chocolate chip cookies

There's something about chocolate chip cookies that hearkens back to an earlier time. A time when I brought my lunch to school in a brown paper bag filled with cookies, a turkey sandwich on white Pepperidge Farm bread, Lay's potato chips, and a bottle of ice-cold lemonade. These were the lunchtime staples of my childhood. When I arrived home from school, I used to make a beeline for the kitchen to find a fresh batch of my mother's chocolate chip cookies resting a cooling rack. 

Perhaps it is the history behind the chocolate chip cookie that conjures up nostalgic thoughts of an even earlier time. In 1938, Ruth Graves Wakefield invented the cookie when she owned the Toll House Inn in Massachusetts. The cookie was an instant classic. It became a wildly popular treat in households across America after she brokered a deal with Nestlé® to publish her recipe on bags of Nestlé's® semi-sweet morsels (a.k.a, chocolate chips). Hence, the Toll House® cookie. Since that time, thousands of variations of that recipe have hit cookbooks and the Internet as chefs, bloggers, and food writers develop recipes of their own and incorporate creative additions like bacon bits and rock salt. I, for one, prefer the basics.

This recipe is similar to Ruth's classic creation, but I call for more brown sugar and I omitted the nuts and vanilla extract. This recipe produces rich, gooey, sugary, chocolate chip cookies which you can enjoy with a cold glass of milk. I enjoyed several cookies yesterday (read: twelve). My insatiable sweet tooth has not dimished with age...

recipe

• 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips
• 2 large brown eggs
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, diced and at room temperature 
• 2 1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 3/4 tsp baking soda

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.
2. Sift the flour and baking soda into a mixing bowl and whisk in the salt by hand. 
3. Cream the butter. Attach a paddle to a stand mixture and add the butter and sugars to the bowl. Beat on low speed until ingredients are evenly-combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat the mixture for several minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. The mixture will lighten in color and form a smooth paste.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the sugar-butter-egg mixture. Beat on low speed until the ingredients have completely blended together. Add the chocolate chips and beat for a minute longer.
5. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop a heaping tablespoon of the cookie dough from the bowl, form it into a ball, and place it on the parchment paper. Repeat. And be sure to leave a couple of inches of space in between each ball of dough.
6. Bake the cookies for 12-15 minutes, or until they have achieved a matte golden brown color. 

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!

beet, ginger and coconut milk soup

I love beets. I love the deep magenta color. The earthy flavor. The sound of tiny roots crackling softly as I tug their bulbs from the soil.

Beets are one of the most versatile root vegetables for any season: they taste delicious in salads, smoothies and soups, or roasted in garlic and olive oil and served atop crunchy bread with a wedge of goat cheese. And they boast a wealth of health benefits including richness in potassium, immune-boosting vitamin C, fiber, and nitric oxide. Regular beet consumption will help bolster energy levels and improve digestion and blood circulation.

My beet, ginger and coconut milk soup is vaguely Southeast Asian in flavor and velvety in texture. The ginger packs a subtle spicy punch. It's simple to make for a quick weeknight meal. Enjoy with a side of buttered toast sprinkled with chives.

recipe

• 4 cups red beets, diced
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
• 1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp canola oil
• 1 cup canned coconut milk
• 1 tsp Kosher salt
• 2-3 pinches ground black pepper

1. In a Dutch oven or medium saucepan, sauté the onions in the canola oil for 3-5 minutes, or until the onions become translucent. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for a couple of minutes longer.
2. Add the beets, turmeric, brown sugar and the salt and black pepper. Pour in enough of the vegetable stock to barely cover the ingredients. Stir to combine.
3. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cover. Allow the mixture to simmer gently for 20-25 minutes, or until the beets can be easily pierced with a sharp knife.
4. Run the soup through a blender to completely liquify the ingredients and eliminate small lumps.
5. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl and stir in the coconut milk. Season to taste with more of the turmeric, brown sugar, or salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Garnish and serve cold.

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!