Super Soft Snickerdoodles

A couple years ago, I posted a snickerdoodle recipe on this blog. But I never found myself going back to make it a second time. You know why? They weren't soft! And I'm not a fan of crunchy cookies. The softer, the better, in my opinion! If you're the same way, this recipe certainly will not disappoint. I can guarantee, I WILL be making these again! Everyone in the house loved them. Even the dog wanted a taste :)

Super Soft Snickerdoodles

Ingredients: 

1 c. unsalted butter, room temperature 

1 1/2 c. white sugar 

2 eggs

2 3/4 c. all purpose flour 

2 tsp. cream of tartar 

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt 

For Rolling: 

1/3 c. white sugar 

1 tbsp. ground cinnamon  

(mix together in a small bowl and set aside)

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 375 and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or spritz with cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter, sugar and eggs until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Mix until dough comes together. 

Roll dough into walnut-sized balls and then roll in the cinnamon sugar mix. Place on prepared cookie sheets and bake in the preheated oven for 9-11 minutes. Pull out while still slightly doughy in the centers and allow to cool on the pans for several minutes and then transfer to cookie racks to cool completely. Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies. 

Recipe found here: http://seattleflourchild.wordpress.com/2014/01/11/seahawk-doodles-also-known-as-snicker-doodles-cookies-for-game-day/

Brown Butter Sweet Potato Alfredo

I came across this recipe on Pinterest (where else??) and it looked too interesting not to try. I've always been an alfredo fan, but I just can't bring myself to eat it with all the sticks of butter and loads of heavy cream that go into it! So I loved that the puréed sweet potato takes the place of those heavy ingredients in this recipe. The end result was amazing! I may even love it more than the classic sauce. I hope you'll give it a try too.

Brown Butter Sweet Potato Alfredo

Ingredients: 

2 tbsp. unsalted butter, browned*

2 small or 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed 

2 tbsp. all-purpose flour 

1 c. milk (I used 2%)

1 3/4 c. water, divided

1 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese 

1 clove fresh garlic, minced 

1/8 tsp. nutmeg 

Salt and pepper to taste 

1 lb. dried angel hair pasta, cooked according to package directions 

Directions: 

Bring a pot of water to boil and add the cubed sweet potatoes and cook until easily pierced with a fork. Drain and place cooked sweet potatoes into a blender with 1 cup of water and carefully purée until smooth. 

To brown the butter, place in a skillet heated over medium and immediately whisk until it begins foaming, about 2-3 minutes. Brown bits will start showing at the bottom, at this point, remove the skillet from the stove and swirl the butter around in the pan so it doesn't go from brown to burned. 

Place the skillet with the butter back over medium heat and whisk in the flour for 30 seconds. Next, slowly add the milk, whisking as you pour, until mixture thickens, about 3-4 minutes. 

Next, add the sweet potatoes and remaining cup of water. Let simmer for about 5 minutes. Then add the Parmesan cheese, garlic, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Stir well to combine and turn off the heat once heated through. If sauce is too thick, you may add more water to thin it out. Serve over prepared angel hair and enjoy! Makes 4-6 servings. 

Original recipe found here: http://www.tablefortwoblog.com/2014/01/08/brown-butter-sweet-potato-alfredo

It's been a while!

Hello, friends! It's been almost exactly 14 months since my last blog post....and I've really missed it! The main reason I haven't kept up with it is time...or lack thereof. But I got a handy new Blogger app for my iPhone so I'm going to see if I can stay on top of posts using that. Don't hold me to it though! I'm going to try it out and see how it goes :)

So let me give you a quick update on life. I'm now working as a part time assistant to the accounting manager at a title company, and I absolutely love it! I work 30 hours a week. Randy is no longer at Lowes. He works about 15 hours a week as the worship leader at our church, going on his 6th year there. He's also Mr. Mom these days, which works out really well. We've been in our new house for almost 2 years and have redone all of it but the kitchen and bathrooms.

Margot is 4 1/2 and learning to read, do math and science, and she's all about anything Disney princess. She's super goofy and sweet, tall and skinny, and lots and lots of fun! Amelia is 2 1/2 and has turned out to be our strong-willed, outgoing and talkative one. And she has the biggest eyes you've ever seen! She loves animals and singing more than anything, and makes us laugh a lot with her crazy dance moves she comes up with.

One of the biggest reasons I've missed blogging, is that I used to use it as my own personal cyber recipe box. And all the recipes we've tried over the last year plus have kind of been forgotten. I haven't had a place to store them and come back to them and make them again. So I'm kind of blogging for selfish reasons I guess :) but I'm ok with that! One big change that's happened in my kitchen is that I no longer incorporate meat in my meals. I do this for health reasons, cost cutting and some of my own personal convictions. Hopefully that won't bum you out or scare you away. I hope you'll stick around and find something you like here!

Chloé