dough ball obsession

Although I can never turn down a fresh-out-the-oven chocolate chip cookie, whenever I make them they often come out too flat and/or crunchy. Sometimes I even under-cook cookies just so they’re soft and gooey on the inside. However, over the past few months, a trend has blown up all over the blog world; dough balls! They combine the softness of cake and the size of a cookie. I used this recipe from TheChicLife and they were actually fairly simple to make.

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup brown sugar

3/4 stick butter, softened/room-temp

1 tbsp sugar

1 egg (or flaxseed-egg)

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

The trickiest part is probably getting all of the balls to be the right side, to prevent some of them from burning and others from being raw in the middle. After only a few minutes in the oven, they came out just right. They aren’t supposed to brown on top like ordinary cookies – just slightly golden. The consistency was perfect, and to my surprise, they tasted the same the next day.

P.S. GO RAVENS!!!

snow (half) day

Okay, so it didn’t actually snow very much in Maryland. Apparently the storm hit the hardest up in New England (again). However, no matter how little or how much it snows, I like to go into recluse and sip hot chocolate as the snow falls. Typically the day after a snow storm, I have a couple go-to activities that I love doing on snow days. Since we only got a few inches I vowed to only spend a half day inside the house doing snow day-esque things. Last winter we got TWO blizzards in the DC-Baltimore area and my friends and I were stuck inside for weeks it seemed. After a couple of days, someone snowed in has to get creative. Below are a few of my favorite things to do when I’m stuck inside the house.

Watch 90’s teen dramas

Bake (recipe coming on Friday)

Catch up on reading. (Right now I’m reading The Hunger Games, and I’m obsessed)

Sip on vino

Re-organize my closet

Shop online

Even if it’s just for a few hours, I suggest taking some time out of your snow day (or any day) to indulge in some guilty pleasures or do a few household projects you’ve been putting off.