Our Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipie

Hot cocoa chocolate chip cookies

I make this with or without the hot cocoa mix. 

Ingredients:
2 and 1/4 cups All Purpose Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup powdered hot cocoa mix
1 Cup (2 sticks) Butter, softened
3/4cups packed brown sugar (minus 1T)
3/4cups granulated sugar (minus 1T)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 Cups white or regular chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream together butter and both sugars. Add cocoa mix. Add Eggs 1 at a time. Add vanilla. Slowly add in flour alternating w/salt and baking soda. Stir in chips.

Refrigerate batter before spooning or cookies will be flat. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls spoonfuls onto baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake 10-13 minutes. Allow to cool for 2-4 minutes on cookie sheet before removing to cooling rack. Makes about 3-4 dozen depending on size.


Make Mistakes, breathe, reflect, bake cookies, and Laugh.Out.Loud. at the flour all over the floor.

Ah-mazing Tomato Soup made from our Chicago Garden Tomatoes

Ah-mazingly Delicious Tomatoe Soup because our Tomatoes are Coming in. I was sad a month ago when it seemed we'd have none! However my cherry tomatoes and the large yellow and black ones are all ripening. A mix of these variety gives the soup a delicious taste. Bon Apetit! 

Tomato Soup Ingredients

2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil 

1 Tbs. unsalted butter 

1 large white onion, finely chopped 

1 large clove garlic, smashed and peeled 

2 Tbs. all-purpose flour 

3 cups lower-salt chicken broth 

28-oz. can whole peeled plum tomatoes, puréed (include the juice) **

1-1/2 tsp. sugar 

1 sprig fresh thyme 

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 

3 Tbs. thinly sliced fresh basil, chives, or dill, or a mixture of all three (omit if using one of the garnishes below) 

Tip: If you don;t have an immersion blender (get one, because otherwise you have to) be sure to purée in small batches and crack the blender lid slightly (or remove the center cap from the lid). Steam can build up once you start blending, and if the lid is on tight or the blender is overfilled, it will spray hot soup all over you and your kitchen. For protection, cover the top with a dishtowel while puréeing. 

**We used our FRESH Tomatoes from the garden. A wide variety this year too.
 


In a nonreactive 5- to 6-quart Dutch oven, heat the oil and butter over medium-low heat until the butter melts. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft but not browned, about 8 minutes. Add the flour and stir to coat the onion and garlic. > > Add the broth, tomatoes, sugar, thyme, and 1/4 tsp. each salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat while stirring the mixture to make sure that the flour is not sticking to the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 40 minutes. 

Discard the thyme sprig. Let cool briefly and then purée in two or three batches in a blender or food processor. Rinse the pot and return the soup to the pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Reheat if necessary. Serve warm but not hot, garnished with the herbs or dolloped with one of the garnishes below. 

Make Ahead Tips: This soup stores beautifully and tastes better the second day. You can keep it in the refrigerator as long as you bring it to a boil every two days. Or you can stash it in the freezer for up to three months. 

Serving Suggestions:

 To add a creamy touch, try one of these garnishes: 

Serve w grilled cheese. 

Sour cream, goat cheese & Parmesan garnish: In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup sour cream with 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese. Add 1 Tbs. freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, 1 Tbs. thinly sliced chives, and 1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil. Mix thoroughly and season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add a dollop to each serving. 

Crème fraîche, herb & horseradish garnish: In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup crème fraîche with 1 Tbs. minced fresh dill and 1 Tbs. minced scallion. Add 1/2 Tbs. well-drained prepared white horseradish and mix well. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add a dollop to each serving. 

Nutrition information (per serving): 

Calories (kcal): 110; Fat (g): fat g 5; Fat Calories (kcal): 50; Saturated Fat (g): sat fat g 1.5; Protein (g): protein g 3; Monounsaturated Fat (g): 3; Carbohydrates (g): carbs g 11; Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 0.5; Sodium (mg): sodium mg 430; Cholesterol (mg): cholesterol mg 5; Fiber (g): fiber g 2; 

Make Mistakes, breathe, reflect and Laugh.Out.Loud.

I wanna have some Pancakes with you - an Unwritten Song. Pancake Recipe Included

I am so happy to take some notes here about the Pancake song. You know how you stand over the stove and prep the batter, this little melody just popped in my mind as I poured batter into the pan, and my littles waited at the breakfast table. 

I wanna have some Pancakes with you, an Unwritten Song. Pancake Recipe Included

From: I wanna eat some pancakes with you! Summer 2015 > > 

The Summer Routine > >  eating. . . 

Being a mom, staying at home, can feel mundane. You are a slave to the stove, snack queen, mediator of the sibling rivalry, etc. Etc.  While I am making pancakes this morning, a moment of I can't believe I'm cooking ... again ... overtook me. However we aren't rushing. 

Eventho I sort of put this burden on myself (since we don't eat cereal every morning) and the kids eat something fresh everyday! Toast and fruit, leftovers, potato pancakes, etc. 

Today I am making pancakes from scratch, but we are not rushed - we have very little planned. We are on summer break, so why rush? The schedule today calls for some vintage shopping and the beach. I can use an iron skillet, and put a pat of butter before I ladle each little pancake. If course its more time consuming working on a small iron skillet (in the bottom photo I used my mom's skillet, but at home it's my 'plancha' from when we got married for heating tortillas - way too small), but ridiculously yummy too!! 

You know that moment as a parent - we feel it deep inside that we are nourishing our kids - and with the best ingredients we can. I was careful not to burn pancakes, or walk away from the stove to get the just right finish on them, . .  That just feeds my mommy soul.

When little younger son was born I think this song started. I would hum "I wanna have some pancakes with you. Oh don'tcha know it, Pancakes with you, I wanna show it." - Then one day I asked - as if a lyric was written - wanna add banana - or chocolate chips? What a yummy treat! "Pancakes with you, with you, love you."

The kids get plates and forks for breakfast, my older son came in the kitchen mid pancake making and started playing the iPad songs. By the time I get thru the batch of pancakes, and last few cup size pieces they are discussing their dreams, Men in Black and Donna Summers "I survive" which is playing on the ipad. Baby girl always adds a bonus to our time together: she was practicing her ballet spins. 

As we eat We will talk about the plan for the day and "make a plan." We posted about making a plan to help manage kids expectations here.

If you want the song lyrics I wanna have some pancakes with you song - they are here.

 Our recipe: "I wanna have some Pancakes with you" pancake recipe

・ 2 eggs 

・ 1 cup flour 

・ 1 cup whole milk or buttermilk 

・ Pinch of salt 

・ 2 teaspoons flat baking powder 

・ 1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil 

・ Several pats of butter 

・ Iron Skillet if you have one 

・ Add ons: either: chocolate chips, Banana slices, Blueberries or what ever mix in you enjoy from the fridge 

Pancake making instructions - the Steps: 

IN a large bowl, make a flower mound, put a circle hole in the middle with your spoon (think volcano projects) and cracked the eggs in to be in that area, begin to incorporate flour, and slowly start to add milk and continue whisking. 

Watch out for lumps - however don't worry if you have them. These are part of the homemade fun. Keep whisking. The secret to NOT getting lumps for me - is to add milk slowly to the bowl (1/8 - 1/4 cup at a time and keep on whisking. 

Warm the skillet, add a pat of butter, ladle in a quarter cup of pancakes - in small sizes. WHY? I just hate flipping large pancakes, or under cooking the center. So small makes for easy consistent meals.

The recipe here can make approximately 30 small pancakes. 

Layer in your chips or banana slices (or chips or fruit) into the freshly poured batter. Then take a spoon and just smooth over the banana slice with the freshly poured pancake batter with some of the batter on the cakes - it hasn't hardened yet.

Heat until one side is golden brown, (2 mins depending on your pan and the heat. The first batch it takes approximately three minutes, in sequential batches it'll take 1 to 2 minutes each side. 

After you clear the pancakes from the pan, add another pat of butter before adding more of the batter, this just adds an extra nice flavor to each batch of pancakes. 

As for the song, I wanna eat my pancakes with you . . . I'll write it one day. Until then the mellody is in my head.

Make Mistakes, breathe, reflect and Laugh.Out.Loud AND SING! 

a quickr pickr post

Homemade No Milk Pancakes Recipe, I promised to make Pancakes and I have no milk!!

I made pancakes last night, with milk recipe, and I added a touch of cinnamon. Well, more then a touch. My younger son sampled them first. His eyes so big starring a the yummy pile on the plate. He took two ties and started coughing. The cinnamon was so strong it gave a sensation of a scratchy cough :-( To make our cravings go away I agreed to make pancakes again tomorrow. Here's how to Homemade No Milk Pancakes Recipe, I promised to make Pancakes and I have no milk!!

Homemade No Milk Pancakes Recipe, I promised to make Pancakes and I have no milk!!, a photo by areyousureaboutthatblog on Flickr.

So today, which is the day after our cinnamon pancakes, I promised him my regular sweet pancakes....

However I opened the fridge and we are out of milk - thank you internet access!!

Here's a modified version of a Recipie I found. It makes the batter a bit runny, and the pancakes are nice and light. I'd use just under a touch of the 3/4 cup of water.

No milk pancakes

1 cup flour

2 tsp sugar

pinch of salt

2 flat tsp baking powder

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp olive oil

3/4 cup of water

Optional: pats of butter

1/2 cup frozen blueberries (if you have fresh the pancakes will be less moist)

2 tsp sugar

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

Instructions:

Pre heat the pan on low. Combine the first 4 ingredients. I make a small hill and make a whole in the middle for the eggs. I scramble them and incorporate flour slowly. Then I alternate water and oil as I whisk - add vanilla - keep whisking and alternating. Guaranteed no lumps!

Let the batter rest. Combine in a bowl the blueberries and sugar. I don't add mine to the batter because they tend to sink to the bottom, so I prefer to add my blueberries Into the pancake ought after I've poured them into the pan.

After I run out of blueberries I start making pancakes with the chocolate chips.

Increase the pan heat slightly (between medium and low). Using a 1 cup ladle I make 4 small pancakes in my 11" pan. Add the blueberries, I add 5-6 per pancake, there nice and moist with this amount. Add pat of butter in the center of the pan. Do not press down at any point. 

After 1-2 minutes the pancake will start to brown. Flip the pancake. You'll need slightly longer on this side, the blueberries make the pancake extra moist on this side.

I put a plate on the stovetop (not heated) and stack the pancakes here. They stay warm this way. 

Yummy pancakes saved by water!

Make mistakes Breathe. Google a solution. And Laugh.Out.Loud

Baby Supplies... Part II... What Do You Really Need for Growing withBaby?

And more importantly change your habits around their (baby) needs. 

Along with making new habits for you, comes the basics of caring for a new person.

- Feed baby

- Clothe baby

- Change baby's diaper

- Let baby sleep, regularly.

When you walk into a chain baby supply store it can be overwhelming. Do I buy or register? If both, what do I buy? Do I need a diaper disposal system? Which Crib is best? What kind of Stroller do we need? What’s a travel system? Look at all these cute clothes!!! Bathing in a bath tub or a sink? (Is the sink thing a typo? Nope) Register for a college fund? Already!? And life insurance? UGH! 

Below I tried to outline the most common items that we did need and the some good questions to think about when you are shopping. This blog is called "are you sure about that..." So I my comments on what you don’t need and why. I've included my baby registry list. It's what we really needed for baby.

Saving Money

Oh yeah, and then there is saving money. I know that many, many, many people can buy the most expensive stroller, crib set and designer cloths for baby. But I am a practical mom, and I am going green (environmental stuff). So I don’t want to spend my hard earned cash on all baby stuff (which I won't need anymore within one-year). I just want the things I need, and then some of what I really want.... of course!

Still reading? Good. Just keep an open mind, we are on a journey right? Well, along the way on this trip you are going to hopefully hear some great ideas, and some you might think are strange. But stick with me, and you can decide which ones you like for your lifestyle. Deal? OK, keep reading.

A real practical easy to remember tip is you want things to “grow with baby.” Convertible, Stretchable, Changeable. Cloths, Strollers, chairs, cribs, you name it. Get the one that will covert and “grow with baby.”

Consider with any baby item you think you need what's Practical vs. the Trend: Really decide how important the item you want is. Will it "grow with baby?" Is it for YOU, just to say look at my baby? Or is it for baby to live better? Well if you really want to save money, these are the hard questions.


Cloth Diapers.

THESE are not your mom’s diapers! These are new, awesome, and not gross! I am a practical mom, not hard core green tho. We use cloth diapers at home (which is an insert into an "envelope" type water proof cover) with my older first son, then when we went out and about in the world we took disposable diapers. Now, the cloth diapers I mention in the next section can easily be taken on trips with baby, but we chose to integrate with disposable.

Here you need to plan how often you want to wash this extra load of laundry. No ou shouldn't wash diapers with your baby clothes. You can use a diaper service too. We choose every other day for laundry, so we needed about 26 diapers. I also choose a brand that grows with baby - not infant size - but elastic and button options to resize them.

 

It's been 8 years since my diaper days with older so and the cloth diaper market has grown. In 2005 you could only but diapers online or through mail order parent magazine ads. Now cloth diapers are in stores like Target and Baby giant retailers. Lots of colors too - not just white like in his baby days. 

As for longevity - there great. It's 2013 and baby girl is being potty trained with the same diapers. I cared for them cautiously, so they aren't stained or falling apart. I always soaked them in a 1:1 vinager water ratio in the diaper bin while waiting to be washed. An used a gentle laundry soap to limit wear on them.

Homemade Baby Food. 

Easier then you think. There is an easy, fast, and inexpensive way to feed your baby as they grow! 

I did buy baby food books and the best was "Mommy Made." She quickly review health benefits of homemade food and eating real fruits and veggies. And there the simplest baby food ideas. It's not even really a recipie. More of a habit to incorporate into your life.

Having a baby is fun, in between the “work.” So consider what you want, what you need, and what you are about to learn you need!

Registry.

Do register for “convenience” items or in things you want to splurge on. My husband told a friend this once: “You may not really need it, but it would be nice to have.” Like we had a baby bottle warmer in the nursery. Practical, not really. You can always run downstairs to warm the milk, but who wants to walk all the way to the kitchen at 2 a.m. on the 12th night in a row? I didn’t. This item was a hand me down that I didn’t even think I needed. Glad I had it and you will to!

· Do consider the “life span” of the product – will it last through more babies that you may want?

- consider Baby Supplies that Grow with Baby

We bought a high chair from 2 months (gentle reclined position) to converting into a seat for over 1 year olds. 

Our stroller converted from a 4 month old recline position to a seated position. I also recommend splurging a little for a "terrain" stroller. A large front wheel over 8 inches - little dinky wheels are a pain I maneuver especially as baby gets bigger and heavier.

Register for visa gift cards versus store specific so ou can order from websites and places YOU prefer. 

Make sure you read Part I of this post series... About what your baby really needs: YOU!!

The Days are long, the years are short. 

Easy Garden Pasta

We have a small garden that we tend too at home, nearly year round. The boys help pick what we grow each season, plant the seeds, weed and hardest our produce.

Our cherry tomatoes, which we planted waaayyyyy too many off, are coming in. During nap time I started the dish. While my pasta was boiling, for 8 minutes, I went out and picked a bowl full of tomatoes.

I washed and cut the tomatoes into quarters. I drained the pasta, and in the pasta pot, heated some olive oil, and sauted 4 chopped cloves of garlic for 5 minutes on low. Tossed in the tomatoes and sauted for an additional 6 minutes or so. Yes that whole bowl of tomatoes because we are making a big bath of pasta.

Added some fresh chopped green onions for moms bowl. 

Bag of pasta $0.89 cents. 

Everything else was in the pantry and garden.

Yes it was very yummy!! 

Make mistakes, breath, reflect and Laugh.Out.Loud