Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies

Did you ever think you could improve on chocolate chip oatmeal cookies?  Well I have finally found the end of the search for the best chocolate chip cookies ever!  Bet you can't eat just one!  These are so good, they are almost evil.  I'm about to make them right now!  I figure oatmeal cookies are equivalent to granola bars, which my son can't eat.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
(from The Frog Commissary Cookbook)  I don't own the cookbook, until now...I just ordered it off my new favourite used webiste, Biblio.com, for $5 (including shipping), based on this recipe alone.  I saw it had 5 stars on Amazon.com, and figured if everyone else loves it, and if a few of the recipes are as good as this one, it will be money well spent!

1 c. butter, room temperature
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 Tbsp milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 c. oats (rolled or "quick," but not "instant")
2 c. chocolate chips (about 12-oz.)

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and the sugars until mixture is light in color. Beat in the eggs one at a time, followed by the milk and the vanilla extract.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Either by hand or with the mixer on low speed, gradually beat the flour in to the sugar mixture until just incorporated.
Stir in the oats and chocolate chips by hand.
Drop 1-inch balls of dough onto the cookie sheet, placing about 1 1/2 inches apart so they have room to spread.
Bake at 350F for 10-13 minutes, until golden brown at the edges and light golden at the center.
Cool on baking sheet for at least 1-2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 4 dozen.

Notes:  I reduce the amount of chocolate chips.  I also double the recipe, bake 1/3 of it, then put the other 2/3rds into two ziploc bags which I can pull out another evening and impress everyone with my no mess, freshly baked cookies.  Except that I love cookie dough, so not all of it makes it into the pan.

Picnic Chicken Salad

My whole side of the family was having dinner at the lake, so I found this recipe online and whipped it up just in time for the lake. (Phew!)

It was SOOOO good.  My brothers are generally picky eaters, but no one could get enough of this!

The only downfall I think, is that didn't have mayonnaise, so I replaced it with salad dressing, and also didn't have time to refrigerate it, so I think that played into why it fell apart a bit when slicing it.  Next time, I think I would just serve it on buns.  I love how they used the lettuce to line the bread so it didn't get soggy!

Ingredients: 
1 large round loaf of bread (boule or Calabrese loaf)  I used sourdough.
⅓ cup mayonnaise
½ tsp curry powder
¼ tsp paprika
3 cups cooked chicken, cubed (about 3 breasts)
1 cup green grapes, halved   I used red grapes - just as good!
½ cup celery, chopped
½ cup sliced almonds, toasted
¼ cup thinly sliced green onions
1 sweet red pepper, diced   I skipped the peppers - I hate peppers!
Salt and black pepper
Romaine lettuce

Prep and Cook

Slice off the top 2 inches of the loaf in one big piece and set aside.
Hollow out the bread, leaving a shell ½ inch thick.
In a medium bowl, stir together mayonnaise, curry powder and paprika.
Stir in chicken, grapes, celery, almonds, green onion, red pepper and salt and black pepper to taste.
Line the bread bowl with lettuce leaves and spoon chicken mixture into the bread.
Replace the bread top. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until picnic time.
To serve, using a bread knife, slice the boule into wedges, so guests have ready-made sandwiches.

*Good to know: Save time by buying ready-made cooked chicken and make the chicken salad the day before. Toast almonds in a dry frying pan over medium heat and toast the nuts for a few minutes until brown. Cube and save leftover bread to make stuffing, bread crumbs or homemade croutons at a later date.

Chickpea Tabbouleh Salad

My DH & I just love this salad.  Love love love!  It has everything you need in it, and it's so easy to just shove in a container and run out the door.

I'm all about simple meals, so I serve this as an entire meal (though I believe it's normally an appetizer).  My 2 sons are in a "I hate this" phase and are no longer obsessed about chick peas, so instead of serving this with toasted pita bread, I've started serving it with tortilla chips, which I only give out 3-5 at a time to bribe more bites of salad out of them.  My DD only 14 months, can't get enough of this salad - yay for one kid not complaining!

Here's my variation from the original recipe from Canadian Living.

Ingredients 

1 c. couscous (this is my variation - the original recipe calls for bulgur)

1 can drained and rinsed chickpea

2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 c. diced English cucumbers

1 c. minced fresh Italian parsley

1/2 c. chopped green onions

1/4 c. chopped fresh mint

Dressing

1/4 c. lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

(Don't be too generous with your lemon juice - it can be very strong!)

Preparation:

In saucepan, bring 1-1/3 cups water to boil; stir in couscous. Remove from heat; cover and cook for 5 minutes or until no liquid remains. Transfer to large bowl, fluffing with fork. Let cool to room temperature.

Add chickpeas, tomatoes, cucumber, parsley, onions and mint.

Dressing:

In small bowl, whisk together lemon juice, oil, garlic, salt and pepper; pour over couscous mixture and toss to combine.