Picture Perfect Cooking

C and I both love strawberries!  I am so glad that we have our own strawberry plants, too.  Right now I am picking a full bowl every other night on just 28 Tribute plants and they are still full of green berries!  I hope to plant more next year so I can have enough to freeze as well. 

The other day, C asked if I could make a strawberry milk shake and I said sure.  I bought the ice cream and searched for a basic recipe online.  I found one that looked good and then tweaked it to suit myself.  I added a lot of extra strawberries, because I really wanted that to be the main flavor and it did not disappoint.  Also, since I used 2% milk and light ice cream, it was not as unhealthy as it could be.  If you used skim milk, it would be even lighter and just as good.  This made two average sized shakes.

1/2 cup milk (I used 2%.)

35 strawberries, hulled and sliced

1 cup vanilla ice cream (I used light.)

1/4 cup sugar (You could get by with less.)

In the container of a blender, combine all ingredients.  Blend until smooth, about 20 seconds.  Pour into a glass and ENJOY!

Let me tell you, I am extremely lactose-intolerant and this was well worth the 2 lactose supplements and anti-acid pill that I had to take to drink it.  If I could, I would have licked the inside of the glass.  It was SO YUMMY!

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I am always on the look for new and interesting recipes to try.  My E-mail inbox has new cooking newsletters for me almost every day so I should never run out of ideas!  One of the newsletters I subscribe to is from Family Fun magazine, and I really enjoy it.

Their recipes are usually simple and family-friendly for those picky eaters in your life and this pancake recipe more than qualifies.  The peanut buttery taste goes great with syrup or honey as a topping.  I think it would be good to just spread a little grape jelly on them, too, but I did not get a chance to try this!

Note: I made this batch exactly by the recipe, but I think I will add more milk next time, may 1 1/3 cups instead of the called-for amount.  The batter was just a little too thick.

1 cup all purpose flour

2/12 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (Chunky would probably be good, too.)

2 tbsp granulated sugar

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 large egg

1 cup + 2 tbsp milk (needs a little more)

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, sugar, and oil until smooth.  Beat in the egg and then the milk.

Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture, stirring just until blended.

Next, lightly coat a griddle or skillet with oil and heat it over medium-high heat.  Drop the batter onto the griddle by 1/4 cup measures.  Cook until tiny bubbles appear on the surface, then flip them and cook a few minutes more.  I served these as suggested by the website with warm pancake syrup,sliced bananas, and chopped peanuts..  They were delicious!

Come join the fun at the My Baking Addiction and GoodLife Eats Holiday Recipe Swap sponsored by Le Creuset

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There seems to be a lot of “talk” on cooking blogs lately about chocolate chip cookie recipes.  Everyone seems to have their own version and I do as well.  I have used this basic recipe for over 14 years with yummy results.  You can add chopped nuts or different chips to it.  I have used milk, white, or butterscotch chips instead of the usual semi-sweet and they are all good. 

I hope you enjoy this basic recipe and modify it to suit your tastes!

1 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and prepare 2 cookie sheets.  I use two so one can be cooling in between batches while the other is in the oven.  Mix the 2 sugars together with an electric mixer.  Add softened butter and stir until creamy.

Add eggs & vanilla. Add flour one cup at a time and stir until just combined.  Stir in chips and nuts if you are using them.

Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls on to the cookie sheet.  I use a small scoop and it works great.  Bake until lightly browned around the edges, about 10-12 minutes.  These cookies usually don’t spread much but instead make a small mound cookie as you can see in the photo.

Here is a neat trick I learned many years ago.  To make the cookies last longer, put a piece of bread in the bowl with them.  The cookies will absorb the moisture in the bread and stay softer longer!

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