Vic's Favorite Cookie {that I make}

I hear this is a common thing – wives that can’t quite make foods “just like mom’s” for their husband. In our house, this is the case with chocolate chip cookies. Even though I asked my MIL what recipe she used {the one off the back of Nestle Toll House chocolate chips}, I’ve tried to get mine to turn out just like hers to no avail. I’ve bought identical ingredients {even using – gasp! – the same brand of margarine she used [I bake w/butter only]}, but mine have never come close to looking or tasting like hers.

Don’t get me wrong, Vic likes my chocolate chip cookies{as evidenced by the swiftness in which they disappear from our house}, but I’ve given in to the fact that my chocolate chip cookies will never be his favorite version of the classic.

PS: In my humble opinion, after perfecting the technique this past year, I make a GORGEOUS looking chocolate chip cookie {and I’ve been told they taste good too!}!

That being said, I was determined to make a cookie that he’d LOVE. And this is IT!

As adapted from the back of the Hershey Kisses package {they call them “peanut butter blossoms”}:

Peanut Butter Kisses
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter {I use JIF, and probably closer to 1 cup}

1/2 cup shortening {I use Crisco}
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
2 tbs. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1-1/2 cup all-purpose flour {I use 1/2 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup unbleached white flour}
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
Additional white sugar for rolling
 ~30-36 Hershey Kisses {most of a bag}

1. Heat oven to 375*.

2. Beat shortening and peanut butter together in a large bowl until well blended. Add both sugars and beat until fluffy. Add egg, milk and vanilla, then beat well.

3. In a seperate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Gradually beat the flour mixture into the peanut butter mixture.

4. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in sugar, then place on an ungreased cookie sheet. {TIP: They don't spread much, so you can bake a lot at once.}

5. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned on top {cookies will crack around the edges, too}. While they bake, unwrap the kisses.

6. As soon as you pull the cookies out of the oven, press a kiss onto the top of each one. Remove from cookie sheet and allow to cool completely on a wire rack {Vic likes them cold and hard, from the fridge!}.

The recipe says it makes about 4 dozen, but I usually get about 30 cookies... I guess mine are much bigger than what they make!
 

 

I love making cookies {more recipes to come!}, so lucky for me, Valentino will have a wide variety of “Mom’s” cookies to call his favorite… sorry future daughter-in-law!

A colorful cake to celebrate half a decade

Only two more days until my one and only child turns five. I can't believe it.

We had some early festivities with the neighbor boys today to kick off his big day:

Inspired by Pinterest... super easy!

I love to make the cake for Valentino's birthday, and I'm always trying to make it special somehow. This cake was a hit visually {even though at first, Valentino asked me "why is there an 'S' on my cake?"} and everyone agreed it tasted great to boot.

Inspired by an image I've seen floating around on Pinterest {I hadn't even read nor pinned it myself}, I simply baked a 2 rounds w/boxed cake mix {Betty Crocker's chocolate fudge mix} but subsituted 1% milk for the water the directions called for. Then I frosted the cake as usual {with Betty Crocker's chocolate frosting}. Next, I sketched a "5" on parchment paper {although I think maybe wax paper might've been a better choice...} and cut it out. I set the cutout on the cake then went to town with Wilton's rainbow non-pareils. Removing the parchment paper was tedious, as it stuck really bad to the frosting {of course}. I ended up using a toothpick to coax it free. After it was removed, I smoothed out the frosting inside the 5 - and there you have it! Pretty fool-proof. 

Tuesday is the boy's actual birthday, so Vic and I have taken the day off. We're headed to the North Carolina State Fair - something we haven't missed since we moved here in 2010. It's a pretty good time - the weather is usually perfect, the food is great, the rides are fun {though $$!}, and there's a BMX stunt show. Valentino has a great time, and Vic and I enjoy the people watching and atmosphere.

In other news, we had a fabulous weekend, even though of course, it's ending too soon. We explored two new-to-us places yesterday - Durant Road Nature Park and North Wake Landfill Park {not as weird as it sounds!} - and enjoyed the gorgeous weather {I even got a bit sunburned!}. I am not ready to go back to work, but knowing that I have Tuesday off keeps me going :o)

Recent Recipe Review - Samoa Bark

It's no secret that I ADORE pinterest (see?!), even more than those Samoa Girl Scout cookies that I've loved since my super-chunk childhood. Judging by the number of Samoa cookie (or the PC term, eh-hem "Coconut De-lites" - if I were Samoan, I wouldn't care that such a delicious cookie was named after me!!) re-makes and adaptations on Pinterest, I'm not alone in my love of caramel-coconut love.

I pinned this recipe for Samoa Bark a couple weeks ago (originally from here). I tweaked it a bit to fit my budget and 8x8 pan size - my mods are in parenthesis.

SAMOA BARK

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate + 2 oz for drizzle {3/4 of a bag of chocolate chips total, which was way too much chocolate for my liking, though Vic went crazy for it!}

35-40 shortbread cookies {Half a bag of Pepperidge Farm Chessman cookies}

14 oz bag of caramels {1/2-3/4 bag of Kraft's caramel bits}

3 cups sweetened flaked coconut {1.5c}

3 Tbsp water {1.5tbsp}

1. Line a baking sheet with foil. Set aside.
2. Melt 12 oz of semi-sweet chocolate over a double boiler or in the microwave. {I microwaved}.
3. Spread the melted chocolate to your desired thickness. {I wish I had gone thin-ish}.
4. Top your warm chocolate evenly with your shortbread cookies.
5. Place baking sheet in freezer while you do the next steps. {I let it sit overnight}
6. In a non-stick skillet on medium-low heat, toast your coconut, stirring occasionally. This will take about 10 minutes or so, but be watchful because once it starts to brown it happens quickly and you do not want to burn the coconut! When the coconut is toasted, set aside.
7. Meanwhile unwrap all your caramels and place them in a medium saucepan along with 2 Tbsp of water over medium-low heat. {I microwaved the caramel bits 30 seconds at a time}
8. Stir continuously until the caramel has JUST melted. You don’t want to over heat the caramel, as it will make it hard. Immediately fold in your toasted coconut.
9. Remove your chocolate from the freezer and spread the caramel/coconut evenly on top.
10. Melt your remaining 2 oz of chocolate using whatever melting process you prefer and drizzle over the top of the caramel/coconut.
11. Put back in the freezer for 5 minutes to set the chocolate.
12. Cut and enjoy!

I thought this was a great recipe, and not time consuming at all. However, I made the chocolate base way to thick and therefore the semi-sweet chocolate taste was overwhelming to me (I couldn't really taste the coconut/caramel).

I recommend storing these in the fridge until you are ready to serve them - the chocolate is very, very melt-y (you will get chocolatey hands while eating). Vic had chocolate on the side of his thumb - I warned him of it, and as he went to lick it off, I said "Is it chocolate or poop?" Name that movie ;-)