Mexican Hot Chocolate

Yesterday and today have definitely been days for warm drinks. Like Mexican Hot Chocolate kind of warm drinks. So I made some. And it was yummy. You really should make some. Here's a good recipe if you need one....

Mexican Hot Chocolate

Makes 6-8 cups

6 cups water

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup chocolate powder 

1 Tbsp cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Heat until simmering, stirring often. Serve warm with marshmallows, whipped cream, or just by itself! It's so yummy just as it is! 

Texas Trail Mix Cookies

So, I stumbled upon an amazing discovery last night in the form of a new recipe. 

I was sitting there in the kitchen, craving cookies. Nothing out of the norm . . . Suddenly the thought occurred to me, "what if I were to create a new kind of cookie? A trail mix cookie!". And so I did. 

Sure, it's probably been done before. But not this good, I guarantee it . . .  (not to brag . . . ). These cookies are fantastic! Ooey, gooey, chocolately, sweet and salty goodness all in one little cookie . . . or big cookie . . . depending on how serious you take your cookie eating. I take mine very, very seriously. 

So why the "Texas" part? Well, I guess I can't take all the credit for these cookies. I played off of a good old Texan recipe from former First Lady Laura Bush, and added my own twist to the ingredients. Here's the original recipe if you'd like that. They are fabulous just like that, I assure you. 

But they're not trail mix cookies, and that's what we're going for here. 

Every year as a girl my family went up into the mountains of California to camp. Those are some of the best memories I have of my childhood. These cookies make me think of those sunny days and cold nights up in the mountains. Sleeping in the bed of the old orange pickup truck. The smell of pine that tantalizes your nose. The feel of needles and leaves and twigs crunching beneath your feet. The taste of the fire-cooked pancakes and bacon. Fresh coffee. Swimming in clear mountain spring pools. Climbing rugged mountain rocks to look out over beautiful views that will literally take your breath away. Long chats and scary stories around the campfire. Toasting marshmallows and making s'mores. And trail mix. You gotta have trail mix to go camping. That is just a must, in my opinion.

Or you could just take a big batch of these cookies along . . . that would do too.

All right already, just make some. :)

(Sorry, once again, a lack of pictures. I did take one, though!)

Texas Trail Mix Cookies

3 cups flour

1 Tbsp baking soda

1 Tbsp baking powder

1 Tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups butter

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

3 eggs 

1 tsp vanilla

3 cups old-fashioned oats

2 cups toasted coconut flakes (just toast them in the skillet until they're a nice golden color)

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 cup butterscotch chips

1 cups dry roasted peanuts (I used plain, but honey roasted would be good too)

1 cup raisins

1 cup golden raisins

1 cup cran-raisins 

**Makes about 3-5 dozen cookies, depending on how big you like them

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Whisk flour, soda, powder, salt and cinnamon together in a bowl. Set aside. 

In the bowl of a stand-up mixer, blend softened butter and both sugars until light and creamy. Add eggs in one at a time, blending well. Mix in vanilla. Add the flour mixture slowly until incorporated. Then add the mix-ins (oats, chips, raisins, nuts, coconut) slowly, until just combined. You never want to overmix cookies or they get kind of tough. 

Scoop balls of the cookie dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet (I do about 1/4 cup in size. We like our cookies a little larger around here . . . ). 

Bake for 12-15 minutes, depending on how crispy you like the cookie. 

Cool and enjoy with a big glass of milk! g on how crispy you like the cookie. 

Cool and enjoy with a big glass of milk! 

printable recipe

Sweet Potato Chili

Fall is, or was, in the air. August is teasing me, I think. I've been about ready to pull out scarves and sweaters several times now. You know, that pleasant nip on your nose as you walk out the door? Cool breezes blowing leaves around? I felt it, I really did! Since fall is my favorite season, I get a little excited when I think it's about that time again. But this week has told me to calm down. Soon, it will be here soon, but not yet. August wants one more chance to be summery and hot and muggy. Then fall can come. I'll try and be patient just a little longer.

In preparation for fall, though (cause you gotta be prepared!), I pulled out one of my all-time favorite chili recipes. It's sweet, but has a little spicy kick. The combination is just fabulous. The perfect thing for a late-summer-acting-like-fall day.

I was happy to find a couple of sweet potatoes at the farmer's market this weekend that were almost the size of footballs. Huge. And delicious. This recipe calls for 2 medium sweet potatoes, but I only needed one of these monsters. Regrettably, I forgot to take pictures. In fact, I only have a couple for this post, but all you really want is the recipe anyway, right? So . . . on to chili . . .

Sweet Potato Chili

Ingredients: 

2 medium sweet potatoes, chopped

2 pounds ground beef, turkey, venison, etc,. 

1 28ish ounce jar of original spaghetti sauce

2 -3 tomatoes diced or 1 can diced tomatoes

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 can black beans

1 can red kidney beans

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup dark brown sugar 

1/4 cup ancho chili powder

2 tablespoons red chili powder

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

Brown ground meat in a large pot (I used my cast iron dutch oven, which works very nicely for chili, but I think any large pot should work fine). When meat is almost all the way cooked, add the brown sugar (gives the meat a nice flavor), onions and sweet potatoes. Cook covered for about 20 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the potatoes are soft. Add in the spaghetti sauce, tomatoes, beans, and cider vinegar, and mix well. Let that cook a couple of minutes. 

Mix together the chili powders, the cayenne, and the salt and pepper (probably about a tablespoon of each, and then you may add more when you taste test). Add the mixture to the chili and stir in thoroughly. 

The last step is my favorite. Taste test! Add more sweet, more spice, more salt, or whatever you think the chili needs. The dominant traits should be sweet first, with a kick of spice in the aftertaste. Then get a nice big bowl, maybe some cornbread, and enjoy!