Life as a Warden Wife: Cookies

It's raining in the woods. A light mist and gray skies have brought a peaceful calm to the day. I've always been a lover of rain and have missed it this winter! I'm used to messy Downeast Maine winters where rain seems to frequent more than snow. Even though I've missed it, after my first winter in northern Maine I have come to appreciate the consistency of cold temperatures with very little to no mixes of precipitation.

Napping, snacking, snuggling, reading, baking, and EATING.....rainy days are made of these and they are a few of my favorite things! Jackson on the other hand, thinks of one thing and that is his play time outside. At 45 degrees, things are a little too warm for snow pants so we are thankful for his big cousin's hand-me-down rain suit. :)

Foodgawking is another favorite rainy day activity (or any day activity) of mine. If you've never been to foodgawker.com then you are MISSING OUT. Gorgeous professional pictures of every food you could ever imagine will take over your computer screen teasing you with each scroll of the mouse. They say to never go grocery shopping when you are hungry. I say the same about Foodgawker. Never browse when you are hungry...it's just torture. If you're trying to be good...there is a "No Desserts" button. But honestly, don't click on it. You will miss out on some of the most mouth watering looking treats. So beautiful that sometimes it makes me want to cry. I believe that food is an art, and Foodgawker combines that art with the art of photography. In the words of Martha Stewart, "It's a really really good thing". :)

When the weather is yucky, I want to cook and bake and I want to eat. When I logged onto Foodgawker earlier today, I had every intention of focusing on a dinner plan. But out of no where.....BAM.....this picture of perfection caught my eye. A coconut shortbread cookie with a little crater of CARAMEL in the middle. Saints behold!!! The search for dinner was going to have to wait.

Now, in my baking opinion, more butter usually means that it will probably taste better. When I clicked on the picture and it took me to the recipe....the first thing line of ingredients read: 3 sticks of unsalted butter. Sold.

The recipe went smoothly until I ran out of caramel. I knew I was going to run out because I only had part of a bag. I could have made some more the homemade way...but I didn't feel like it. I started thinking about something else I could put in the crater of a coconut cookie. I felt like the father on the movie The Croods.....IIIIIII HAVE AN IDEAAAAA!!! Really it's not that much of a revelation. It's more of a given.....it pairs well with most everything....chocolate! Not just any chocolate....chocolate ganache....and not just chocolate ganache.....chocolate ganache with COCONUT RUM!!!
Perfection if I do say so myself.