookie Monster
Easiest way to make great biscuits, no cutting butter
Foods can transport you
Have you ever smelled or bit in to a particular food, only to be whisked away to a memory?
Every time I get the chance to eat a delicious & juicy cantaloupe, I think about a great vacation memory.
When I was around 8, my family went on a Disney cruise. At the end of the cruise, we spent a couple of days in Cocoa Beach, Florida. We went with our very good friends who are like family. Everyone was ready to hit the beach and take in the sun. Then a random rain storm hit.
The parents decided we should go sit by the pool and see if the storm passed. To our delight, it was just rain and no lightening in sight. Everyone else at the hotel had gone inside. My dad decided we might as well make the best of it, so we jumped in the pool. Next to the pool was a bar that was serving fresh fruit.
It was the best cantaloupe I have ever had. But more than that was the delightful memory it created of us all being together and enjoying the moment. I love thinking about that fun time.