Yes there are only 1.5 cookies in this picture. That's because we ate the rest. They were delicious.

After all of the holiday baking was done, I promised my husband I would bake him anything he wanted. His request? Chocolate-chip cookies. My immediate response was to harass him about his “boring” taste in baked goods. Then he specified that he wanted ridiculously big, thick, chewy chocolate chip cookies. Since my usual recipe yields a smaller, chewy cookie of normal thickness, his request made the project a little more interesting. Still, I initially hadn’t planned to blog the cookies, which is why there are only two in the picture. The rest were gone by the time I decided to write about them. This is because they were very good cookies. And chocolate-chip cookies are a classic, definitely something that should be included in any food blog.

Thick & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes 1 dozen cookies

Ingredients
2 sticks unsalted butter
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
12 oz. chocolate chips
1 c. chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Cream butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl, being careful not to overbeat. Add egg and vanilla and beat lightly.
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, soda and salt. Slowly add to sugar and butter mixture. Add chocolate chips and walnuts.
4. Scoop 1/4 c. portions of dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350º for 18-22 minutes.

My thoughts:
In spite of my initial resistance, I was very happy that I made these cookies. They were great out of the oven with a warm glass of milk, and still good a few days later. As you can see from this pic, they were also as thick as my hand. In the future, I plan to play with this recipe more – maybe add some oatmeal or M&Ms. Then again, maybe I’ll just let a classic remain a classic.

After dinner last night, Jared and I both had a huge craving for something sweet. We don’t keep many sweets around, but the baking cabinet is usually stocked with basic ingredients. I wanted to make something easy that involved chocolate. It also had to be eggless since we didn’t have any eggs. Recipezaar to the rescue! Contributor Chiclet’s vegan brownie recipe was exactly what I needed. This recipe took less than 45 minutes to prepare and bake. The brownies came out gooey and spongy. They have a hint of cinnamon and aren’t overly sweet.

Vegan Brownies
Makes 12 brownies

Ingredients
2 cups unsweetened applesauce
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup pecans (optional)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, combine applesauce, sugar and vanilla.
3. In a large bowl, mix flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix to combine. Fold in most of the pecans, if using.
5. Coat a 9×9 pan with non-stick cooking spray. Spread brownie batter evenly into pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips and crushed pecans on top
6. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes. Let cool before slicing.

My thoughts:
1. The original recipe called for walnuts. I was out of walnuts so I used pecans instead.
2. Since I didn’t have vegan chocolate chips, my take on the recipe wasn’t truly vegan. Also, I left the chocolate chips out of the batter. Instead, I sprinkled them on top of the brownies, along with some crushed nuts, to give them some visual interest.

Recipe Source: Chiclet at Recipezaar