Column from September 10, 2009

Enjoying the end of summer

One of our favorite hobbies is rock hounding. We have quite a variety of local petrified wood in our yard and several jars of agates and other small stones here and there around the house.

This coming weekend, we will be taking our annual trip to the Teanaway, north of Cle Elum, to meet up with the All-Rockhounds Pow Wow Club, which we have been members of for many years, to hunt for some interesting specimens.

In fact, my husband’s parents were some of the founding members of the group way back when.

I hope the weather holds as we will be camping out in our tent and sleeping bags. And as it’s in the mountains, it can get a little chilly at night, especially this time of year. After all, summer is quickly coming to an end and fall is just around the corner.

But no matter how the weather is, we always have a fun time visiting with other rock hounds. Saturday night is a huge potluck dinner and there’s always a big Sunday breakfast before everyone heads home.

If anyone is interested finding out more information about the group and might like to join us, give me a call at 855-6677.

Rock hounding is more than just finding the perfect rock to add to a collection. For me, I enjoy the hiking and wildlife viewing, as well as some time to sit and relax with a good book with no distractions. It’s always so quiet and peaceful and a nice time to just sit and think.

Of course, with all that fresh air and exercise, snacks are definitely in order.

One of my favorites is chocolate chip cookies. This is a new recipe for me and it sounds really tasty.

Give it a try and let me know how it turns out for you.

Chocolate chunk cookies

½ cup (1 stick) butter

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

¾ cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ cup rolled oats

1-1/4 cups chocolate chunks

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two large baking sheets.

2. Combine the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar in a large bowl. Beat with a wooden spoon or an electric mixer set on medium speed until creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract; set aside.

3. Sift flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda into a small bowl. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beating continuously. Stir in the rolled oats and chocolate chunks.

4. Spoon tablespoonfuls of the dough, about 2 inches apart, onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake cookies until lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cookies cool for 1 minute before transferring to wire racks. Repeat with any remaining dough.

Note: Use semisweet, milk or white chocolate, or a combination of all three, for the chocolate chunks. Substitute raisins for a healthier treat.

Remember, your recipes are always welcome and I’d love to feature some of them in my column. You can send them to me at labordi at hotmail dot come.

Please include a few lines about the recipe – where you got it, what makes it special to you, etc. – to share with our readers.