Chocolate Chip Cookies (Los Rios Chocolate)

The chocolate rocks, the recipe, not so much. These are a very buttery cookie, they require rest for 2 hours before baking, and they melt down quite a bit during the baking. The result is a flat, rich, crispy cookie that dries out quickly.


12.5 oz butter
9 oz sugar
9 oz brown sugar
2 eggs
19 oz flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp vanilla
12.5 oz chocolate chips

1. Cream together butter, & sugars.
2. Add eggs, scrape well.
3. Add flour, soda, vanilla, then chocolate chips.

4. Let rest 2 hours.

5. Bake at 325 for 20-25 min.

Summer Dinner

Some friends came over for dinner and I put this menu together from The Summer House Cookbook. I was trying to find things that took little-to-no prep time and would allow for everyone to help. Even one friend who didn't cook did a mash-up job on the guacamole! This is what I chose:

French Potato Salad
Baked black cod
Grilled fruit (peach, nectarine, plum) as fish topping
Guacamole with blue corn chips
Berries with fresh whipped cream for dessert (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries)

First, I chopped up all the guacamole fixings and threw them into a bowl for mashing. Our guac was 4 tiny organic avocados, 1 shallot (finely minced), 1 garlic clove (through the press), 1 tbsp lime juice, salt and pepper, and several tiny tomatoes from the garden.

The cod fillets were rubbed with salt and pepper (no oil; this is a very oily fish), placed on a rack and thrown into the oven at 375 for 20 minutes.

The fruit was sliced into halves, tossed with olive oil and grilled for 10 minutes. Then I sliced them into quarters and tossed with 2 tsp balsamic to serve as a topping for the fish.

The potato salad was a little more time-consuming than anticipated. Steaming that many potatoes takes at least 25-30 minutes. Then they have to cool for 10 minutes. The dressing is a two part build mixing a champagne vinaigrette with the mustard. We all ended up loving the potatoes though; they were well worth the extra time!

I made the biscuits from Cooks Illustrated but they totally fell flat and dry (what?!) so I should have just done the berries alone. Ah well.

Pork Fried Rice

I've been on a bit of a pork fried rice trip lately. I recently thawed out a hunk of Smithfield ham I had saved and I'm using it in everything. Fried rice is a comfort food, easy to make, and you can put just about anything in it. Last night I made it with a twist: Forbidden Rice. This stuff smells so amazing; it has a sweet, nutty aroma and only takes 10 minutes longer to cook. It has amazing health benefits as well as being extra tasty so I think this will be the standard for our rice from now on!

This can be served as a main course; put any leftovers you have into it! Also makes an excellent side to teriyaki chicken.

INGREDIENTS

¼ cup oyster sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3 ½ tablespoons peanut oil
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
8 ounces small shrimp (I used frozen shrimp)
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 cup carrot, ½" dice
8 ounces smoked ham cut into ½" cubes
1 clove garlic, minced
5 cups cooked rice, cold

1/2 ounce dried mushrooms (I had cremini, but you can use shiitake)

5 medium scallions, white and green parts, sliced thin (about ½ cup)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Put dried mushrooms in a bowl and cover with 1 cup hot tap water. Let stand until mushrooms soften, about 5 minutes. Lift mushrooms from liquid, trim stems, and slice into 1/4-inch strips.

2. Combine oyster sauce and soy sauce in small bowl; set aside.

3. Heat 12" nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Add 1 ½ teaspoons oil and swirl to coat pan bottom. Add eggs and cook without stirring, until they just begin to set, about 20 seconds, then scramble and break into small pieces with wooden spoon; continue to cook, stirring constantly, until eggs are cooked through, about 1 minute longer. Transfer eggs to small bowl and set aside.

4. Return skillet to medium heat and heat until hot; add 1 ½ teaspoons oil and swirl to coat pan bottom. Add shrimp and cook, stirring constantly, until opaque and just cooked through. Transfer to bowl with eggs and set aside. If using frozen shrimp, dump out excess water from pan.

5. Return skillet to burner, increase heat to high, and heat skillet until hot; add remaining 2 ½ tablespoons oil and swirl to coat pan bottom. Add carrots and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add peas, mushrooms, and ham; cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add rice and oyster sauce mixture; cook, stirring constantly and breaking up rice clumps, until mixture is heated through, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, shrimp, bean sprouts, and scallions; cook, stirring constantly, until heated through, about 1 minute. Serve immediately.