Summer Baking 101

This is what happens when I get really bored... after looking at online food blogs =.= Then the worst part is, I eat them all because it's so GOOD! The recipes I use are all from online sources, I can't take credit for any of them =)

I baked these super chewy and soft in the center chocolate chip cookies for a friend's birthday, yum yum yum. It still stays soft and chewy after 4 days of baking, it is definitely worth a try yourself =D

Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 1/2 cup butter
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tbsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 4 cup flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Beat butter, vanilla, sugars and eggs together
2. Stir in flour, salt and baking soda to form a stiff dough
3. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Drop dough by 1/4 cup measurements onto ungreased cookie sheet 2" apart
5. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes at 375 degrees

These blueberry muffins are REALLY yummy also, I love how jumbo sized they become and how moist they retain even after a whole week of it stored in the fridge =) I love to eat the cap also, it is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The recipe is adapted from Simply Recipes, I changed the plain yogurt to blueberry yogurt to give it that extra berry kick.

Blueberry Muffins

3 cups of all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

10 Tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/4 stick), softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

1 1/2 cups blueberries
1 Tbsp flour (if using defrosted frozen berries)

1 Adjust the oven rack to the middle-lower part of the oven. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2 Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.

3 In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar together, beating until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating until incorporated after each one. Beat in the grated lemon peel.

4 Beat in one half of the dry ingredients until just incorporated. Beat in one third of the yogurt. Beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients. Beat in a second third of the yogurt. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients and then the remaining yogurt. Again be careful to beat until just incorporated. Do not over beat. Fold in the berries. If you are using frozen berries, defrost them first, drain the excess liquid, and then coat them in a light dusting of flour.

5 Use a standard 12-muffin muffin pan. Coat each muffin cup lightly with olive oil or grapeseed oil using a pastry brush, or with a little butter. Or use one of those convenient vegetable oil sprays. Distribute the muffin dough equally among the cups. Bake until muffins are golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. Test with a long toothpick (we use a thin bamboo skewer) to make sure the center of the muffins are done. Set on wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from the tin and serve slightly warm.

Simply Recipes http://simplyrecipes.com