Fluffy, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

From Apple a Day

Confession: I don't (or I should say didn't) like chocolate chip cookies. They always turned out flat and crunchy and just not that good. I've tried so many recipes that claim to be fluffy, but they never worked. That is until I tried this recipe. These were the yummiest, fluffiest, chewiest chocolate chip cookies I have ever eaten in my entire life! I will definitely make these again! So you should try them post haste!

I didn't change anything from her recipe so I will just post what she did.

Ingredients: 

3/4 c. unsalted butter, softened (I left it out on the counter all day)

3/4 c. brown sugar, packed

1/4 c. granulated sugar 

1 egg 

2 tsp. vanilla extract 

2 c. all purpose flour 

2 tsp. cornstarch (surprising ingredient that maybe gives it the fluff?)

1 tsp. baking soda 

1/2 tsp. salt 

1 c. chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate chips)

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2.  In your mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars until fluffy and light in color. Add egg and vanilla and blend in.

3.  Mix in flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Stir in chocolate chips.

4.  Using a tablespoon, drop dough onto a baking sheet.  Don't flatten - just leave in the rounded shape. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges.  (The tops will not brown, but do NOT cook longer than ten minutes. I cooked mine about 9 min)

5.  Place on cooling rack to cool.  Makes approximately 3 dozen. 

Homemade Coconut Milk Ice Cream

Homemade Coconut Milk Ice cream
From Live Free Gluten Free


Fact #1: I love ice cream.  Fact #2: I haven't had ice cream since September! Well, that is until today.  I have seen these posts on pinterest for homemade ice cream in a baggy and I wondered if it were possible to make it using coconut milk.  Well thanks to my good friend Google I found out it is possible! This is sooooooo easy and it was really yummy! Even Tyler liked it! It's also really fun to make.  Tyler had a good time shaking the bag and Clara thought it was hilarious!
It makes enough for one serving, although I would say maybe even two.  It is pretty sweet and I wouldn't have felt jipped if Mark had decided to share with me. 

For ice cream:    
1/2 cup coconut milk (like Thai Kitchen, so the actual real creamy, canned coconut milk) (it has to be the real coconut milk, not the lite coconut milk)
1 1/2 T sugar
1/4 t vanilla
optional add-ins: 1 T cocoa or ~3 T pureed fruit (like strawberries...mmmm) If you want to add chunks of stuff (cookie bits, strawberry pieces, etc.), wait until after the ice cream is frozen, then stir in those pieces (after it was finished I squirted on the tiniest bit of hershey's chocolate syrup - yes, that is dairyfree - and mmmm it was good)

For ice cream making:
~1 2/3 cup ice
~1/3 cup salt (if you have rock salt great, if not use whatever salt you have, it doesn't really matter) (I just used good ol' table salt)
1 Ziploc Sandwich Bag
1 Ziploc Gallon size storage bag

Directions
Mix all ice cream ingredients together and pour into the sandwich bag (you could also mix the ingredients in the bag, too).  Remove all excess air from the bag and seal it (make sure it's sealed really well, or you'll have salty ice cream).

Place ice and salt in the one-gallon bag, and add the sealed ice cream bag.  Remove as much excess air from the gallon size bag and seal it.

Knead the bag for 7-10 minutes. (basically I just shook it like a polaroid picture for about 6 minutes and it was nice and ice creamy.  It is really cold though.  I decided to hold it with a towel after my hands fell off from frostbite!)


To mom: I bet Eli would have a blast making this!
To Heather, Katelyn, Melissa: This would be a fun date/FHE/girls night/whatever
To everyone: will someone please remind me to take a picture before I devour my food!

YUM! Dessert!

One more for today! Just when I thought I was destined to live a life full of sorbet and popsicles..I found this! Soy Dream French Vanilla ice cream. Completely dairy-free. And let me tell you it is sooo good. I crushed up some mint oreos, which are also dairy and egg free, mixed them in and dug in. Just thought I'd share. If any of you guys are looking for an animal free ice cream. This stuff tastes delicious! yum yum yum!