triple chocolate chip cookies

I was craving chocolate chip cookies and a cold glass of milk the other day.

No, I'm not pregnant (knock on wood!)...  I just get cravings sometimes!  :o)

So, anyways...  I didn't want anything fancy this time... just a simple, chewy, classic cookie studded with chocolate.

The kind that reminds me of being a kid...  and of my beautiful cookie-baking grandma!

Of course I just couldn't leave well enough alone (what?  I tried!  Really, I did!!)...  so I made these with 3 different kinds of chocolate chips.

I also used a brown sugar cookie base, instead of the usual white and brown sugar mix...  because I like the added depth and chewiness that gives.

All-in-all though, these still turned out the way I'd hoped!  Simple, comforting, and entirely too easy to consume in large quantities.  :o)

Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.

In your mixer bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (3-5 minutes!).  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and the vanilla until well combined.

Mix in the flour mixture, just until combined.  Stir in the chips.

Scoop the dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets and bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden brown.

chef's butter (blue cheese shallot butter)

My all-time favorite restaurant in our neck of the woods is a wonderful little place called Alderwood Bistro...  and my all-time favorite meal is their Steak Frite:

grilled Painted Hills bistro tender, blue cheese-shallot butter, house-made fresh-cut potato French fries, aioli, & sautéed Nash's greens.

I love every last bit of that meal...  but I think what puts me over the top is the blue cheese shallot butter.

It is such an amazingly flavorful addition to a steak, and something about the contrast of a cold chunk of butter melting slowly over a sizzling steak is just...  wow!

After dreaming repeatedly about this butter, and once even asking the chef for a little to-go container of it, I decided it was time to figure out my own version.

This recipe is it!  It's easy, special and it can really make any good steak an amazing steak!

This would also be great on a burger, or grilled chicken...  or even baked potatoes.

And don't be afraid to adjust the recipe...  if you like more blue cheese, add more!  If you want more onion-y kick, add more shallots!  Take it and make it yours...  if you're anything like me, you'll find yourself pulling it out of the freezer more often than you'd expect!  :o)

Blue Cheese Shallot Butter (Chef's Butter) Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 tablespoons finely minced shallot
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Directions:
In a medium bowl, stir all the ingredients together with a fork until well combined.

Lay out two separate sheets of plastic wrap, divide the butter in half and wrap each half up into a log in the plastic wrap.  Place in the fridge to set and let the flavors meld...  at least a few hours, but even better a day in advance.

Store any leftovers (and this makes a lot, so unless you are feeding a crowd you will have leftovers!) in a ziploc bag in the freezer for up to 3 months!

this boy...

made me a mom.

This boy taught me how to love...  and how to pray.

This boy shows me how to live...  and how to play.

This boy makes every day more difficult...  and more beautiful.

This boy changed my life forever...  and I am so blessed to be his mom.

This boy reminds me daily how much I appreciate my mom.

I love being a mom...  nothing could be better!