Saturday, October 29, 2011

Shrimp Wontons


Last weekend, Mr. Incredible did something pretty incredible. He took me to the quaint little town of Gruene, TX to do something he knows I enjoy...antiquing (GASP!). The Historic District of Gruene has several shops set up in cute Victorian style cottages. Much to Mr. Incredible's dread, I went into EVERY store. I loved exploring the old buildings and rummaging through old things.  I walked away with a rotary egg beater dated back from the early 1900's and a few cook books from the same era. Score!

For lunch we ate at the Greune River Grill, which over looks the Guadalupe River. I honestly don't remember what I had to drink or what I had for lunch, but I do remember I had one of the tastiest appetizers I had in a long while. Their shrimp wontons were spectacular. When we got home, I got on the computer and turned internet stalker for the recipe. I totally Googled it and came up with nothing but the Greune River Grill Menu. Luckily, the menu described exactly what was in those yummy little suckers...bacon, mixed cheeses and peppers. This is my copy cat recipe :)


Sunday, October 2, 2011

The Loft House Cookie


Once upon a time, on the shelves in the bakery section of a Super Target, a frosted vanilla cupcake and a sugar cookie fell in love. After a brief, but scrumptiously sweet courtship, they married and had a baby. Their baby became known as the Loft House cookie. True story.

I very rarely say anything is my absolute favorite, but here it goes...Of all the cookies I've ever eaten, the Loft House cookie is my FAVORITE. There I said it and I'm OK with this :) Within minutes of finding this recipe (I have my Pinterest addiction to thank) I was in the kitchen making them. Within moments of putting sprinkles on the last cookie I had eaten a quarter of a dozen. True story.

A few comments about this recipe: The dough is supposed to be very soft and tender. It's what gives it that cakey cookie quality. So only add the extra flour if the dough is too sticky to work with. Also, do not over bake. When I pulled my cookies out of the oven after 8 minutes, the tops and edges were still pale while the underside of the cookie was only slightly golden. This is what you want. Again, it results in a moist cookie. Happy baking, friends!