Monster Cookie for a Cookie Monster

My husband has a problem. It involves chocolaty chip goodness. He'll take it in dough or baked cookie form but this time we went for the baked :) I made two giant cookies (mine is gone, except for the third of it that my son knocked out of my hands this afternoon, and the husband forgot his so it's still here). I think next time I'll split this recipe into 4 cookies (to ward off over indulgence).

Here's the recipe. I'll write it out for two giant cookies but I'll give the instructions for 4 also.

Monster Cookie

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, cream together the sugars and butter. Add the egg and vanilla and mix. Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Line a large (11X17-inch) baking pan with foil. Separate the cookie dough into two even balls. Press out onto baking pan into two circles about 2 inches apart. The cookie dough should be about 1/2-3/4 in thick. 

If desired, top the cookie with M&M’s or any other garnishes. Bake for 9-11  minutes until the cookies are lightly golden brown. Let the cookies cool completely on the baking pan – this helps the cookie stabilize and set so it can be easily lifted off the pan. Once cool, gently use the foil to lift the cookies off the pan.

*For 4 cookies, separate dough into 4 balls, press into 1/4-1/2 inch thick circles. Bake for 6-8 min. or until lightly golden brown

Empty plates and full tummies!

I was blog stalking the other day and my husband saw a picture of sesame chicken and requested I make it. I was kind of meh about it but decided to do a little research. I seriously never order this and have rarely found a sesame chicken dish that has left me with a longing to try more. But I love my husband. :) 


After reading about 10 different recipes on various websites and cookbooks, this is what I put together. (Thanks to reviews on some of the recipes, I was able to eliminate and add things until I found the right balance)

Sesame Chicken

• "Marinade"
• 2 tablespoons tobasco soy sauce (regular if you prefer)
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 dash sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 4 (5 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch cubes
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• 1 quart vegetable oil for frying
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• "Sauce"
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon red chile paste (or as my husband calls it, Rooster sauce)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
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• 1. Combine "marinade" ingredients and chicken, refrigerate in covered dish for 30 minutes.
• 2. Combine all "sauce" ingredients ,EXCEPT sesame seeds, in a medium sauce pan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. (It takes a minute to thicken up, but you'll know it's right when it's that perfect sesame sauce-y brown <3) Turn to low or off, stirring occasionally. 
• 3. Fry the marinaded chicken in small batches until golden brown, drain on paper towels.
• 4. Toss chicken in sauce, serve over rice and broccoli, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
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• Happy cooking!

Skillet/pan Hanging shelf

I mentioned in my last post that I've been wanting a place to hang my pans. I found a great shelf at Joann for half off and it's been sitting in our office on the floor for over a month. 

I painted it, added some garden hanging flower basket hooks, mounted it on the wall and...

So I've been working on this for a minute and am sooooo excited about the end product... and the fact that I'm done. I don't like projects that last this long. :) 

That's all for today, God Bless, friends!

This weeks projects...

So I decided that I was going to finish at least ONE project this week. I've been buying all kinds of supplies and some projects I've started and still not finished (apron) and some I have had lying around and haven't even taken them out of the bag. I've had both of these for about a month now... So here we go!

I've been waiting to get this artwork done for a while. I wanted something jungle like but not too crazy so I took a little trip to Michaels. I spent $1 per frame ($5), 50 cents per paper ($2.50), and 50 cents per animal and tree ($2.50). So all together this project cost me $10 and took about 30 minutes to work on.

I'm pretty satisfied with the final product. There weren't any hanging brackets on the back so I had to buy some but I haven't put them on yet so they're sitting a little crooked. 

The other project I've started but am still waiting to hang. The drill needs to charge :( I'm not patient enough for this. But, I'll give you the sneak peak and hopefully post the rest this afternoon. 

We don't have much cabinet space in our apartment here so I've been wanting a way to hang my pots and pans to clear out one of my really large drawers. I was browsing through Joann one day and saw this... 

I decided it was perfect for me to hang my pans on... It was $18 but I used my 50% off coupon and got it for $9. YAY!

So... I've painted it and gotten skinny S-like hooks (a total pain to find skinny ones!). I'll be back soon with the final results :)