AP & YW Camps.....2017

Well this was my first year as head camp cook.  Wow!  I survived but I was totally exhausted.  This is a ton of work even more than I imagined.  I thought I had a good idea as I have helped several years in the past.  Guess what I didn't have a clue.  To top it off I got bit by a tic the week before it started and was sick for 3 days.

Making menus was my first task.  Lots to consider.....things have to be spread out and positioned on the menu so they can be cooked or made at the right time.  There is limited amount of ovens and limited power to run roaster ovens.  I tried to cut out some of the very labor intensive items.  However, I still wanted to serve homemade cookies, bread sticks, rolls & cinnamon rolls.  These are tricky due to the oven limitations.  Using both ovens we could only bake 24 large cookies at one time, 45 cinnamon rolls and 96 breadsticks.

Once the menu was made I then had to make my recipes and determine exactly how much of everything I needed.  This was a very time consuming and mind boggling task.

Then it was time to make my shopping list.  I made a master list of all the items in alphabetical order and then went through every recipe and made notations as to how much was needed for every item.  It was important to account for every item as once I get there it is not very easy to get additional items.

I added up all the paper products and seasonings and headed to Costco one day in May.  It took me 6 hours and 4 trips through the checkout.  I actually walked 5 miles just in Costco according to my FITBIT.  My truck with the camper shell on it was completely full.  I came home and loaded them into the utility trailer and thus my endless shopping had begun.

I made numerous shopping lists.  One for Ridley's in McCall for all the fresh and perishables I needed.  A list for Winco for various things.  Another list for Costco.  An order to Franz Bakery for bread and buns.   And the rest went on my online order to Cash & Carry.  3 trips to Nampa later I was ready to head to camp with all my supplies.

AP Camp was June 5 to 10.  Monday June 5th I hit the road about 8:00 am and headed to Nampa to pick up the Franz bakery order and the Cash & Carry order.  The young man there said this was his second largest order ever!!  I told him it was my largest order ever, but probably not my last!! I picked Andrea Peterson up at 1:00 on June 5th and we pulled the utility trailer  with the pick-up loaded.  Steve pulled the camp trailer and the truck totally loaded.  Not an ounce of space to spare.

We got there and started unloading and setting up the kitchen.  We were the first official camp this season.  The camp missionary, Elder Steve Blackhurst came in to light the pilot lights on the ovens.  We had just opened up the big swinging window covers.  Apparently he had it lit but hadn't waited long enough for the gas to travel up to the grill.  Instead he stuck his lighter in that hole creating a major explosion that blew him back about 5 feet landing him in a heap on the floor.  Thankfully he was not hurt but I am pretty sure if those window covers hadn't been open we all may have been hurt.  Even clear across the kitchen I felt a draft from the explosion.  SCARY way to start off camp.  Elder Blackhurst said,  "I think we were watched over."  I definitely agree!!  Everyone who was on the camp grounds came on a dead run as they had heard the explosion and knew something had happened.

Gail Greenfield & her husband George delivered the order from Ridley's in McCall.  Once we were unloaded and set up, Steve headed for home and Andrea & I went to find dinner in McCall.

Tuesday morning Andrea & I went for a walk and then the cooking began.  All the leaders and adults arrived, about 50 people in all.   Gail Greenfield and Kendra & Clinton Childs joined us and we went to work.   I put all the ingredients in my NEW BIG MIXER for cool rise rolls.  When I tried to turn it on nothing happened.  The mixer had tipped over on the way up and so I thought it must have damaged something when it fell over.  Clinton tore into it and discovered if he held a knife on one of the contacts the mixer would work.  So with him holding the knife I was able to get the dough made.  It was decided that he would try to direct wire the mixer so that we would be able to use the mixer for the week.  However it still wouldn't work he said, there must be a safety switch or something....what goes here?  Then I realized that the CAGE was not attached to the mixer.  THAT was all that was wrong!!!  WOW!!  I felt stupid and had wasted a couple hours of time.  We had made the enchiladas for dinner and put them in the cooler with the plan to put them in the oven about 4:00.  I had been watching the clock so I thought.  It said it was 3:30 when someone asked what time we needed to start baking the enchiladas.  I said 4:00 to which they replied. "do you realize it is after 5:00?"  So panic set in once again and dinner time was moved back a half hour.  In the end all was good!  We decided that we had had 3 things go wrong and now it would be smooth sailing.  Boy was that the wrong thing to say!!!

Wednesday Morning about 6:15 am I was working on breakfast and setting up the roaster ovens. Brother Bassett had just opened the big swinging window covers.  As I set the roaster oven on the counter that big swinging window cover that weighs about 250 pounds came swinging down and hit the roaster oven and sent me flying back about 10 feet into a wire shelving rack landing in a heap on the floor.  It literally bruised me from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet.  The miracle was that I was able to function the rest of the week.  Technically, all this had happen and camp had not officially started.  The buses arrived just before noon bringing all the campers for a total of about 185 people.  Our second challenge of the day came when the kitchen sink drain started backing up and the kitchen floor was flooded 2 different times.

Thursday brought a new challenge.  The lunch menu consisted of Hot Dogs, Macaroni & Cheese, Chips, veggies & dip and grapes.  Easy enough!!!  Well the 16 pounds of noodles were cooked and we were making the cheese sauce.  We never left the pot and stirred it constantly but low and behold it was scorched!  And not just a little.  It was obvious that it was not an option to use it.  However, there was 4 lbs. butter, 15 pounds cheese, 2 gallon of milk and more in there and there wasn't anymore to make more.  Oh my what shall we do????   We had a little over 3 gallon of Cheesy Potato
Chowder left from Wednesdays lunch.  We heated it up and poured it over the pasta and it became Macaroni Delight!!!   It was a great save!!!  Everyone loved it!  Mel Vickery had eaten 4 bowls of it the day before and he said, "It was even better the second day!"  At the end of camp when I asked him what his favorite meal was he said, "Macaroni Delight."  Other than wasting all those ingredients everything turned out fine.  We had 3 routine kitchen floor floods throughout the day.

Friday's challenge came at lunch time.  We had 5 roaster ovens full of baked potatoes scattered all over camp so we would have enough power to plug them all in.  We had them all going and about an hour before lunch we noticed that someone had unplugged the cord coming from the boys bathroom. We plugged them in and said we will turn them up and use that roaster oven last.  Well in the busyness of serving 200 people lunch someone didn't know about not using that roaster and didn't think to check if they were done.  They simply plopped it on the table and went on their way.  By the time we noticed about 15 to 20 boys took mostly raw potatoes for their lunch.  We made an announcement that if you were one of the ones who got a potato that wasn't done to please come back and get a cooked one.  The most amazing part about this that really touched my heart was that not one single boy had complained or said even one word about their potato not being done.  I think that is remarkable.  Once again the kitchen flood was flooded 5 times at various times.  John & Diane Brinkerhoff joined us this day as Gail had to leave due to other commitments.

Saturday's most memorable moment came shortly after breakfast when we were packing up their lunches for the ride home.  We were making peanut butter sandwiches.  I put the peanut butter and strawberry jam and mixed berry syrup in the mixer and turned it on.  We added a little milk to get the desired consistency and then piped it onto the bread using a ziplock baggie with the corner snipped off.  It tasted delicious but I looked like cat poop.  As we were piping it onto the bread a boy came in.  He said, "What....is that?"  We replied, "Your lunch!"   It has hilarious!!!  Probably one of those things that you had to be there to be funny!!  We made good time loading up, we moved the utility and camp trailers to the parking lot and headed for home.  Halfway home we realized we had not turned off the pump and water heater and had to turn around and go back.  We finally got home about 5:30 pm.

I must say I learned a lot and now I have to do it all again with only one week to prepare.  I will say that I didn't get much sleep this week either.  Which meant I started out behind on my sleep.  The worst part is that when I get so tired then I can't sleep.  That is exactly what happened.

YW Camp was June 19 to 24.  I headed out Monday morning to pick up the bread and groceries and was on the road to camp by 1:00.  Steve was following about 3:00 with the second load after he got off work.  When I arrived at camp the gate was locked with not a sole in sight.  After about 35 minutes I was able to locate someone who knew the combination to the lock and was able to get in.  I emptied the entire pickup load by myself and got everything in the cooler and taken care of.  Then Steve arrived with his load and we did it all again.  Steve spent the night and was able to work in Cascade for the day on Tuesday.  We went to McCall to eat and Von & Ronda Mendenhall joined us.

Tuesday my helpers all showed up.  Once again I had Gail Greenfield and Kendra & Clinton Childs for the whole time.  Brother Lloyd Malone who said, "I came to camp as an amateur dishwasher and left a master!"  And he is exactly right!!  Rosa Rekow came Tuesday thru Friday.  Sheri Probst & Deja Wiscomb helped out Friday & Saturday.

I must say it went much smoother this time. We didn't burn anything, the kitchen never flooded once, the mixer worked great and I had the best workers anyone could ever ask for both camps.

Breakfast		8:15 Oven Omelet Breakfast roll/muffin Banana Hot Choc./Orange Juice 10” fork	7:45 French Toast Sausage pattie Scrambled Eggs Cantaloupe Hot Choc./Orange Juice 10” fork	8:00 Cinnamon Rolls Oatmeal & Toppings Brn. Sugar, honey, berries & milk Sliced Peaches Hot Choc./Orange Juice 5” bowl fork spoon	8:00 Pancakes Sausage links Eggs Fruit Hot Choc./Orange Juice 10” fork
Lunch	35 servings @ 12:45 Hamburgers Chips Potato Salad 10” fork	180 servings @ 12:00 Cheesy Potato Chowder Supreme Bread Stick Lettuce Salad Ranch Dressing Bowl spoon 8”	12:30 Hot Dogs Mac Cheese Veggies/dip Chips Grapes 10” fork	12:15 Baked Potato Bar Sour cream, butter, bacon, chili, cheese Tropical salad 10” fork	150 Sack Lunches @10 PB Sandwich Apple Chips Cookie Pop
Dinner	6:00 Chicken Enchiladas Green Salad-ranch Cooked Carrots Lemonade  5 gal 10” fork	6:00 Sloppy Joes Chips Broccoli Salad Watermelon Veggies/Dip Lemonade 15 gal 10” fork	Stake YM Cooking  TACO SALAD	225 Servings @ 6:00 Spaghetti Garlic Bread Stick Green Beans Fluff Lemonade 20 gal 10” fork
Snack	8:30 ? Root Beer Floats Spoon cup	8:30 Popcorn Cream Cheese Brownies Tray	8:30 Softie Machine Justin buying supplies	8:30 Cheesy Nachos/Salsa Tray
Prep for next day	Make breakfast rolls /strbry jam Chop green onions Make omelets?	Bake bread sticks  & brownies for today Cut up Cantaloupe	Scrub Potatoes Make Cinnamon Rolls Prepare Oatmeal toppings	Bake Cookies Bag lunches

2017 APC Camp Menu

                               Tuesday            Wednesday      Thursday           Friday               Saturday

Breakfast		75 servings Oven Omelet Breakfast lemon roll Banana Hot Choc. 10 gal. Orange Juice 5 gal 10” fork	French Toast Scrambled Eggs w/Ham Cantaloupe Hot Choc. 10 gal. Orange Juice 5 gal 10” fork	Cinnamon Rolls Oatmeal & Toppings Peaches 6, fruit sauce, brn sugar, cinnamon, milk, honey, maple syrup Hot Choc. 10 gal. Orange Juice 5 gal 5” bowl spoon	Pancakes Butter, syrup, fruit sauce Sausage Scrambled Eggs Oranges Hot Choc. 10 gal. Orange Juice 5 gal 10” fork spoon
Lunch	Bringing Sack Lunches 80 servings	200 Servings Baked Potato Bar Chili, butter, sour cream, cheese, green onions, ham  100 cup Salad 10” fork	Hamburgers/hotdogs buns,Ketchup, mustard, mayo, cheese, pickles Chips  -  Potato Salad Grapes 10” fork	Taco Salad Chips, Meat, cheese, lettuce, salsa, ranch, sour cream Watermelon 10” fork	Bus loads at 11:30 150 Sack Lunches PBJ Apple Rice krispie treat GoldFish Water
Dinner	Hawaiian Haystacks Rice & Gravy Pineapple, oranges, noodles,celery, Red peppers, coconut,grn onions, cheese Cottage Cheese Salad Lemonade 5 gal	Penne Pasta Spaghetti Green Salad 5 Ranch       Garlic Bread Sticks Strawberries Lemonade 15 gal 10” fork	Pulled Pork/BBQ Sauce Baked Calico Beans Broccoli Salad Carrots / Ranch Lemonade 15 gal 10” fork	250 servings Chicken Pasta Glazed Carrots Salad Mix 6/Ranch Roll Fluff Lemonade   20 gal 10” fork
Snack	Striped  cookie Sherbet Parfaits Cup spoon	Cream Cheese Brownies 5” fork	Softie Machine Cones	Individually packaged Giant Cookie
Prep for next day	Make Parfaits Scrub potatoes Make breakfast rolls	Bake for today…. Bread Sticks Brownies Wash & Stem Grapes Cut up cantaloupe	cut watermelon Make Cinnamon Rolls Make Salsa Make Jam & syrup for oatmeal	Bake for evening….. Bread Sticks Cookies for evening treat & sack lunches

2017 YW Camp Menu

                                 Tuesday              Wednesday      Thursday                  Friday            Saturday

Zucchini & Corn

This past weekend we went to the Kona Grill for dinner to use a gift card we were given.  They serve seasonal vegetables and we sure enjoyed their Sauted Zucchini & Corn.  So yesterday I figured out my own version.  Steve loves it....maybe you will too?!  

Sauted Zucchini and Corn

Place a tablespoon of butter in large shallow pan.

Stir in 2 or 3 finely diced small zucchini and 2 or 3 cups of corn (fresh or frozen).

When mostly cooked stir in 1 cup of bacon pieces. 

Season with salt & pepper.

Oreo Cheesecake.....in the Instant Pot or Not

Oreo Cheesecake
Crust
12 whole Oreo cookies, crushed into crumbs
2 T. butter, melted
Cheesecake
16 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 T. flour
1/4 c. heavy cream Or (1 T. melted butter and 3 T. milk)
2 t. vanilla
8 whole Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped
Topping
1 c. whipped cream or whipped topping
8 whole Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped
chocolate sauce, optional

Spray the inside of a 7 inch cheesecake pan.
In a small bowl, stir together the 12 crushed Oreo cookies and melted butter and press the crumbs into the bottom of the prepared pan and freeze for 10 minutes.
Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and mix well.  Add eggs, and beat well. Add in the flour, heavy cream, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Fold in 8 chopped Oreo cookies and pour batter into prepared pan.
Cover the top of the pan with a piece of foil.
Pour 1 1/2 cups of water into the Instant Pot and place the trivet in the bottom of the pot.
Create a "foil sling" by folding a 20-inch long piece of foil in half lengthwise two times. This "sling" will allow you place and remove the springform pan easily.  OR use a purchased instant pot rack with handles.
Place the cheesecake pan in the center of the sling and carefully lower the pan into the Instant Pot.
Lock the lid into place and make sure the vent is closed "sealing". Press the "Manual" button and cook on high pressure for 40 minutes.
 Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes and then do a quick release to release any pressure remaining in the pot.
Carefully remove the cheesecake from the pot to a cooling rack using the foil sling "handles". Uncover the cheesecake and allow it to cool to room temperature.
Once the cheesecake has cooled, refrigerate it for at least 8 hours, or overnight.
At serving time, top with whipped cream, chopped Oreo cookies, and a drizzle of chocolate sauce.
Notes:
If you want to bake this in an oven.... Do not cover the top with foil but you will need to cover the bottom of the pan with foil or the water will leak in.  Place the cheesecake pan into a larger pan and pour hot water into the larger pan until halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. Bake at 350°F for about 40-45 minutes, the edges will appear to be set, but the center will still have some jiggle to it. At this point, turn off the oven, and leave the door cracked and allow the cheesecake to rest in the cooling oven for one hour. After one hour has passed, carefully remove the cheesecake from the water bath and place on a cooling rack to cool completely. Once the cheesecake is completely cooled, place it into the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.

Shrimp Boil Foil Packs

http://www.lecremedelacrumb.com/shrimp-boil-foil-packs/

Shrimp Boil Foil Packs  

1 pound shrimp, peeled and de-veined
2 ears of corn on the cob, husked
½ pound andouille sausage
1 pound baby red potatoes OR baby yellow potatoes
3 tablespoons old bay seasoning OR homemade seasoning (see note)
salt and pepper, to taste
3 teaspoons minced garlic
juice of ½ lemon, plus lemon wedges for serving
3 tablespoons, melted + ½ cup butter, divided
chopped fresh parsley, for topping
Instructions
Chop corn into thirds, then chop each third in half lengthwise. Chop potatoes into 2 inch pieces. Boil corn and potatoes for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
In a large bowl combine shrimp, sausage, corn, and potatoes. Stir together melted 3 tablespoons butter, Old Bay seasoning, garlic, juice from half a lemon, and salt and pepper to taste and pour over shrimp, sausage, and veggies. Stir to coat.
Divide between four 12x12 inch sheets of aluminum foil. Fold edges of foil up around the food to create a closed packet.
Cook on preheated grill over medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes on one side, then flip and cook another 5-6 minutes on the second side. Alternately, you can bake the packets at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes until corn is tender and shrimp are pink and fully cooked.
While packets are cooking, melt remaining butter in a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat. Once melted, continue to stir gently over medium heat for 3-4 minutes longer until color changes from pale yellow to a golden amber (but be careful not to burn it).
Serve shrimp boil packs topped with chopped parsley, lemon wedges for squeezing, and browned butter for drizzling over the top or dipping.
Notes
Homemade Old Bay Seasoning: whisk together 1 tablespoon celery salt, 1 teaspoon paprika, ½ teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, ¼ teaspoon dry mustard, ⅛ teaspoon each allspice, cloves, and a pinch of ground ginger.

Cashew Chicken Pasta Salad

Cashew Chicken Pasta Salad
16 oz. rotini or bowtie pasta
4 c. cubed chicken
2 c. seedless green/red grapes, halved
5 oz. dried cranberries
1 c. ranch salad dressing
3/4 c. mayonnaise
2 c. salted cashews
Cook the pasta according to packaged directions. Drain pasta and rinse in cold water.
In a large bowl combine chicken, grapes and cranberries. Add pasta.
In a small bowl, whisk ranch dressing and mayonnaise. Pour over salad and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
Just before serving stir in cashews.

Creamy Cucumber Pasta Salad

Creamy Cucumber Pasta Salad
1/2 lb medium sized pasta (such as penne or rotini)
1 long cucumber or 2 regular, diced
1/2 sweet white onion, julienned *
Dressing
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 tablespoons fresh dill
2 tablespoons white vinegar

Cook pasta al dente according to package directions. Run under cold water to stop cooking.
Dice Cucumber & julienne onion* and put in a bowl of water to soak.
Combine all dressing ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
Toss all ingredients in a large bowl. Let sit at least 40 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
*Soaking the onions in cold water is optional but takes a bit of the "bite" out of the onion.

Hawaiian Pasta Salad

Hawaiian Pasta Salad
8 oz rotini or bow tie pasta
1 (14oz) can pineapple tidbits, juice reserved
1 red pepper , diced
2 cups diced ham
1 green onion , thinly sliced
Dressing
1/2 cup mayonnaise or dressing
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1/3 cup pineapple juice
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
black pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and run under cold water.
Whisk together all dressing ingredients until smooth.

Chocolate Brownie Bundt Cake

Chocolate Brownie Bundt Cake
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 box fudge brownie mix
4 eggs
1 1/4 c. water
1 c. oil
Ganache/Glaze
1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
1 c. semi sweet chocolate chips/morsels
2 to 3 c. powdered sugar

Combine first five ingredients in a large bowl and whisk for 2 minutes or until lumps are mostly gone.
Pour batter into sprayed bundt pan and bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes.
When done baking, remove cake and allow to cool in pan for up to five minutes. Carefully turn cake out onto a cooling rack and cool for 30 minutes more.
Ganache
Place heavy whipping cream in a large microwave safe bowl and heat for about 2 minutes. You want the cream to be just boiling.
Pour the chocolate chips into cream... it may rise up and bubble and this is ok.
Let sit for 5 minutes. Whisk the chocolate and cream until shiny and smooth, about 1 minute.  Then beat in the powdered sugar until desired consistency.  
Pour over cooled cake and serve.

Easy No Bake Chocolate Oat Bars

Easy No Bake Chocolate Oat Bars

1 cup butter
½ cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 cups rolled oats
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup dark chocolate chips
¾ cup chunky peanut butter
In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar and vanilla extract. Heat over low-heat, until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved.
Add the oats, cinnamon and kosher salt. Cook, stirring constantly, for 4 to 5 minutes.
Pour half of the oat mixture into a sprayed baking dish. Spread out the mixture evenly, pressing down.
In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips and the peanut butter. Heat on 60% power in the microwave, stirring every 60 seconds, until melted and fully combined.
Pour ⅘ of the chocolate mixture into the pan over the pressed oats, reserving about ¼ cup for drizzling. Top with the remaining oats and drizzle with the remaining ¼ cup chocolate mixture.
Refrigerate for 4 hours, or until set.

Sour Cream Rhubarb Cookies

Marcia shared this recipe with me.
Marcia Weeks McCormick says, " These are really really good. Next time I make them I think I will use strawberry extract instead of vanilla. A little white chocolate drizzled over the top or a sprinkle of sugar on top. Yumm!"

Sour Cream Rhubarb Cookies

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups rhubarb, diced

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat to combine. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla, making sure all the ingredients are well combined.

Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and beat until combined. Add another 1/3 of the flour mixture and repeat until all the ingredients are combined. Stir in the rhubarb.

Drop rough tablespoons of batter onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges of the cookies start to brown and the tops of the cookies get a little color. Let cool slightly, then remove to a rack to cool completely.

http://www.today.com/recipes/sour-cream-rhubarb-cookies-t89731

Granola Bars

Granola Bars

1/2 c. honey

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. peanut butter

2 c. quick oats

2 c. Rice Krispy cereal

1/4 c. ground flax seed OR 1/4 c. steel cut oats (optional) 

1 T. wheat germ (optional)

1 c. chocolate chips or mixture of coconut, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, etc.  

Place in pan:  honey & brown sugar.

Cook over medium-high heat until sugar is dissolved, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter.

Mix together in large bowl: oats, cereal, flax seed & wheat germ.  Pour honey mixture over dry ingredients and stir until well mixed.  

Stir in chocolate chips and any other add ins.  

Press into a greased 9x13 pan.  

Cool until firm.

Cut into 24 4x1" bars.  Store in air tight container.  

In place of peanut butter you could use sunbutter, almond butter, cashew butter, etc.

Hint:  if you freeze the chocolate chips they won't melt when stirred into the warm mixture.  

Frosted Banana Cookies

Over the weekend Katie recommended that we have dinner at the Orchard House in Marsing.  She said, "they have the best banana cookies ever".  Well they didn't have any this day.  So I decided to make some today because they sounded so good.  So I googled and found this recipe from Land O Lakes.

Frosted Banana Cookies
3/4 cup Land O Lakes® Butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 medium (1 cup)ripe bananas, mashed
1 large Land O Lakes® Egg
2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour (ADD MORE)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Frosting
2 tablespoons Land O Lakes® Butter
3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons Land O Lakes® Half & Half
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Grated orange zest, if desired
Heat oven to 350°F.
Combine 3/4 cup butter and 3/4 cup brown sugar in bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy.
Add bananas, egg, orange zest and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla; continue beating until well mixed. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; beat at low speed until well mixed.
Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool completely.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in 1-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add 3 tablespoons brown sugar and half & half. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat. Add powdered sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla; beat until well mixed; cool slightly.
Frost cooled cookies. Garnish with grated orange zest, if desired. Let stand until frosting is set.

**I used lemon zest instead of orange, because that is what I had.
I added 1/4 c. more flour and I should have added more!!