Friday, August 17, 2007

Oh man... that was a long drive!

*If you were unable to reach us via e-mail today, I apologize as there was a mix up (ugh, big surprise) between us relocating and our former cable company. The issue has been resolved and our e-mail access is back, so feel free to shoot us another note if you sent us anything today.

We drove up to Pittsburgh on Wednesday afternoon to see the pups and kitty at Jeff's Moms house - we stayed the night there and headed out towards Minneapolis Thursday morning. We were going back and forth on how long we should drive that day and when we got to the hotel in Janesville, Wisconsin, I still felt good so we decided to just to the drive in one day! I say "we", but I drove the entire way as Jeff was browsing through the maps, nodding off or working on a couple sudoku puzzles! 15 hours and just over 1130 miles later we arrived in Minneapolis! Whew - my back was pretty sore by the time I went to sleep!

Not wasting any time, we are meeting with Lori our new Realtor friend and will spend most of this afternoon starting our house hunt! We are probably going to be at a hotel for the next couple days before we move into our furnished corporate apartment - maybe then we can actually cook again! I am going to do my best to keep the blog updated as often as we can, but I just don't know how much time we are going to have until we get somewhat settled in. I will get caught up on the comments and e-mails as soon as we get back from house hunting tonight.

I do have something for you today though! A day before the packers and movers came, we thought it would be nice to have a plate of cookies for them to snack on. Because I was still trying to get some of the pantry staples used up, I had to be choosy with the recipe as I didn't want to have to buy anything new for it. After rummaging through the pantry to see what we had left, I found a recipe for Mocha Mudslides and used up the last of the cappuccino chips, brown sugar and butter... bingo!

This cookie gets a boost of chocolate two ways, once with natural cocoa powder in the dry ingredients and the second from a good dose of bittersweet chocolate chips. To give them that mocha chocolate/coffee combo, a heaping tablespoon of instant espresso powder is added when you are beating the base butter/sugar mixture. The chunky cappuccino chips also bring their own "coffee" depth to the cookies - right out of their oven their flavor is fairly mild, but we noticed that the coffee factor crept up the longer they sat.

Mocha Mudslides CookieThe cookies have a smooth rich flavor with a firm chewy texture - I don't think I would necessary call them "crisp", but they were not soft and they were not hard either. Since we used a few tablespoons of shortening, we baked them right after mixing and they flattened out just enough without going too thin. If you feel like you have to use all butter, you may want to chill the dough for at least a couple hours before you bake the cookies.

Mocha Mudslides Cookie

12 comments:

  1. Joe, one day? I asked my husband when you started out, about how long that drive was, he said at least 2 days. What I did not tell him is that you are very young. I am glad you made it Joe, and that you checked in with us, I just printed the cookie recipe and will try to add them to my party Sunday, we are celebrating my Birthday. Good luck househunting, and do take care of yourself and rest up. Rita

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  2. Welcome to MN! Good luck with your house hunt! I will be interested to hear where you find a place--I am currently looking as well.

    Courtney

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  3. Rita - hee hee! It really was a long drive, but figured it was too early when we hit Wisconsin to stop!

    Courtney - we saw a ton of houses today. While nothing grabbed our attention, there is so much on the market that one can really have choice pick.

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  4. Those cookies will get you wired!

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  5. Good luck with the house hunting!!! Glad you made it to your destination safely!

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  6. I think we'll all understand if you take a few days off from blogging. :-)

    Good luck house-hunting! Are you looking in a particular area?

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  7. Joe, you are such a sweetheart and have been exceptional in keeping us up-to-date on your travels etc. And still, find the time to leave a treat for us to enjoy. Lots of hugs to you and Jeff.

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  8. that is a LONG drive! the drive from MI to MN is terribly long. I can't imagine how you did that in a day. yikes!

    good luck house hunting. what fun.

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  9. Good luck with the househunting Joe. I am sure you will find the perfect place in M as well. I still can't believe you are still cooking and moving!!!! It amazes me!!!! That is dedication!!!!

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  10. You are moving again!! Good luck in the new place.

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  11. Wow, Joe! I can't believe how much has gone on since I left for vacation! I hope you find a house in short order after that drive!

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  12. Tastetv - you get a good buzz!

    pat - Thank you!

    Erika - We are pretty much open to areas, but concentrating on the south metro.

    Cynthia - We're tryin, but it is quite hectic around here!

    Amandajean - I know, I doubt we will do it in 1 day when we drive the dogs back!

    Valli - Thanks!

    Valentina - I know, can you believe it?

    Jen - hee hee... we have been busy!

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