Happy 21st Birthday, Stephanie

Stephanie came to Chicago and we had a belated celebration of her 21st birthday (April 7). Dallas took Makai to his first baseball game (more on that later!) and Steph and I walked around and hung out in the neighborhood. I can still remember the day mom told me that Amanda was pregnant. Crazy that she’s 21 now. I’m old!

It was a nice day, so we went to sit outside at Parson’s and split a bunch of food. Steph surprised me by eating a couple oysters. I’ve always loved how open minded she is about trying new things! Even when she was younger she was always totally game to try something at least one time.



I kept hearing how great the chocolate cake at Dos Urban Cantina is, so I suggested to Steph that we walk over and try it. It was amazing. We also shared our first drink, a prickly pear mimosa. Also super yummy. I almost said we shared our first legal drink, but it was our first drink together PERIOD.

We were stuffed at this point, so we walked around and checked out a few boutiques in the neighborhood – Felt, Steel Petal Press, Birdseye Rule, Shop 1021.

Passion House Coffee Roasters is our newest coffee shop. It took the place of Bow Truss. It looks like we drank Guinness there, but it was nitro cold brew!

At home we gave Steph a birthday gift. Makai spoiled the surprise by saying “Stephanie, it’s something you can drink!” We got her a bottle of prosecco and a bottle of rosé with custom labels, as well as a customized wine glass and cork.

So fun to hang out with Steph and celebrate! Next drink’s on me!

8th Annual Cookie Party Cookie Recipes

Here are the recipes from the the 8th Annual Cookie Party. See also, recipes from other years:

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1st Place
SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE BARS
by Kristin

IMG_9732-0.jpgFOR THE CRUST
4 1/2 ounces (9 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for parchment
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon table salt

FOR THE CHOCOLATE CARAMEL
10 1/2 ounces milk chocolate, chopped (2 cups)
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
3 ounces (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 tablespoon sea salt, preferably fleur de sel

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make the crust: Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment, leaving an overhang on all sides; butter parchment, excluding overhang. Beat butter and brown sugar on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add flour and table salt, and beat until just combined.

Press dough evenly into pan, and bake until lightly browned, about 30 minutes.

Make the chocolate caramel: Place chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, washing sides of pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming, until amber, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat. Add butter, cream, and table salt. Bring to a boil, stirring until smooth. Pour over chocolate. Let stand for 2 minutes. Stir to combine, and let stand until cool, about 10 minutes.

Pour mixture over crust. Refrigerate at least 4 hours, or overnight. Run a knife around edges; lift parchment to remove whole bar from pan. Sprinkle with sea salt. Trim edges, and cut into 16 bars.

Recipe from: Martha Stewart.

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2nd Place
LEMON RICOTTA COOKIES
by Donna

Watch out – this cookie, with its enticing flavor and texture, can become addictive. Bite by bite, its sparkling exterior gives way to a fluffy, almost cheesecake-like inside. Note that the cookies are baked from frozen dough, so be sure to clear plenty of room in your freezer and start a day ahead.

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. Kosher salt
1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 c. granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 lb. whole-milk ricotta cheese
Grated zest of 6 lemons
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

At least 1 day before baking the cookies, make the dough. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a medium bowl. Beat the butter and granulated sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. One at a time, beat in the eggs. With the mixer on low speed, in three additions, beat in the ricotta, then the lemon zest and juice. Gradually add the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. Do not overmix the dough. It will be very soft.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a 3-ounce-portion ice cream scoop, portion 18 balls of dough onto the baking sheet. Freeze, uncovered, until solid, at least 12 hours. (To store the frozen dough, remove from baking sheet and transfer to a lock-top freezer bag. Squeeze as much air as possible from the bag, seal, and freeze for up to 2 weeks.)

Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Divide the frozen dough ballas among the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Let stand at room temperature until the dough is slightly thawed but still cold and firm, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, position the racks in the top third and center of the oven and preheat the over 325 degrees. Bake the cookies, switching the positions of the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking, until the edges of the cookies are lightly browned, about 22 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the pans for 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and let cool completely. The icing will melt if the cookies are warm.

ICING

1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 c. confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
Grated zest of 1 lemon

To make the icing, beat the butter and confectioners’ sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add the lemon juice and continue mixing until the icing is smooth and about the consistency of cake frosting.

Leave the cookies on the wire racks. Use a tablespoon to spoon the icing over the cookies, spreading it in an even, thick layer over three-quarters of the cookie, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the edge. Grate lemon zest over the center of each cookie. Let the icing set. (The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days, no longer.)

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3rd Place
MOMOFUKU MILK BAR PRETZEL CRUNCH
by Rachelle

Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Yield: About 4 cups pretzel crunch

4 cups salted mini pretzels – about ½ of a 16-ounce bag
½ cup tightly packed brown sugar
¼ cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons milk powder
¼ cup malted milk powder *
½ teaspoon salt **
14 tablespoons butter (1 stick, plus 6 tablespoons), melted

Preheat oven to 275 F.

Pour the pretzels in a large bowl and crush them with your hands (I threw them in a ziplock bag and hammered them with a mallet – easier, in my opinion) to one-quarter of their original size. Add the milk powder, malt powder, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and salt, toss to mix. Pour the butter over the pretzel mix and toss to coat. As you toss, the butter will act as glue, binding the dry ingredients to the pretzels and creating small clusters. (I did not get small clusters, but once baked, it formed a sheet of pretzel crunch that I broke into pieces).
Spread the clusters on a parchment or silpat-lined sheet pan and bake for about 20 minutes or until it looks toasted, smells buttery, and crunches gently when you bite into it.

Cool the pretzel crunch completely before storing, eating, or using in a recipe. Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, the crunch will keep fresh for 1 week. Stored in the fridge or freezer, it will keep for 1 month. I think this pretzel crunch would be fantastic in cookies with chocolate chunks OR drizzle melted chocolate over the top of the sheet of pretzel crunch, let set, then break into pieces – like you would toffee.
notes:

* You can find malted milk powder in the aisle with powdered milk, or the baking aisle of your supermarket.
** Only add salt if your pretzels aren’t salty enough. Taste the mixture before baking to decide whether or not you think it needs it.

Recipe from: Parsley, Sage and Sweet, Cristina Tosi on Epicurious.

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MARION’S MERINGUE SURPRISES
by Jill O.

3 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup (6 ounces) miniature semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand for 30 minutes. Add the vanilla, cream of tartar and salt; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high until stiff glossy peaks form and sugar is dissolved, about 6 minutes. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake at 250° for 40-45 minutes or until firm to the touch. Turn oven off; leave meringues in oven for 1-1/2 hours. Remove to wire racks. Store in an airtight container. Yield: 4 dozen.

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EMMA COOKIES
by Jen

2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 10-oz jar maraschino cherries – cut into quarters
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 6-oz package chocolate chips

Granulated sugar

Mix first 4 ingredients well with spoon. Pour into greased & floured 8×9 pan. Bake for 30  – 35 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool. Cut into 1 inch pieces & roll each in sugar.

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COCOA COOKIES
by Caroline

Recipe coming soon.

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LEMON RASPBERRY THUMBPRINT COOKIES
by Katie

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Makai loved the brandied jam in this one!

1/2 cup raspberry jam or jelly
1 tablespoon Chambord or kirsch
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (1 cup) butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter 2 large baking sheets.

In a small bowl, combine the jam and Chambord. Stir to combine.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk to blend.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Beat in the egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla. Add the flour mixture in 2 additions and beat just until moist clumps form. Gather the dough together into a ball.

Pinch off the dough to form 1-inch balls. Place on the prepared baking sheets, spacing 1-inch apart. Use your floured index finger or 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon to create depressions in the center of each ball. Fill each indentation with nearly 1/2 teaspoon of the jam mixture. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Recipe from: Emeril Lagasse / Food Network

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MOMOFUKU MILK BAR COMPOST COOKIE
by Rachelle

COOKIES

16 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2?3 cup tightly packed light brown sugar
2 tbs glucose
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1?3 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup mini butterscotch chips
1/2 cup graham crust (recipe below)
1?3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
2 1/2 tsp ground coffee
2 cups potato chips
1 cup mini pretzels

Combine the butter, sugars, and glucose in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla, and beat for 7 to 8 minutes. (see page 27 for notes on this process.)

Reduce the speed to low and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. mix just until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. (do not walk away from the machine during this step, or you will risk over mixing the dough.) scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Still on low speed, add the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, graham crust, oats, and coffee and mix just until incorporated, about 30 seconds. add the potato chips and pretzels and paddle, still on low speed, until just incorporated. be careful not to over mix or break too many of the pretzels or potato chips. you deserve a pat on the back if one of your cookies bakes off with a whole pretzel standing up in the center.

Using a 2 3/4 oz ice cream scoop (or a 1/3 cup measure), portion out the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat. wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 1 week. do not bake your cookies from room temperature— they will not bake properly.

Heat the oven to 375°f.

Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 4 inches apart on parchment- or silpat-lined sheet pans. bake for 18 minutes. the cookies will puff, crackle, and spread. after 18 minutes, they should be very faintly browned on the edges yet still bright yellow in the center. give them an extra minute or so if that’s not the case.

Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or an airtight container for storage. at room temp, cookies will keep fresh for 5 days; in the freezer, they will keep for 1 month.

in a pinch, substitute 18 g (1 tablespoon) corn syrup for the glucose. for the “coffee grounds” in this cookie, we tested the recipe with freshly roasted and ground artisanal coffee from stumptown as well as with crap-tastic coffee grounds that you can find just about anywhere. we discovered that it doesn’t make a difference what kind you use; the cookie is delicious every time. just make sure you don’t use instant coffee; it will dissolve in the baking process and ruin the cookies. and, above all else, never use wet, sogalicious grounds that have already brewed a pot of coffee. we use cape cod potato chips because they aren’t paper-thin, and so they do not break down too much in the mixing process.

GRAHAM CRUST
makes about 2 cups

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup milk powder
2 tbs sugar
3/4 tsp kosher salt
4 tbs butter, melted, or as needed
1/4 cup heavy cream

1. toss the graham crumbs, milk powder, sugar, and salt with your hands in a medium bowl to evenly distribute your dry ingredients.

2. whisk the butter and heavy cream together. add to the dry ingredients and toss again to evenly distribute. the butter will act as glue, adhering to the dry ingredients and turning the mixture into a bunch of small clusters. the mixture should hold its shape if squeezed tightly in the palm of your hand. if it is not moist enough to do so, melt an additional 14 to 25 g (1 to 1½ table- spoons) butter and mix it in.

3. eat immediately, or deploy as directed in a recipe. the crust is easiest to mold just after mixing. stored in an airtight container, graham crust will keep fresh for 1 week at room temperature or for 1 month in the fridge or freezer.

Recipe From: Momofuku Milk Bar

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MOCHA TRUFFLES
by Stephanie

1 cup heavy cream
4 Tbs Butter
16 oz bittersweet chocolate
4 oz espresso
Ground Clove
Nutmeg
Cinnamon
Salt
5.25 oz Belvita Chocolate Breakfast Biscuts
1/2 tsp Instant coffee
16 oz Chocolate of your choice, melted for dipping
Bring heavy cream and butter to a boil in a saucepan; pour over finely chopped bittersweet chocolate and stir until melted. Stir in espresso a pinch each of ground clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt. Chill until firm. Scoop and roll into 1-inch balls. Pulse chocolate biscuits and instant coffee in food processor until finely chopped. Roll balls in cookie mixture; chill until set. Dip in chocolate and serve once cooled.

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Crunchy Peanut Butter Balls
by Becky

2 cups powdered sugar
1 stick margarine
2 cups crunchy peanut butter
4 cups Rice Krispies
12 ounces chocolate chips
8 ounce bar Hershey milk chocolate
About 1 ounce cooking wax

Combine margarine, chunky peanut butter, powdered sugar and Rice Krispies in a large bowl. Mix together my hand until well mixed. You may want to wear latex gloves.

Use hands to form into 1 inch balls.

Mix together the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Chop the was very fine and add it to the chocolate. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir. Microwave on high another minute and stir. If the chocolate is hot but not melted, let it stand for 2 minutes and then stir. Microwave for 30 seconds again and stir. Continue these steps until the chocolate and the wax is melted. The wax takes a long time to melt, but if you microwave for 3-5 minutes at once, the chocolate will get scorched.

Dip the peanut butter balls into the chocolate. Place on parchment or waxed paper to harden. Once partially hardened (about 10 minutes) place in the refrigerator or freezer uncovered. Once cold and hard, you can store in layers in containers in the refrigerator. This keeps well, but they are usually consumed quickly!

Note: This is a family recipe from Becky’s mother-in-law.

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HOT COCOA COOKIES
by Mary

FOR THE COOKIES-
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

25 (apx.) large marshmallows

FOR THE ICING-
2 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup hot water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Assorted sprinkles

In a medium saucepan (or in a microwave safe bowl, using 50% power), melt the butter and chocolate, stirring frequently. Once melted, set aside to cool slightly.

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

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the sugar, eggs and vanilla on low speed until well combined.

Add the cooled chocolate mixture and blend until just combined.

While mixing, add the flour mixture slowly and blend until just combined.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then cover the dough and refrigerate about 1 hour. If making the dough a day ahead, let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before shaping.

Preheat oven to 325*F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or a silpat type liner. Use a tablespoon (or a tablespoon sized cookie scoop) to scoop the dough, then roll the dough in your hands to create balls. Arrange the balls about 2 inches apart on your baking sheets, then flatten slightly.
Bake cookies about 12 minutes.

While the cookies bake, cut the large marshmallows in half (crosswise). When the cookies have baked, remove from oven and press one marshmallow half (cut side down) into the center of each cookie. Return the cookies to the oven and bake another 2-3 minutes. Allow the pan of cookies to cool a few minutes, then transfer cookies to cooling rack.

Prepare cookie icing by combining all ingredients in a medium bowl and mixing together with a whisk. Place wire cooling rack (with cookies on it) over a baking sheet (to catch any excess icing). Spoon a small amount of icing onto the top of each marshmallow, and use the back of the spoon to spread it a bit. After icing just a couple cookies, top with sprinkles before the icing dries.

Allow icing to set up about 30 minutes before serving.

Recipe from: Glorious Treats

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PEANUT BUTTER CUP COOKIES
by Donna

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk
40 miniature chocolate covered peanut butter cups, unwrapped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Sift together the flour, salt and baking soda; set aside.
Cream together the butter, sugar, peanut butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg, vanilla and milk. Add the flour mixture; mix well. Shape into 40 balls and place each into an ungreased mini muffin pan.
Bake at 375 degrees for about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press a mini peanut butter cup into each ball. Cool and carefully remove from pan.

Recipe from: All Recipes

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BETTER THAN THE BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES EVER
by Britt

4 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups crushed cornflake cereal
2 cups quick cooking oatmeal
4 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups chopped toasted pecans
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Place oven rack on top of oven and preheat to 325 degrees. Whip butter in a mixing bowl, add granulated and brown sugar then cream together with butter. Add eggs, one at a time, add vanilla to mixture, mixing well and scraping sides of bowl with each addition. Add cornflakes and oatmeal to mixture. Sift together flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda then add to the mixture. By hand, mix in pecans and chocolate chips. Use a large ice cream scoop or form balls a bit smaller than a tennis ball. Drop on ungreased cookie sheets. These are large cookies, so place about 6 on each baking sheet. Bake 16-17 minutes on top rack of oven.

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ROSEMARY SHORTBREAD
by Sara

1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
1 cup All Purpose Flour
1/4 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 Tbsp Chopped Fresh Rosemary
1/2 cup Powdered Sugar
1 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter, salt and granulated sugar together until light and smooth.

Add cheese, flour and rosemary, then blend together. Place dough on a sheet of plastic wrap and roll up into a log about 2 inches in diameter, covered with plastic. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and slice log into disks 1/2 inch thick, then bake on parchment or a nonstick baking sheet for 12-15 minutes. While cookies bake, prepare glaze by mixing together powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth. If mixture is dry, add more juice or water. Once cookies cool, drizzle with glaze.

Recipe from: BetterRecipes.com

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OREO POPS
by Jessica

One package of Double Stuff Oreos
2 (12oz.) bags of Wilton White Candy Melts
24 Lollipop sticks
Confetti sprinkles

Carefully twist apart all of the Oreo cookies.

Using one of the pop sticks, make an indentation in the white filling of each cookie.

Melt the Candy Melts in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring until completely melted and smooth.

Dip the end of one stick into the melted white chocolate, drizzle a little in the center of the white cookie filling and then gently press it into the indentation made.

Place the top of the cookie back on and allow white chocolate to harden (5 minutes or so), cementing the cookie back together with a stick inside.

Holding the stick, lower the entire Oreo into the bowl of melted white chocolate, spooning it over the top and sides to cover it completely.

Allow the excess chocolate to drain off and gently place covered Oreo on a piece of parchment paper to harden.

Top with confetti sprinkles immediately before the chocolate hardens.

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CHOCOLATE DIPPED LOGS
by Jill J + Halle

Recipe coming soon.

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IMG_9650-0.jpgCRANBERRY PROSECCO COCKTAIL
by Rachelle

1 ounce cranberry juice (sweetened)
1 wedge lime
Prosecco
Cranberries (frozen or fresh)

In a Champagne flute add cranberry juice and a squeeze of lime. Top off the glass with Prosecco. Garnish with 3 or 4 cranberries and lime wedge.

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SPINACH WREATH CRESCENT WREATH
by Rachelle

WREATH
2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury™ refrigerated crescent dinner rolls or 2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury™ refrigerated Crescent Dough Sheet

TOPPING
1 box (9 oz) frozen chopped spinach
3/4 cup light sour cream
1/2 cup fat-free mayonnaise
2 tablespoons fat-free (skim) milk
1 tablespoon chopped green onion (1 medium)
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed

GARNISHES
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 tablespoons chopped green onions (2 medium)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Green bell pepper, cut into holly leaves
Small cherry tomatoes

Heat oven to 375°F. Turn 10-oz custard cup upside down on center of ungreased large cookie sheet.

Remove dough from one can, keeping dough in one piece; do not unroll. With hands, roll dough to 12-inch log. Cut log into 20 slices. Arrange 16 slices, slightly overlapping, around custard cup.

Repeat with second can of dough, cutting log into 20 slices. Arrange remaining 24 slices, slightly overlapping each other, next to but not overlapping first ring. Remove custard cup from center.

Bake 13 to 16 minutes or until light golden brown. Gently loosen wreath from cookie sheet, and carefully slide onto cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook spinach as directed on package; cool and squeeze to drain.

In medium bowl, stir sour cream, mayonnaise and milk until well mixed. Add spinach and remaining topping ingredients; mix well. Cover; refrigerate until serving time.

Place cooled wreath on serving tray. Spread wreath with spinach topping. Sprinkle with red bell pepper, 2 tablespoons onions and parsley. Decorate with bell pepper “holly leaves” and cherry tomato “berries.” Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate up to 2 hours before serving.

Recipe From: Pillsbury

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HOT APPLE CIDER
by Rachelle

1/2 gallon apple cider
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. whole cloves
1 tsp. whole allspice
2-3 cinnamon sticks

Combine all ingredients. Simmer 20 minutes. Drink.

Helpful hints: Put spices in a tea ball so that they don’t have to be strained out. Captain Morgan is fabulous to add to the cider. Also can be put into a crockpot and kept on low all day (after simmering). This will fill the house with a great spicy aroma.

Recipe From: Julene / Chicagoist

8th Annual Cookie Party

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Last weekend, I hosted my annual cookie party. I think I’ve finally gotten this down, this being my 8th year hosting the party. I have a list and I just go down it, I have a box of things I need to get out of the closet, and a run to the store and done! Not too much stressing any more. And it helps that our holiday parties for work are now in January because it used to be that no matter what day I chose for the cookie party, my holiday party would be the day before. That just made things painful!

IMG_9715-0.jpgFront: Jill, Halle. Middle: Becky, Katie, Britt, Jessica, Sara, Stephanie, Jill, Jen, Kristin. Back: Makai, Mary, Jessica, John, Caroline, Donna, Rachelle

I was so excited to have friends and family over and continue the tradition. I took the day before the party off of work to clean and prep and cook! I totally forgot that it was our Secret Santa gift exchange on the day I took off, but I did what I needed to do in the morning and then went downtown for the party in the afternoon. My mom also took the day off and she and my dad drove down and picked up Stephanie on the way.

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IMG_9737-0.jpgMakai + Johnny

On the morning of the cookie party my dad also went up and got Jessica. My mom and my nieces have never missed a cookie party yet! It was fun to have cookie party veterans as well as newbs at the party. Everyone really stepped it up this year, new and old. And for kids, we had John, Halle, and Makai when he finally woke up from his nap.

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To counterbalance all of the sweets, I made a Spinach Dip Crescent Wreath that was both very festive and super delicious. I also had a few cheese balls with crackers and some nuts. As always, we also had hot apple cider (spiked or not). And this year I had a signature Cranberry Prosecco Cocktail.

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These were all the tasty treats we sampled:

  • Lemon Ricotta Cookies – Donna
  • Marion’s Meringue Surprises – Jill O.
  • Momofuku Milk Bar Compost Cookie – Rachelle
  • Emma Cookies – Jen
  • Cocoa Cookies – Caroline
  • Lemon Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies – Katie
  • Salted Caramel Chocolate Bars – Kristin
  • Mocha Truffles – Stephanie
  • Crunchy Peanut Butter Balls – Becky
  • Hot Cocoa Cookies – Mary
  • Peanut Butter Cup Cookies – Donna
  • Momofuku Milk Bar Pretzel Crunch – Rachelle
  • Better Than the Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever – Britt
  • Rosemary Shortbread – Sara
  • Oreo Pops – Jessica
  • Chocolate Dipped Logs – Jill J + Halle

IMG_9695-0.jpg Katie + Becky

IMG_9692-0.jpgStephanie + Jessica

Like previous years, we did a quick vote to see which was the most favorite cookie of the day. Pretty much every single cookie got at least a vote, which is cool that everyone likes all different things. Even the Spinach Dip Crescent Wreath got a vote! The results?

  • 5th Place: Hot Cocoa Cookies. My mom didn’t think they turned out right, but other people disagreed!
  • 4th Place: Sara’s Rosemary Shortbread. The savory sweet was so good!
  • 3rd Place: Momofuku Something. I was getting confused on the voting because I made two things from Momofuku Milk Bar: The pretzel crunch and the compost cookies. I didn’t think the cookies turned out but maybe others disagreed. The pretzel crunch was amazing, though.
  • 2nd Place: Lemon Ricotta Cookies. A few more votes and Donna, a cookie party newcomer, would have won! These cookies were so refreshing and lemony!
  • 1st Place: Kristin’s Salted Caramel Chocolate Bars. Kristin is a veteran of the cookie party but has never won. So happy to give her the top prize this year! Kristin won an apron and The Gourmet Cookie Book: The Single Best Recipe from Each Year 1941-2009.

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I’m declaring the party a success again this year! I’ll post the recipes for the cookies soon!

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Holiday Booze Cart Fundraiser

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Isobar has been taking donations for Mercy House this holiday season. The best fundraiser they had so far was today when they brought around a booze cart (and desserts). Suggested donation: $5. They were mobbed. Think of all the money they could raise if they did this every afternoon!

Celebrating Our 40th Birthdays in Miami Beach

Since Jeannette and Jessica and I all are (or will be) turning 40 within weeks of each other, we decided to celebrate big in Miami Beach. None of us had been there before, so we were all excited to check it out.

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We arrived on Thursday morning. Jess and Jeannette were delayed from New York because of a storm in Miami, but I somehow got in ok. When we finally left the airport and headed for our hotel, the Thompson Miami Beach, the storm had paused. We had hopes to spend the day orienting ourselves on a Citibike and hanging out at the beach. We checked in to the hotel and because we were all celebrating our birthdays, or more likely because it was the slow season, we were upgraded to a room with full ocean views. Patricia, the awesome front desk manager, also let us know that there would be a “birthday treat” for us later on. I managed to take one beautiful photo of our room view (above) before it started to pour.

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We headed to Seagrape, in our hotel, for a leisurely afternoon lunch. This is Michelle Bernstein, who you might recognize from TV‘s, restaurant. We talked and talked and caught up. It had been some time (10 months?) since we’d all seen each other. It was pouring outside, so there was no rush. Seagrape was participating in Miami Spice, which is basically like restaurant week, but it lasts for 2 months. We were enjoying our prix fixe meal and some cocktails. At some point the restaurant manager came and talked to us about our birthdays. At the end of our meal he came rushing out with three glasses of complementary champagne and with candles for our desserts and made sure we all made made a wish. Seagrape was excellent and was named one of Miami’s hottest new restaurants this year!

It was warm in Miami, about 85 degrees, but still raining. We decided to brave it and take a walk around the hotel anyway. We passed by two pools and there were some girls swimming in one of them. We decided, what the heck, you get wet in a pool anyway, so we quickly changed and went out to join them for a swim!

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When we finally got cold and went back to our room, we were surprised with a bottle of prosecco and a bunch of birthday sweets! Patricia at the front desk also included a hand-written note to welcome us to the Thompson Miami Beach and to wish us a good time on our birthday stay. So sweet!

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We drank the prosecco and relaxed in our room before deciding to go out for a casual Cuban dinner. On a recommendation, we chose Havana 1957 on Espanola Way. To be completely honest, it was just ok and Espanola Way was really touristy and cheesy. Later on a local told us there’s a certain area everyone goes to for good Cuban food. Overall, I’d say, we had many GREAT meals in Miami Beach. It’s not that Havana 1957 was bad, but it wasn’t GREAT. Also, it was hard to enjoy after we kept seeing cockroaches scurrying around (we were seated outside). Our table was awkwardly crammed between two other tables and there was a speaker blaring music in my ear so I couldn’t hear anything anyone was saying. This was probably our worst dinner pick of the trip, but that’s ok! Now we know. And can tell you!

We called it an early night, since we’d all gotten up at around 4 a.m. that morning to get to the airport!

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After Thursday’s bad weather and after looking at the forecast for the weekend, I think we’d all resigned ourselves to the fact that the weather was just going to be shit and we’d just have to deal with it. I knew we’d still have a great time and that spending time with old friends is always good, even if it’s not on the beachy trip you’d imagined. On Friday we had plans and lunch reservations in the Wynwood area of Miami (off the beach). We were going to see some of the design district and have lunch out there. We slept in until almost 9 a.m., probably the latest I’ve slept in in two years. When I opened up the patio curtains and the sun was blazing, I cancelled my lunch reservation and made the executive decision to go to the pool immediately!

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Except that the pool was super swampy from all the rain. Jeannette immediately got five mosquito bites, so we headed to the beach. And it was awesome. Sunny with a breeze. Slightly cloudy, so it wasn’t too hot. No mosquitos! We set up with three chairs and an umbrella and met the most excellent beach server, Ryan, who ended up helping us all weekend long. The water in Miami Beach was so clear and turquoise. And not cold at all. It was so nice!

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Our beach day was cut short when at about 2:00 p.m. Ryan came running to warn us that a storm was rolling in. Just like that it started pouring and we had to run back to the hotel!! We were drenched, but whatever. We were just drenched from the ocean 10 minutes before that :).

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We rested back at the hotel, took showers and got ready, took balcony selfies and then went to South Beach for drinks and dinner.

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Our first stop of the night was at the Delano hotel. It’s a high-end hotel and we had fun looking around inside and out before heading to Rose Bar. The bar was super fancy. We had some delicious custom-made drinks by a bartender whose name I forget. He was really nice and from North Africa, is what I remember. His secret ingredient in his mojito was coconut rum. The coconut taste was not strong, but just enough to give a hint.

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The rain had started again and it kind of put the kabosh on our plans to bar hop around to different South Beach bars before going to dinner. When the rain took a break, we made a run for it, but the streets were still totally flooded.

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We made it to the Raleigh, across the street from our dinner reservation. I recognized this from an Anthony Bourdain show where he said he always stays at the Raleigh. It has a really cool art deco design and the pool area looked amazing. Like the coolest pool I saw all weekend. We peeked around and the crossed the street to go to dinner.

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For dinner, Cleo was recommended to us by multiple people. We all loved the decor, which was sophisticated but mismatched: Think antique plates that aren’t all the same. And the food was amazing. This was my favorite meal of the weekend. It’s Mediterranean tapas. The baba ganoush and naan cooked in the woodfire oven were amazing. The wagyu skirt steak paired with mushrooms were amazing. I loved the moussaka. Oh, and the brussels sprouts were seriously whoa. So good. Everything we tried was delicious. And our server was very nice and attentive. If you’re in Miami Beach, go here. At the end of our meal, they brought out three flourless chocolate cakes with candles for our birthdays!!

Cleo won Best ‘Middleterranean’ Restaurant from the Miami New Times and was named one of OpenTable’s “50 Hottest Restaurants in the U.S.”, so don’t just take our word for it!

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On Saturday I opened the curtains to see, again, another gorgeous day! Our hotel’s pool area is alongside a wooden boardwalk that runs along the beach. Eventually, as you go south, it turns into more of a pavement sidewalk, but I’d been eying the wooden boardwalk and wanting to walk on it, so we got some iced coffees and took a stroll. It was SO HOT, though.

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Our hotel was at about 40th and Collins and we found this cool 40 marker just off the boardwalk. We had some guy take a photo of us with it.

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Eventually we veered off and stumbled upon Beachcraft, which I didn’t even recognize at first as being one of Tom Colicchio’s restaurants. It was gorgeous inside, just opened this year, and was also named one of the 10 hottest new restaurants in Miami. We were mostly there to rest and only had coffee and fruit, but the food everyone around us was eating looked great.

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We walked a bit more along Collins and were disappointed that there wasn’t more to see. It was mostly all hotels. I wanted to see some crazies, some rollerskating on the boardwalk, some of these string bikinis that everyone is scandalized about. But it was mostly just hotel roundabouts and lobbies. All the bars we’d been to were all nice and classy and age appropriate with big price tags. I guess THIS IS Miami Beach. I thought there was more cheese, and just wanted to sample it, but I guess not! zzzzz We did come across a few cheesy stores like Alvin’s Island.

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Just south of 17th Street (we’d walked down from 40th, remember), we turned onto Lincoln Road. This is where Lincoln Road Mall, an outdoor shopping center, is located. We weren’t really interested in going there because all of the stores seemed to be the same as the stores at home (Zara, Gap, Apple, etc), but it was on the way to our lunch destination. Multiple people told us this was also a good area to people watch, but when we were there it was pretty empty. Maybe we were at an off time (Saturday at 11 a.m.), but it was disappointing.

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Finally, after walking 2.5 miles, we reached our destination: Yardbird Southern Table & Bar. We’d heard from a few people that this was a great place for brunch. In addition, it was rated 4.5/5.0 on Yelp, Open Table and Trip Advisor, and was ranked #11 restaurant out of 874 in Miami Beach, and Bourdain went to Yardbird with Questlove and do we need another and!? When Jeannette tried to make a reservation she had no luck…. but then she got in eventually, so we were all psyched to try it out.

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Yardbird was a close second to Cleo as far as my favorite place we ate on the trip. There were so many things on the menu I wanted to try! We settled on fried chicken with waffles and watermelon, cheesy grits, biscuits with honey butter and jam, quiche and maple-glazed bacon doughnuts. Everything was so good. The chicken was crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. Biscuits were perfect. Quiche was so rich and decadent. When they brought out the doughnuts at the end we couldn’t even eat them all because we were so stuffed!! Our server was super nice and attentive and even answered some questions we had about Miami and Miami Beach, in general. At the end he brought out a sweets plate with three candles and a birthday with for us!

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After lunch we took a cab to the souternmost point in South Beach, South Pointe Park.

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It was gorgeous, but also blazing hot with very little shade, so we only walked around a little bit before cabbing it back up to our hotel and retreating to the beach!

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Ahhhhhhhh… back on the beach. It felt SO refreshing after walking around so much and being so hot.

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Nice refreshing drinks!

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Later on that night we walked to the Fountainebleau for dinner at Scarpetta by Scott Conant. This was our splurge dinner as Scarpetta is fancy schmancy Italian with price tags to match. We actually ended up getting the tasting menu because it seemed like a better deal and would let us try three appetizers, three pastas, three mains and two desserts, all served family style. The pastas were the real winners for me. It was all freshly made pasta and you could really tell. I loved the crab tagliatelle and the duck and foi gras ravioli! At the end our waiter brought out our desserts with candles and happy birthday messages!

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On our final day of vacation we contemplated going to the spa or finally getting out to Wynwood, but in the end we just laid by the beach from breakfast til 3 p.m. Our friend Ryan surprised us with a complementary bottle of Veuve champagne! So nice! And what a great ending to a great vacation! We used the hospitality suite to shower, grabbed a late and quick lunch at Seagrape and then headed for the airport. Before I knew it, I was back at O’Hare, sad but excited to see Dallas and Makai.

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