new digs: alexis cookies

It's been 10 days since my last post. 10! Miss Marla even called me out for leaving you hanging. And ya'll, I apologize sincerely... I just had to wait until all was final so I couldn't jinx it with an early slip. But papers are signed, checks have been exchanged and here is my news:

I'm trading my 300 square feet for 12o0! And trading the 88th Street kitchen closet for this:

Do you see that? Do you see that shiny silvery thing? IT'S A DISHWASHER. And that black thing on top of the cabinets? GRANITE COUNTER TOPS. Are you swooning?

I don't think I've ever shared the kitchen closet with you. For the past two years everything I've beaten, creamed, whipped, and baked for this blog has come out of a kitchen closet no bigger than a Port-O-John. But you get what you get (a brownstone apartment steps from Central Park) and you don't get upset - you just cook in 4 square feet. I even had (a couple) dinner parties! It's amazing what you can do with a kitchen closet when you put your mind to it.

The truth is I've been dreaming of the new place since we put the offer down, but it's bittersweet. 2/19 will mark my official departure from this island I've loved and called home for the past 6 years. Trading kitchens means I'm leaving the 212 for the 203 and becoming the very thing I've snubbed as a New Yorker... a commuter.

Don't worry, I'll be in the city every day for work and play! I'm terrified, overwhelmed, nervous and absolutely thrilled, but change is good and this one means bf and I get more of the quality time we've been missing. We're gonna be roommates :)

So the countdown is on! I'm so excited for the creative freedom the new kitchen will bring and can't wait to share it with you. In the meantime, tonight's recipe came from a friend whose cookie taste I trust. I'd never heard of Alexis Stewart's chocolate chip cookies but between her famous Mother and my friends enthusiastic thumbs up I had to give them a try.

The butter and brown sugar are intense but they really do make a perfect chocolate chip cookie. They're soft, chewy and crispy in all the right places - so if you can get past the calorie count they make a great treat! Give them a try for a tasty update on a classic. For now I'll be here. Packing and decorating the charming 1890's farmhouse I don't live in yet.

Alexis' Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies

adapted from Alexis Stewart

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 package semisweet chocolate chips (I used mini's)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside. Cream butter until smooth; add sugars and beat until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Slowly add dry ingredients into wet mixture. Fold in chocolate chips.

Drop 2-3 tbsp. dough per cookie onto prepared baking sheet. Bake until golden, 8-10 minutes. Remove cookies from baking sheets, and allow to cool on racks.