Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie

I don't make these so much anymore, because I want to eat them all, but when I'm in the mood for fresh cookies, this is my "go to" recipe. Try it - its very adaptable to your own favorite ingredients too! Ps - these turn out pretty soft and chewy. If you're looking for crispier cookies, this is probably not the recipe you want.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick)
• 1/2 cup cooking oil
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 large eggs
• 1 bag semi-sweet or bitter-sweet chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli brand because that's what I had laying around)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare 2 cookie sheets. Mix flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

Place the butter, sugar, and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer; cream together on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and eggs. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and continue to mix until the mixture is smooth. Fold in the chocolate chunks using a spatula.

To form the cookies, scoop about 1/4 cup of cookie dough for each cookie. I was able to fit 12 per pan. Bake for 15 minutes for chewy cookies.

Allow the cookies to cool before consuming - although this is easier said than done!

Banana Chocolate Chippers

It's been a busy few weeks lately, so I've used this weekend to kind of "come up for air" and do some cooking to help me relax. So worth it!

Since I can never seem to consume a bunch of bananas before they get mushy and brown, I am constantly on the lookout for new ways to incorporate bananas into things. This is today's attempt, and has gotten rave reviews around my house.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 large ripe banana, mashed
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 2 cups of flour
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
• 1 cup of chocolate chips

Method

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
2 In a bowl, mix the mashed banana and baking soda. Let sit for 2 minutes.
3 Mix the banana mixture into the butter mixture. Mix together the flour, salt, and spices and sift into the butter and banana mixture and mix until just combined.
4 Fold into the batter the chocolate chips. Drop in spoonfulls onto a silpat or parchment paper. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until nicely golden brown.

They are delicious! I doubt they will last long around my house.