Thoughtful Thursday

Thoughtful Thursday [thawt-ful thurz-day] – 1) characterized by manifesting careful thought on the day of Thursday; 2) weekly blathering by Cooking College Chick; 3) a completely random non sequitur from your day.

1. I voted in my very first election this year. I was very excited about my “voice being heard”. I would tell you which candidate I chose, except I’d probably lose about half of my followers.

2. Since I got my new camera, I’ve been taking an obscene amount a lot of pictures. Especially of myself.

3. I love how the sky looks from my apartment in the morning. It’s just so darn blue. It’s the color I wish my eyes were.

4. There’s something about Arizona’s 90°F temperatures in November that makes me yearn for this.

5. My birthday is in 26 days and I am freaking out. Not freaking out in the “I’m getting old” sense. More like,”I am so excited that my birthday is coming so that I can make myself an extravagant cake and paint the town red”.

6. I drank two coffees today. It’s funny because nine months ago I was writing about how I hadn’t had coffee in months. Look how far I’ve come. I think?

7. Sometimes I wish I carried a camera when I jog. I don’t think you’d believe half of the things I see.

8. I made the MOST delicious pumpkin bread… with maple syrup and BEER! I can’t wait to share it with you.

How has your Thursday been? 

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Thoughtful Thursday

Thoughtful Thursday [thawt-ful thurz-day] – 1) characterized by manifesting careful thought on the day of Thursday; 2) weekly blathering by Cooking College Chick; 3) a completely random non sequitur from your day.

1. Someone stole my bike between Monday night and Tuesday. I won’t lie, I was pretty bummed because it’s the second time that it’s happened to me.

Because of this, I decided to walk from school instead of drive. And I found this…

I think it was a sign – or maybe it was someone who got bored and decided to spray paint the ground. Whatever it may be, it made me smile. 

2. I also found these. I love Arizona flowers. They are so unbelievably bright!3. I took a picture of my campus on my walk. I thought the sky was pretty. Usually there are no clouds, but on this day the sky was being playful.

4. This is my favorite watch. I got it in the little girl’s section at this jewelry store. And I embrace that completely. 

5. I made this cake for my friend’s 21st birthday. It was a spiced applesauce and honey cake. It was deeeeelicious.

6. The same night that I made the cake, we went out to dinner. Nearly everyone at our table got these tacos. I thought that they were pretty.

7. For Halloween yesterday I was “abstract candy corn”. Abstract? Yeah, I wore an orange skirt, yellow shirt, and white headband. Only one person figured it out. Next year I probably need to think more inside the box.

8. On a sadder, but equally important note, nearly all of my family lives on Long Island in New York and have been affected by Hurricane Sandy. The amount of devastation and loss along the east coast hurts my heart. I truly hope things will begin to look up soon for everyone.

How has your Thursday been? 

Looking for more Cooking College Chick? Follow me on Twitter or Pinterest! You can also subscribe on the upper right hand bar to receive email updates! Happy Cooking!!!

Chocolate-Almond-Pretzel-Potato Chip-Confetti Cookies

Today is my momma’s birthday.

I’d tell you how old she is, but the moment that she would read this, I’d get an angry lovely phone call to remove it immediately.

Since I’m over 2000 miles away from my mom, I obviously won’t be able to celebrate her birthday with her.

But I can share these cookies with you, and let her know that I hid some of these cookies in the back of the freezer – behind the 2-year old frozen bananas, lentil soup, frozen spoons (Don’t ask), and apple-cinnamon coffee cake - so that she would find them today and have a homemade treat from me.

Although knowing my momma, she’ll read this post sometime around next week, meaning that she won’t find the secret stash of cookies until October 11th around 8:30PM.

And really, what is better than freezer-burnt cookies NOT on your birthday?

I can only think of two things: puppies and the piano version of this song.

It’s the thought that counts right?

So for all of you (19,000,000!) that have a birthday today and for the billions of others that don’t, make these cookies and celebrate being fantastic. Yes, you! I think you’re fantastic

Chocolate-Almond-Pretzel-Potato Chip-Confetti Cookies

These cookies basically contain every snack food I have in my house. They are sweet, salty, crunchy, and perfect for a celebration! Feel feel to substitute different ingredients (like cereal for chips or white chocolate for semisweet chocolate) to make your own crazy creation!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) of unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1 cup loosely packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg +1 egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup crushed tortilla chips (or regular potato chips)
• 3/4 cup chocolate chunks (or a mixture of different types of chips)
• 1/2 cup crushed salted pretzels
• 1/3 cup cereal (I used Dulce De Leche Cheerios)
• 1/3 cup chocolate covered toffee (or Health Bar bits)
• 1/3 cup assorted sprinkles
• Generous pinch of espresso powder, but the original recipe call for 1/4 tablespoon coffee grounds

Method

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a bowl, mix together flour, baking soda and salt, then set aside.

2. In another bowl, whisk the cooled butter and sugars until they are combined. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and stir until mixed and smooth. Gradually add in dry ingredients and mix with a spoon until a dough forms – it will look crumbly at first, but it will come together. I used my hands for this because it was a bit easier. Fold in all of your add-in’s, using your hands (or a spoon) to bring it together.

3. Roll dough into 1 1/2-inch balls and place on a nonstick baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 9-12 minutes, or until the middles are just set. Don’t over bake! Let cool almost completely.

Recipe lightly adapted from How Sweet It Is

Related Recipes

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chips Cookies

White Chocolate Espresso Cookies

Chocolate Chubbies

Looking for more Cooking College Chick? Follow me on Twitter or Pinterest! You can also subscribe on the upper right hand bar to receive email updates! Happy Cooking!!!