chocolate chip cookies – Big Little Meals

The Times They Are A-changin’

March 1, 2022 / Leave a Comment

It’s a little hard, given what’s going on in the world, to write a light-hearted blog. At least without sounding tone-deaf. Suffice it to say, the news makes us disgruntled and dismayed. Maybe that’s what got Andy started on today’s Andy’s Corner. If we try to look on the positive side of things, are we “gruntled” and “mayed?”

The Times They Are A-changin’. Yes, everything – almost – makes me think of Bob Dylan and his lyrics. Which in turn reminds me of Heraclitus – who reportedly said “Nothing is constant but change” – or to put it another way, using the more apropos Greek: Panta Rhei (“life is flux”).

Andy and I got blindsided over Thanksgiving when L.A. friends were visiting. Vivi, our friends’ 11-year-old daughter, had joined us at the dinner table and was listening to our conversation when we casually mentioned “Raggedy Ann and Andy.” Vivi looked perplexed and innocently asked “Who are Raggedy Ann and Andy?”

We were devastated.

Can it possibly be that Generation Z-ers don’t know who Raggedy Ann and Andy are?

I had thought about entitling this blog “Forgotten But Not Gone.” But maybe we can’t even hope for that as times change and we move on. Here’s a site which is definitely worth checking out. It lists some of the favorite toys for each decade beginning with 1900. In 1900 my grandmother would have been about 11 years old. I was curious if I would recognize any toys she may have played with. Can you guess what the most popular toy was? Crayons. And Raggedy Ann and Andy top the 1920 list. I might mention that Mr Potato Head (1950s), Etch-a-Sketch (1960’s), and The Rubik’s Cube (1980’s) are also on the list. Is it possible that Vivi wouldn’t know about those either? Or are The Raggedys especially forgettable?

Coming right on top of the Raggedy incident was another one, further reminding me that all things change. Nothing is forever. Our son, Travis, who visited us for several weeks – made possible by our new work-at-home phenomenon – off-handedly mentioned that he just realized that we’re not supposed to be double-spacing at the end of sentences. WHAT? Since WHEN? Well, some quick research indicates that I’m not the only one out of sync. The Smithsonian Mag has a helpful review of the “two space” issue. And The Atlantic reported on a scientific study on this controversy.

Even more interesting about 2 spaces is the fact that WordPress, which is our host for this blog, has been automatically changing my 2 spaces to 1 space – and I hadn’t even realized it. Wow. This is huge.

And now on to recipes. Someone online posted a recipe from an old box of C&H cane sugar. It was for Raggedy Ann Cookies. Perfect. For remembrance.

Raggedy Ann Cookies – for remembrance. Note: I updated this a bit in the recipe below.

Then I thought about Space Cookies – to represent my new one-space awareness. When I looked up Space Cookies two things came up over and over. The most ho-hum is about the chocolate chip cookies baked in space by astronauts in the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft 2 years ago. But Space Cookies is also a “new, flavorful weed strain…”a hybrid that orbits on a cloud of sweetness with the booster power to blast you to the stars.” You may not all be interested in growing that – but we know some who may be. Wink, wink. And we probably know some who might be interested in baking some edibles by infusing chocolate chip cookies with weed, maybe even using the Space Cookies variety. Cookies in cookies. Oh my.

Space Cookies…”feminized.” Sounds interesting to me.

You can’t beat our recipe for Ultimate Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies, which we posted back in 2018. And here’s a link from Food52.com for how to infuse your butter with cannabis before making our yummy chocolate chip cookies. You might even go so far as use infused butter in the Raggedy Ann cookies. Good luck with that to all of you weed-lovers out there. LMK how they turn out. 🙂

But if you’re not interested in weed-infused cookies, rest assured that these are totally delicious as they are. They are only mildly sweet (if made with unsweetened coconut) – with a great crispiness. The Raggedy Ann Cookies will keep well for a number of days in an air-tight container and will freeze well too. We’ll definitely remember them the next time we need a cookie fix!

…

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Chocolatte and Chocolate – or Chunks and Chips

August 28, 2018 / 6 Comments

Screen Shot 2018-08-12 at 7.28.16 AM — Our Siamese cat Chocolatte – who is a Chunk – hanging out in our Japanese maple pot

I’ve been obsessing about our cats this week; Andy – in Andy’s Corner – is thinking about flies.

Two years ago we adopted a tiny kitten, whom we named “Chocolatte” – but we shorten to “Choco.” We thought that our name was SO clever: a Chocolate Point Siamese named Chocolatte. Think about it: creamy latte-colored body and chocolate coffee-colored points. But then he matured – and became a Seal Point with almost black, not chocolate, markings. Oh well.

There’s something about Siamese. You either really love ’em or you really hate ’em. Yes, they’re often arrogant and difficult and demanding – more so than the average Joe Schmoe cat. Nonetheless, we fall into the the really love ’em category. While we’ve talked (incessantly?) about our Aussie(s), we haven’t said much about our history of Siamese, starting out with Zero, whom we have affectionately dubbed “The Prince of Cats.” We acquired Zero at the pound in Baton Rouge, having left Raggedy to live with my Aunt Helen after our move from Fort Collins to Baton Rouge. When our precocious little daughter asked how old the kitten was, we responded “not even one yet.” And she said, “So he’s zero!”

Screen Shot 2018-08-12 at 7.40.15 AM — Zero – the Prince of Cats – and the Princess

After Zero came Jake. An aside: Jake’s companion was our dog Elwood. Catch the blues music/movie-related cleverness?

Jake turned out to be a Himalayan, filled with Persian moodiness and lacking the Siamese quirkiness; he didn’t love us any more than we loved him. But when we sold our home in Baton Rouge to move to California, the new homeowners kept him and loved him – so much that after he passed away his ashes rested on their fireplace mantle.

Screen Shot 2018-08-12 at 7.52.14 AM.jpg — Jake – of Jake & Elwood fame

Then there was Trace, a purebred (maybe) Blue Point. Not too bright but incredibly lovable. Trace, the name, came from the bit of white he had on his back feet. That – and the fact that we had a bit of a name-theme going for our cats. We’d had Zero, then a non-Siamese named Minus, and finally Trace. We over-emote about pet names.

Screen Shot 2018-08-12 at 7.50.07 AM — Trace – with one of our Aussies and one of our grandsons

The super-nice Humane Society of Sonoma County – in Santa Rosa – was where we found our next Siamese, Ono Moore. They had dubbed her “Feisty,” which should have alerted us to some personality shortcomings. We still have her; she’s feisty and fussy, a little unstable and a little mean; we adore her. Plus, she’s drop-dead gorgeous – with her tabby points.

Screen Shot 2018-08-12 at 8.10.48 AM — Ono’s only true love is Oakley, the Aussie

Which brings us back to chocolate – and Chocolatte, whose feral Siamese father lived near the fire station in Boyes Hot Springs, just a few miles down the road from us. Choco and his tabby mother ended up at Pets Lifeline in Sonoma and we ended up with him. 🙂

Screen Shot 2018-08-12 at 8.19.15 AM — Chocolatte – as a kitten and before we knew he was a Seal Point – in another Japanese maple pot

That’s the Chocolatte story. Even if you’re not fond of Siamese, chances are good that you’re fond of chocolate. And maybe REALLY fond of chocolate chunk or chip cookies. After a heated family/friends discussion as to which was THE best amongst these three favorites, we decided to offer up all three recipes without ranking but with our personal picks. And, don’t forget that our Oatmeal Chocolate-Chip Cake and the World Peace Cookies also make delicious use of chocolate chips. …

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World Peace Cookies

October 4, 2017 / 4 Comments

How ironic that this is the lagniappe blog we had scheduled for this week. Read on:

What an approachable topic: World Peace. And how easy to tie it into food. Right! If you believe that I have another funny story to tell you.

After thinking about our last blog on Jerusalem – and its authors who believe hummus may be a food able to unify diverse groups, I got interested in Dorie Greenspan’s World Peace Cookies, formerly known as Sables Korova. I like the idea of world peace. And I like a commenter’s comments found on Greenspan’s blog better than I like the official reason Greenspan changed the name: “The difference in the dough each time you make it is teaching us to be patient and accepting. If we do that, everything turns out right in the end, just as the cookies do.”

Screen Shot 2017-10-01 at 9.55.15 AM — Patience is required

World Peace Cookies

Servings: makes about 36 cookies
Time: 45 minutes total - maybe?
Print

Dorie Greenspan’s recipe is meticulously detailed; I’ve tried to simplify it all a bit so it doesn’t seem quite so intimidating. But beware, the recipe’s famously annoying traits may still exist – that is, crumbling instead of sticking together as you try to blend the ingredients and dough. Just be accepting. And patient.

Ingredients

1 1/4 c all purpose flour
1/3 c unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably not Dutch process)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 stick plus 3 T butter at room temperature (11 T total)
2/3 c packed light brown sugar
1/4 c sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 c mini chocolate chips – definitely “mini” Don’t even think about using regular sized – or you’ll not be a patient, happy person when you see the outcome.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Measure the flour by spooning it into a measuring cup and leveling it with something straight-edged like a spatula.

In a medium bowl, put the flour, cocoa, and baking soda and mix it together well with a whisk.

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter until soft, then add the brown sugar, white sugar, salt, and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, carefully blend in the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, baking soda.). Then beat again with the mixer for about 30 seconds. You don’t want to overbeat. Add the chocolate chips and mix in well with the spatula.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, gather it together into a ball, and divide it in half. Shape each half into a log, about 1 1/2 ” in diameter. It may be crumbly. Be calm and carry on, pushing the crumbs back into the log as necessary. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours (or freeze them for later). When you’re ready to bake, with a sharp knife (yes!) slice the logs into rounds which are about 1/2″ thick. (Note: this is where my patience was tried. The chocolate chips seemed to make the cutting difficult and I had lots of pieces of dough everywhere, rather than nice round slices. As Greenspan suggested, I just gathered up the pieces and squeezed them back into something resembling a cookie. I was at peace.)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Arrange the cookies so there is about 1″ between them. If you want to bake the whole batch of cookies at once, use two baking sheets.

Bake the cookies for 12 minutes (or 13 if your cookies were and still are frozen). Put the baking sheet on a cooling rack and let the cookies cool until lukewarm before removing them.

Be prepared to eat more of them than you know you should. We had to freeze ours quickly to make us stop snitching – and I don’t even like chocolate that much. On top of that, we discovered they’re really delish when you sneak one out and eat it frozen!

Recipe brought to you by BigLittleMeals.com and Andy and Ann.