Think what a better world it would be if we all, the whole world, had cookies and milk about three o'clock every afternoon and then lay down on our blankets for a nap.
~ Barbara Jordan

I've decided to give up my usual French Fridays slot to take part in the Crazy Cooking Challenge hosted by Tina of Mom's Crazy Cooking The challenge is to pick a blog (a non-celebrity one), choose a recipe from that blog that fits the criteria of a featured food item chosen each month, and then make/bake and post about it. The posts are put up on the same day at the same time, like today (see the blog hop linky below). And then of course, because we're nice people, we let the blog owner know that we've picked their recipe. And as long as we haven't majorly messed up their creation, they should be delighted that their recipe was highlighted.
Another fun dimension to this challenge is that readers can actually vote for what they think is the ULTIMATE recipe for that month's food choice. Well, it's fun if you do receive plenty of votes, but not as exciting if people think your choice is umm... not so ultimate (no offence meant to the original blogger, of course).
This month's featured food item is a universal favorite, Chocolate Chip Cookies. I've been on a cookie-baking binge lately so this just fed right into my addiction. I looked at plenty of blogs and just when I thought I'd found the best-looking-best-tasting choc chip cookie recipe, another good one showed up on someone else's blog to top it. After scouring about 30 blogs, I thought I'd never find my 'ultimate' choc chip cookie choice!
Until one day, I remembered one of my more recent favorite haunts, Beth Michelle, owned by funnily enough, a lovely young lady called Beth Michelle who lives and blogs out of Israel. Her food is always captured in the most beautiful perspective and lighting but more important than that, like me, she's fond of experimenting with her ingredients. You know that saying, "opposites attract"? Well, it certainly wasn't the case here.
When I did a 'cookie' search on her blog, it came up with several mouthwatering options. It didn't take me long to settle on her Dark Chocolate and Mint Cookies recipe for this challenge. Why? Four reasons, really: 1. they looked amazing, and judging from the ingredients, I knew they tasted incredible too; 2. they were flourless and butterless (no, do not adjust your monitor, you read that right!); 3. they contained mint chocolate chips, except I didn't have any so I swopped them for Aero Mint - oh, loveliness!; and 4. Beth Michelle made them for her brother-in-law to take on his 16-hour journey home to the US, which was a thoughtful thing she did. You see, it's always good to re-enact another person's gesture of kindness because it's like paying that gesture forward. Except in this case, I was being kind to myself since I scoffed down half the cookies accompanied with plenty of milk!
So do you reckon this will get your vote as the ULTIMATE chocolate chip cookie? Please take some time to go through the linky list below, there are fab cookie selections in there!
Online Bake Sale for Juvenile Diabetes
October 8 to10: Gerry over at Foodness Gracious will be holding his first ever online bake sale to raise funds for The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. His 6-year old daughter, Miranda, has Type 1 Diabetes and every year, they walk to support the cause. I am donating this funky package of kitchen items to the sale, and I will ship it internationally too :-).
Bids for all items start at $10, so if you'd like to help out, you can consider placing a bid on my item or any of the other fantastic goodies here.
The Big Eat-a-Lot Reunion
My posting schedule has been thrown slightly off-kilt this week because my old friend, Ju, who I haven't seen in many years had come to visit all the way from Scotland where he now lives. We were classmates in junior and middle school but parted ways when we went to different high schools. When Ju left for India and I went to the United Kingdom for further studies, we lost touch completely. Well, thank heavens for Facebook because that brought all our ex-schoolmates back in touch with each other.
So the whole week has been one big reunion, which was fun because we were back to our playful (but now no longer innocent) middle school selves. It was fun being distracted away from the blog....we all took time out to catch up, to laugh ourselves silly, to eat real good food, even did some sightseeing - something we never do when there are no 'visitors' around.
SOME OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF:
Online Bake Sale for Juvenile Diabetes
October 8 to10: Gerry over at Foodness Gracious will be holding his first ever online bake sale to raise funds for The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. His 6-year old daughter, Miranda, has Type 1 Diabetes and every year, they walk to support the cause. I am donating this funky package of kitchen items to the sale, and I will ship it internationally too :-).
Valentine cookie cutters, silicon diamond ring ice mold, silicon lemon squeezer/bottle,
pyramidal measuring spoon set, silicon tea infuser.
Bids for all items start at $10, so if you'd like to help out, you can consider placing a bid on my item or any of the other fantastic goodies here.
The Big Eat-a-Lot Reunion
My posting schedule has been thrown slightly off-kilt this week because my old friend, Ju, who I haven't seen in many years had come to visit all the way from Scotland where he now lives. We were classmates in junior and middle school but parted ways when we went to different high schools. When Ju left for India and I went to the United Kingdom for further studies, we lost touch completely. Well, thank heavens for Facebook because that brought all our ex-schoolmates back in touch with each other.
Gorgeous food (clockwise, top-bottom): Eggplant, crispy Chinese leaves, fishead curry with tofu and okra,
cupcake with runny salted egg yolk filling.
Forget spatchcock chicken...this poor thing was featured on the menu, I swear!
We celebrated two birthdays. And yes, I even 'tailgated' without breaking a sweat. LOL.
We miss you already, Ju! Next year's reunion... Phuket :-)
Dark Chocolate and Mint Chip Cookies
(Recipe from Beth Michelle)
Ingredients:
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips, plus 1/4 cup extra
1/2 cup mint chocolate chips, plus 1/4 cup (I used Aero Mint Chocolate, finely chopped)
3 egg whites
2 cups powdered sugar, divided into 2 portions
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180°C/375°F and grease or line baking sheet with non-stick parchment paper.
2. Melt 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips and 1/2 cup of mint chocolate chips in bowl in microwave, about 2 minutes, and set aside to cool slightly.
3. With an electric mixer, beat egg whites in large bowl until soft peaks form.
4. Gradually beat in 1 cup sugar and continue beating until mixture resembles marshmallow creme.
5. Whisk 1 cup sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt in medium bowl to blend and on low speed, beat dry ingredients into egg whites.
6. Stir in melted chocolate and dark chocolate chips and mint chocolate chips.
7. Scoop a tablespoon of cookie dough on baking sheet, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake until puffed and tops crack, about 10 minutes. Cool on sheets on rack for 10 minutes. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Thanks for stopping by and have a fabulous weekend!

65 comments:
Look at the crust on those things! Ummm...YUM. Those look awesome. Whatsa matter? Cornish hens aren't your thing? lol I've never had them before. It's on tonight's menu. We'll see how this goes. I'm guessing that it'll taste like chicken, in which case, I'd rather spend my time eating your mint cookies!
Ei, first of all, I don't know whether I can even get Cornish hens here (don't they live in Cornish someplace?). Secondly, the spatchcocking part makes me cringe, so if it's okay by everyone, I'll pass on the chicken this week and focus on these decadent chocolate cookies instead. Can you blame me, though? :-)
Nice cookies and Aero bars, I grew up eating them as akid and haven't had one for about 65 years..Thanks for the mention about the sale, I hope it's going to ROCK!
Your a star helper!!!!
Maya! The cookies are divine and the close up photos make me want them so bad! Looks like you had a great time with your family. How fun. Thanks for sharing!
Gerry@Foodness Gracious, considering you're only 70, you must've started eating them Aeros quite young! LOL. The bubbles are lovely...I had these flown in from the UK too, as we don't get them here.
Good luck with the bake sale tomorrow!
Ana Helena, the close-ups are meant to entice so I see it's working perfectly :-). Those people in the photos are not blood relations, rather they're my 'family' from younger schooldays....ahh, the bohemian 70s!
HOLY MOLY! Those are incredible cookies!!! I am in awe
You are after my heart-mint and chocolate has a long history with me-yum! I could eat quite a few of these. Nice links and photos. Enjoy the weekend and don't let anybody steal those cookies!
Holy cookie goodness. I wish I had been part of the reunion, I can't confirm or deny that I had to spend many hours in detention, he he. Love the link that you send me, amazing. I want a nap and cookies mommy. Have a great weekend, only radiance from here on out.
-Gina-
with these cookies I would skip 10 FF with Dorie! And even stay at detention!
I'm in serious craving mood right now!
Your cookies look amazing! I need to find those candy bars!
Your presentation is just lovely! I love your cookies packaged with a ribbon. Basically I love your food styling! I don't always like mint, but I do like thin mints so I'd probably like these chocolate mint cookies too :)
Delicious! Who knew there are so many way to make choc chip cookies :) I would love you to check mine out, they are #5. Thanks!
The Farm Girl
Ooo Yummy.. Your pictures are sinfully awesome..I love and have to try this.. I'm visiting from http://theartsygirlconnection.blogspot.com and officially following ya with smiles.. Hope you can stop in sometime.. : )) Off to indulge in more of your awesome posts.. :)) (for the love of pinterest.. I'm now following ya there too.. lol!!) Happy weekend..
These look pretty darn good! I love the fudginess in the inside and the thin, smooth, crispness (I don't know if that's the right word) on the outside. :)
Hey, these look WAY better than spatchcocked poultry! Fabulous cookies...so glossy and decadent! Glad you had a fun week with old friends :)
OMG where do I start. 1. love the quote on top, 2. your are going to make me look into this fun challenge and I will have to join cause it looks fun, 3. those cookies are so glossy and amazing, 4. Areo Mint...childhood memories, 5. great pacakge you are putting up for a great cause, will check it out, and 6. that thing on the menu's cover scares me.
Maya I think you outdone yourself..well you always outdone yourself with every recipe getting better and better..on the end I love them all.
Looks like your Reunion was fun, beautiful people, you look amazing, and food well fantastic!
Oh my! I just love the combination of chocolate and mint!
Jen
#17
These look brilliant. Amazing really. And flourless and butterless? That makes them healthy right?! I really love the mint/chocolate combo. I can't wait to try them! Thanks sharing this awesome recipe. :)
Those cookies look amazing!! I'll bet you could sub the Mint Aeros for Cadbury Mint Bubble bars that you CAN get here (Aussie ones, in Supaspend). I love mint chocolate! Might have to give these a try...
Glad you had fun sightseeing with your friend. We were doing the same thing with my parents - I think having visitors makes you look at where you live with completely new eyes!
Beautiful pictures and fabulous recipe! Sounds delicious! Glad to have found your site thanks to the Crazy Cooking Challenge!
So happy for you that you got to catch up with a long lost friend! It just goes to show you that it's a small world. Your cookies look divine - I voted for them!
Delicious cookies and it looks like you had a great visit!
Ahh I am so happy you made these cookies. And, I love that you used Areo mint in them! Must have been so wonderful! Your photos are beautiful and thank you so much for the kind words. I love your blog so its so humbling to see you making one of my recipes!!!
These look great! I love dark chocolate, and what a perfect combination to pair it with mint. Also, your presentation of the cookies and your photographs are beautiful! Oh...and I'm jealous you get to go to Phuket next year! I spend a year in Thailand after college and miss it! Come check out my Maple Chocolate Chip Cookies: http://www.morethanmundane.com/2011/10/07/maple-chocolate-chip-cookies/
These cookies are absolutely wonderful! I so love chocolate and mint :)
Looks like you had an amazing reunion...fun :)
These all look fantastic. I hope you'll add one or more to my Virtual Cookie Swap so that others can try for the holidays. With such a huge array of cookie recipes which was your favorite? The chocolate mint chip?
Maya you always find the cutest events to participate in. Love the quote and photos, as well as the cookies. I can't believe they don't have flour or butter, wow! Definately going to try them soon. Your reunion looks and sounds like you had a blast. Good for you guys! Look out Phuket here they come, hehe :) Your cookies have my vote. (d'uh hehe!) Have a great weekend sweetie.
Ravie, LOL...they're just cookies! But thanks, so appreciated;-).
Tina, those cookies are long gone, there's nothing left to steal. LOL. You have a great weekend too!
Gina, you radiate cheerful mischievousness and I bet if we went to school together, we'd have SO much fun in that detention room! In fact, I would've looked forward to it just because you'd be there, LOL.
Roxana, you write the sweetest comments! And I agree with everything you said ;-).
Erin and Desi, the chocolate mint chips are the ones that make these cookies rock. Thanks for stopping by!
Julie, there are 1001 ways to make CCC and I only know a few of them. I've checked your cookies out already, they look fabulous!
Marilyn, many thanks for following. Hope to see you when I'm Pinning too!
Alexandra@Confessionsofabrighteyedbaker, You described these cookies perfectly because that's what they were!
Kizzy, dont you think?:-) I must get over my fear of spatchcocking someday and pull some poultry legs apart!
Evelyne@CEE, I like the way you picked up my love of listing down points in my posts, LOL. Please do check out that bake sale, and yes, please join in the challenge too. Oh, but stay away from that tortured-looking chicken!
Sandra, thank you...for everything! It's hard to outdo some of the things I've already done but when it comes to cookies, these are definitely the best I've baked so far. Thanks to Beth Michelle!
Jennifer and BreAna, not sure if these are completely heathy (with all that sugar), but the chocolate and mint is definitely a winning flavor combination. Thanks for visiting, ladies :-).
Kate@Norm, got to leg it down to SupaSupaSpend (haha) to check out that Cadbury's minty, bubbly chocolate you mentioned. I'm sure Aero's still better though because of the associated childhood memories (we got ours at Naafi).
Yes, you're absolutely right about visitors bringing a fresh perspective to our surroundings. I think I took even more pictures than my friend, it was a good excuse to behave all 'touristy' like! LOL.
Jennifer and Jen, thanks for checking out this post and for the vote! It was a fun challenge, can't wait for next month's.
Ann, good thing you're here because it reminded me that I've really missed going over to your site! Thanks, sweetie.
Beth Michelle, thank you for this recipe for without your post, I would never have given these a go! There are several yummy recipes that I've bookmarked from your site, and this is just the first of them. You have many gorgeous desserts that I absolutely adore!
Krissa, it's great what you said about my cookies but all I could think about while reading your comment was, 'you spent a whole year in Thailand after college?!'. You lucky girl, now I'M the one who's jealous! LOL.
Alisha, thanks. The reunion was a riot! Well, of the middle school kind ;-).
Vicki, sure I'll add a few more for your Cookie Swap. My favorite holiday cookies must be the ones with spices in them, because the flavors linger in the memory long after the cookies are digested :-).
Nancy, thanks so much for the vote, sweetie! I think these events come and find ME..not the other way around. LOL. As for our next reunion, yes...Phuket better watch out! ;-)
delicious looking cookies and presentation
lovely pictures Maya
Your cookies look wonderful,love the crusty looking outside and I can imagine the wonderful taste with the Aero in there, great entry.
Lisa~~
Cook Lisa Cook
Akeela@createwithmom, thank you!
Flourless and butterless?! Oh my. I'm loving that cookie crackle (and the cute ribbon)!
You have such international friends, jeez! That's great that you go got together after so long. Looks like an awesome reunion :) But do tell me more about this salted egg yolk cupcake!
These cookies look incredible! I love aero bars too - I can't believe I've never thought to put them in a cookie before.
Your cookies are great! It is fun cooking with you, I am #15. Hope you are having a great week end.
Miz Helen
I am drooling, I want to eat a whole plate full of these right now!
Lisa, the crisp outside and fudgy inside are what makes these cookies insanely delicious!
Christine@sugarapothecary, LOL, your exasperation at the 'internationality' of my friends is totally endearing. What can I say, I'm a child of the world...haha!
Anyway, the reason I posted that runny egg yolk cupcake is because it was quite an experience to bite into it only to have the soft yolk filling explode in the mouth. I'm all about sensory eating so this is one cupcake I've got to attempt at home!
Russell, I adore Aero bars too...something about the bubbles...although it doesn't make any difference once it actually enters the mouth!
Miz Helen, thanks for coming by. I'm going to go around looking at your and everyone's cookies now...never knew the were SO many variations to the CCC!
Erin, eating a whole plate would be lovely for me too, trust me. Except that I'll probably fall flat on my face from the sugar-induced coma afterwards...LOL!
Shut the front door! Those look ReDunkUlous! My butt thanks you!
Lady Caroll@vanilalemonade, these are butt-iful, for sure. And they're ridiculously redunkulous to boot! LOL.
OMGosh, these really do look amazing!! I'm totally pinning these to make later, thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!! Come check out my entry #34 Hot Chocolate Chip Cookies!!
http://kaylasmalltownlife.blogspot.com/2011/10/crazy-cooking-challenge-2-ultimate-hot.html
These look amazing! I am so making these this weekend!!! I think maybe tonight I will!! I am on such a mint and chocolate kick right now!!
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