Breaking to Move...

What a busy June! If you were helping kids finish the school year either as parents or as teachers (or both), then I hope that things have settled down. And if you weren't, then I hope you had good weather and the time to enjoy it.

I have a bit of news, my family is moving! We're leaving the Grosse Pointe area for Rochester, New York. We're bittersweet about leaving our Grosse Pointe Community. The kids will miss their friends, school teachers, karate dojo, music teachers, Jets Pizza and the community pool. I will miss my dear friends who have checked in on me almost every day since we made this tough decision. I will also miss the friends that I've made through the grass roots organizing group MSC, and the larger community of parents especially the Buckingham Ladies who supported each other when our kids were really little.

Inspite of all that we are leaving behind, we are excited for this next chapter in our lives. We don't know where exactly in Rochester we'll be landing, but we know it will be great! Erich is ready to leave the corporate world and become a business owner (again). I am excited for the multiple running clubs, running hills, and universities. The kids are excited by the possibility of our own backyard pool (fingers crossed), the Strong Museum, and lots of nature to explore.

I have so many summer recipes that I had want to share on this blog, but I don't multi-task well and all of my brain is currently occupied with questions like: why do we have so many shoe boxes? Which half-broken toys can i secretly get rid of without my kids noticing? Should we have a yard sale? Why does my husband have so many coats? Why do I have so many running shoes?--I guess that explains the shoe boxes.

I think you get the picture. I hope that everyone has perfect summer full of perfect summer things. Thank you for reading this lonnnnngg post. Thank you for checking in and following this blog. It's been a really satisfying project for me these past 6-ish months. I look forward to picking things back up in the late summer or early fall.

-Rosalie

Always Soft, Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Last weekend I had the pleasure of bringing treats to my middle child's spring piano recital. The recital was lovely, all the kids did a fabulous job, and my son's teacher, Sarah Boyd is incredible. But this is not a post about that. This is a post about the cookies that were gobbled during the reception: Soft Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I'm not a vegan, but all three of my kids had food intolerances when they were young, and so the whole family was on an on-again off-again allergen free diet for several years. But even though we weren't eating dairy, eggs, and soy, I couldn't live without the occasional cookie, so I developed this vegan, allergen free recipe.

It doesn't matter if you're vegan or have food allergies, if you like soft chocolate chip cookies, then you're going to LOVE these. They have a great soft and chewy texture and they'll still be soft and delicious for days after you make them. Even better, they come together in one bowl with no special equipment! Easy-peasy.

Note on Allergens: You can make this soy-free if you use a nut-based milk and allergen free chocolate chips.

Note on Refined Coconut Oil: Unliked Virgin Coconut oil, Refined Coconut Oil should have no coconut taste. Most grocery stores sell both varieties. If your coconut oil is warm, this recipe will still work. I find that adding cold maple syrup and cold soy milk takes the temperature down enough. However, if your dough is very soft, just refrigerate it for 10-15 minute and it will firm up.

Always Soft, Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Time : 10 minutes to make. 15 minutes to bake plus time to cool.

Makes 16 medium sized cookies. Doubles easily.

Ingredients

1/2 cup refined coconut oil (at room temp)

1/4 cup maple syrup (can be cold or room temp)

1/3 cup organic granulated sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk

1 tablespoons ground golden flaxseeds

1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract or paste

1 and 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 scant teaspoon table salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup chocolate chips

STEP ONE

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets or line sheets with parchment paper.

STEP TWO

Add 1/2 cup coconut oil, 1/4 cup maple syrup and 1/3 cup sugar to a medium sized mixing bowl. Use a fork to cream together. It's okay if there are some small chunks of coconut oil are left. Add 1/4 cup milk, 1 tablespoons flaxseed, and 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla and mix again. The mixture will look like it's separating, but I promise it's okay.

STEP THREE

Sprinkle your 1 and 1/4 cups flour over your wet ingredients then sprinkle the 1/2 scant teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda on top of the flour. Mix your dry ingredients into your wet until there are no more flour streaks and the dough comes together. Add 1 cup chocolate chips and mix until just incorporated.

STEP FOUR

Scoop your cookie dough out onto your pan leaving at least 2 inches between each cookie. Bake about 12-15 minutes until edges turn brown. Allow cookies to cool. Once cooled, cookies can be kept for 4 days in a covered container on the counter.

Oreo Semi-Freddo

A few weeks ago Henry asked me if he could contribute to this blog. He wanted to share recipes that would both appeal to his pace of cooking and his tastebuds.

Henry began developing this particular recipe about 6 months ago when he saw a photo of a Semi-Fredo with chocolate wafers. Henry thought the wafers were Oreos, so he tried making it with Oreos. It was good, but not amazing (the regular Oreos were a little too thick to soak up the whipped cream). A few weeks ago Henry saw a box of Thin Oreos at the grocery store and he decided those might be the perfect ingredient for an Oreo Semi-Fredo. This time the recipe worked perfectly!

This ice-box cake is phenomenal when made with Thin Oreos, they take on just enough of the moisture from the whipped cream, while retaining some of their snappy texture. It's also a perfect recipe for a kid who is confident using a stand or hand mixer. No baking, knife skills, or long attention-span required.

Oreo Semi-Freddo

Prep-time 20 minutes to whip cream and layer the cake. Plus 2 hours or more resting in the freezer.

Equipment:

plastic wrap

bread pan

stand mixer or hand mixer

measuring spoons

measuring cups

Spatula

Ingredients:

2 cups Whipping cream

2 teaspoons vanilla paste or extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup granulated white sugar

1 box Oreo thins (11.78oz)

1/4 cup rainbow sprinkles

STEP ONE

Beat 2 cups whipping cream for about 2 minutes on high until it starts to hold its shape. Turn mixer speed down to medium, and add 1/8 teaspoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of vanilla and then slowly pour in the 1/4 cup sugar. Set mixer speed to medium high and beat until you can make soft peaks in the cream.

STEP TWO

Prepare your bread pan by covering the inside with two sheets of plastic wrap.

STEP THREE

Spread about a 1/4 inch thick layer of whipped cream on the bottom of the bread pan. The first layer is the hardest to do because the plastic wrap may bunch.

STEP FOUR

Layer Oreos on top of the first layer of whipped cream and then continue to layer until you run out of whipped cream. Your last layer will be whipped cream and you may have 4-5 Oreos left over.

STEP FIVE

When all of your toppings are used up, place bread pan in the freezer for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight. When ready to eat, gently pull at the plastic wrap to begin to separate it from the bread pan. Then invert pan and gently pull and wiggle the plastic wrap until the cake falls out of the pan. Remove plastic wrap and dust with sprinkles. Serve right away or cover with plastic wrap and return to the freezer.