Oatmeal Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

Enjoy this great recipe I found on a blog called Coconut & Lime:

6 oz semisweet chips
3/4 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup toffee bits
4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, at room temperature

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, mix together the butter, vanilla and sugar. Add the egg, beat until fluffy. Then add the flour, baking powder, salt, and oatmeal. Mix until well combined. Fold in toffee bits and chips. Place tablespoon sized blobs of dough on the lined cookie sheet about 1/2 inch apart and bake for 12-14 minutes or until they look "set" and the bottoms are just golden. Carefully remove from baking sheet and cool completely. Makes about 2 dozen cookies

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I made these delicious cookies this past weekend for a Super Bowl party and they were a big hit with party goers and also with my co-workers, who benefited from them the next morning at work. I love toffee and think it's a great element to add to cookies to mix things up. One note of warning on this cookie dough. Once you combine all the ingredents together, it doesn't look like enough dough to make 2 dozen cookies. But if you follow the directions and use a tablespoon to measure out the cookie dough, you'll have just the right amout of cookies to take to a party - and maybe have a few extra to enjoy at home with some milk the next morning!

El Jefe Burger Shack

The Luquillo area in Puerto Rico is know for its beautiful sandy beach & deep blue waters offering great waves for surfing & bogey boarding. It's also know to the locals as a great place to stop off after a day at the beach for some great grub! There's a strip of locally owned restaurants that runs right along the main highway in town. This area is called the Luquillo Kioskos. Here you can kick back with a cold Medalla beer and enjoy some local dishes like empanadillas and rice & beans.

If you stop by Kiosko #12, you're in for a real treat, you'll find El Jefe Burger Shack. This stand is know for it's hand packed angus beef burgers & some truly delicious pina coladas! We stopped off at the Burger Shack after a great day exploring the El Yunque Rain Forest. JJ and I were greeted by a nice young lady, who invited us to grab a seat and check out the menu.

The vibe is totally relaxed, with people mingling about, drinking cold beverages and exchanging laughs. We headed to an open table, near the back of the open air restaurant. We ordered up some of tasty drinks from the bar - a pina colada for me and a margarita for JJ.

Time for lunch - we decided to share a burger & some beer battered onion chips. We ordered up a 1/2 lb. burger, topped with sauteed onions, swiss cheese, sauteed mushrooms, mayo, lettuce & tomato - all stacked between a fluffy toasted bun. Check out the picture below - now that's what I'm talking about, some serious goodness here people! Yummm...

The El Jefe Burger Shack in Luquillo, PR totally rocks - it's an absolute must visit if you are ever in the area. Now I know this is not the type of food you think of when you might think of "local" Puerto Rican food, but what I love about this burger joint is that lots of their products are bought from local farmers and they work one on one with a local bakery to make the buns that are delivered fresh to the restaurant. They make their sauces & dressings from scratch and their walls are covered with artwork from local artists. The owners fell in love with Puerto Rico and have created a gold mine, right along the beach - does it get any better than that, seriously!

New Websites to Check Out

I've added a few new websites to the right column of CincySpin in an effort to share some of the great new websites I've recently stumbled upon. Here's a short description of the site and why I find it interesting.


344 Pounds - This blog is from a young guy in North Carolina and his journey towards a healthy lifestyle. He's totally inspiring and has appeared on CNN to share his story. Check him out, I think you'll enjoy reading about his journey.

Kevin and Amanda - I came across this blog one day when I was searching for new recipes for dinner. A young lady named Amanda runs this blog where she's posts alot about scrapbooking, cooking, and the daily goings on of her & her husbands life.

You Are Remarkable - This is a site dedicated to "spreading big or small bits of love and things that make you smile and laugh." They post some awesome quotes that leave me feeling refreshed and ready for the day with a positive outlook!

Castillo San Cristobal - Puerto Rico

One morning we toured the Old San Juan fort areas. These massive structures were built during the 1500s-1600s time period. To stand in an area where battled took place is quite outstanding. The beauty of these structures is truly remarkable and it was a beautiful day to take in these historical sights. We spent most of the morning at Castillo de San Cristobal. This Spanish fort was completed in the late 1600s to fight of land attacks on San Juan. It's older, more famous neighbor, Castillo San Felipe del Morro, was constructed to defend against water attacks and guard the bay area of San Juan.

Here are a few interesting things I learned while visiting San Cristobal:

The Spaniards fired the first shot from this fort during the Spanish-American war in during the late 1800s. Below is a picture showing the main plaza area. The doorways lead into vaulted rooms where cannons were housed to fight of enemy attacks. There are a series of several underground tunnels used to connect all the areas of the fort. This picture below shows the 3 tunnel entrances. These tunnels were used for several things; including moving men and supplies during battle, mining galleries, and the tunnel on the far left leads to the only dungeon at San Cristobal.
Three flags fly over Castillo San Cristobal - the Puerto Rican flag, the US flag, and an old Spanish military flag, known as the Cross of Burgundy. I love the picture below, the true beauty of this place stands out to me in this picture. The flags flying against the blue sky background, the rounded windows of the sleeping quarters for the soldiers, and the old original brick of the structure - quite a remarkable sight and part of world history.
Castillo San Cristobal offers a breathtaking view up the coast line towards it's counter part - El Morro. Below you can see the waves crashing against the sea wall and off in the distance, the watch tower of El Morro.

Pics from PR

JJ and I are on a little trip to Puerto Rico to celebrate my friends wedding this week. Here are a few picture highlights from our trip!

Lobster Salad from Kings Seafood in Luquillo:


View from beach condo:


La Mina Falls in the El Yunkue Rain Forest:


And the Aericbo Radio Telescope in Aericbo:


Here are a few random pics of things that have given me a good laugh.

This guy was riding in the middle of a very busy road just before this pic was captured:


These strange furry toys were for sale in Old San Juan:


And if you wanna play the bongos while using the restroom, that's an option here:



-Posted Using BlogPress

Ella's new buddy

This poor squeaking toy had no idea what was about to happen...

Sorry Mr. Monkey Toy, but Miss Ella really likes you...she's such a "hugger"!
She's just a little focused on de-stuffing you, that's all - sorry about that!

- Posted Using BlogPress

2009 End of the Year Questionnaire:

Here are some fun questions to reflect on as 2009 draws to and end. I edited out a few questions from the original questionnaire that I saw on another blog.

Feel free to copy, cut and paste these and pass your answers on to friends and family. Some of the questions are a bit silly, but it’s still kind of an interesting way to recap your year and compare to years past.

Here are my answers::

1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?
I got married!

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, & will you make more for next year?
Didn’t make one (at lease one that I can remember)! For 2010, I am going to try to make the switch from soda to water - we’ll see how it goes!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes, several friends gave birth to beautiful children.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
My husband’s grandmother and uncle died in 2009.

5. What countries did you visit?
I stayed in the US this year, but visited several states.

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
I would like to have more patience.

7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
October 10, 2009 – The day JJ and I got married.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Turning 30 and knowing that I married my best friend.

9. What was your biggest failure?
My attitude towards my job, but I’m determined to make that better in 2010.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
In the year of the Swine Flu, thankfully I didn’t suffer anything more than a mild case of the flu. But, I did fall down the basement stairs at our house and earned one nasty bruise on my tushy!

11. What was the best thing you bought?
A handmade quilt wall hanging from Hawaii.

12. Where did most of your money go?
Bills, bills, and more bills.

13. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Going to Hawaii for our honeymoon.

14. What song will always remind you of 2009?
Kiss of Life by Sade

15. Compared to this time last year, are you:

a) happier or sadder? Happier

b) thinner or fatter? Maybe a little chubbier-?!?

c) richer or poorer? Richer, in my heart – but the bank statement has stayed about the same.

16. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Exercise

17. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Talking about how I was going to exercise!

18. How did you spend Christmas?
Visiting with my family in Dayton and spent time with the “work-family” while working during the holidays.

19. Did you fall in love in 2009?
More than I ever thought possible!

20. What was your favorite TV program?
I really enjoyed a program on Showtime called the L Word.

21. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
I try not to waste time hating people.

22. What was the best book you read?
My Sisters Keeper – crazy ending in that book.

23. What was your greatest musical discovery?
A band called Iron and Wine, thanks to a co-worker for introducing me to them.

24. What did you want and get?
An iPhone – thanks JJ!

25. What did you want and not get?
I wanted something special to happen for two dear friends -who, someday, will make wonderful first time parents!

26. What was your favorite film of this year?
The Reader

27. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 30 this year! If my memory serves me right, the day kicked off with a nice card from my co-workers and then dinner with JJ, though I don’t remember where – how’s that for “old age”!

28. Who did you miss?
Grandma Millie

28. Who was the best new person you met?
I really enjoyed meeting our wedding photographer.

29. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
You can not make people change, all you can do is let them know how you feel about a situation.

30. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
“I got a feeling that tonight’s gonna be a good night…”
-Lyrics from “I Gotta Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas