baking and a baby

well, that was a longer pause than i expected.  but summer is like that, i think.  at least for me it is - the days are long and slow and lovely and when you blink you realize how many of them have gone by.  

i'm going to resist my impulse to fill you in on every last detail of my time away from this space; i think that impulse is all about wanting to capture the moments of this season, to stop time, to collect each occurrence - every meal, every stop in the woods, every blueberry - and hold them tight because i feel them slipping away already.  but i'm resisting the urge, and instead i'll tell you about two big things that have happened here over the last ten-or-so-days.  

first.  i've been baking.  a lot.  there were those two batches of brownies and two batches of cookies.  and then there was molly's yogurt lemon cake.  and then heather's chocolate pie.  and then there were THE chocolate chip cookies.  and sugar cookies.  and more jumble cookies.  there's been a lot of baking.  i'm enjoying the new kitchen - i'm enjoying having a kitchen! - and i'm almost ready to share pictures.  almost, but not quite.  soon.

 

and second, there is a new addition to our family!  my niece was born last monday, the second daughter of my brother and sister-in-law.  her arrival is (of course!) an occasion for rejoicing (and baking), and it's made even more meaningful - poignant, miraculous, remarkable - because it comes on the heels of my grandfather's passing just a few weeks ago.  wonderful to have joy in our family just now.

 

and so, in honor of the birth of my second sweet niece (or just because!), here's the recipe for the jumble cookies i've been baking so many of these last two weeks.  i made a batch late friday night and took them to philadelphia for the celebration of the new babe this afternoon.  the name - jumble cookie - is stolen from a cookie in the bakery department at whole foods, and refers to the jumble of yummy things mixed into the cookie dough.  we think they're super yummy.  if you try them, i hope you'll think so too.

jumble cookies

2 sticks butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups white whole wheat flour (king arthur brand)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup oats

4 cups mix-ins in any combination you like, but the key is to use a lot of different things (i use raisins, shredded coconut, chopped pecans, chopped walnuts, chopped almonds, white chocolate chunks, milk chocolate chips, and bittersweet chocolate chips in approximately equal proportions)

cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy

add eggs and beat well, add vanilla and beat well

whisk flour, baking soda and salt together in a separate bowl and add to wet mixture, mix to combine

add oats and mix to combine

add mix-ins and mix to combine

refrigerate dough until it's solid enough to handle (about an hour, so that your cookies don't spread and flatten when they're baked)

preheat oven to 350

on a parchment lined cookie sheet (i use silpats), place lumps of dough (i use 12 lumps for small cookies or 6 lumps for large cookies on a half-sheet pan) nicely spaced, and bake at 350 for 12 minutes

cool on a wire rack

enjoy!

Comments

[Tracy]

oh, it's good to see you back here, friend. And with yellow. :)

Summer is like that, indeed. Congratulations on your new niece. And on all that baking. :)

[cloth.paper.string]

oh, you're killing me with the baked goods, emily. especially the mention of that lemon yogurt cake... BUT the pic of that new babe in yellow? she's even more lemony fresh sweetness than i can handle. congratulations to your family!

[The Rauths]

those cookies look amazing...think we are going to try some tonight! thanks for the recipe!

[Grace]

Oh, I love that picture of your new niece! Such a great shot! So, so perfect. Thank your for your jumble cookie recipe; I've been curious about it since your first mention of them. And finally, SO excited about your new kitchen! I'm waiting, with baited breath, for pictures. Of course, that's not fair of me, because everyone else is waiting for pictures of my new house! LOL.

[amisha]

hello sweet new addition! these cookies seem like a lovely way to celebrate.
and i just kept nodding to everything you are saying about summer, and the urge to hold on to every moment, because it feels like it's going so fast. i have been feeling that already here, feeling like time is accelerating and i just want it to move slowly like honey, warm + sweet.
xox