Something Sweet…

It’s absolutely shocking to me that it’s taken this long for something baked to end up on this blog. Boy do I ever have a sweet tooth! It’s so bad that we have to keep low fat ice cream in our freezer at ALL times because I simply can NOT go to bed at night without a little somethin’ sweet! I blame my parents… well my Dad actually. When we were growing up, around 8 o’clock every night, like clockwork he would ask “Desert anyone?” How was a girl supposed to refuse?! Pair this apparent addiction to sweets with my absolute LOVE of baking and well… thank God I’ve learned a bit of self control over the years.

I thought I’d start out with a basic… everyone has their favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe and after years of using the tollhouse recipe on the back of the bag (not that I’m putting down that old trusted friend) I just needed a little change. One of the cookies I make frequently is my own recipe for chocolate chip cookies… which is actually a bit healthy since I substitute whole wheat flour and use splenda baking mixes for the sugars, plus a couple of secret ingredients. But hey, we can’t go starting my first baking post on a HEALTHY note now can we?

So I present a delicious recipe for a chocolate chip cookie so darn good that it only took 4 days for us to devour the whole batch! It’s not only chocked full of chips, but Heath bar, and hazelnuts too!



Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Cookies by Giada De Laurentiis
½ cup ground old-fashioned oats (I used whole wheat flour… works perfectly!)
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) at room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
4 ounces Heath bar (2 ½ small bars)
1 cup hazelnuts (toasted, skinned and chopped)
12oz bag semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

If you’re like me, you forgot to set out the butter ahead of time so it’ll be room temp, so while you’re toasting and chopping hazelnuts and chopping up the Heath bars, put the butter near the stove.

Line your baking sheets with parchment paper. Grab a bowl and mix the whole wheat flour, white flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt with a whisk.

Put your room temperature butter and both sugars in your mixer. Beat until fluffy. Then add eggs and vanilla. Slowly add the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Stir in the toffee, hazelnuts, and chocolate chips. It’ll get pretty thick at the end, so grab someone with muscles to give it a good stir! Bri loves this part because he gets to lick the spoon afterwards.

I use a small ice cream scooper to drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto my baking sheet. Bake until the cookies are golden, which is usually exactly 15 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, and then completely on a wire cooling rack.

We never let them cool completely before getting a big glass of milk and a plate full! You’re welcome.

Love,
Candace