MAPLED CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

It was my birthday earlier this week. It was smushed in between two trips to New York (Hugh has a wedding in Brooklyn this weekend), just after Mother's Day, the same week as my nieces birthday and nearly every female on my mom's side. I worked at Trader's most of the day and we had an excellent dinner in LA at Baco Mercat. I didn't need a bunch of celebration this year, there has been plenty going on and I just wanted to take account for the last 29 years. It kind of snuck up on me. My "twenties" have been abundant in experience - so many milestones and lessons and challenges and rewards and love and growth have been a part of this decade. I know I still have a year left, and not for a second do I believe my life is dramatically changing at the turn of a number, but still, there's only one year left! It has been so quick - but not - and somehow completely sufficient. I probably say this every birthday, but time fascinates me. How change is so sweeping in retrospect, but most of the time, you don't even notice the evolution of it.

These cookies actually don't have the slightest thing to do with my birthday but they need to be shared and we are celebrating. Ashley makes incredible cookies, and when I want to play around with a cookie combination or in this case, add something for my maple-loving husband, I use her recipe as a base and go from there. You really must try the original, but with the little bits of oats, tenderness from almond meal and the gentlest nudge of maple, I think I am calling this the "house cookie." I picked up some Valrhona feves, saving them for cooking glory, and they make the most gorgeous streaks through the cookies once baked. If you do try them, and even if you make a change of your own, just stay close to the oven. There is a time and place for a crispy cookie, but these babes are best consumed warm and just barely underdone.

PS. If you are in New York City this weekend, we will be at Posman Books in Chelsea Market on Sunday around 1pm signing cookbooks. It isn't an organized event, but we're signing their stock while in town so stop by and say hi if you'd like!

MAPLED CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES // Makes 18 small cookies

An adaptation of Not Without Salt's Almond Chocolate Chip Flax Cookies

Don't going searching high and low for chocolate feves, but I will say that they melt gorgeously in the dough. A chopped up bar of good-quality chocolate should work too.

If you need the cookies to be free of the glutens, a GF blend will work in place of the ww flour. Ashley's original gives you the option without the egg. I know maple extract isn't a pantry staple, but it's pretty fantastic and makes these cookies have a carmely-maple hint. This batch was made with maple flakes as well if you prefer a crunchy bit along with or instead of extract.

• 1 stick/ 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup muscavado sugar
• 1/2 cup turbinado sugar
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tsp. maple extract
• 3 T. maple flakes (optional)
• 2/3 cup almond meal
• heaping 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 2/3 cup white whole wheat flour
• pinch of cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1 cup dark chocolate chips/chopped chocolate

Heat the oven to 350'.

Cream the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg, sea salt, vanilla and maple extracts and mix again to combine well.

In another bowl, mix the almond meal, oats, white whole wheat flour, pinch of cinnamon and baking soda together. Add the dry to the wet mixture and stir until almost combined, being careful not to overmix. Add the chopped chocolate and give it one more stir to combine. Allow the mixture to chill for at least 20 minutes, or covered overnight. 

Place your cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet or silpat, leaving space between for them to spread. Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating pan halfway through, until the centers are barely set. They will appear underdone, this is good. Allow them to cool and enjoy. 

BAKED HERB + PISTACHIO FALAFEL

We ate our last lunch of a quick trip to NYC at Carnegie Deli. There was a line outside, which I'm guessing is due to an Anthony Bourdain or Seinfield episode because I know there is better food in New York. My dad, as you'll gather from a few headnotes in our cookbook and snippets here, likes his food straight forward (although, I did bring raw chia date brownies for plane snacks and he LIKED them! Heavens to Betsy). A few days in New York for this man necessitates pretzels, pizza and a hot pastrami sandwich.

My dad was my date to the James Beard dinner in town - an event I attended hesitantly seeing this month is more travel heavy than average. Thanks to a few friends coaxing me, I knew I would regret it if I didn't make it happen - something I may get to experience once in a lifetime. We shopped around to find me a new dress, he found a bagel, I found a salad bar (and a dress!), we communicated mostly in sarcasm and jest, as my family does, and the day was really nice. That evening, I sat around a table of collegues from my publishing house, amid a room full of cookbook and journalism professionals. I was taking it in, but mostly just nervous, my legs shaking in high shoes I couldn't walk far in. I knew my odds were quite slim, but when you are the small fish in a big pond, the magnitude of the pond itself is enough to make your legs wobbly. Regardless of what is even happening in said pond, but you just swim anyway. Winners gave a little speech, think of a food version of the Acadamy Awards. It crossed my mind for a split second, what would I say if I did win? Every underdog has their chance, right? The people who build me up: My husband who had slipped a homemade card in my purse reminding me, albeit humorously, how proud he was, my mom checking in all day wanting the details, my sister responding to my dozens of picture texts helping me choose a dress, my dad who had made the trip across the country to go with me, and a complimentary and supportive publisher. I had encouraging notes and emails from long time friends and blog friends alike. You know the phrase moms say about raising children, "it takes a village"? I felt like I had my village cheering me on. You must listen to the village. Your own voice will question and doubt and make your legs wobbly, but your village has pom poms and megaphones and big red finger sponges telling you you're great. I am so thankful for my village.

A friend and I were emailing about cookbook business and she mentioned "the ubiquity of blogger cookbooks." While there is certainly a trend to it, I find that I garner a ton of wisdom and inspiration, both personally and food wise, from blogs. It is such a pleasure to see personal work all bound up in a pretty package. I am excited to be cooking out of the new book from Green Kitchen Stories, Vegetarian Everyday. It is every bit as wonderful as their site. Filled with super gorgeous vegetarian recipes, many vegan and gluten free. I am going to try their cauliflower pizza crust and dark danish rye bread next, and the homemade vegetable chorizo sounds so unique. I really like how light these falafel taste and feel in your tum as opposed to a breadcrumb-heavy, deep fried alternative. So glad I have leftovers.

I know you worked your buns off for this, David and Luise, and the book is absolutely lovely. Many congratulations to you! 

BAKED HERB + PISTACHIO FALAFEL // Makes about 20

Recipe barely adapted from Vegetarian Everyday by David Frenkiel & Luise Vindahl

David and Luise suggest a simple cashew nut dressing in their book which is a blend of soaked cashews, oil, lemon juice, and salt. I had some tahini sauce to use up, so I went that route instead. Just use half the amount of water called for. A fresh tzatziki would be refreshing here too. The original recipe uses 2 cups pistachios, I scaled it down a bit due to preference which is why mine yields a bit less than thiers. Your call. Don't be shy with the herbs, these falafels can take it. 

• 12 sprigs of mint
• 12 sprigs of parsley or cilantro
• 1 cup shelled pistachio nuts
• 2 cups chickpeas, cooked or canned
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 small yellow onion
• 3 T. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 T. buckwheat flour (or another flour of choice)
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• hearty pinch of salt 

• / tomato chili salsa /
• 2 cups diced tomatoes (I used baby tomatoes)
• 1/2 a small red chile, seeded and finely chopped (one jalepeno works)
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 T. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 T. fresh chopped oregano
• pinch of sea salt and fresh ground pepper

• collard leaves, cabbage or pita bread for serving
• fresh herbs for garnish

Preheat the oven to 375'. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or oiled foil. 

Pulse the herbs in a food processor. Add the pistachio nuts and pulse again to chop. Add the chickpeas, garlic, onion, oil, cumin, flour and baking soda and blend for thirty seconds, scraping down sides when necessary. You want the mixture a bit rough. 

Using your hands, form 20 small round falafels. Place them on the parchment lined baking sheet. Bake them for about 15 minutes, flipping halfway through, until browned. 

Stir all tomato chili salsa ingredients together in another bowl. Allow ingredients to sit for flavors to blend. 

Make your wraps with the collard, cabbage or pita with a generous spread of the sauce and the tomato chili salsa. Falafels will keep for about a week covered in the fridge. 

BELGIUM + AMSTERDAM

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam

A few more notes on recent travel. We took the high speed train from Paris to Antwerp, Belgium. We stayed there for a few nights and then up to Amsterdam for a few nights. I don't have as comprehensive of lists for these locations as we cooled it a little after the passionate approach we took to eating and drinking in Paris.

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam

// BELGIUM //

The train station in Antwerp is worth a stop in itself. It has won awards for train station design (What? Yes. That exists.) and is just beautifully done. We stayed at Atelier 20 B&B which was on the quaint grounds of St. Paul's Cathedral. The couple that runs the place was super helpful and friendly and I don't think I've ever had a lovelier view from my bedroom window (the first image in this post). A few blocks up was Normo, a great coffee shop where Hugh could get his coffee nerdery fix. We also visited Caffenation. I found a tiny little raw place where I could get some fresh juices, a welcomed beverage when my greens quota was far below average, Eten Vol Leven. Belgium is into beer and frites so to do as the Belgians do, we spent a few evenings at The Paters Vaetje. This was a "brown bar" local dive sort of place with over a hundred Belgian beers. It was not "sprouted kitchen-esque" per se, but we had a great time watching people. Maybe the most eclectic lunch experience was at Lombardia for veggie burgers. The menu in itself was confusing but the food proved simple and good. We enjoyed a few Thai dinners, pizzas take-away from a nearby Italian spot and grocery store provision picnics. We wandered the Grote Market (lovely at dusk - my favorite time to stroll). While we didn't make it to the MAS, you can get your art fix there.

We spent one day in Brugge (which in my opinion, is all the time you need there). It is known for the retention of its original European charm. We had a light lunch at Le Pain Quotidien which started in Belgium despite having dozens of locations now. We collected chocolates and speculoos treats while weaving through the small streets. I don't think I've ever seen such a density of chocolate shops.

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam

// AMSTERDAM //

We rented an apartment in the Jordaan area, a great neighborhood, and I really loved having the extra space and kitchen. It was less expensive than a hotel too. We gathered produce and goodies for the apartment at the Noordermarkt. Bought the best brownies either of us have had in awhile at one of the bakery stands. They were some cross between a pudding cake and brownie and muffin which sounds heavey, but in truth they were just right. We may have walked away with a bag full.

There was apple cake down the street at the highly suggested Winkel. The cake was great, but I wouldn't recommend getting food there. It seems they ride off the reputation of that cake. I really enjoyed the deli salad plate atBuffet van Odette while watching the world go by on the corner patio. Brunch at Lovefood HQ - which has a sort of British spin to the menu. A little ways out of town is Restaurant De Kas (as seen in a few of these photos). It is a restaurant within a reconstructed green house and the space is just phenomenal. They source most of their food from a nearby farm and the menu changes daily. We found Stach while packing up travel snacks for the trip home. Lots of great salads, sandwiches, yummy homemade muesli and last minute gifts.

Travel and night strolls go hand in hand for us. Europe is charming by day, but my heart puddles a bit when I see it lit up in the evening. The canal streets in Amsterdam are perfect for this. A good night walk is best accompanied by a good hot chocolate (just a note for the first-time Amsterdam traveler: a "coffee shop" is not always a coffee shop. If you go looking for hot cocoa, you're just as likely find, um, something more potent than caffeine).

Ever fascinated by the holocaust, I LOVED going through the Anne Frank Museum. A must. We also saw the FOAM photography museum, something you could probably do in under an hour. There are only four exhibitions, so I would suggest checking what they are online to see if they are of interest. You can take the free ferry across over to The Eye where you can see a movie and/or have a drink in their restaurant with a phenomenal view of the city. You really must rent bikes, at least for a day or two. We rode around through Vondelpark, a great spot for walking or picnicing as well.

One of my favorite parts of this leg of the trip was meeting Sarah Britton of My New Roots while she was in town teaching a few classes. I believe I have a sixth sense of reading people, and I know a good egg when I see it. Sarah is as light and wonderful as you'd assume from reading her site. I left our chat feeling inspired and grateful for what a tangled and fantastic world the blogsphere is.

We planned to have a nice dinner out our last evening, but ran into all my final choices being closed on Mondays (I had lots of recs for Balthazars, but we were there all nights it was closed. Add it to your notes to check out). We grabbed pizzas from La Perla and an inexpensive twist top cabernet from the market, talked highs and lows of the trip and made a list of all the places in the world we hope to see. It was my favorite meal of the entire trip, just sitting on a park bench, laughing in retrospect at my mid-trip hormonal meltdown. Food is as good as the company you keep while dining. You are my favorite person, Hugh Forte.

“We ate well and cheaply and drank well and cheaply and slept well and warm together and loved each other.”

― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

sprouted kitchen belgium and amsterdam