Jacques Torres Chocolate Chip Cookies

The best chocolate chip cookies ever!  A friend of mine introduced me to these delectable delights, and I've been hooked since.

Here is the link to the recipe in NY Times:  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/09/dining/091crex.html

Time: 45 minutes (for 1 6-cookie batch), plus at least 24 hours’ chilling

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 1/2 ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate disks or fèves, at least 60 percent cacao content (I use semi-dark chocolate bars and cut into big pieces)
Sea salt.

RECIPE:

1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

2. Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.

3. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.

4. Scoop 6 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day. Eat warm, with a big napkin.

Yield: 1 1/2 dozen 5-inch cookies.

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The Terrible Twos and Keeping it Together

{ cj at his 2-year birthday party }

Do not be deceived by this super adorable face.  Behind those squinty eyes and big infectious smile lies a 2-year old monster. 

The terrible twos have invaded our household, and boy, can they be pretty terrible at times!  Granted, for the most part, CJ is fairly well-behaved and reasonable (for a 2-year-old), but there are also many a moments when he tests the boundaries and limits of what he can get away with.  He insists on having it his way!  And my patience runs low!

Once the boys were down for their nap yesterday afternoon, I found therapy in washing the dishes and cleaning the kitchen.  Therapy also took form in banging pots in the kitchen sink and slamming cabinet doors (I feel it necessary to confess that).  These moments sometimes take me by surprise, and when I calm down, I often try to figure out why it is I'm so flustered and boiling inside.

And the bottom line pretty much comes to this:  I insist on having it my way, too!

In many ways, I am no different from a 2-year-old.  Except I can reflect and better recognize my selfishness as sin (most of the time). 

Grace is so important.  It allows me to not be so hard on the kids, my husband, myself.  I think it's the last I struggle with the most.  I have this image of what the perfect mom should be like and fall so short.  And I get upset and disappointed with myself because my house is not in order, dinner doesn't turn out well, the kids are misbehaving, errands don't get completed, etc, etc.

Sound familiar?

Advice was recently given to me by a friend which I found very helpful: 

"Don't be hard on yourself.  You have to do what works best for you".   Meaning if doing a thorough cleaning once a month as opposed to once a week works for us, then by all means, so be it.  It's okay if every meal isn't made from scratch, and the kids watch a tv program or two just so you can get dinner ready or just have a moment to sit back for a little bit.

And secondly, "Enjoy the children and encourage them to be kids."  I so desperately want order and control in my house, but I realize my expectations of my children are unrealistic at times.   I want my 2-year-old to be perfect, but how can I expect that when I'm so far from it myself?

You really do just have to take a few deep breaths, get a hold of yourself, keep things in perspective, and not let the 2-year or 30-something-year-old tantrums get the best of us.  Extend grace mostly for yourself.

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Welcome to the Mothering Village!

So here we are:  Mothering Village - a site written for and by mothers.

Okay, so you're probably thinking there are a million of these sites out there.  What's so special about this one?  Quite honestly, not much.  However, the contributors to this site will readily and humbly admit we're not perfect and we need help (lots of it)!  Truth be told, we're just barely surviving through most days.  Which is why we understand the importance of being part of a community and sharing in the joys and struggles of motherhood.   It's true what they say:  it takes a village to raise a child!  So if you can relate and have been searching for a community to belong to, maybe you've just stumbled upon it.  Come join other ordinary moms living out an extraordinary calling.

Welcome to the Mothering Village, and we looking forward to getting to know you!   Feel free to browse around, and we hope you'll feel at home here.

Cheers to you and your little tikes,

Rachel

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