First hockey game!! Go Spartans!!

Just a giggle...

Candice's latest naughty creation...

Pictures of food, lol!

My first attempt at tamales, YUM!

Daniel's (my sweetheart) favorite kind of apple pie.

Daniel and I's first Thanksgiving dinner together 2014.

Daniel's birthday dinner 2014.

Banana Split Deliciousness!

Grinder Ring!  This was soooo good!

Sometimes love just ain't enough...

Now don't get me wrong, I'm a hopeless romantic.  Unfortunately, I am also a realist.  It's time to move on.  I've been in love with what I do for so long, but love isn't carrying the burden anymore.

Sounds so sad and I am definitely not a sad person!  There's a saying goes something like this;  When one door closes, another opens.  Yep.  It's true.

I left my job as a fast food district manager.  I loved my job and my company, but it wasn't enough. Somewhere along the way I lost my 'want to.'  Maybe it was because I fell in love after being single for so long?  Maybe it was because I hate corporate politics?  Maybe I was tired of trying to help people be successful that didn't want to be helped?  Probably all of those things.  When I left, I thought there would be some kind of mourning period, something, ANYTHING!  There wasn't.  That was how I truly knew it was the right thing.  I don't miss my job.

And NOW??  Several months later?  I stay home with our two youngest boys.  My daughter moved away from home to begin her adult life.  I am relearning how to be a girlfriend/domestic goddess/partner again (tough 'cause I am SO used to being the boss).

Life is moving forward and I like it.

Chocolate Chip Cookies...my way

So last night I was on a quest...

    ...to bake fresh bread from no grain flours.  It was all going so well, but I put way too much moisture into the dough.  A flop.  Thankfully, I know where I gimped the recipe and will adjust and retry.  Burdened by my bread debacle, I felt the need to vindicate my ruffled baking ego.  

Come along and let me show you...

The first thing I do when using, testing, or converting a recipe is read it start to finish.  The reasoning behind this is to make sure I have all of the necessary equipment and ingredients.  Never assume.  Also, if there is a technique I haven't learned, 
I can find a quick tutorial online or call my chef friend for advice.  

After I've read the recipe, I gather everything I will need to fulfill it.

Chocolate Chip Cookies...my way

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter...softened

2 1/8 cup Splenda/Sucralose

1 tablespoon molasses (adds small amount of sugar)

1 tablespoon agave nectar (adds small amount of sugar)

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla (yum!)

2 3/4 cups almond flour (bulk section @ Food for Less is the best price)

3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt (important for texture and crunch)

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

2 1/4 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips (not milk chocolate!!)

Preheat oven to 360 degrees f.

Cream the below ingredients until fluffy.  

At least 3 minutes with a mixer on med/high.  NO LESS!  

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter...softened

2 1/8 cup Splenda/Sucralose

1 tablespoon molasses (adds small amount of sugar)

1 tablespoon agave nectar (adds small amount of sugar)  

Then add:

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla (yum!)

Mix on med/high for at least 2 more minutes.

Then add:

2 3/4 cups almond flour (bulk section @ Food for Less is the best price)

3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt (important for texture and crunch)

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Mix on low/med until all ingredients are well incorporated.

Then fold in:

2 1/4 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips (not milk chocolate!!)

This is what the cookie dough should look like!

Time to scoop.  

I use a small ice cream scoop, but a large spoon will do just fine.

I line my cookie sheet with foil and parchment (mainly because I hate washing dishes),

but if you don't want to line yours no greasing is needed.  

  

Place the cookie sheet on the middle rack in the 360 degree preheated oven

for 10 - 12 minutes.  When they are done baking, allow the cookies

to cool for about 2 minutes on the cookie sheet.

Then move them to a plate

to cool for another 3 minutes.

Then EAT!!

This will make about 24 - 36 cookies, depending on the scoop size.

These cookies are delicious and reasonably low in sugars/carbs.  They are NOT low in fat!

High quality sugar free chocolate chunks could be used, or dark chocolate chips...

but never milk chocolate, yuck!

Also, omitting the molasses and doubling the agave nectar is an option for diabetics because agave nectar metabolizes slower than the regular sugars in molasses.

My ruffled baking ego was soothed as I watched my son devour the cookies 

as fast as I could bake them!

May you enjoy them as much as we did!!