Our Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe from Naive Cook Cooks

Old Fashioned Chocolate Chip Cookies :

• 3 3/4 cups all purpose flour (16.5 oz)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 cup white sugar (7.5 oz)
• 1 cup packed brown sugar (6 oz)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
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1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Whisk flour, baking soda and salt in a medium size bowl. In a large bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy. Add both sugars to the butter and beat it until well blended. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until mixture becomes smooth and creamy. Add flour mixture to it and beat until just incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips.
3. Cover the dough and let it chill in fridge for 30 mins. This helps in making nice thick chewy cookies that don't spread too much.
4. Spray a baking sheet with non stick oil or use a parchment paper or baking mat over baking sheet. Roll around 2-3 tbsp cookie dough into a tight ball and place them on sheet at least 2-3 inches apart. Bake them for 11-13 minutes or until golden brown.
5. Let them cool on the baking sheet for a minute or two. Then transfer the cookies on a rack and let them cool completely.
6. Store in airtight container at room temperature.
7. Best enjoyed with a glass of chilled milk.

Pasta With Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce

Taken from this site

This recipe is amazing even just for the sauce! Yummm
INGREDIENTS:

• 8 ounces penne
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 smoked andouille sausage links, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

FOR THE CREAM SAUCE

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup julienned sun dried tomatoes in olive oil, drained
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more, to taste
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
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DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; Drain well.
2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage, and cook, stirring frequently, until sausage is lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes; set aside.
3. To make the cream sauce, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in chicken broth and cook, whisking constantly, until incorporated, about 1-2 minutes.
4. Stir in heavy cream, sun dried tomatoes, Parmesan, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
5. Stir in pasta and sausage until well combined, about 1-2 minutes.
6. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.

Blueberry Baked Oatmeal

Recipe from Cookie & Kate

This naturally sweetened baked oatmeal recipe features blueberries (or any fruit you’d like), wholesome oats, nuts and warming spices. You can bake some now and enjoy oatmeal for the rest of the week! Recipe yields 6 to 8 servings.

INGREDIENTS

• ⅔ cup roughly chopped pecans
• 2 cups old-fashioned oats
• 2 teaspoons Frontier ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon fine-grain sea salt (or ½ teaspoon regular table salt)
• ¼ teaspoon Frontier ground nutmeg
• 1 ¾ cups milk of choice (almond milk, coconut milk or cow’s milk all work)
• ⅓ cup maple syrup or honey
• 2 large eggs or flax eggs
• 3 tablespoons melted unsalted butter or coconut oil, divided
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 12 ounces or 1 pint fresh or frozen blueberries (or 2 ½ cups of your preferred berry/fruit, chopped into ½” pieces if necessary), divided
• 2 teaspoons raw sugar (optional)
• Optional toppings for serving: plain/vanilla yogurt or whipped cream, additional maple syrup or honey for drizzling, and/or additional fresh fruit

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9-inch square baking dish. Once the oven has finished preheating, pour the nuts onto a rimmed baking sheet. Toast for 4 to 5 minutes, until fragrant.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the oats, toasted nuts, cinnamon, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Whisk to combine.
3. In a smaller mixing bowl, combine the milk, maple syrup or honey, egg, half of the butter or coconut oil, and vanilla. Whisk until blended. (If you used coconut oil and it solidified in contact with the cold ingredients, briefly microwave the bowl in 30 second increments, just until the coconut oil melts again.)
4. Reserve about ½ cup of the berries for topping the baked oatmeal, then arrange the remaining berries evenly over the bottom of the baking dish (no need to defrost frozen fruit first). Cover the fruit with the dry oat mixture, then drizzle the wet ingredients over the oats. Wiggle the baking dish to make sure the milk moves down through the oats, then gently pat down any dry oats resting on top.
5. Scatter the remaining berries across the top. Sprinkle some raw sugar on top if you’d like some extra sweetness and crunch.
6. Bake for 42 to 45 minutes, until the top is nice and golden. Remove your baked oatmeal from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes. Drizzle the remaining melted butter on the top before serving.
7. I prefer this baked oatmeal served warm, but it is also good at room temperature or chilled (I’ll leave that up to you!). This oatmeal keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for 4 to 5 days. I simply reheat individual portions in the microwave before serving.

Spicy Sweet Potato and Green Rice Burrito Bowls

Recipe from Cookie and Kate

INGREDIENTS

Green rice

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 ½ cups long grain brown rice
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 1 ½ cup baby spinach, lightly packed
• ½ cup cilantro (mostly leaves, stems are ok), lightly packed
• 1 jalapeño or serrano pepper, seeded, membranes removed and roughly chopped
• 1 medium shallot, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, peeled, roughly chopped
• ¼ teaspoon salt, more to taste

Sweet potatoes

• 2 pounds sweet potatoes (3 to 4 medium sweet potatoes), peeled and sliced into 1-inch chunks
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt

Seasoned black beans

• 2 cans (14 ounces each) black beans or 3 cups cooked black beans, with their cooking liquid
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar or lime juice
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Additional garnishes

• chili lime tortilla strips
• 1 avocado, pitted and sliced
• Jarred mild salsa verde
• Chopped cilantro
• Crumbled feta

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit. Line one large, rimmed baking sheet and one smaller sheet with parchment paper. Place the spinach, cilantro, jalapeño, shallot, garlic, salt and ½ cup of the vegetable broth in a food processor or blender. Blend until smooth.
2. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add the rice and stir to coat. Spread the rice in an even layer on the bottom of the pot and let the rice lightly brown. This happens quickly! When the rice starts to brown, stir it and spread it out in an even layer again so that more of the rice browns.
3. When most of the rice has lightly browned, scrape the green purée into the rice. Stir until the rice is evenly coated with green purée and continue to cook, stirring constantly, for a minute. Add the rest of the vegetable broth to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a low simmer and cover the pot. Cook the rice on a very low simmer until tender, 35 to 40 minutes.
4. While the rice cooks, toss the sweet potatoes in the olive oil, smoked paprika and salt until the sweet potatoes are evenly coated in oil. Arrange in a single layer on your prepared baking sheet. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, tossing halfway, until the sweet potatoes are tender and caramelizing at the edges.
5. Meanwhile, transfer the beans and their cooking liquid (don’t drain the beans) to a medium pot. Stir in the cumin and chili powder and warm over medium heat. Once the beans are simmering, cover the beans and reduce heat to maintain a very gentle simmer until you’re ready to serve.
6. Once the rice is done cooking, remove the pot from heat. Uncover the pot and place a clean tea towel over the pot, then recover. The towel will help absorb excess liquid as the rice continues to cook in its own steam. (If you don’t have a clean towel, you can skip this step, just cover normally.) Let sit for 10 minutes.
7. Once the sweet potatoes are done cooking, toss the pepitas with ¼ teaspoon olive oil and a sprinkle of salt on the small baking sheet. Toast the seeds in the oven for 4 to 5 minutes, until they’re turning lightly golden and making little popping noises. Set aside to cool.
8. Fluff the rice with a fork and season with salt if necessary. Remove beans from heat, stir in the vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper.
9. Assemble your bowls: First add green rice, then use a slotted spoon or fork to transfer beans to the bowls. Top with sweet potatoes and add a few slices of avocado to each bowl. Sprinkle with tortilla strips, cilantro and feta. Serve with salsa verde on the side.