I had to do a ton of baking today.  I mean… A TON!  I came across this recipe a few months ago and I seriously put them out and turned around and there were 2 left.  People were eating two at a time and by two I mean three or four.  They’re just that good.

I, of course, had to modify the recipe a bit and I wrote it with my modifications

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups finely shredded peeled zucchini
• 1/2 cup finely shredded carrot

Preparation:

Grease and flour 12 muffin cups. Heat oven to 375°.

In a mixing bowl, beat the oil with eggs, sugars, and vanilla extract.

Combine the flour, soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; add to the wet ingredients; stirring until blended. Fold in the shredded zucchini and carrots.

Fill muffin cups about 3/4 full; sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or granulated sugar, if desired. Bake for 20 minutes.

Makes 12.

ENJOY!

I just bought the best cookbook.  Since I spend a lot of time these days cooking for folks, I’m always trying to find new recipes.  This book is great for a few reasons.  Of course, most importantly the recipes themselves are super yummy.  However, what set this book apart from all the others was the layout design.  As an artist, the cover caught my eye immediately and when I opened it up, the pages inside did not let me down.

The recipes are super easy to follow and break everything down into steps, usually less than FIVE, which is awesome, and there are lots and lots of pictures inside. Oh and the best part, it tells you how to deal with leftovers!

And seriously folks, can you even stand the kitschy 70′s cover! I love it.  The book came out just last October from DK Publishing and they are brilliant.  Illustration artists, photographers, and typographers will love this book..  And I have to say, that if you are new to cooking, this book is so for you!

Go to your local bookstore and pick up this bad boy.  And then tell me which recipes were your favorite!!!

When I was younger, I considered becoming a chef.  I spent hours pouring through cook books and magazines to find the perfect recipes.  I focused most of my efforts on baking.  I would spend half the day making seven layer torts, chocolate truffles, carrot cakes and whatever else.  While other kids were out playing, I was watching cooking shows and dreaming of Williams Sonoma.  I was always invited to events with the disclaimer that I had to show up with some new creation.  I think that like most artists, my artistic endeavors aren’t confined to one medium and that cooking is just another way for me to express myself.  This love of baking and cooking never left and I still find myself cooking for people all the time.  Mostly, it’s when I am volunteering for Ari Bhod.  You haven’t cooked until you have tried figuring out a kitchen in high altitude.  It’s a challenging environment that forces you to search for creative ways to feed large groups of people.   Needless to say, it is always a rewarding task.

In recent years, I have fallen in love with the online recipe communities like allrecipes.com.  It helps to read other folks comments on recipes and see where they had difficulties and where they made modifications.  I have always been known for my chocolate chip cookies, but I came across a recipe for triple chocolate cookies from the food network site that everyone loves.  I made these for Thanksgiving and they were an instant hit! As is my tendency, I modified the recipe. Instead of using semi sweet chocolate chips, I used cholate – white swirl chips instead..  I think the white chocolate really balances out the flavor and doesn’t make it a chocolate overload situation.  Also, whatever you do, don’t leave out the cloves.  These cookies are super yummy and are moist, almost like brownies.  Perfect for the holidays. Now that I have moved out of my place (YAY) I can focus on the holidays and gift giving.  I have a bunch of ideas on how to make this holiday season great on a tight budget. And lets face it, everyone’s budget this year, is a little tight.  Keep this cookie recipe handy as I will show you later how to incorporate it into your gift giving season!

Triple Chocolate Cookies

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