Sometimes it shocks me that I've filled three years of blog posts with my thoughts on food. But then I think about it a little more and realize I could fill 10 years of blog posts with my thoughts on food. I was once told in seventh grade that my brain was like an encyclopedia of food. I took that as a compliment. Somehow I think that wouldn't have gone over as well with the majority of seventh grade girls. To me Encyclopedia suggests some great knowledge. I may know more than some people, but mainly I think I just have a lot of opinions on food. Every food. Most ingredients. I've got something for ya.

For example, after a great deal of thought, I've come to the conclusion that icing makes the average cookie 10x better. Think about it: cookie cakes, Oreos, whoopie pies, Oatmeal cream pies, those cookies you get at Mrs. Fields with a 3:1 frosting to cookie ratio... you get the picture. Now, I'm not one to throw icing on just any old cookie. Sometimes I don't want icing. Most of the time I don't need icing. However, I'm fairly certain it almost always makes a cookie better (in moderation, Mrs. Fields).

Case in point, these little cookie cups. This is the kind of dessert you could make and have an entire room unanimously agree on. It's not just the cookie. It's that each bite delivers the perfect combination of cookie and icing. The recipe also makes about 65 cookies (I didn't count, that's entirely an estimate). This massive serving has been going strong since Thursday, and we even had friends over this weekend to help make a dent. I rely on the weekends to rid me of all extra baked goods. Why are these delicious things still in my kitchen?

Frosted Cookie Cups
Recipe from What Megan's Making

Cookie Cups:

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup butter flavored shortening
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs
1 Tbsp water
2 cups mini chocolate chips

Frosting:
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
2-4 Tbsp milk or cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

For the cookie cups: Preheat oven to 325. Spray 40-48 mini muffin tins with nonstick spray and set aside.

In a medium bowl stir together the flour, baking soda and salt and set aside. In a large bowl, beat together the shortening, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla until creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then beat in the water. Add the flour mixture gradually, beating to combine. Stir in the chocolate chips. Spoon the dough into the mini muffin tins until 2/3 full. Bake 6-8 minutes, or until the tops just turn golden brown. Cool in tins for 5 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.

For the frosting: In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat in the milk or cream, a little at a time, until the frosting is the desired consistency. Spoon frosting on top of cookie cups.

I have a morning routine. It's pretty standard M-F. I wake up, brush my teeth (yes, before breakfast), go downstairs, pour cereal and milk in a cup and go sit in bed with my portable breakfast. If you're wondering, this whole process would be ruined by using a bowl. It's just not practical. At 22, I think I can only get away with this for a few more years. But whenever I try to change up that morning routine, I find myself craving cereal for the rest of the day. I think having this for breakfast is one of the very few exceptions.

First of all, what's not to love about coffee cake? My rule with coffee cakes is that they absolutely must be moist (does anyone actually like that word?). A dry coffee cake is no coffee cake at all in my book. This particular recipe passes all of my tests and more. It provides a good excuse for chocolate in the morning, is sweet enough for dessert and there is not a bad bite in the pan. I usually try to outside pieces first since those are my least favorite. If something is great even on those outside I'm a happy camper. I devoured this, outsides and all. My only piece of advice would be to avoid making this just as a casual thing to have around the house for breakfast. It's a 13x9--it stays around the house. If it stays around the house you'll eat all of it. The good news is that with this large of a serving you'll have enough to make everyone around you worship you for a day or two. Work, friends, significant other, family...happiness for everyone!

Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Recipe from The Cherry on Top (Originally from Smitten Kitchen)

Ingredients

Cake

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups (16 ounces) sour cream
• 3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon table salt

Filling and Topping

• 2 cups or 12 ounces semi- or bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-x-13-inch baking pan. If not nonstick coated, cover the bottom with a rectangle of parchment paper. Set pan aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla. Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together into a separate bowl. Alternately mix in sour cream and then dry ingredients into butter mixture until both are used up and the batter is smooth and very thick. In a medium bowl, beat eggs whites until stiff, then fold into batter.
3. In a small dish, whisk together sugar and cinnamon for filling and topping.
4. Spread half the cake batter in the bottom of prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of cinnamon-sugar mixture and 1 cup of chocolate chips. Dollop remaining cake batter over filling in spoonfuls. Use a rubber or offset spatula to gently spread it over the filling and smooth the top. Sprinkle batter with remaining cinnamon-sugar and remaining chocolate chips. With the palm of your hand, ever-so-gently press the chocolate chips a bit into the batter. No need to submerge them, you just want to make sure they adhere bit.
5. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, rotating halfway through, until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

I went through a phase recently where I was trying out a new sandwich for lunch every day. You really never run out of options with sandwiches. It was easy because I had a month before I started my job, so I usually was just hanging around the house during lunchtime. The bf would drive over on his lunch break, I'd fix us sandwiches and he'd go back to work. How domestic of me.

Now that I'm in the working world myself it'd be pretty odd for me to grill up my favorite paninis in the office kitchen. My sandwich making obsession has thus become confined to weekends if I want to take any pictures. I live on a busy street, so taking pictures is a hilarious task from the start. Weekend snapshots are the most awkward. I've never received more strange looks than when I'm crouched down in my tiny entrance patio taking pictures of a plate of food. I just carry on and try to get it over with...that might explain any decrease in quality of pictures in these next few months.

This sandwich was actually one I made back at home. I only took a few pictures because it's honestly such an easy sandwich I wasn't planning on posting. However, my recent panini-less days have made me crave this more than ever. The key is the chipotle ranch as a spread. I couldn't find name brand chipotle ranch, so I grabbed Harris Teeter brand and it's still fantastic. It gives any sandwich a little kick and it complements turkey wonderfully. Ah, to have this sandwich sitting in front of me right now. Make it. I'm living vicariously through all of you on this one!

Chipotle Turkey Bacon Avocado Sandwich (this name should probably be shortened)
Makes two sandwiches

Ingredients
4 slices good quality bread*
2 slices pepperjack or havarti cheese (depending on whether you want the heat)
1 tomato, sliced (you probably will not use the whole thing)
4 pieces of cooked bacon
3 tbs Chipotle Ranch Dressing
1 Haas avocado, sliced
4oz thinly sliced turkey breast

Softened butter for bread

*You need a thicker slice to hold all of the ingredients well. The pre-sliced bakery selections are ideal, but any brand with substantial sized slices is fine. Just don't try to go for the 45 calorie slice on this one.

Cook bacon to your liking, being sure to make it on the crispy side so it gives a good crunch to the sandwich. I personally like to make bacon lattices for sandwiches, but I realize a bacon lattice is the epitome of the American obesity issue. Just go for a jog beforehand. Or make your boring bacon. Good bacon is good bacon.

Slather one side of each piece of bread with butter. Spread two of the pieces with the Chipotle Ranch Dressing on the other side. You can spread this on generously since you are not adding mayo or any other condiments. Next, add a few avocado slices to each sandwich. Continue to layer on the ingredients, moving on to the cheese, turkey, tomatoes and finally the prepared bacon. Top each sandwich "tower" with the other slice of bread, butter side up.

Place in a pan over medium heat, flipping once brown for each side. Press down lightly with spatula to make the sandwich ingredients come together while you are cooking. Slice and enjoy!

It's always tricky getting used to a new kitchen. At this phase in my life I've had to go through this process multiple times. I figure out the oven variations, get all my baking stuff sorted out, then have to move again. Such is the life of a 22 year old. Or just this 22 year old. I wish I had counted how many boxes I had labeled kitchen when I moved in last week. It was definitely upwards of 10. To put that in perspective I only had three boxes labeled bedroom and one box labeled living room. 

After spending a week subsisting on pasta, bagels and cereal I had to bring chocolate back into my life (other than chocolate froyo). I know I have about 15 different chocolate cake recipes on my blog. I just can't stop bookmarking them. There are very few times in the day when I'm not craving chocolate, so I never look at pictures and think, "I would never make that." It's hard enough to resist dropping everything to make something right then and there.

This cake is the first thing I've made in my new kitchen. I decided I'd make the cake, bring it to work, and give the rest to my brother and his roommates. If you missed the news, DC had quite the storm the other night. The internet has been down in my office all week, so everybody has had to work from home. In addition to that, my brother has been too "busy" to stop by. Let me just say, it's a dangerous thing to have this entire thing sitting around my house. I've had a piece with breakfast both mornings. I'm ashamed, so let's not get into that. All you need to know is that this cake is rich, chocolatey, moist  and flavorful. It's also made with boxed cake and pudding mix. Who doesn't love a good shortcut? 

Sinful Chocolate Cake

Recipe from Becky's Recipes

• 1 box Devil's Food Cake Mix
• 1/2 Cup water
• 1/2 Cup oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 Cup sour cream
• 1 box instant chocolate pudding
• 1 16 oz. bag chocolate chips
• 1/2 Cup heavy whipping cream

Pre-heat oven to 350. Spray bundt pan. Mix together cake mix, water, oil, eggs, sour cream, and pudding. Mix for 10 minutes. Then add half a bag of chocolate chips. Pour into bundt pan and bake for 45-50 minutes.
For ganache topping, heat whipping cream just until boiling. Take off heat and add the rest of the chocolate chips. Stir until smooth. Pour over cake. ENJOY!