NEWS!! & Jean Griffin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Guess what, friends, I have a surprise for you! Do you see that little banner at the very bottom of my page? Go ahead, scroll down, I'll wait...

Do you know what that is?? Well, it just so happens that yours truly, April, little brand new foodie blogger than I am, just happens to be one of the new contributors to TheDailyMeal.com!! If you haven't checked it out, you should. It's one of the fastest growing food sites out there, and has even passed foodandwine.com, bonappetite.com and saveur.com! One of the things that sets them apart is that they are NOT a spin-off of a magazine. They are their own site, for anything and everything food-related! Recipes, entertaining, tools, tips, reviews, restaurants, travel, television, everything. They personally select each contributor, and are keeping the number smallish, and they picked ME!!!! I still can't quite believe it.

To be honest, when I first got Sharon's email (she's the executive of community development) I thought it was a hoax. I almost deleted it... but then I let it sit there a few days... and decided to reply. What could it hurt, right?? She was so sweet, and assured me she and her site were completely real, and gave me some info to check for myself. :) I almost fell out of my chair!! I got to talk to her on the phone today, and I am thrilled to be a part of this site!! Don't worry, nothing will change around here. This just means lots more people get to read my recipes! YAY!! So. You should go take a peek, and I promise I'm not just saying that because I am part of it now. It really is an amazing site!! *dancing around giddily*

Oh! I'm also sharing my favorite breadsticks over at mommyiscoocoo today, go say hi to Amanda!

Jean Griffin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Printable Recipe

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening (I used butter-flavored)
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs (if doubling, use three)
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
2 cups flour
1 1/2 cup quick oats
1 cup chocolate chips (I used half milk and half semi-sweet)

Preheat oven to 375. Line or grease a baking sheet and set aside.

Cream together the butter and sugar. Add oil, eggs, and vanilla, and beat till combined. Stir in flour, salt, baking soda, oats, and chips till combined.

Roll into 1-1 1/2 inch balls, and bake for 10-13 minutes, until the edges just start to brown. Remove to wire rack and let cool completely.

These are my favorite chocolate chip cookies. And yes, that's coming from me, the scorner of chocolate! Okay, I don't scorn it... anyway. Favorites, right here.

Are they chocolate chip cookies? Are they oatmeal cookies? They're neither. They're unique! My favorite part is that they are somehow just a tiny bit salty. In that awesome, chocolate-covered-pretzel kind of way.

They're crispy-chewy instead of soft-chewy, lots of chocolate, buttery and yummy. This is actually another mother-in-law recipe (I didn't even notice when I planned this week!) and I have no idea who Jean Griffin is.  But she makes awesome cookies. The only things I changed were swapping margarine for butter, and adding a dash of cinnamon. Just cuz it's awesome.

And there you have them! Infamous in the Phillips family, the original recipe makes twice this much. Mom (in law) used to freeze them. Hers always turned out thicker, more domed... I shall have to investigate!

Shared at Farm Girl Friday