Happy 4th

I want to wish everyone a fab 4th of July! I can't believe that summer is already here (although I wouldn't know it by the rain outside my window).

I've been thinking about some of my favorite 4th of July recipes, which I thought I'd share. The peanut sesame noodles are always a huge hit, as well as homemade sausages (to grill), edamame guacamole, easy bean salad, breast of tofu sandwiches, artichoke dip, quick and easy corn dogs, bbq pizza, susan's ribz, homemade blackberry soda and lemonade, just to name a few. That doesn't even include the ice cream and desserts, that are just as important at a BBQ or picnic as the mains and sides.

In other news, I finally decided to have our awesome web guy help me out with redoing my website, since I was struggling with it too much. It should hopefully be up and running in the next 2 weeks or so. I'll be sure to let you know!

Until then, I hope that everyone has an awesome holiday weekend!

XO Julie

Is It Almost February Already?

 Wow, I can't believe it's already the end of January! Where has the time gone?

I think that I'm ready to come up for air, and get back blogging again. You know it's bad when your mom calls to remind you that you haven't put a new post up in several months. Got it mom... Nothing like a little Jewish guilt. Anywho, the new routine of opening and working our food cart, along with finishing the cookbook and the zillion other projects I was juggling, had me put the blogging on the back burner. I just had to let the blogging go temporarily. I had a bit of creative burnout.

Thankfully, it was short lived. I'm back and excited to be blogging again. There's so much to share. Maybe my posts will be a little fresher now too.

The picture above is one of many from the new cookbook. We'll, from the testing phase at least. It's a strawberry chocolate pie. One of my tester's favorites. I have lots of other photos too, which I will start to post.

If you find yourself in the Portland area, please stop by our food cart (Native Bowl) in North East Portland and say hi.

XO Julie

Quickie

I'm still here! I've been typing and testing away, trying to finish the last part of the diner book. The recipes are finished, and the editing is just beginning. Each day I say "I'm going to do nothing but edit all day," but sure enough, there are so many details to stay on top of for the food cart, that the editing has become a slow process. Not to worry though, I am persevering, and having a great time too.

So, testers for Vegan Diner, there are quite a few new recipes to test, and LOTS more coming shortly.

We also squeezed in some filming last week, so there will be some new additions to Everyday Dish coming soon. I've also been working on another top secret project, which I'll hopefully be able to mention soon. I tell you, as crazy busy as things have been lately, it sure does keep life interesting!

Also, I put up a new post on the "Dish" page of Everyday Dish (yes, my second blog...). It has some yummy Thanksgiving recipe ideas, so if you're in need of some ideas, check it soon.

Back soon!

XO Julie

P.S. I have also been trying to tweet, semi-regularly. You can follow me on Twitter at (http://twitter.com/everydaydish)

The News

I think it's time to spill the beans about our newest project. It's not that I haven't wanted to share everything that's going on, it's just that sometimes I get a bit buggy-boo talking about things before they happen. The truth is that we're knee-deep in the permitting stage for a food concession trailer. Before we can proceed further, our plans are in the hands of the health department awaiting initial approval. This waiting is driving me bonkers.

The food cart scene in Portland has been absolutely exploding lately, and for good reason. There are so many inventive chefs and entrepreneurs, with creative food that runs the gamut from ice cream to stuffed hand pies, side dishes, stuffed waffles, vegan burritos to ethnic food, Belgian frites, vegan BBQ... You name it, it's happening in a tiny trailer on some street corner in Portland. So as a creative chef and food lover, I've often fantasized about opening a cart, wondering what type of food I would serve.

Then a few weeks back, I awoke one morning to find my husband with his laptop in hand, asking me how I felt about opening a food cart of our own. He had found a trailer for sale on Craigslist, that was all set-up and ready to go. Always up for a new adventure, I figured this sounded like a cool way to do some creative food, without the major headaches of opening an actual restaurant.

Needless to say, two days later we became the proud owners of a shiny black food trailer. The owner had set it up for himself, but had decided to move back home and was selling everything. "It's ready to go" he said. Well, maybe not quite ready to go. Jay has spent the last two weeks having the electrical fixed, replacing equipment that wasn't working and fixing things that weren't quite right. Now, hopefully, it's ready to go. For the time being we sit, waiting to get the initial approval from the health department. Then we can think about locations.

So now you all are up to speed on where we're at. We're holding our breath with our fingers crossed, hoping that we can make this newest venture a reality. Until then, I've got lots of cookbook editing to do. And a daughter to move to college. And a son going back to school... Life is good!

A Great New Find

Have you ever had one of those weeks? I've been having one this week, and it's been a wild ride. It started off with my husband and I starting a new business venture, which I can't talk about yet, but will spill the beans soon. It's really exciting, but an endless maze of red tape to maneuver through. Then in the midst of working on that and the editing of the new book, I got sick and was totally laid up. Very bad timing, I would say. Then late last night I got a phone call that my dad had been bitten by a rattlesnake (twice) and was in the hospital. WTF? Fortunately my dad should be okay, and is receiving anti-venom and responding well (ETA My dad is doing well and is back home now). We're now calling him the snake charmer. But man oh man, what a week! Please forgive me if the posts are a little slow around here for the time being.

Now, about the review. I had the privilege of trying out a fun new gadget recently, and was excited to share the results. Just so you know, I never receive payments for these reviews and have no connection with the company. But it's an uber-cool kitchen tool, especially if you cook with tofu.









As someone who is gadget crazy, I'm always searching for the next cool product. The problem is, not all new things pass the muster. First off, it has to serve a purpose, not just be another large tool to cram into my over-stuffed drawers and cabinets. Next up, the tool has to work well, be well-constructed and well designed. It also must call out to me, or else there's no way that I will remember to pull it out of said over-crowded drawers to use it. Period. So, as you can see, I'm a pretty tough and jaded critic.

Now, every once in a while, a new tool comes into my kitchen and brings a smile to my face. I must be walking around smiling a lot, because two uber cool tools/toys/gadgets have me excited lately. One will have to wait for another post, because I want to talk about the TofuXpress tofu press first.

I found that firm tofu works really well with the press (Trader Joe's organic firm tofu to be exact). I pressed it for an hour, and couldn't believe how much water was gently but firmly pressed from the block. Pretty cool. I then decided that I would let it go another couple of hours to see how it did. Even more water was expressed, leaving a fabulously firm tofu which could have been grated like cheese. No kidding. The texture was incredible. I then took my pressed tofu, and placed it in the fab "Breast of Tofu" marinade from Bryanna Clark Grogan. It made for one fabulous dinner! I also had a brainstorm that since I was going to be heading out for a camping trip, I would press more tofu, slice it and bring it along on the trip (stored in freezer bag with more of Bryanna's delicious marinade). It worked exceptionally well, and how cool to have pressed and marinated tofu waiting for you to use.

I don't believe that the TofuXpress is available in stores yet, but you can find it on their website at www.tofuxpress.com It's currently being offered at a special introductory rate for the moment. I highly recommend that you check it out, especially if you cook tofu regularly or would like to.

I hope that everyone is enjoying the last little bit of summer.
Back soon!

XO Julie

The Vegan Scoop

Ice cream is one of my favorite things in the world. Period. So when I first got my hands on Wheeler Del Torro's new book on Ice Cream, I couldn't wait to crack it open.

The book is called The Vegan Scoop, and if you haven't seen it yet you've got to go check it out. Wheeler (the vegan "ice cream man" of Boston) has a flair for flavors, which run the gamut from traditional to exotic to just plain unexpected. Imagine flavors like Cherries Jubilee, Bubblegum, Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl, Nectarine, Honeydew, Black Sesame, Thai Chile Chocolate, Caribbean Coffee, Seaweed and Coconut Lemongrass to name just a few. We're talking 150 vegan flavors from cover to cover. Oh, and there's also recipes for toppings, ice cream sides and desserts (Twinkies, Madeleines or cookies anyone?).

I had the pleasure of meeting Wheeler a few months back, when he very graciously filmed a couple of ice cream segments for Everyday Dish. I can tell you first hand that his ice cream is delicious. The texture is smooth and creamy and the flavors divine. Although I have only tried a couple of recipes in the book, I've got many pages marked with Post It Notes to whip up sometime soon.

I did notice that the book calls for a lot of exotic extracts that you probably won't be able to find at your local grocery store. After a quick online search though, I found that with a little searching most of the flavored extracts can be found. If you're interested, check out the lengthy and extensive list at Nature's Flavors (including vegan coriander, Lychee and white chocolate flavors).

When I was asked to participate in the blog tour for The Vegan Scoop, I didn't hesitate. This is a book that I was excited to add to my vast cookbook collection, and knew that it would get lots of use. As a special bonus for the book blog tour, Wheeler created 50 new recipes to share with bloggers. Guess what recipe I get to share? Pralines and Cream! How delicious does that sound?! Now, before I give you the recipe, don't forget to check out Wheeler's Vanilla/Curry and Peanut Butter ice cream videos (and recipes) on Everyday Dish. The book can be found on Amazon or at your local bookstore.

Pralines and Cream Ice Cream
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup soy cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vegan butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans

Butter sides of a heavy saucepan. Add sugars, soy milk, and salt to saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved. Raise heat to medium and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Reduce heat and continue cooking to soft ball stage, about 234° on a candy thermometer.

Remove from heat.

Add butter and vanilla, but do not stir. Cool for 5 minutes; stir in nuts. Beat with wooden spoon until candy is no longer glossy and is thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Quickly spoon candy onto buttered baking sheets or waxed paper. Let cool.

1 cup (235 ml) soy milk, divided
2 tablespoons (16 g) arrowroot
2 cups (470 ml) soy creamer
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
1 tablespoon (15 ml) vanilla extract
3/4 cup crushed pralines

In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup (60 ml) soymilk with arrowroot and set aside.

Mix soy creamer, remaining 3/4 cup (175 ml) soymilk, and sugar in a saucepan and cook over low heat. Once mixture begins to boil, remove from heat and immediately add arrowroot cream. This will cause the liquid to thicken noticeably.

Add vanilla extract.

Refrigerate mixture until chilled, approximately 2 to 3 hours. Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instruction. In the last 5 minutes of freezing, stir in pralines.

Yield: 1 quart (approximately 600 g)

Bottle Love

A while back, after doing a lot of reading on the subject, I decided to give up on refillable plastic plastic water bottles. Knowing not just that the plastics, and more specifically the BPA's, are terrible for our bodies, but that there is some thought that they might contribute to breast cancer. Yuck! And forget the fact that these plastics are showing up in our blood. As convenient as those refillable plastic bottles are, I just had to say no.

My next move was to the stainless bottles. These are very durable, and perfect to throw in a gym bag or the kid's backpacks for school. They sounded like the perfect solution, but I still wasn't totally convinced. They are fairly pricey (if you go for the good ones with the non-toxic finish), and my son was always complaining that his beverages had a metallic taste to them. I couldn't fault him there, as I noticed it too.

I really was at a loss as to what to do, other than carrying around a water glass from home, which was completely impractical. Then it hit me. What about those great iced tea bottles that you find everywhere from the grocery store to take-out cafes. With their resealable lids, they would make the perfect container for water, juice or home-brewed iced tea on the go. Plus, they look stylish. There's also the added benefit that you're recycling at the same time too. And you can actually fit ice cubes into the bottle, for a truly refreshing iced summer drink.

Now I wouldn't recommend these for children or if you're planning on doing some rugged outdoor activities. But for running errands around town or slipping into a bag at the farmer's market or going out for a stroll, these bottles are ideal. I've even started to notice the nice designs that some of these bottles have. I love that they can be thrown in the dishwasher to be cleaned, without worrying that the plastic is breaking down.

So, the next time that you find yourself with one of these bottles, consider keeping it as a water bottle. You may just find yourself hooked on the idea. Who knows. Maybe we can start a new trend of re-purposing glass bottles.

Pan Obsessed

I don't know about anyone else, but as I peruse kitchen stores and cooking catalogs, I find myself drawn to the specialty baking pans. You know the ones. They're shaped like hearts and giant cupcakes and mini Bundt cakes and flowers and twinkies and all kinds of other fun and unique shapes. Shapes that almost make me giddy.

Back in the "old days", I would often justify a pan purchase as necessary for recipes that I was working on, either for cookbooks or magazine articles or a TV spot. This was definitely a win win for me, as I "needed" the pans for work. This was fine, for a while, until I could no longer fit them all in my tiny kitchen.

I realize that by saying collection, it probably sounds like I have hundreds of pans, which I definitely don't. But I do have lots of them, all stacked together in plastic storage tubs. As I took a few out last night to photograph, it got me wondering if others find themselves drawn to these pans too. Anyone else find the specialty cake pans irresistible?

Fortunately I haven't bought a new pan in quite some time. I think that I'm set for now. Unless of course I happen to spy something new, that would make the "perfect" dessert...

Grilled Cheese & Lemonade

My daughter graduated high school last week, so I've been far away from my computer. It was so nice to be able to catch up with our family (and friends), since we don't get to see everyone nearly enough. The graduation ceremony was beautiful, and I can't believe that my baby girl is going off to college!

Now that I'm back to work, I wanted to let you know that we just put up a video and recipe for strawberry lemonade on Everyday Dish. So easy and refreshing for hot summer days.

We also put up a recipe up on the Membership side of Everyday Dish for Vegan Pepperjack Cheese. This stuff is so frickin' good, and makes the best grilled cheese sandwiches! You have seriously got to try it! It's both sliceable and spreadable, with a smoky peppery bite. I am completely addicted...

Pepperjack grilled cheese with tomato

Good News!

Great news for those considering a subscription to Everyday Dish TV. We have a special running right now. The price is $35.00 for a one year subscription. Now that's a lot of marshmallows (and key lime cheesecake and awesome vegan cheeses and smoky sausage links and chorizos and...). Just think about it. The monthly cost is less than your favorite Iced Soy Mocha ($2.92), and much healthier too. EDTV is guaranteed to be habit forming, without the jittery side effects of caffeine.

In other news, for those of you with children (or without), who are looking for a fun gift idea, I have an article in the new issue of Family Fun Magazine. The article is on do-it-yourself truffles (vegan, of course), perfect for teacher thank-you gifts.

XO Julie

Farmer's Market Demo

Spring has sprung, and summer's just around the corner!

It was a gorgeous day in Portland on Tuesday, and a perfect one to be outside. I was invited to be the guest chef at the Farmers Market at OHSU (Oregon Health Sciences University), a weekly event designed to not only provide fresh food and produce to the community, but the whole OHSU family (the hospital, medical school, cafes and dining establishments) as well. OHSU is undergoing a sustainable transformation, to provide locally prepared food and products that can be delivered as naturally as possible with an emphasis on recyclable containers. No easy feat for such a large organization, but I applaud their efforts as they put their best echo foot forward.

I was provided with a table for the demo (sans electricity), and had to have samples for over 200 people. I immediately thought of the "Peanut Sesame Noodles" from Everyday Dish TV, as it can be made without appliances, and doesn't require cooking. I brought everything that I needed to assemble the recipe, chilled and pre-measured, threw everything in a bowl and mixed the dressing right there on the spot. Everyone loved it and I ran out of samples much sooner than expected. Not so surprising as the samples were free! I met a lot of really interesting people, which is one of the things that I love most about demos. I got the definite feeling that this dish will be showing up at many barbeques and potlucks this summer.

Sometimes I forget about past recipes that I've created. That is until I have to search for one, given a scenario such as this. After making the peanut noodles again I can definitely say that it was just as good as the first time I made it, maybe even better. Being a cookbook author I am constantly challenged to come up with new ideas, and I have to admit it's in my nature to nurture this development process. But it's always comforting to revisit forgotten favorites, and bask in the pleasure that they provide, in a satisfyingly prepared meal.

My daughter was so upset that there were no leftovers I had to make it again for dinner that night. A chef's job is never done. Just when you get the dishes done its time for the next meal.

A Few Ideas For Memorial Day Feasting

I couldn't help but throw out a couple of recipe ideas for Memorial day. First off, marshmallows! What better way to end a meal?

Okay, if homemade vegan marshmallows aren't your thing, how about Key Lime Cheesecake? This baby should do the trick, and is delish with the bright flavor of fresh lime.

Little Smoky links are another one of my favorites, and perfect for Memorial Day BBQs. These can be made large or small, and are absolutely perfect grilled up on a bun!

All of these recipes are up on the membership side of Everyday Dish. You really must give them a try. I'm not just saying that. They really are yummy!

A final suggestion, Peanut Sesame Noodles. These are so darn good! They would make a great side dish, or a main if you're not planning on grilling tomorrow (or need something to take with you to a BBQ). You can find the recipe here on Everyday Dish

Memorial Day weekend always feels like the beginning of summer. The weather is usually fabulous, and makes you think of all the fun things to come. When I was growing up, Memorial Day weekend was when the community would gather together for a crazy, weekend-long festival of sorts called Topanga Days. As a kid it was always loads of fun, especially the year that Robin Williams (who lived in the area at the time), was the master of ceremonies. That was certainly a parade to remember!

My husband and I also got married on Memorial Day weekend. We thought that it would be a fun weekend to celebrate every year. This year is our 20th anniversary. My how the time has flown!

I hope that everyone has a fantastic weekend!

Julie

Raw Tamale Filling

We have another raw recipe up on Everyday Dish. The filling was designed to be rolled up in the raw corn tortillas, but it would be delish in tacos and many other dishes too! I like that it isn't nut based. Although I love nuts, it's nice to see some raw recipes that don't rely on them. Anyways, go check it out here!

Below is a pic of chef Elaina Love, with her gorgeous raw tamale. There are more raw videos and recipes to come (including the cream and red sauce that you see as part of her tamale garnish).

Have a great weekend!

Julie

Raw Corn Tortillas

Thank you so much for the amazing and enthusiastic response to the call for recipe testers. I wish that I could use everyone who replied. Although I only need a handful at the moment, I will most likely need more to come, so I'll be keeping everyone's name on file. Thank you again!

We just put a new video on Everyday Dish for raw corn tortillas (with chef Elaina Love). They are really good, so go check it out! We've had a lot of requests for raw recipes, so we turned to a couple of experts to share some of their favorites. There are more raw recipes to come.

Also, I want to thank everyone who has subscribed to the membership side of Everyday Dish. By subscribing you are helping us to keep Everyday Dish and the cooking show alive and thriving. We love you guys and want to say a giant thank you for your support!

Have an awesome weekend!

XO Julie

A Call For Testers

I'm in need of a few good recipe testers for the new book. Right now I've got a handful of recipes that are almost ready to be tested, probably in the next week or so. This is just the first round, so if the timing doesn't work for you right now, not to worry. There will be other opportunities for testing to follow.

What I'm looking for in the testers: people who have the time to commit to cooking and testing recipes in the next couple of weeks, are experienced with cooking and baking (preferably with vegan recipes) and don't mind following the recipes to a T. Prior recipe testing experience is great, but not required. If you're interested in testing, just leave a comment here, and an email or a way for me to reach you.

Now, just in case you're wondering what the photos are of, the top one is a chocolate chip swirl bread and the bottom is a mocha java cake. Yup, both recipes are in the new book.

Thanks!!

It's Finally Up!

The membership area is finally up on Everyday Dish. Whew! I feel like a proud mama. Jay and I have been working feverishly on it since last winter, and are so excited to finally have it up and ready to share.

When you go to sign up, click on the "Member's Login" tab at the top of the page. Make sure to login first as a user on the site. Otherwise it might not let you register. The pictures above are from the new recipes (little smoky links and key lime cheesecake). Besides the pics above, and the marshmallows and chocolate cream pie, there's also chorizo sausages, chedda & nacho cheeses (that are soy-free and will knock your socks off!), curried coconut sausages, jambalaya... The list goes on and on.

I'd better get back to working on the cookbook.

Have a great weekend!

XO Julie

Fun News, Marshmallows And Chocolate Cream Pie

A while back I mentioned that I was working on a couple of new projects. You already know about the book, so here's the scoop on the other one. For the past few months we have been working feverishly on launching a Membership side to Everyday Dish TV. We're putting the finishing touches on and it should be polished and ready for its big debut within the week.

Becoming a Member will include exclusive access to over 45 new cooking videos and recipes! We cover helpful tips like stocking your vegan pantry to recipes for vegan marshmallows, chorizo sausage links, my rockin' nacho and chedda cheeses and everything in between. New videos will be added monthly for fresh ideas and innovative recipes. The first 20 subscribers to the Membership side will also receive one of our Everyday Dish DVD's free for joining. So definitely stay tuned because you won't want to miss out. You'll love what you're going to see. The recipes on the membership side are some of my very best.

The picture above is a chocolate cream pie with marshmallow meringue topping. Yes, it's true! The recipe is perfected, filmed and ready to share with our members. I'll let you know once we've officially launched.

I have to admit, I'm so thrilled to be able to share the marshmallow and meringue recipes finally! I think I worked on those recipes for almost 8 months, with hundreds of trials and trails of marshmallows along the way. Whew, that was a lot of work. But I knew that it was a code that I had to crack ; )

Barley Tea

With record breaking temperatures and beautiful blue skies, I have found myself craving iced tea. Now, being a tea fanatic, my mind starts to race to all of the different possibilities. Should I make matcha or jasmine or vanilla rooibos or Earl Gray? And then I remembered my big bag of barley tea. I knew exactly what I needed to brew up.

The first time that I had barley tea was in a Korean restaurant in L.A. It was served iced, and was the perfect thirst quencher. It had a nice light flavor with a hint of roasted smokiness. I was forever hooked after that first sip.

One of the great things about barley tea, besides the great taste, is that it's super inexpensive. You can get a huge bag of the tea (mine came with 52 large tea bags), for about four dollars. Each tea bag will make one quart. Oh, and they're made to steep in cool water too. So all you have to do is toss it in a pitcher of cool water and refrigerate for 30 minutes. No muss, no fuss. I have to believe that there's got to be some health benefits to the tea too. After all, the only ingredient is roasted barley.


I'm sure there are many brands, but this is the one that I bought at our local Asian market. If you're looking for something refreshing and caffeine-free, you might want to give barley tea a try.

Nanaimo Bars And Sarah Kramer

Aren't these Nanaimo bars gorgeous?! They are are every bit as delicious as they look. The recipe is from Sarah Kramer (from her new book Vegan A Go Go), and I'm so excited that she shared it with Everyday Dish. Go check out the video (and recipe) now! You are going to love these bars!

I first had Nanaimo bars in 10th grade when I was living in Vancouver, B.C. My mom was participating in a Fulbright Exchange, and my brother and I were thrilled to go along for the ride. That incredible year in Vancouver was where I first fell in love with Nanaimo bars, the Pacific North West and tea (more about that in another post). I was sad when the year was over, although we went home with lots of memories, photos and a plethora of recipes that I had collected, including several for Nanaimo Bars. Yes, I know that I was only 16, but I was food and recipe obsessed from a very young age; ) Unfortunately none of the recipes were vegan so I am thrilled that Sarah has done the work for us.

Now, go check out that video!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

One of the recipes that I wanted to create for the new book is a stellar chocolate chip cookie. I know that there are hundreds, if not thousands of recipes already out there, but I needed one with my touch. A chocolate chip signature, if you may. I've always had an immense love for chocolate chip cookies, which goes back long before my first cookbook (125 Best Chocolate Chip Recipes).

Looking back, there was a time in high school that I think was the "pivotal" chocolate chip moment for me. My best friend Jennifer and I would fly to San Francisco regularly to visit her father. One day, Jennifer gave me a peek at her step mother's pantry. What I saw was something to behold. It was all of the makings for chocolate chip cookies. And not just one batch. This pantry was set up so that at any given moment she could bake hundreds of cookies. It was at that exact moment that I knew what my future would be.

I can assure you that my pantry does hold the makings for dozens of batches of these sweet little babies, at any given moment. I buy my semisweet chocolate chips (vegan, of course), in bulk 25 pound boxes. This is no joke, and has actually become something that my kids show off regularly to their friends ("want to see my mom's giant bucket o' chocolate chips?"). That bucket is something to behold.

As you can see, my love for the cookies goes way back. Once, in college, I even did a presentation in class on how to make the "perfect" chocolate chip cookies. I collected recipes for them wherever I went, looking for unusual techniques or interesting additions. I was even known to rate bakeries and restaurants, purely on their chocolate chip cookies.

So my love for the cookies continue, which is why I felt that I had to come up with my own delectable chocolate chip cookie for the book. I mixed and baked dozens and dozens of different variations, until I felt that I had the "one". The cookie gods must have been with me in the kitchen that week, because it worked. I came up with a perfect puffy, soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie. It's also much lower in fat than regular chocolate chip cookies too.

I wish I could share the cookies with you, warm from my oven. Instead the pic will just have to do for the moment. But, in the meantime, I'd love to hear what you think are the best traits of a chocolate chip cookie. Are they flat and crisp? Fat and chewy? Crisp and chewy? Whole grain? Nuts? Lots of chips or just a few?