There's nothing like a good ol' cookie

Snickerdoodles were my favorite cookie growing up, and they still are the ones that are most nostalgic to me. These days though, I have been addicted to the chocolate chip cookie. I used to eat around the chocolate chips as a child, and I still feel like I don't put quite as many chips as some people like- probably a habit from back in my snickerdoodle days!

Over the years, I've figured out some things that make a cookie extra delicious. 

1) A little Fleur de Sel, which is just the fancy name for sea salt

2) Putting them in the fridge for an hour or so before baking them- I find it easiest to roughly ball them up while they're still room temperature and pliable. 

3) Love - it's the best ingredient in everything :)

Here's the basic recipe that I use. 

• 1/2 c butter (room temp)
• 1/2 c granulated sugar
• 1/2 c brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 t vanilla extract (let's be honest, I love this stuff, I usually double it)
• 1.5 c all-purpose flour (preferably the non-bleached and organic kind because I'm a hippie)
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 c dark chocolate chips or crushed dark chocolate bars. If I'm going to be choosy about the chocolate, I try to go for ones with a strong nutty or earthy note. (Yes, I'm a chocolate snob)  

You know the drill, cream sugars and butter first, then add wet ingredients, then dry. There's some fancy stuff you can do, like mixing the baking soda with warm water first, but I always forget to do that step. Add nuts and other things, if you're into that. They're fun to include, but personally, if I'm going to make a batch myself (and thus eat half of it) I just want a pile of plain ol' gooey chocolate chip cookies.

Then throw them in the oven for about 10 minutes on 350 F and ... mmmm

Excuse me while I go clean up the chocolate smears and cookie crumbs off of my keyboard...

// What's your favorite cookie?

// What secret ingredients/steps do you have to make your cookies to-die-for?

xx

Chocolate | Single Origin vs Blended

So what's up with "single origin" chocolates that you hear about once in a while?

Different soil compositions is the main reason why beans from different countries/regions/plantations can taste very different, or have different flavor notes. This is also why single origin, meaning that the beans used in that chocolate are all from the same region (usually country) chocolates have become popular. Single plantation, are a type of single origin chocolate where all the beans have actually come from just one plantation. They allow you to really understand the beans (and thus the soil tendencies) of that area.

On the other hand, blended chocolates are usually more balanced, and often have more flavor notes, with each flavor more pronounced than the flavor notes of single origin chocolates.

So which is better?
Depends on what you like.

I like both.
Single origin chocolates can be really great if the beans are really high quality and the resulting chocolate has been carefully blended and crafted within the confines of a region so that one flavor note isn't overpowering. I also think that they are great when making hot chocolate. It gives you more control over the resulting flavor of your beverage.

Blended chocolates are more of a guarantee that the overall flavor will be balanced.