The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies, EVER!!!

Today I'm going to share my very own, completely made up by me, original recipe chocolate chip cookies. (If this is also your recipe, well then great minds think alike because I swear I came up with this on my own in my mothers kitchen)

I will update with pictures later if I can find my camera before the cookies are eaten.

The story:

Last September I was visiting family in Colorado. I had flown out with just the boys, since my husband couldn't get the time off work. Our stay was extend by several days due to the unfortunate timing of a case of the chickenpox, leaving the boys and I stranded at my parents house while they took off for a vacation they had planned months ago to coincide with my leaving for home. So there I was with two sick kids, my mothers gorgeous kitchen at my complete disposal, and absolutely nothing to do. I decided it was a perfect time to make cookies. I got out the chocolate chips, read through the recipe on the back, and started gathering ingredients. Peering into the fridge, I encountered only a single lonely stick of butter. The recipe of course calls for two. What to do? I suppose I could have just made a half a batch of cookies, but honestly, at the time it never even crossed my mind. So I racked my brain and scoured the kitchen for something to replace that missing stick of butter. No, oil didn't cross my mind either. However, my mom had about 5 bricks of cream cheese in the fridge, and I thought that would do the trick. The one other major modification to your typical chocolate chip recipe is that this one does not contain eggs. The reason for this is twofold. First, as I was baking and simultaneously tending to two sick kiddos, I forgot to add them in. The cookies came out great, and upon subsequent experiments I decided I liked the egg-free version better anyway. Second, the cookies are now bowl-licking safe for munchkins, and no salmonella risk to worry about. Since I'm sure very few of you really care how the recipe came about, thank you for bearing with me thus far and without further ado, the recipe:

Preheat oven to 350*
Using your stand mixer, cream together:
1/2 C (1 stick) butter
1 (8oz) brick of cream cheese
3/4 C granulated sugar
3/4 C packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla

In a small bowl, combine:
2 1/4 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Slowly add dry mixture to butter/sugar mixture, beating well after each addition. Stir in 1 C chocolate chips. Place by rounded spoonful onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 9 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Try not to eat them all at once.

My first attempts were with regular white flour and normal sugar, and they were delicious. I have since made the recipe substituting 100% whole wheat flour and Sucanat (unrefined sugar) for part or all of the flour and sugar in the recipe with terrific results. This most recent batch was all whole wheat flour and all Sucanat. My kids are used to eating whole wheat, so they didn't even notice, but I bet you could sub up to half of the flour with WW without the munchkins noticing at all.

Enjoy!!

Great Expectations

Drum Roll Please!!!

I'm Pregnant!! That's right, number three is decidedly on it's way. Only 4 weeks along, I still feel fine. Two or three more weeks to go before the pukies set in.

My goal over the next few weeks is to menu plan and double batch so I can feed the freezer for days when cooking would put me over the edge. Things that double batch well:

Chili
Cassaroles (with GF pasta)
Soups: chicken potato
Beef and rice
vegetable tomato
bean and bacon
Southwest chicken black bean soup
Salsa slow cooker chicken
Pot roast
Beans and Rice

I also need to finish up the sweater and baby blanket I'm working on for my nephew (who's two months old already!!!) so I can start working on things for this baby. I need to make:

about 2 dozen new born diapers
baby blanket (I'll start this at 20 weeks when we know the gender)
soakers/longies for winter baby
I'd really like to knit/sew some outfits too.

Man, 9 months really isn't long enough!!

Going Raw for a while

As you read in my Green Smoothie post, I have recently been discovering the power of veggies. This is a big step for me, as for the most part I hate vegetables. But I'm willing to do some work for the benefit of my health, so I am embarking on a 30 day raw trial. Today is day 3. I'm already seeing weight loss, and I really feel great. I love my green smoothies, I can handle a salad, and I adore fruit so it's not like I don't have anything to eat. I'm also eating nuts and seeds and sprouts. And I'm trying new vegetables. Or at least I'm going to. I mean, come on. It's only day 3. After my 30 day trial, I feel I will probably shift back toward a more Traditional Food approach with a high raw percentage, but for now I'm enjoying this experiment and watching the numbers on the scale fall. This may be a pretty new concept for a few of my readers (I see you, Mom and Dad) so I'll try to answer some of the most common questions about the raw diet.

First and foremost in most peoples minds is where do I get my protein? The answer? From veggies. Most importantly, leafy greens, which I happen to like. (Mom, quit rolling your eyes, I really do like them now.) For more on green leafies and their amazing protein content, see my Green Smoothie post. The other thing about protein is that the average American gets way more protein than is really necessary. And this in itself can be harmful to your health and disease causing. Take a look at the cow. Now that is a huge powerful muscular beast. But he doesn't eat meat and drink protein shakes to put on all that muscle. He eats grass, and that has all the protein needed to support that animal in his growth and muscle development.

B12 is another common concern of the meat eater for their vegetarian/vegan friends. In truth, people really need a very small amount of B12. And it is stored in the body so daily intake isn't required to get appropriate amounts. Since until two days ago I was a die hard carnivore, I am not too worried about my B12 levels during this 30 day trial. If I were to become a raw vegan for life, I would probably add some nutritional yeast to my diet (even though it's controversial in the raw food circles) or take a supplement.

I'm logging my daily food and feelings here so stop on by to see how I'm doing. I'm keeping Homestead In My Heart on it's urban homesteading theme, and I'll try not to drag my raw food journey into it overly much.

Sorry for the Slackery

It has been brought to my attention that it has been almost a month since my last blog post. This is unacceptable. My small following of my tiny little baby blog deserve more. So with my hand over my heart and four fingers in the air I do solomly swear that:

"On my honor I will try to serve blogdom and my readers. I will take pictures of what's going on in my kitchen. I will take pictures of my home and my children. I will post said pictures on my blog with some regularity, accompanied by such wit and wisdom as I am able to conjure."

I still haven't ordered seeds or potato starts yet. I'm contemplating putting a 4x4 raised garden plot out by the back fence just to dare the Condo community to challenge me on it. I mean, times are tough, and you gotta do what you gotta do, right? If I do that I'll add lots of leafy greens to my already planned peas and tomatoes. And I still want to do potatoes in a big rubbermaid container. Now if only spring would hurry up.

Green Smoothie, Baby!

In an ernest effort to improve my health and energy I have taken up the habit of starting my day with a green smoothie. These wonderful drinks are a terrific way to boost the amount of leafy green vegetables you consume, especialy for those of us who dispise vegetables. A mixture of 40% greens by volume and 60% fruit by volume, and enough water to get things moving in the blender, and you have the greenest drink you've ever seen that tastes just like fruit. The one pictured above is Strawberry/Banana/Pear/Spinach.

The nutrition research I've been doing points to the idea that the average American does not consume enough green leafy vegetables. In fact, most don't even come close. In her book "Green for Life", Victoria Boutenko compares the Standard American Diet (SAD) to the diet of our closest primabe relatives, the Chimpanzee. 50% of a chimp's diet is composed of fruit, 45% is leafy green vegetables, and the other five is comprised of seeds, bark, pith, and insects. In stark contrast, the SAD is composed primarly (more than 50%) of cooked starches such as rice, pasta, bread and potatoes, almost 25% animal protein, and hardly any greens at all.

Leafy green veggies such as spinach, kale, dandylion, and collards are nutritional power houses. They pack the most vitamins and minerals per calorie than any other food you can consume. And despite the USDA's claim that you need significant amounts of animal protein and dairy in your diet to meet your protien requirements, greens provide all 9 essential amino acids in ratios that are directly in line with your daily needs. (Please do not look to the USDA for accurate nutrition information. Their hands are planted firmly in the back pockets of the meat, dairy, and corn industrys, and they have anything but your best interest at heart.) In fact, 1 lb of kale provides more or less the exact amounts of essential amino acids needed for the day. Different greens are a little higher in some and lower in others, so it's important to rotate the greens you're eating.

1 lb of leafy greens a day sound like a lot? Well it is. Don't worry, it's really best to start adding greens to your diet slowly and work your way up. If you're not used to getting all of that fiber and all of a sudden start eating a pound of greens in a day, your poor abused digestive system will most likely revolt. So start with a green smoothie. Then slowly start adding more greens and less fruit. Eat a salad. And enjoy your new found energy that's based on real nurtition.



And the best part of the Green Smoothie? My baby loves them. He is quite upset if he sees I have one and I'm not sharing! (My 3 year old won't touch them with a 10 ft straw, but I'm working on him)

Goals Revisited

It's very easy to set goals at the beginning of the new year only to promptly get on with your life and never give them a second thought. That is until the next year, when you look back and realize that you changed nothing, and re make the same goals again. The first month of the year is over, and we are well on our way into 2009. I thought I'd take a moment to look at the goals I set up a meager month ago and see where I stand.

1) Live more mindfully
This is and always will be a constant struggle. But keeping it at the forefront of my mind helps me to evaluate decisions and stay present in the moment. I should really turn my computer off more often.

2)Eat more locally
Harder to implement until the farmers markets get going, but I did find local raw honey at Whole Foods for a good price, and I can get local Ohio eggs at my regular grocery store.

3)Maintain a successful container garden
I am planning two tomato plants, to snap pea plants, and one tub of potatoes. Possible a pot of herbs also. I'll get tomato and herb starts from the farmers market this spring. Peas don't like to be transplanted so I'll start those from seed once the last frost date is past. I'll order my potato starts probably from the Seed Savers Exchange.

4)Find a workable system for my recycling
This I have yet to even start on. However, I do have an idea. For some reason we have two trashcans in our bedroom, and we hardly ever use either one. I think there is room for the bigger one under the sink in the kitchen. This is important as there is absolutely NO room ANYWHERE in my kitchen for a single other thing, and several things that are there really don't fit either. If I can manage to remember to put it into the car before loading up the kids for a grocery shop, we're all set. It may even help me to remember my cloth bags too.

5)Move my body
Every little victory here counts. I did 3 yoga Sun Salutations today. I spent the first half of the month out of commission due to a nasty cold turned sinus infection. Now that I'm feeling human again it's time to get moving!

Well a month in and I have not managed to fail miserably at any of my goals, and many of them are being actively pursued. I think regular check ins will keep me motivated, reminded, and accountable.

She's gettin' a tattoo, yeah, she's gettin' ink done...

For a very long time I've been planning a second tattoo. I got my first one done at 18 1/2 years old. It was my best friends 18th birthday, and it was our random little act of rebellion. That one was very small and inconspicuous. I've been planning a more substantial one for almost 10 years. When I met my husband, he wasn't a big fan of tattoos in general. Since I really wasn't trying to impress anyone but him, I wasn't about to go and get a new tattoo without his approval. It comes down to a respect for his opinion, not a bending to his will. This year he decided that honoring my individuality was more important to him than his unease with tattoos, and this was his Christmas present to me:

Here's the piece by the original artist:

When I first saw this picture, it really moved me. I saw it and I thought to myself "look, that's me, and that's my husband, and we love each other, and we're trees!" The original artist is my friend Vanessa. You can see more of her gorgeous work here and here.

Not only did this piece speak to me about the love I have for my husband, but it spoke to me on an environmental, earthy level too. Although my spiritual beliefs do not center around a god, I do believe that everything is connected, we are all made of the same stuff, energy flows and everything we do affects everything else. And the thought that we are one with the trees really resonates with me.

I'm really happy with how this turned out. Merry Christmas to me!!