Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Wow.  I've never actually posted a recipe for chocolate chip cookies.  It kind of makes me feel like a fraud of a food blogger.  I mean, I did post my M&M Cookies which were adapted from my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, but I've never done a traditional chocolate chip recipe.  But these were definitely worth the wait.  Chewy cookies with a perfectly golden shell that gently crack and break to reveal the chewy cookie insides and speckled with chocolate chips throughout.  These are the epitome of chocolate chip cookies.  If you are a fan of the chewy version, this is a recipe you must try.

Thumbing through my King Aurthur Cookie Companion Cookbook, I found the Essential Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe and thought this was exactly the kind of comfort cookie I needed.  Some were going to be for sharing, but the leftovers would go in the cookie jar and I wanted something simple and delicious.  This recipe did not let me down.  Easy to make, simple ingredients and ending in a lovely, delicious and chewy cookie, I know I'll be making these again and again.

English Muffin Bread

This was one of those breads when as soon as I saw the recipe, I knew I needed to make it and I couldn't quite explain why.  Maybe it was the novel concept of turning and English muffin into a whole loaf of bread.  And wondering if it would still have nooks and crannies for all the yummy goodness I'd put on top.  So I made this loaf.  And then sent it to my Grandma for her birthday with some jars of jam. She's a huge fan of bread and jam, and even though I hadn't yet tasted this, I knew she'd love it (she did).  But I couldn't very well post a recipe for you without having tried it.  so I finally got a chance to make this again and again I was impressed with the simplicity of the recipe.  Better still, these slices really do taste like an English muffin.  Airy and chewy, I enjoyed some slices lightly toasted with blueberry jam that made its way into the nooks, as well as stuffed full of sandwich fixin's.

Michelle at Brown Eyed Baker really knows how to come up with a fun recipe that blurs the lines between traditional standards and new twists.  I appreciated that the bread pan is dusted with cornmeal to give you that extra touch from an English muffin.  Plus, this recipe is easy with or without a stand mixer.  I used a stand mixer the first time I made this, but then just used a bowl and whisk the second time around.  Both turned out very well, with the doughs being soft and easy to incorporate all the ingredients.  I'm excited to keep this bread in my rotation.  It's great for sandwiches or a quick slice for breakfast.  But I also think it might make a nice french toast too. Or adapt it to a cinnamon raisin version by swapping brown sugar for the sugar, adding cinnamon and mixing in raisins.  I love a recipe with options!

Mom's Picnic Potato Salad

This is my mom's recipe.  And I'm still kind of shocked that I replicated it exactly enough to spark up memories of my mom elbow deep in a big vat of this potato salad because "it's just easier to use your hands" to mix this stuff.  My mom was a pretty decent cook.  She didn't go over the top (she was far more interested in fun and family than spending all day in the kitchen), but she had a small arsenal of recipes that were just damn good.  Most of which she rarely wrote down or even followed the same recipe twice.  But she got this potato salad down pat and for family picnics or community gatherings, it was one of the dishes she made every time.  It's got a perfect seasoning, a good ratio of chopped veggies to eggs and potatoes to dressing.  And let's talk about that dressing. It's not heavy and you could certainly use a light version of Miracle Whip without sacrificing any flavor or consistency.  Yes, I said Miracle Whip.  It's a must--the fact that it tastes different from regular mayonnaise is exactly what sets this recipe apart from other potato salads.  And again, you're getting a lot of the creaminess here from the eggs after mixing.  It's really not a huge amount of dressing compared to the rest of the ingredients, and you can actually distinctly taste each flavor rather than using the potatoes as a delivery vehicle for mayo.

Twelve years ago Mom, as a board member of a community organization, was asked to put together a fundraiser in the form of a community cookbook.  Mom compiled lots of recipes from the neighborhood and she and I both included some of our favorite, most-asked-for options.  Just before Memorial Day I got a little down thinking that I never got Mom's potato salad recipe.  On a whim, I checked out my copy of A Taste of Greater Hazelwood and couldn't believe it.  The same recipe that my mother never measured anything for was the first one listed under the "Soups, Salads and Sauces" section.  It was worth a shot, but I was convinced it wouldn't taste the same since Mom never measured.  But it's spot on.  I smiled and almost cried when I tasted, eager to get Dave's opinion ("That's the stuff, all right!") and looking forward to sharing it at future family gatherings.  You can double this recipe, no problem.  In fact, you could probably triple or quadruple it, but you'll need a really big bowl to do the mixing.  When Mom had to make more than a double batch, she would make two double batches just to make it easier to mix.  Whatever quantity you go with, I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family has.

Banana Bars with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

Again with the bananas.  But bananas are super versatile and clearly want to be turned into delicious desserts and lovely baked goods or else they wouldn't turn overripe so quickly.  So I'm actually doing the bananas a favor.   And these bars are yet another example of how to make a delicious treat with what you have on hand.  Perfect.  Moist with a pleasant banana flavor and a hint of cinnamon, the cakey bars are a nice treat.   Topped with a bit of cinnamon cream cheese frosting and this is the perfect match for a cup of coffee at a morning meeting--or at least that's what I understand from my coworkers.  I brought a few leftovers home and then Cindy came over.  She finished the last two and didn't even realize she'd polished off the second one since they are so light and yummy. 

Another recipe from Jaclyn at Cookin' Classy, I really like how she incorporated the lower fat alternatives of sour cream and applesauce instead of just butter or oil.  These small changes still allowed for a light and fluffy cake without sacrificing any flavor.  While I didn't use Jaclyn's cream cheese frosting recipe (I had some leftover frosting in the fridge from another recipe and just added some cinnamon to it), I've included it below for your benefit.  Alternatively, you could probably skip the frosting and do a cinnamon sugar streusel with the nuts mixed it.  Either way, you're in for a lovely alternatively to banana bread.  Instead of pecans, I used walnuts, which were classically delicious with the banana flavored bars.  Also, I added a bit of cinnamon to the batter because it's such a great pairing and I don't think it overwhelmed the bars when topped with the frosting.  I did cut my bars into 24, because I thought 12 would make bars that were just too big. I like to offer small tastes that you can go back for seconds rather than just one big serving, but do what comes naturally to you, because it will still be tasty.

Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake

Cake? Check. Chocolate chips? Check.  Delicious streusel-y topping? Check.  Words can barely describe this recipe and all it's lovely, tasty glory.  I took this to work for a meeting, and was a little surprised that only a few pieces were consumed during the meeting.  Following the meeting, I put the rest of pan in the office kitchen.  Within an hour it was devoured.  Looking at the empty pan, I turned to a coworker and said, "I hate it when nobody likes the food I make."  It was so bad that at one point I went into the kitchen and someone had eaten just the streusel topping off of one piece! (Seriously--that's just mean. Take the whole piece so someone doesn't feel cheated of their crumbly yummy, sugary goodness sprinkled on top).  But apparently that didn't matter because the next time I went in, the pan was empty--including the piece naked of it's topping!  (I do hope it was the same person that came back for the rest.)

I wanted to make coffee cake for this meeting, but I wasn't really excited about any of the recipes I had on hand.  So to the interwebs I went, starting with some of my favorite foodie blogs.  I knew I wouldn't be disappointed with anything from Maria and Josh at Two Peas and Their Pod.  Clearly, neither were my coworkers. The cake baked up light and fluffy with addition of sour cream and I'm big fan of spreading the streusel-y topping around, so I like the idea of putting part of it in the middle and the rest on top.  Plus chocolate chips and cinnamon sugar is a hugely wonderful combination.  Totally delicious.  I've got to make this again real soon--I only got a piece and Dave didn't get any!