Snickerdoodle Cookies

Ever have those days when you're just CRAVING something specific?!? You know exactly what you want, and you know that you want a lot of it!! That was totally me yesterday; I had gone on a 21 mile bike ride in the morning so my stomach was craving everything and anything I could get my hands on!  When I decided that I wanted to make snickerdoodle cookies I realized that I had never made them before!! WHAT?! I know, they are like one of the most famous type of cookies out there and I had never made them for myself! So I had to give them a try!
I found a recipe online (allrecipes.com) and thought I would test it out!

Here's the recipe I used:

Ingredients:                                        

1/2 cup butter softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 3/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoons salt
2 Tablespoons white sugar
1 Tablespoon of cinnamon

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. In a mixer, cream together the butter, shortening, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.  Mix until smooth.
2. Mix in the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Mix well.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the 2 Tablespoons of sugar with the 1 Tablespoons of cinnamon.
4.  Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and roll through the cinnamon and sugar mixture.
5. Place 2 inches apart on a lightly greased, nonstick pan.
6. Back for about 9 - 11 minutes.
7. Allow to cool slightly once out of the oven and enjoy!

Notes: Depending on how cinnamony you would like your cookies to be, you can either up or lower the amount of cinnamon to sugar there is in the mixture. (The original recipe called for 2T of sugar, and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon.)
Also, I would maybe make the cookies a bit larger; which would require more baking time; I have not tried this out yet, but mine were a bit smaller and became more crisp over time because there wasn't as much center area (if that makes sense).

Needless to say, these satisfied my craving and hunger for cookies and I will definitely make them again in  the future!!
Now get baking!
As always, hit me up with questions or comments you may have regarding any of the recipes or restaurants I have visited!

Lina's vs. Abelardo's Mexican Food

  VS. 

As you have probably noticed by now, Mexican food is my all time favorite style of cuisine!! I LOVE everything about Mexican food, the flavors, the colors, the spicy, the sweet... You name it!  One of my all time favorite Mexican restaurants is Lina's Mexican Restaurant.  They are always quick and fresh; and they are probably one of the cheaper restaurants out there that gives you both a good quality and quantity of food for your buck!  I also love how Lina's is open 24 hours a day!! I mean, who doesn't have 2am cravings for Mexican food?? 

BUT there is another restaurant that I have found to be very similar to Lina's that I would like to mention; Abelardo's Mexican Food.  Just like Lina's they are open 24 hours a day and offer a lot of the same menu items.  So I thought I would let the two battle each other out and see which one won my vote!! 

I will say that Abelardo's has a better selection of the "Mexican" drinks, where as Lina's just has the basic Horchata and Mexican Coca-Cola and fountain drinks!  Making the score Lina's: 0, Abelardo's: 1. 

Although Abelardo's has a good drink selection, they are lacking in the sauce department.  I absolutely LOVE Lina's sauces that they offer to their diners.  They have three sauces: Hot, medium, and mild.  I actually prefer the mild sauce at Lina's because of the flavor; and the hot isn't really all that hot!  At Abelardo's they didn't have quite the selection of sauces that I would have liked, and the sauce that I did try didn't have such a good flavor.  Score: Lina's: 1 - Abelardo's: 1... Looks like we have a tie!

Although, the final point will go to the restaurant that has the best grub.  As I mentioned before, they both have very similar menu options.   I love Lina's "Carne Asada Burrito," it tastes JUST like something you would eat in Mexico!  Last time I was at Abelardo's I tried the "Pollo Asado," I have to say I wasn't impressed.  The flavor was good, but the ingredients didn't seem as fresh... 

So, my verdict: Lina's wins!! 

You may have a different opinion, and I would love to hear it; Good or bad!  But I definitely recommend trying out Lina's Mexican Restaurant!  Get the Carne Asada Burrito and you will feel like you are chewing on a piece of Mexico! :) 

Websites: 

Lina's: http://www.linasmexicanfood.com/

Abelardo's:  http://abelardosmexicanfood.com/

Chili Chili Chili

Heyyyy... So... Is it Summer or Fall?? Because right now it sure feels like fall... I DON'T LIKE IT!! I need my Summer temps to at least stay around till the end of August!! But I guess that gives me an early excuse to make some Chili!! Right!?!? 

Yes, today I was in the mood for some Chili.... And it's been a looonnnggg time since I have found the time to try a new recipe; so today was the perrrrfect day for it!  But, even though I had a recipe I found that I couldn't stick to it... I kinda deviated... Okay, that's a lie... I took a complete U-turn!  So, this is a spin off of a recipe I found on the internet... But really nothing like it! lol Enjoy!

Northern Chili

2 Red Bell Peppers

1 Serrano Pepper

4 teaspoons Olive Oil

1 1/2 cup chopped onion

2 lbs. Lean Ground Beef

3 Cans Great Northern Beans

2 Cans Fire Roasted Tomatoes

20 oz. Tomato Sauce

6 Cloves Garlic (Or 1/8 teaspoon powder per clove)

15oz. Cream of Celery

1/2 cup water

2 teaspoons Cumin Powder

1 1/2 Tablespoons Chili Powder

1 teaspoon Paprika

1 teaspoon Salt

Instructions:

1. Brown the meat in a skillet.  After browning drain excess fat from skillet.  While the meat is browning, saute onions and peppers until softened.  Combine the meat and veggies into one pot.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients to the mixture and cook for about 1 hour.

3. Enjoy!

That was easy right??!? Although, the only bad thing about Chili is that it tastes better on the second day usually, so if you have extra time the day before you wish to serve this meal, try making it the day before and refrigerating overnight.  Then you can just re-heat it the following day when you're ready to serve it! 

FYI, this tastes great with cornbread (recipe coming soon)!!