mini chocolate peanut butter chip cookies

this week.  oh, this week.  *insert a dramatically long sigh here*

we had a power-packed schedule this week.  our work days were crazy, and our evenings where packed full of all sorts of stuff (most of which was not fun).  we're exhausted and tired of running like nuts.  we need a vacation.  i think i hear a tropical island calling our names.

sometimes i get to travel for work.  on wednesday evening, i had to take a trip to give two presentations at a not-so-nearby university.  three hours in the car in heavy rush-hour traffic is not glamorous.  anyway, i got to take ryan with me.  after the presentations were over, we grabbed a bite to eat for dinner and the waiter called us twins . . . so there was that.  my dad always says "the longer you're married, the more you start to look like one another" . . . but twins?  come on.

on the drive home we found ourselves dreaming about taking a winter vacation: "can we squeeze it in after christmas? . . . sure! . . . rates are cheaper in the winter . . . let's go!"  did i mention we need a vacation?  :-)

at least there are cookies to make crazy weeks better.  thank goodness for cookies.

last night after work, before running to another commitment, we headed home to quickly whip up a batch of cookies for a co-worker's birthday today.

we had been talking about the glorious cookies at levain bakery in nyc.  the dark chocolate peanut butter chip cookies at levain bakery are insanely good.  then again, all of their cookies are crazy good.  so, we made some levain-inspired cookies of our own.

if you've ever visited levain, you know that their cookies are ginormous.  since quarter-pound cookies are not work place friendly, we made mini bite-sized versions.  perfect for our co-workers to pick up on the run.    

these mini chocolate cookies with peanut butter chips were so easy to make.  they came together in no time and baked super quick.  just the kind of recipe you want when you have a packed schedule.

the cocoa power gives the cookie a wonderful deep chocolate flavor, and the peanut butter chips are such a great added bonus.  (if you're wondering, our favorite cocoa powder to use is hershey's 100% cocoa natural unsweetened cocoa powder, and our favorite peanut butter chips are trader joe's peanut butter baking chips.)

these cookies smell really great too.  you just can't beat the combination of chocolate and peanut butter.  yum!  so, if you've had a crazy week, or even if you haven't, i highly recommend these cookies to make you smile.  and remember, it's friday!  have a great weekend!

mini chocolate peanut butter chip cookies
prep time: 5-10 minutes
baking time: 15 minutes
yields: 34 mini cookies
adapted from annie's eats

ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, softened
1/2 cup plus 1/8 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/8 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
dash of salt
1 1/4 cup peanut butter chips

directions:
preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  cream the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.  add the granulated sugar and beat well until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).  beat in the egg.  scrape down the bowl and mix in the cocoa powder until completely combined.  add the flour, salt, and baking powder and mix until incorporated.  fold in the peanut butter chips with a spatula.  scoop 1 teaspoon-sized balls of cookie dough onto the cookie sheet.  gently press the cookie dough balls down into discs.  bake for 15 minutes.  once baked, allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.

enjoy!

love, laurie

ballet

when my mom was a little girl she began taking dance lessons.  she fell in love with ballet, and she danced for years.  she was a dancer in ballet companies at different dance schools, she taught dance, and after she graduated from college she created her own dance show which she took on the road and performed at different venues.  when my mom was pregnant with me, she didn't stop dancing.  in fact she danced until she was eight months pregnant with me and stopped only a couple of weeks before i was born.

needless to say, ballet is in my blood and it runs deep through my veins.  as soon as i could walk, my mom enrolled me in ballet lessons.  i danced straight through elementary school, high school, and college.  i even minored in dance in college, and at one point in college i was taking five dance classes per week.  i loved it.  however, after i graduated from college i got busy with grad school and didn't have the time or the money to continue taking lessons.

for the last few years, i have been thinking about getting back into dance, but i kept finding excuses not to do it.  last year, my mom started taking dance classes again after many years of not dancing.  i was so inspired by her that this past september i dug my ballet clothes and shoes out of storage at my parents' house and i enrolled myself in a ballet class at a local studio.

after taking ballet lessons twice each week for the past two months, i am more in love with it than ever before.  i was surprised how everything came right back to me after not dancing for nearly a decade.  that muscle memory was still there and i didn't forget any of it (just like riding a bike).  i absolutely love it and i feel revitalized.  i'm a whole new me!  ballet is so good for the soul.  i don't know why i waited so long to get back into it.

i've had a one-track mind for the past couple of months: ballet.  i am in my glory taking ballet lessons again, and ryan keeps finding me dancing all around our house.  leko is my dance partner.  he is a wonderful ballerina! :-)

recently i stumbled across an online documentary series called city ballet and i'm hooked on it.  it's narrated by sarah jessica parker, and and it gives a behind-the-scenes look at the iconic new york city ballet company which was founded by george balanchine in 1948.  each episode is only about 6 minutes long.  i watched all 12 episodes of season 1 in one sitting, and i just started watching season 2.  if you are a dancer or if you enjoy watching dance, this series is a must see!

love, laurie

. . . 

{pictures from the new york city ballet}

lap cat

i am not a fan of cold weather, and it sure has been cold lately.  the one redeeming thing about cold temperatures is that leko gets extra cuddly when it's cold.  every time we sit down, he jumps up on our laps and curls into a little ball.  he's such a lover.  over the weekend we cuddled up on the couch with a blanket to watch a movie, and leko jumped right up to join us.  he sat on ryan's lap for hours, thoroughly enjoying a cat nap.  i just couldn't resist snapping a couple of pictures on my phone.  what a cutie!

love, laurie   

veterans day

last year, in honor of veterans day, the student veterans alliance at the university where i work displayed 6,750 american flags on campus.  each flag represented a fallen service member.  this year, the student veterans alliance did their "flags for the fallen campaign" again, displaying 6,800 american flags on campus.  it's so moving to see the thousands of flags arranged in perfectly straight lines, blowing gently in the breeze.  the project is such a lovely tribute to the veterans who served our country.

love, laurie

friday date night!

our schedules have been totally crazy lately, and we haven't had much time for relaxing or spending quality time together.  we were pretty excited to find out that ryan got two free tickets to a comedy show on friday night, so we decided to make a little date night out of it.  before the show, we went out to dinner at one of our favorite thai restaurants.  dinner was so good!  (it's been way too long since i've had pad thai.)  after dinner, we walked over to the theatre, and we really enjoyed the comedy show.  it was funny and we had great seats.  it was such a nice treat and a great way to spend a friday night!

hope everyone had an enjoyable weekend!

love, laurie

fun links

we are already one week into november.  it sure feels like time is flying!  thanksgiving is going to be here before we know it, and then a few weeks later it's christmas!  ryan scored us free tickets to a comedy show tonight, so we are looking forward to a fun friday date night and hopefully a relaxing weekend.

here are a few fun links that i found around the internet recently:

1. this corner cutting board is such a great idea.

2. i love the colors in this aqua ceramic muffin pan.  so pretty.

3. a d.i.y. cookie basket made from a paper plate . . . very clever!

4. vegans rejoice!  three-ingredient vegan caramel.

5. i want to dive right into a slice of this pumpkin gingersnap ice cream cake.

6. these house plant cupcakes are the most creative cupcakes i've seen in a while.

7. wondering what to do with your leftover halloween candy?  make candy bar cookie bars!

8. i definitely want to make this pinecone owl ornament for christmas.  it's so cute!

9. speaking of christmas, it's that time of year to start thinking about christmas cards already.  i love all of the options that tiny prints offers.  it's going to be hard to choose one.

have a great weekend!

love, laurie

a giveaway with firmoo.com (closed)

today we are teaming up with firmoo.com for a great giveaway!  i first heard about firmoo in the fall of 2012 when they contacted me to do a product review of their eye glasses.  i love the pair of glasses that i got from firmoo, and i still wear them every day.  since then, i even ordered a second pair from them which i carry around in my purse as a back-up pair.

firmoo offers prescription eye glasses, prescription sun glasses, and non-prescription designer frames at a fraction of the cost of other retailers.

one lucky reader will win a free pair of eye glasses!  (please note, the cost of shipping is not covered.)

you can pick your favorite pair of glasses from these options.

to enter to win, simply leave one comment below telling us your name, your email address, and which pair of glasses from these options you would choose if you won.  (only one entry per person.)

one winner will be drawn at random and announced on friday, november 14th.

ps: firmoo is offering 30% off frames site wide with the code VDFVIP until 11/15/14.

good luck!

love, laurie

. . .

update 11/14: the winner is emily

celebrating dad's birthday

yesterday after work, we got together with my parents to celebrate my dad's birthday.  we went out to dinner at an italian restaurant, then we came back to our house for cake and presents.  for dessert, ryan and i made a chocolate cake with raspberry filling, covered in fluffy chocolate whipped cream and topped with fresh raspberries.  yum!  we had such a great time yesterday.  it was so nice getting together with my parents to celebrate my dad's birthday!

happy birthday, dad!

love, laurie

happy birthday, dad!

hey, dad, i think you're the absolute greatest!
happy birthday to the best dad in the world!

love, laurie

xoxo

trick or treat!

on friday evening after work, my parents came up to our house to celebrate halloween.  we put halloween-themed lights and decorations around our house and lit the pumpkins that we carved.

we handed out candy to 180 trick-or-treaters who came to our door.  that was the most trick-or-treaters that we have ever had!  we had so much fun handing out candy and seeing all of the different costumes that the kids were wearing.  our favorite was one kid who dressed up as a slice of birthday cake.  creative homemade costumes are the best.  leko helped to guard the front door and told us when the trick-or-treaters were coming up our sidewalk too.

one of the things that my mom made for dinner was stuffed peppers.  she used orange peppers and cut faces in them to look like jack-o-lanterns!  they were so cute!

hope everyone had a great halloween!

love, laurie

. . . 

previous halloweens: 2011, 2012, and 2013