HOLIDAY CASUAL

I'm home, home, home for the Holidays!

No explanation needed! Wishing you the merriest Christmas there ever was. Love you guys to the moon & back. Enjoy every bit of this time you have with the ones you love. & I'll do the same! I'll talk to you later! xoxox

Sweater: J.Crew Factory

Jeans: J.Crew Factory 

Shoes: J.Crew Outlet (similar)

THE OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE

The oatmeal chocolate chip cookie is my only claim to fame + I've been hoarding this recipe for years. But because I love you, sweet Magical Simplicity readers, it's time to share the secret to my all-time, go-to, forever-favored, well-known (because I use it for every occassion): oatmeal chocolate chip cookie.

It's actually a very classic recipe. I add a little more salt than most people (I've always been a fan of the salty-sweet combo!); I hand mix everything out of habit (when I started making these in college I didn't own a hand mixer); I also use dark chocolate chips rather than semi-sweet (swoon! I'm convinced dark chocolate will somehow play a role in winning my heart). But mostly it's about the love you bake with.

One reason I love this recipe is because I almost always have each of these ingredients in my pantry. All very generic ingredients. Granted, I may always have them because I am always making these cookies.... anywho...

You will need:

• One + One/Half cup brown sugar
• One cup butter
• One egg
• One tsp pure vanilla
• Two cup old fashioned oats
• One + One/Half cup flour
• One tsp baking soda
• One tsp salt
• Two cup (Ghirardelli) dark chocolate chips 

First, heat oven to 350. Stir brown sugar (one+one/half cup) + butter (one cup) until blended.

Stir in vanilla (one tsp) + egg (one) until batter is light + fluffy. 

Stir in oats (two cups) + flour (one + one/half cup) + baking soda (one tsp) + salt (one tsp).

Fold in chocolate chips (two cups).

Bake 9 - 11 minutes.

Let sit several minutes on cookie sheet before transferring to cooling rack. Then.. enjoy! These are kind of my secret weapon for social events. So use the power wisely :) Let me know what you think!

Cookie Madness

I have the sweetest of teeth, and thanks to a bit of magic, today they got their fill! At around noon a coworker passed by my desk and threw me this Cheryl's smile.

A few hours after work, my adorable two-year-old neighbor stopped by with his parents with these native Australian cookies in hand.

It was the MOST magical day, you all know I go mad for cookies!

Cookie, cake, scone, banana perfection.

I am sitting here on this damp Saturday morning, sipping coffee and biting into THIS.

This is the banana chocolate chip cookie. And it is divine. I would call it a perfect mix between banana bread, cake, cookie, scone, and muffin.
The bananas were mixed with half a teaspoon of baking soda, so they became fluffy and took on a cake density.

Probably, I should not have cookies for breakfast (my mother never approved of my early morning sweet tooth). But honestly, I'm not sure what these are- besides delicious.