A Chip off the ol' block

I'm just gonna start  off like I've been here all along and haven't taken a 15 month hiatus....what hiatus? who said something about a hiatus?

I'm sharing our family's favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.  It's been in our family for years... I think it goes all the way back to 2015.  That's right, I found these cookies at The Little Kitchen a few years ago and I finally got around to making them last year. These cookies have the perfect amount of chewy and the perfect amount of crunch. They have a few unexpected ingredients too. I've made them a few times and every time they are a hit.
I made these cookies again recently, but made a few changes just like Granny would do. Granny never follows a recipe exactly.

 I usually add a half cup of Heath bits to the batter, but this time I added Heath bits and coconut flakes.  I think I'll be making that addition from here on out. I guess I might just be a chip off the ol' block.

PawPaw's Hershey's Cake

My goal for 2015 is to blog approximately 12 times more than I did in 2014.  I've been a terrible blogger this year.

But a little visit from Santa and perhaps a little chocolate motivation from my PawPaw may have provided the inspiration I needed to get back in my Granny's kitchen. ... and my own for that matter.
This time I'm sharing one of PawPaw's signature dishes, Hershey Cake.

 Only he makes it and he knows we look forward to it every Christmas.  He makes this famous (at least it's famous in our family) Hershey Cake only once a year, twice if we're lucky.  So when I sat down at the table to play with my new Canon toy and this cake happened to be sitting right in front of me. I knew it was time to blog again. I might even dare to say it was fate. 

I've learned that PawPaw has been making Hershey Cake for over 50 years. My mom recently shared with me that each year on Christmas Eve when she and her siblings were eager to get to bed so Santa could come, PawPaw would always need to stay up to make his Hershey Cake.


Hershey Bar Cake
8 -1.55oz Hershey bars

5½ oz Hershey's Syrup
2 c sugar

2 sticks butter
4 eggs
2½ c cake flour, sifted
1 c buttermilk

½ tsp. baking soda
1 c pecans, chopped (optional)

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350° . Grease and flour  a bundt or tube pan (Pawpaw uses a tube pan). Melt chocolate bars with Hershey's Syrup in a double broiler and set aside to cool. Cream sugar and butter adding eggs 1 at a time.  Combine milk and soda. Alternately add milk and flour. When combined add chocolate, nuts and vanilla. Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until tester comes out clean.

Soft-Baked Monster Cookies

Wow! Give me a minute to blow some dust off this blog before I post these cookies.

I haven't been cooking with my dear sweet ole Granny lately. Even though I have a few ideas that should get me back in her kitchen pretty soon, I just haven't made it happen. But being out of school on spring break, did make me bust out my inner Granny. One of Granny's favorite pastimes is flipping through cookbooks. So since I made no travel plans for spring I've been flipping through my favorite cookbook, Pinterest! That's where I found Sally's Soft-Baked Monster Cookies.

Sally says to add any variety of M&M's to the cookies.  It just so happens that I had a bag of white chocolate M&M's laying around.  And being the health conscious person that I am **insert giggles...okay hysterical laughter here** I decided a large bag of M&M's laying around wasn't good for my will power. So I did what any sane person would do...I made cookies!

Click the link to get the recipe for Sally's Soft-Baked Monster Cookies.

 Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

Usually when these ingredients are present it means some tasty chocolate chip cookies are on the way.  Well, not this time my friends.  These ingredients are instead coming together, uniting their lovely flavors to become a Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie.

I first discovered the greatest pie there ever was on Pinterest which led me to to Bakerella's blog. This pie and I have been BFFs ever since.  So when my original plan for a Thanksgiving Pie was given the red light by my family I knew my BFF would come to the rescue.  I have lots of great memories with my BFF and I'm so thankful my family and I were able to spend some time with her during the Thanksgiving Holiday. 

Me & my BFF after arriving at Granny's for Thanksgiving Dinner

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

1 - 9-inch deep-dish pie shell, blind baked
2 large eggs
½  cup all-purpose flour
½  cup granulated sugar
½  cup packed brown sugar
¾  cup butter, softened
1 cup  semi-sweet chocolate morsels
½ cup chopped pecans

½ cup chopped black walnuts

1 tsp. vanilla extract

 

Preheat oven 325° F. 
Beat eggs in large mixer bowl on high until foamy. Beat in flour, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Beat in butter. Stir in morsels and nuts and spoon into pie shell. Bake for 55-60 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm with ice cream.

My BFF wearing her Thanksgiving inspired look by Nestle. 

One of the last moments I got to spend with my BFF, but I'm quite thankful for the time we had together.