Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Y'all, I had a serious sweet tooth this afternoon with no real sweets in sight. I scrounged around in my pantry (what I feel like I've been doing a lot of these days!) and happened upon cocoa powder and oatmeal. *ding ding ding* *Light bulb!* Easiest recipe ever. And I have most of the ingredients on hand at all times. Perfect.

So I also scrounged around some more to find my mom's recipe she wrote down for me in a rush one day and got a flood of emotion. My wonderful mom would make these cookies for us whenever she had a day off while we were in school. We would rush in all full of after-school energy and immediately stop in our tracks with our noses lifted in the air and our mouths watering. And and even more amazing thing my mom did? She made plain chocolate cookies just for my sister, Stacey, because she didn't like the texture of the oats. (She grew out of that!) But that's what Momma's do. And this recipe will forever hold a special place in my heart and in my kitchen because of her.

Before I get into the ingredients you should know that these are southern cookies. Yes ma'am, that means they have sugar and butter *gasp* A healthy dose of both. But they are cookies and they are delicious and they are heartwarming and easy and...just try them. Dessert is supposed to be decadent in my opinion ;-)

What you need:
2 cups sugar
1 stick butter
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk (we do soy milk)
1 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 cup oatmeal (My mom says "quick cooking oats" but I only ever have old fashioned oats on hand. Either work. Old fashioned oats just have a but more toothy texture to them.)

What you need to do: 
- Make sure to have all your ingredients out ahead of time because this is a quick recipe!

Boil the sugar, butter, cocoa and milk over mid-high heat for 3 minutes. I whisk while doing this because I am terrified I will burn this whole pot if I don't!

Take the pot off the heat and stir in vanilla, peanut butter and oats

Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper

Let cool and Enjoy!!

Just like LB did before they even had time to harden ;) 

Chicken Curry Couscous Salad

I have to thank my good friend, Alexis, for inspiring me to make this. Curry just does not sound very appetizing to me. I think I always put curry and coconut milk together in one lump and that just makes me shudder.
Anywho, I would never have had the guts to try this recipe if Alexis hadn't made a similar one for lunch one day. In all actuality we bombarded Alexis and her two little ones for a playdate and ended up staying for lunch. Luckily she had this on hand and we both had two helpings - it's seriously good stuff. I ended up making it a few days later! I took some from her recipe and found a similar recipe in my "Betty Crocker's Best Chicken Cookbook" (Seriously, that's what it's called!)

*If you think you don't like curry, like me, then try this recipe. It's very subtle. The flavor is more fresh, summery, light, and if you want, lemony - make it how you think you'll like it! I actually went back and added more curry powder to my salad ;-) 

What you'll need in my mish mash version:
- 2 cups cooked couscous
- Rotisserie chicken, however much you'd like
- handful of dried cranberries or raisins
- 1 can drained garbanzo beans
- 1 grated carrot
- 1/2 cup roasted almonds
- 2-3 sliced green onions
- Chopped parsley if you've got it (I've made it without and it's just as good)
- Curry sauce, recipe below.

Add all the salad ingredients together, pour dressing over and toss.

Curry Sauce:
1/3 cup light vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon lemon juice or more to taste
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon (or more to taste) curry powder

Combine and shake.

These make amazing leftovers! And I've taken it to the picnic twice already! It's even what we're having for dinner tonight ;-) So thanks again, Alexis, for opening my taste buds up to curry! 

Tofu Lo Mein

I'm coming out of my self-inflicted hiatus to post this amazing recipe, Tofu lo mein. It's based off of this sesame chicken recipe I found on pinterest. I took her sauce, doubled it, and put my own favorites into the mix and I ended up with this lovely, delicious vegetarian dinner that my husband begs for - and takes leftovers to work!

Besides pleasing my husband and having tons of leftovers, I also always think of my sister, Stacey, every time I make this. Another reason for me breaking my cooking blogger slumber - she needs to see this! We're always trying to figure out new ways to make tofu - and have it enjoyable for others (my husband is not a huge tofu fan) is just the icing on the...bean curd. haha. So here we go:

What you need:
- 1 package Extra Firm Tofu, cubed, drained, pressed of liquid (I cut my tofu, lay it on a dish towel lined with a paper towel and then press a plate on top to get rid of as much as I can)
- Flour, seasoned how you want (I do S&P and garlic powder)
- Whole Wheat Spaghetti OR Rice
- Any veggies you choose, I usually do edamame beans and frozen broccoli
- 1/2 c Soy sauce
- 1/2 c sugar
- 1t sesame oil
- Toasted sesame seeds
- 2 green onions, chopped

First things first. I made this recipe as it was (here, again) and it was fantastic. Husband loved it. Kiddo loved it. I loved it. Perfect trifecta. So I wanted to make it again but didn't have any chicken - thus brought on the, can I do this with tofu, question. Can tofu be floured and brown like chicken?

IT CAN!

I was amazed. Woo hoo! But how would it taste? I always marinade my tofu. Surprisingly though it tasted awesome with the sauce. Anyway, on ward with the recipe.

- Toss drained, cubed tofu in flour. Heat oil in a pot/pan until rippling. Add tofu and brown on all sides. Drain tofu on paper towel and put aside.

- In the mean time, cook spaghetti and veggies. I do this in one pot of boiling water. SO EASY. 

DRAIN

- I always forget until the last minute to toast the dang sesame seeds. DO IT NOW ;) Otherwise you'll be scrambling!

- Get the ingredients out for the sauce and have it ready to go. This step is pretty fast so I have no picture of it. Add soy sauce and sugar to pot (use the same one you used to brown the tofu) over medium low heat. Heat until sugar is dissolved. Add sesame oil and stir.  

Add in everything and Toss!

Serve with edamame. (I like to just add the beans into the broccoli/spaghetti but I couldn't find shelled ones for this picture...of course!) 

It's delicious and healthy. I seriously will never buy sesame chicken/tofu anywhere again!