Christmas Traditions: Oh, The Food

Let's be real here: the holidays = food, and so today I am writing about a couple of sweet treats that my family always eats during the month of December.  My favorite thing to make during the holidays are these raspberry almond shortbread cookies. The recipe is from Bryan's mom and the cookies are divine. I get asked for the recipe wherever I take them....no kidding! They aren't hard at all....kind of fool-proof, actually--a must-try, I say!

We also do a lot of the standard fudge, glass candy, and puppy chow, but I think that's pretty normal, yes? Either way, not good for my waistline, but SO good for my soul.  ;) (Calories don't count in December anyway....duh.)

I also love good food with sentimental meaning. My Nanny has always made tea cakes (kind of like these) that my family eats by the freezer bag-full (literally, she keeps them in freezer bags) and she and my Grandmommy also make my great-grandmother's famous chocolate pie recipe (similar one from PW, here). These are recipes that are so comforting to me and bring such good memories of playing dominos and Wahoo and laughing with my crazy family around the table late at night. I never knew my great-grandmother Isca, but my dad always says that her cooking was legendary, that when you went to her house you were guaranteed to get a homemade treat and a frozen Dr. Pepper, and that at every church potluck she would bring a chocolate pie and let him have the first slice. (Talk about sweet.)

What treats and desserts are staples in your family? As always, I would love to know. :)

Christmas is this week! We leave tomorrow and I'm praying my family is healthy by then--Parker came down with a bad fever and congestion over the weekend. Poor babe. This December has unfortunately been the month of sick for us.

Movie Night Gift and a Popcorn Recipe

Today I thought I would share our gift for a 'Favorite Things' couples shower that we went to last weekend. The invitation instructed us to think of something that we truly loved or was a favorite item of ours--like a favorite kitchen gadget, favorite restaurant gift card, favorite type of food, etc., and give it as a gift to the bride and groom-to-be. I thought it was a really cute idea!

Bryan and I are big-time homebodies and love to spend our evenings watching movies and eating popcorn. We have a favorite homemade popcorn recipe that I make ALL the time, so I thought it would be cute to turn this favorite date night of ours into a gift.

First, I made a recipe card and attached it to a bag of popcorn kernels. I originally got the recipe from The Nourishing Home (great site!)--but since we like a lot more fat and salt (shame), I have revised it quite a bit and have a few techniques of my own to prevent it from burning :). 

We are total popcorn snobs, but this popcorn is AH-mazing and really does taste like it's from a movie theater! It's super easy and quick to make too, which is a plus. We haven't used bagged popcorn since we first started using this recipe (which is really saying something).

I bought most of the ingredients (with the exception of butter sticks) and put them all in a giant popcorn bowl. I couldn't find one that was really cute and inexpensive, so I settled for a plain black plastic one.

I also got a Red Box gift card online, printed it, and stuck it in there with everything else. (5 movies for $6 or something crazy cheap like that!)

After everything was assembled, I topped the whole thing off with some tissue paper (Target) and managed to make a cute little leopard print bow using some wrapping paper and hot glue. 

Of course, a lot of people like movies and popcorn so there were different variations of a movie night gift...including an actual popcorn machine. HA! I'm not kidding, though. :) 

For anyone who may want to print this recipe card, all you have to do is click here to download. You can thank me later. After you've eaten the entire bowl in 20 minutes.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Recipe: Honey Bun Cake

 

Today I thought I would share one of our family's favorite cakes: The Honey Bun Cake. This is Bryan's all-time favorite cake that his mom always made when he was growing up, and since I recently acquired the recipe and have been making it non-stop, it seemed like a good opportunity to post it on the blog. AND it is super easy! Fail-proof, really.

 

 

Ingredients:

 

-1 box yellow cake mix (I prefer Duncan Hines)

-4 eggs

-1 cup sour cream

-3/4 cup vegetable oil

-3/4 cup brown sugar

-2 1/2 tsp cinnamon

 

Icing:

 

-2 cups powdered sugar

-1 tsp vanilla

-4 tbsp milk

 

Directions:

 

1.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2. In a large mixing bowl, mix the cake mix, eggs, oil, and sour cream until just mixed. (I just said mix a lot, haha.)

3. In a separate smaller bowl, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon.

4. Pour 1/2 of the cake batter into the greased backing dish and spread evenly. With a spoon, sprinkle 1/2 of the brown sugar mixture evenly over the top of the batter in the baking dish.

5. Pour the rest of the cake batter on top of the first two layers, spread evenly, and add the rest of the brown sugar mixture evenly over the top.

6. Bake for 40 minutes.

7. Meanwhile, mix the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk in a medium bowl. Pour evenly over the top of the cake when it is done baking and has cooled for a bit. Enjoy with coffee or milk!

 

 

We eat this in about a day or two. It is addicting!

 

 

Have a wonderful Monday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recipe: Strawberry Poppyseed Salad

OMG, everyone. This is the BEST salad on the planet. My mom has been making this pretty little  piece of heaven for years and it's always been a favorite of mine...it's absolutely perfect for summer. I can eat a whole bowl of this stuff in one sitting (you think I'm exaggerating...but alas, I am not).

As luck would have it, I've decided to share the recipe with all of my blog friends today! So without further ado, here is how you make a quick and delicious Strawberry Poppyseed Salad...you can thank me later :).

 

Ingredients: (Serves 4-6)

-3 cups sliced strawberries (I do about 5 strawberries per person)

-2 cups whole red grapes (green works too if you want something more tart)

-8 cups mixed greens (I use the 50/50 boxed mix from Sam's Club)

-Sliced almonds (as much as you want)

-2 tbsp Mrs. Dash Seasoning: Original Blend

-Poppyseed dressing (I use Newman's Own)

-Optional: Shredded Cheese

As most salads go, all you need to do is mix and serve! I usually add everything in the order listed above. Enjoy as a main dish (maybe add some grilled chicken--YUM), or as a side.

Have a wonderful day, friends!




Pinterest Yellow Cake Recipe and a Question

Happy Thursday! It's almost the weekend again, can you believe it?

So, Bryan turned the big 2-5 last week and we celebrated with lots of presents and my first go at making homemade birthday cake.

I have to say, it was pretty freakin' good. Like good enough that it's already all gone, and there are only two people that live in our house :). (In my defense, I AM eating for two!)

Normally I just make the boxed cake mix, but I really wanted to mark something off of my constantly growing recipe board on Pinterest. I've probably pinned about 400 recipes and have only made 6....can I get an amen, or am I the only one who does that?

I went with this recipe. I won't copy and paste the original since you can just click on the link if you want to see it, but I will say that if you don't have any self-rising flour handy (like me) you can substitute all-purpose flour and add 1.5 tsp baking powder and .5 tsp salt for every cup of flour mixed in and it works just great! Enjoy!


Now, on to my question: Can someone PLEASE give me some pointers on how the heck to get cake out of a cake pan in one piece? Every single layer of this cake left about half of itself in the pan when I was trying to get it out.  Ugh. It was a tasty cake, but not a pretty one.

I tried everything I know--cooking spray, butter, flour, shaking, patting....everything. I even put wax paper on the bottom of the last one and while it worked much better than using nothing at all, it still came out in several pieces. Help, please! Thanks in advance :).


Have any of you tried any Pinterest recipes that turned out to be amazing?? Please share them if you have!

Have a great day!

Recipe: Santa Fe Soup

Hello, hello!

I really need to get more on a schedule with blogging....I totally meant to post this yesterday, but alas...here I am.

Do any of you have that one recipe that you truly love? You know, that good old fall-back that always tastes great and is easy to make? (If you do, please, please share! I need more recipes like that.)

Well, today I'm going to be sharing my good ole' Santa Fe Soup recipe. Actually, it's not mine....it's my mom's, but I stole it and make it WAY too often. This soup just makes my heart happy. It's inexpensive to make, and serves a ton of people (we probably eat it for 3-4 days as leftovers). AND it reheats incredibly well, which is hard to come by in recipe world!

(Excuse the awful night lighting....ah winter, why do you terrorize me with your lack of natural light?)

Anywho...here is the what and how for the one and only, my beloved, Santa Fe Soup:

Ingredients:
-1 pound ground beef or turkey
-2 cans of pinto beans
-1 can of black beans
-1 can of mexi-corn
-1 taco seasoning packet (I use Old El Paso)
-1 Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning packet


Directions:


1. Brown ground beef or turkey in a skillet and add taco seasoning to make taco meat. Just follow the instuctions on the back of the packet.
2. In a large saucepan or soup pot, combine the pinto beans, black beans, and mexi-corn and warm at medium heat.
3. Add taco meat to soup mixture.
4. Add ranch packet to soup mixture and stir. It should be pretty thick--in fact, it's more of a chili, but we still call it a soup in my family :).
5. Let simmer 20-30 minutes or longer to let all of the flavors mix. Throw on some shredded cheese or sour cream if you so desire. And you're done! How easy is that?

This soup is best with some good old tortilla chips. I use them as a spoon--they just make it so tasty. Please eat it with tortilla chips. For me. (Yes, I bolded that last sentence. Which should prove to you how important this command request is.)

If you're not a fan of chips, my mom always makes cornbread to go with this soup and that's great as well.



Well, that's about it for today. I can't believe I am posting this recipe. I've been considering it for about a year....but I'm selfish and wanted it for myself :). And be warned--if you know me personally, I call dibs to make this for any event or potluck that I can...just so you know!

Have a great Thursday!


I may be remember to post this at a few link parties, which can be found here. (:

Recipe: Raspberry Almond Shortbread Cookies

In honor of the holiday season, I'm sharing one of my absolute favorite Christmas cookie recipes. Well, I actually make these all year because they are freaking amazing, but my mother-in-law makes them at Christmas time so that's why I'm categorizing them as a Christmas cookie. It's very well justified.

The recipe makes 3 1/2 dozen cookies. Sounds like a lot. But it's not. It's actually never enough in our household.

The directions are word for word from the original recipe my mother-in-law sent me last year. I always follow them exactly and the cookies come out perfectly every time!

Ingredients:
-2/3 cup sugar
-1 cup butter softened (Katy speaking: I sometimes use margarine and they are even better...and worse for you but oh well.)
-1/2 tsp. almond flavoring
-2 cups all purpose flour (Make sure dough is not greasy... if it is, add a little more flour until it is like a soft play dough)
-1/2 cup raspberry preserves or jelly (Or strawberry jelly, you can try different flavors, whichever you prefer)

 Glaze:

-1 cup powdered sugar
-1 1/2 teaspoon almond flavoring (You can add a little less if you think it may be too strong)
-2-3 tsp. water

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix sugar, butter and almond flavoring. Beat at medium speed 1-2 minutes until creamy. Reduce to low speed and slowly add flour. Continue until well mixed 1-2 minutes. Shape into 1 inch balls and place 2 inches apart. Make a thumbprint and fill with about 1/2 teaspoon raspberry preserves (or any other flavor you like).

Bake 14-18 minutes until light brown (I usually check at 10 minutes). Remove from pan and cool. Drizzle glaze over cooled cookies. I usually just drizzle thin lines across the cookies.

Now go and enjoy some cookies! You deserve it.

I took pictures of my Christmas decorations yesterday....we'll see if I get around to posting them this week haha.

Adios!

Recipe: 45-Second Apple Cinnamon Cake

Alright friends, I'm back today with another recipe. The 45-Second Apple Cinnamon Cake. I promise you....this is de-lish. Here is what you will need:

-2 tbsp flour
-1 tbsp sugar (I used Truvia)
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1 packet of instant apple cider mix (I used Sugar Free Alpine Cider)
-1/4 tsp baking soda
-Pinch of salt
-2 tbsp milk
-1 tsp vegetable oil
-1/4 tsp vanilla extract
-A little bit if honey

Mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, cider mix, baking soda, and salt in a small cereal bowl or mug. Add the milk, oil, and vanilla extract and stir in. Place the mixture in microwave fore 45 seconds. Make sure not to cook it too long. Some may need to cook it longer, others may need to cook it a little less. Once the cake is done, drizzle some honey on top. Enjoy!

This is my new favorite dessert. I LOVE it. And I'm pretty sure it's not too terrible for you either (if you use Truvia or Splenda instead of sugar). I added everything up....something like 100 calories.....not bad!

Let me know if you tried it/loved it/hated it! (Well, I'm pretty positive you won't hate it haha).

Have a great Tuesday! DIY Floral Arrangements will be back next week, promise!

Recipe: 45-Second Chocolate Chip Cake

Ya'll are going to hate me. Why? Well, because I'm about to get you addicted to something that I know isn't too healthy for you. No, it's not smoking. Or drugs (HA)....it's cake.

I've been noticing these "instant" single serving chocolate cakes all over Pinterest, so I decided to give in and try this one, which (of course) I fell in love with (although I added chocolate chips to the original recipe). This new discovery lead me to begin thinking about what other types of instant cakes I could come up with.

Ever since then, I've been in cake heaven. Today I'm going to share with you one of my own creations: The 45-Second Chocolate Chip Cake.

I cannot even begin to tell you how good this is. It's better than any chocolate chip cookie you've ever had, and it only takes about 5 minutes to make from start to finish.

Ingredients:

-2 tbsp flour
-1 tbsp sugar (I used Truvia)
-1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
-1/4 tsp baking soda
-Pinch of salt
-2 tbsp milk
-1 tsp vegetable oil
-1/4 tsp vanilla extract
-1-2 tbsp chocolate chips

Mix the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in a small cereal bowl or mug. Add the milk, oil, and vanilla extract and stir in. Mix in chocolate chips. Place the bowl/mug in microwave for 45-55 seconds. Make sure to not cook it too long! Sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top once it's cooked.

Serve and enjoy!!

I think we can all tell that I liked mine :). I also made an AMAZING apple cinnamon version that I will share in the near future. Seriously, this may have replaced apple pie as my all time favorite dessert.

DIY Floral Arrangements will be back next week!

Have a great and happy day, everyone.

Recipe: Grilled PB & Cinnamon Apple Sandwich

Alright, this sounds weird, but it's de-lish. Promise. And purely a product of my late-night "I can't sleep" imagination.

Here we go:

Ingredients:

-2 slices of bread (I used whole wheat from the bakery...the fancy stuff)
-peanut butter (crunchy or creamy works, I used a little of both)
-1/2 apple, cut into slices (I used a Gala apple, but I actually think Granny Smith would taste even better)
-1 TBSP honey
-Cinnamon to taste (I probably used about 1 TSP)

Directions:

Spread peanut butter on a piece of bread. Slice apples and place them on top of peanut butter. Drizzle honey over apples. Add cinnamon.

(This is mine pre-cinnamon)

Place other slice of bread on top (duh). Grill each side on a skillet or grill pan at medium heat until bread is golden brown. Serve and enjoy.

If apples aren't your thing, I can promise you that bananas would be the perfect substitute. This knowledge is completely due to my obsession with peaunut butter/banana/cinnamon sandwiches. Yummmm.

Have a great day!

P.S. Chances are, I'm linking this post to a couple of link parties which can be found HERE. Check them out!

Recipe: Lemon Cake Cookies

I have always loved anything lemon flavored. These little guys remind me of my days at Vacation Bible School (a.k.a the best place on earth for a kid), when we were spoiled at snack time with watered-down pink lemonade, fruit punch, iced oatmeal cookies, and the one and only: iced lemon cookies. All off-brand of course. Unfortunately, these little bites of heaven aren't sold anywhere nowadays (I've looked....a lot), so when I heard of this recipe, I just had to try it.

I had to tweak it a little because they just weren't lemon-y enough for me. Here's my version:

Ingredients:

-1 box of lemon flavored cake mix
-1 egg
-1 tub of Cool Whip
-1 TSP of lemon extract (this is optional)
-1/2 cup powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Beat the cake mix, egg, Cool Whip, and lemon extract until mixed. Dough should be sticky and thick. Lay parchment or wax paper on baking sheet. Roll tablespoon sized pieces of dough in a bowl of powdered sugar, until they are no longer sticky and form a little ball. Place on baking sheet. Bake 9-12 minutes. Eat. All of them.

I need more recipes. Anyone heard of any good ones lately?

P.S. I have just updated my reading lists and "Featured" button on the blog. Check it out!

P.S. Chances are, I'm linking this post to a couple of link parties which can be found HERE. Check them out!

Food Love.

For some reason my Pinterest exploded with pictures of yummy food today and I just couldn't help but pin a few (or a hundred) for myself. Here are a few tasty treats that I wanted to share with you all in the hopes that someone will make one of these and bring it to me.

(Click on the website link below the picture to view the recipe.)

Let's go by meals, shall we? For breakfast:

I literally drooled when I saw these Cinnamon Roll Pancakes. Can you say amazing? Maybe if I ever get up early enough on a Saturday morning I might whip them up.

Source: recipegirl.com via Katy on Pinterest

How about this Breakfast Pizza? Cheese, eggs, bacon, bread...all good in my book.

Source: cupcakesandcashmere.com via Katy on Pinterest

How cute is this? I love Jones Design Company - Emily is so creative! I would love to make this and give it as gifts (or eat it all by myself).

Source: jonesdesigncompany.com via Katy on Pinterest

How about these freaking amazing cinnamon rolls from Pioneer Woman? Wow. Just wow.

Source: thepioneerwoman.com via Katy on Pinterest

Ok, this doesn't technically count as breakfast, but I'm including it because I would love to wake up and eat a pound of these. And it's made with a waffle maker. You take chocolate chip cookie dough and put it in a waffle maker...genius.

Source: thekitchn.com via Katy on Pinterest

On to lunch:

This link shares 30 different ways to make a grilled cheese sandwich. I appreciate this person.

Source: curbly.com via Katy on Pinterest

Have you ever seen Spanglish? Well, when Adam Sandler makes this sandwich, my mouth always starts to water. Actually I've only seen it once, but my mouth watered when I saw it. Someone found the recipe and generously shared it with the world!

Source: thekitchn.com via Katy on Pinterest

I love asparagus. I love cheese. I can just imagine the way this sandwich tastes and it's pure perfection.

Source: closetcooking.com via Katy on Pinterest

Appetizers/Sides:

I should have made this with my Papaw's tomatoes! I forgot and ate them all...Baked Parmesan Tomatoes.

Source: eatingwell.com via Katy on Pinterest

Yum. Healthy pizza! Kidding. Zucchini Pizza.

Source: kalynskitchen.blogspot.com via Katy on Pinterest

Another zucchini dish, Stuffed Zucchini. I will be making this. Very soon.

Source: kayotic.nl via Katy on Pinterest

Everything about this is just perfect. I love, love, love this salad. Tomato, Olive, and Fresh Mozzarella Salad with Basil Vinaigrette.

Source: kalynskitchen.blogspot.com via Katy on Pinterest

Dinner:

Pizza is a pretty common dinner at our house. I actually made my own version of this recipe, but couldn't upload the pictures. It was delicious however and I highly recommend it. Corn, Pesto, and Tomato Pizza.

Source: bakedbree.com via Katy on Pinterest

Last night I tried to make salmon. Key word is "tried". It didn't work. Never does. I am a salmon klutz. But maybe now that I have found "37 Way to Make Salmon" via this link I will attempt it again.

Source: realsimple.com via Katy on Pinterest

Does anyone else have 18 pounds of chicken in their freezer? Well I do, but only because I don't know what to do with it. I think this dish may help solve my problem. Caprice Chicken:

Source: sugarcooking.blogspot.com via Katy on Pinterest

Another recipe from the talented Pioneer Woman. Grilled Chicken with Lemon Basil Pasta. And I actually think I have all of the ingredients to make this. Score.

Source: thepioneerwoman.com via Katy on Pinterest

Alright, I'm officially hungry. I was going to include desserts (which is by far my favorite food group) but I'll just save that for another post.

Have a great Wednesday!

Tiles and Croutons

Here is the latest of what's going on at our household...

Bryan made the announcement last night that he was going to start working on our bathroom. And so the mess took ensued and I've been trying to ignore the sounds of drills and saws ever since.

It's looking good though!

I also made homemade croutons today! My friend Alli's sweet mom gave me a few quick instructions, and I have to say, these are much better than any croutons I've ever bought at a store.

As any house of two knows, it's hard to finish a loaf of bread before it goes bad/stale (among other things). So, I took some of our stale bread, cut it into little cubes, placed it on a baking sheet, drizzled olive oil over the top and then sprinkled on garlic salt and italian seasoning. I baked them for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees. (Where in the heck is the degree sign on a computer keyboard? I'm not seeing it.) So easy!

I hope everyone has big/fun/productive and/or relaxing plans for Memorial Day Weekend! We are obviously planning to get a few things done (fingers crossed), but I'm hoping to relax and have a little fun too....maybe go see a movie and finish the book I just started reading. Firefly Lane, anyone? I heard it was good.

Speaking of books, I just finished the very popular (and recently movie-made) Water for Elephants. Love, love, love it. I had to read it in about a day because I didn't want to get a late fee at the library, and because my normal reading schedule was interfered with when I saw this:

...And just had to re-read all of the Hunger Games books again. I am so excited they are making them into movies!

Happy loooong weekend!

Recipe: Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Hold on to your hats people, I'm about to tell you how to make the best chocolate chip banana bread on the face of the planet.

Here we go:

3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
4 tablespoons chocolate chips

No need for a mixer for this recipe. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. With a wooden spoon, mix butter and mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla next. Sprinkle the backing soda and salt over the mixture and stir in. Add the flour last, mix. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons chocolate chips into the batter. Pour mixture into a buttered 4"x8" loaf pan. Top with the remaining tablespoon of chocolate chips. Bake 45 minutes-1hour (mine takes 45 minutes).

This is a constant treat in our house, since it's so easy to make and Bryan's a little addicted. See the picture above? Yeah, I didn't get one single slice of it because my husband seemed to think that he needed to eat the whole thing in one sitting. Ah, oh well.

Have a fun weekend!

Link Parties:

Think Pink Sundays
Whatcha Got Weekend
Amaze Me Mondays
Just Something I Whipped Up
Market Yourself Mondays
DIY Showoff Project Parade
Thrifty Decor Chick
Take a Look Tuesday
Show and Tell Wednesday
House of Hepworths
Show and Share Day
Fun to Craft
Weekend Wrap Up Party
The Shabby Nest
Remodelaholic
Furniture Feature Friday

More Recipes!

Well, people are telling me that they like my recipe posts so I thought I'd do another one....I have to admit, I stole ANOTHER recipe from Fly Through Our Window, but it was so good, I couldn't resist! I did however, make a few changes to it, so I guess I can sorta call it my own. It's a really easy Asian Stir-Fry recipe and I'm kinda addicted to it so I hope you like it too!

Ingredients: (Makes 4 servings)

-2 cups stir fry sauce
-1 package frozen stir fry vegetables
-2 chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes
-spaghetti (just use however much your family normally eats)
-dried low mien noodles ( love those things, optional)

Directions:

Cook cut chicken breasts in an oiled skillet over medium-high heat. Mix in 1/2 cup stir fry sauce.

Fill another saucepan with water. Bring to boil, add desired amount of spaghetti.

Add frozen veggies to chicken. Once they are cooked, mix in another 1/2 cup of stir fry sauce. Drain cooked spaghetti and add to mixture. Add last cup of stir fry sauce. Saute for 5 minutes or until everything is mixed well.

Sprinkle low mien noodles on top and enjoy!!

I don't even know if this counts as a recipe since it's SO easy.

Have a great day!

The BIG 2-4 and Something Sweet

Hi everyone!

I would like to make today's post special for my sweet husband. He is the most genuine person I know and he makes me laugh every day (not to mention he is quite good with home improvement projects). I am SO thankful for him and everything he has brought to my life. So...happy 24th birthday Bryan!! I am so excited to see what your 24th year holds for the two of us (or, I guess he's beginning his 25th year...yikes, he's old!). I love you!!

(Um, yes. The oreo cake is genius.)

Sadley, Bryan and I won't be together for his birthday (this is the 6th, yes sixth year that this has happened), because he has to go to coaching camp for baseball....sad day. But we plan on celebrating with a cake and everything when he gets back!!

 In honor of Bryan's birthday, I have chosen to share one of his all-time favorite dessert recipes: Chocolate Chip Cookies! My mother-in-law, Judy, gave me this recipe last summer and I will be forever grateful! We've made these approximately 129,294,345 times since then and now you can too!

Ingredients: (Makes about 32 cookies)

-2 1/4 cups flour
-3/4 cups sugar
-3/4 cups light brown sugar
-1 tsp salt
-1 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-2 sticks of butter, softened
-2 eggs
-1 cup chocolate chips

(that was all from memory, yessssss)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

Place on greased baking sheet and bake for 9-10 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy!!

I can have a batch of these in the oven in 10 minutes--they are so easy to make so you have no excuse not to try them!

I would also like to take this moment to make a belated birthday shout-out to my Aunt Kathy (I told you I would do it!! *insert evil laugh here*). Happy **th Birthday, Kathy!! Sorry I forgot!! Love you!