Not Much To Talk About Lately... But...

Ain't had much going on here lately, mainly some job searching and more job searching. But, it's the weekend so it's time to relax and build things. And, I'm looking forward to getting outside and putting my new saw to work and see what all I can come up with. First thing though, I have to build a damn magazine rack for the bathroom. Leaving them on the back of the toilet or on the floor next to it just ain't working and I'm going to see what kind of roll holder I can incorporate into it to make it dual use and unique. Then to work on getting my bedroom door built, and a couple dog houses, and some end and coffee tables, and maybe a goat hut since my daughter is bringing her new goat home here in about five weeks, after it's weaned. May even start on the cat gym too, just depends on what I can get done. I'll throw some pictures on here when I'm done with what projects I get done this weekend.

One thing I have discovered here recently is a cookie recipe. Nothing fancy really, just basic cookies really. Modified from the back of a chocolate chip bag actually. The interesting part for me is that I had discovered some almonds from Blue Diamond that are wasabi-soy sauce flavored. So, I thought I'd pick up a bag, and unfortunately they didn't have a small bag for a dollar or two so I could just give them a try and not be out much if I didn't like them. Which I didn't care for them much out of the bag just for snacking, but they had a good unique flavor. And, I got to thinking one day after I made some cookies, that they may be good in a cookie. So, back around Christmas time, I conjured up another batch of cookies, but this time I split the dough in half after I got the chocolate chips in, and ground up about a half cup of the wasabi-soy almonds. And, they were damn good. I sent a half dozen to my friends next door and got their opinion on them, and they liked them also. The only thing I didn't like was that you only got a hint of the wasabi and soy sauce flavors, just enough of a hint to know there was something else in them that wasn't normal, but couldn't put your finger on it. And, in the interest of my philosophy of "Try shit twice, you could have been wrong the first time." I made some a few days ago, a whole batch. Well, I actually made two batches of cookies, one batch was half plain 'ol chocolate chip, and half peanut butter chocolate chip (with real peanut butter), and the second batch was the chocolate chip wasabi-soy almonds. I added about an extra quarter to a third of a cup of the almonds, and you could really taste the wasabi and soy sauce flavors in this batch, but it wasn't overwhelming, and I declared them an outstanding success, and they are permanently in my recipe book to be made at a later date.



Also, here's the recipe for the cookies I make.

Just Fuckin' Cookies

2 c flour

1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 sticks butter
¾ c sugar
¾ c brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 lg eggs

Pre-heat oven to 375 deg

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside
Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla until creamy and consistent.
Slowly add flour mix, while mixing ingredients.

For individual cookies
Using a regular soup/cereal spoon, spoon cookie dough onto a baking pan/sheet.
Bake 9 - 11 min
Cool on pan for about 2 min, the move to a wire rack.

For a sheet cookie.
Using a 10 X 15 roll pan, spread cookie dough across pan evenly.
Bake 20 – 25 min
Let cool completely in pan

These are just plain 'ol basic cookies that you can make nearly any cookie you want to out of.

You can add any number of things to them after the dough is well mixed. Here's some examples.

2 c Chocolate chips or any candy chips (Cinnamon, Butterscotch, Peanut Butter, etc...)

1 c chopped nuts of your choosing
½ – ¾ c peanut butter
1 – 2 c dried fruit
1 c of crushed hard candies.

One variation I love is, I add the chocolate chips, and a cup of wasabi-soy sauce almonds.
Another is, I make chocolate chip peanut butter cookies.
Also, you can substitute the extract for another flavor, depending on what flavor you're going for.
For example, If you want to impress for Christmas, you can use peppermint extract, or just add
  a cup of crushed peppermint in with the chocolate chips.
Replace the vanilla extract with rum or brandy extract for a new twist on an old favorite.