July Cookie Experiments

Forever ago, (earlier this year) I made a stamp out of clay so that we could personalize our cookies. Here's our first attempt at stamping.

Pretty! Looks like it might work!

And no. Not with this new peanut butter dough. We will try it again with a shortbread.

We've been toying with a new peanut butter recipe. We like it a lot, but we wanted to put more of a spin on it. So Peanut Butter Jammies came into existence.

These are very fickle cookies! They have to have the right jam. We REALLY wanted grape jelly to work, but they turned out SO ugly. Then we tried strawberry jam. It was better, but still not ideal. Raspberry jam seems to be the best jam for thumbprint cookies. Peanut Butter Raspberry Jammies are coming soon.

Citrus cookies are here! This one is an Orange Cashew cookie.

I really like the way they look, but we're unsure of the balance of flavors. We have gotten mixed reviews from tasters. We will have more taster's opinions this weekend. I'm going to work on this recipe a bit more. I have faith in it.

And the winner is...the NEW LEMON TARRAGON COOKIE!

Yet to be named, this cookie is terrific! I am so pleased on how it turned out. It's made with fresh lemon zest and juice with organic tarragon from my mom's herb garden. I never knew that a cookie could be refreshing!

And they are so snazzy, too. Any ideas on a name? Free cookies to the one who comes up with the best name.

Give me that sweet corn!

The market this past Saturday was slightly a bust. It was rainy, cloudy, and at times lightening-y. Farmers market go-ers don't usually like to shop on these type of days, understandably. Needless to say, I was bummed, cold, and soggy from 7am till noon. Around 10, I saw someone munching on a delicious looking, freshly grilled corn on the cob. I asked her where she found this delightful morsel, and I bought one for myself. It was wonderful! The sweet corn is in season now, and holy crap, is it GOOD. I will gladly take the usually degrading title of "Corn Fed Hoosier" because, hot damn, Indiana corn is the best.

Anyways, so after the market was over, I wandered over to the corn-grilling guy to compliment him on his product. To my great fortune, he had some left over and gave me FOUR giant, steaming ears of corn, no charge. It was everything I needed in that moment: warmth and comfort, with a bonus aroma of sweet, singed corn. He bagged them in a brown paper bag, and I hugged it like a kid hugs a teddy bear. It sat on my lap as I drove home to share it with my roommates. Happiness is a lap full of hot corn. That sounds really odd, I know, but I don't care. I'll shout it from the roof tops.

Because I love sweet corn season and because it's your lucky day, I'm sharing a beloved corn recipe with you. My mom got this recipe from her friend, Lois, the year that I was born. That was doubly a good year.

Corn Casserole

-1 can creamed corn

-1 can whole kernel corn (or 1 cup of freshly cooked, cut-off-of-the-cob corn)

-1 box corn muffin mix (like Jiffy)

-1 cup sour cream

-1 cup melted butter

- 2 eggs, beaten

-1 Tablespoon sugar (optional)

-1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

Mix all ingredients together in large bowl. Pour into 8x11inch baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until slightly browned on top. Serve while still warm. I eat the leftovers for breakfast. Enjoy!

Oh Joy! Our KitchenAid Experience

We heard that there was a sale going on in Greenville, Ohio at the KitchenAid store/outlet/museum, so Karli and I took a road trip. Two hours later, we're in a small, middle-American town that hasn't been touched for 50 years.

It was every person for themself in the store, but it was awesome. So many products on SALE SALE SALE. When I say this, I'm talking about the biggest sale I've ever seen. We saved about $780. Oh, yes we did!

The stand mixers were lined up - all colors of the rainbow - on three walls.

Piles and piles of mixers! We went away with two of them: a Pro 600 for our cookie kitchen and an Artisan for my mom. (She just had to have one. It was only $130, so why the hey not!)

Half of the lower level of the store is a museum. Karli checked it out while I was snatching up mixers. This place was like Disneyland for me.

Look at that relic!

I love the ads in the background.

Apparently the style of the mixer hasn't changed much since the Dust Bowl hit in the 1930's. Hey, if it works, don't fix it. I still likey.

And the Queen of them all. Flashbacks of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory flood in my mind when I see this. Golden ticket, golden egg, ... golden mixer?

Happiness is a trunk full of new kitchen equipment. Because we bought stand mixers and the fancy annual sale was going on, we got two ice cream maker attachments (regularly priced at $80), a set of 4 nesting prep bowls, a salad spinner, and a slotted spoon all for FREE! I bought some fancy spatulas and some tea towels too. I could have done more damage. I had to hold myself back. Oh, I almost forgot about the cute little tea pot I couldn't leave without. Adorable.

After shopping like mad women, we were famished and wandered the streets of Greenville for some tasty food. We went in and checked out four other restaurants before choosing the one with the least amount of curb appeal.

The inside was much nicer, and the food looked and smelled fabulous.

We both got pretzel bread sandwiches. Pretzel bread, hello! Get in my belly!

Look at it! It's glorious! We should name it. Hmmm. Any ideas?

The Search for the Best Burger

Hello all. I have recently had an infatuation with hamburgers. This is a new occurrence. I have never cared either way for burgers before, but since moving to Indy earlier this year, my tastes must have changed.

I began to search for the best (not-so-fast-food) burger. To make a fair assessment, I ate the same burger at three different restaurants. My burger of choice is one with cheese, lettuce, pickle, ketchup, and mustard on a toasted bun. Now on to the competition.

The first suggested burger was from Five Guys Burgers and Fries. This was the burger that started my cravings. They must be made of crack or something, jeez. After eating there, I raved about Five Guys like it was a new establishment. (Give me a break, I'd never heard of them before.) In one conversation, someone retorted that the best burger can be found at the Tie Dye Grill on the East Side of Indy. Being a lover of hole-in-the-wall restaurants, I shared my first dining experience with my mom, Karli, and her hubby, Travis. Words cannot express my satisfaction from that gargantuan burger. It's a whopping 10oz patty, and I refused to put it in a to-go box. I wolfed that sucker down like there was a famine expected the next day.

Tie Dye received even more raving from me, but I still heard claims about Red Robin burgers being the best. Taking one for the team, I tried one. Red Robin's burger was good, but it didn't compare to the previous two. If I wanted a fancy burger with crazy toppings like pineapple or onion rings and such, I would eat here again. Otherwise, bring on the Tie Dye!

1st place - The Tie Dye Grill
2nd place - Five Guys Burger and Fries
3rd place - Red Robin

If you have a favorite burger that is not listed, please let me know. I love field research.

The Hot Cookie in the Spotlight!

We were very excited to discover that both our Spice Bites and our Jagerdoodles were featured on the front page of Etsy this weekend. In the handmade world that is a big honor and we are so excited to keep our little business growing! You can check out the lists we were included in here and here.

New Items in Our Etsy Shop!

Just wanted to let everyone know that there are new flavors listed in our Etsy shop! Our flavor of the month for July is the Jagerdoodle. This is creation of Sarah's is a spicy take on a classic snickerdoodle using Jagermeister instead of vanilla and anise instead of cinnamon. Delicious!

We also have gluten-free spice bites now in the shop. These cookies are an explosion of flavor and have been selling out at our farmer's market. Be sure to check them out and let us know what you think!