Pitty Party Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am an emotional eater. There I said it. We'll just get beyond the nitty, gritty, dirty details and get right to the truth. I eat to make myself feel better. It's true. I cannot deny this fact because I give myself away. Typically I crave something ooey and gooey and chocolately, like Molly's Nanny Sherry's Brownies, or Chocolate Chip Cookies or my newest vice, Caramel Fudgies from my stepson's junior prom fund raiser cookbook Cookin' with the Chargers.
Many of us have bumps and bends in our journey through life. Some bumps are a little rougher than others, and some bends a little sharper. My road is no different than most, and I've had my share of heartache. I had Hodgkin's disease when I was 22. I have been bald. I have been a cancer patient. I have had my fair share of what I affectionately call "stupid medical problems"--they never run the gamet of "normal" but usually leave my doctors puzzled.
The last 5 years I have been battling infertility. Infertility is not something people generally discuss openly, though I have found it affects more people than you might think. While I try not to be overwhelmingly vocal about my infertility issues, I have made it a point to be honest about it. I live in a town of 375 people. People wonder why we don't have children of our own. People know you, and they notice these things. Some people sheepishly ask, and feel guilty when I tell them the truth. There's no need to feel guilty asking, because when you are infertile it's hard to be left out, and for me anyway, I'd rather be asked than avoided.

Naturally, because I am an emotional eater, I have used food as a coping mechanism for all sorts of problems in my life. However, I have found some really good recipes along the way and have earned a humble reputation for being a pretty good cook. I would like to share my best recipes with you. Maybe I'll throw in some that are not my best ones, too, for reasons I don't know quite yet. Cooking and especially baking have become something of a coping mechanism for me, and I'm hoping this blog can also help me work through some of the heartache of infertility, and well, anything else that happens to pop up along this path I'm on. There are still plenty of good things along the road, and those should be celebrated with food as well--Good Food!!!

It didn't take me long to decide which recipe to put here first. It's got to be my go-to recipe for chocolate chip cookies. My husband loves them, my stepchildren love them, and it's perfect for last minute potlucks (in bar form) or late night pitty parties. Here's my favorite recipe--the best I've found yet and the only cookie recipe I have memorized! I think I found it online, and I want to say it comes from Canada, though I honestly can't remember exactly where I happened upon it. All I know is that these are so good!

Pitty Party Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 sticks of butter, softened
1 stick of margarine, softened
1 ¼ cup sugar
1 ¼ cup brown sugar
1 T. vanilla
2 eggs
2 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
4 ¼ cups all purpose flour (more or less to taste. Orignal recipe calls for 4 c.)
Cream butter, margarine and both sugars together. Add vanilla and eggs and mix well. Add remaining ingredients, adding more or less flour to taste (if the dough feels stiff, use less, if it feels soft, use more, etc. I often see how the first batch goes before I go hogwild adding flour). Drop by rounded spoonfuls or use a cookie scoop to drop onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 11-13 minutes or until desired doneness. Best if slightly underbaked. Keep in airtight container. They probably won't last long, but they're usually best if eaten or frozen within a few days.
* These are also great as bars. The whole recipe fits nicely into a 15x18 jelly roll pan (I like non-coated aluminum pans). Bake same temp for mabye 20-25 minutes. Watch them after 15 minutes and bake until golden brown all over. Try not to over bake and enjoy!