Chocolate chip cookies are hands down one of my very favorite things to make for people. I don't actually enjoy eating them, but simply making them for others. I have been baking them steadily since I was in high school, and they have become a solid staple of my relationships with others. Its that thing I am known for. When my brother or my friend Ricquel come to visit, they are almost offended if I don't immediately start slinging flour and sugar to make them happen. For our wedding some of my dearest friends all made batches of cookies to offer as the favor for our guests, truly one of the most generous things a group of people has done for me- baking for me when I could not bake for myself!

Needless to say, the chocolate chip cookie is a sign of caring and love for me. Its a chance to grab a cup of coffee (or a cold glass of milk if you're Patrick) and take a few moments to relax. It is warm and comforting and I think for many it is a nostalgic treat. This is one of the few recipes I make purely from memory, no longer needing to reference how much flour or butter is called for. Its ingrained forever in my mind, like the road you took to school growing up or the words to your favorite song. I make the Nestle Tollhouse recipe on the back of a back of chocolate chips, with a few minor adjustments.

• I add 1 tsp of Baking Soda + 1 tsp of Baking Powder. I used to be confused between the two and started adding both- HA! I just do now.

• I also use DARK chocolate chips. Sometimes Hershey's Special Dark, but often Ghiradelli 60% because I looooove dark chocolate.

• I used to melt the butter because I was too lazy to get it to room temperature. My cookies were flatter and thinner. BUT thats just not really my thing. I now let my butter get to room temp and cream it with the sugars. That step is KEY in creating soft + fluffy cookies, which are TOTALLY my thing. But if you like the other kind, go for it.

My love for cookies translates into me making them for many people, everywhere we have lived. One of my favorite cookie memories was while living in South Africa. When it came time for Mother's Day I could think of NO better way to celebrate all the women we called "Bomake" (Mothers) who cooked + cared for the children at the community centers that we worked with than to bake them cookies (biscuits). I remember wrapping up the cookies I made with chocolate chips I had carried across the ocean and excitedly delivering them to some happy, sassy ladies. They worked hard to cook for kids every dang day, so a little treat went a long way.

Okay, you get it. I love making people cookies. So it was a no-brainer when we moved into our new house in November that I should bake cookies for all of our new neighbors. But lets be real, life gets busy in a new house, in a new place, starting over from scratch and HOLIDAYS, so my cookie plan fell to the back burner. So here we are FOUR months later, and "introducing" ourselves to the neighbors. I designed these little cards as a simple way to pass on our basic information incase they ever need us. We have such sweet neighbors and want them to know us and know we are around to help or be able to call if ever needed! I baked a big batch of cookies, bagged up a few in each bag and we walked around to a few of the surrounding homes to say "HELLO!" and pass them out one evening after Patrick got home from work.

It was really simple, didn't take too long + I think a great way to introduce yourself in a new place! (To make it REAL simple, you could use pre-made dough....or buy store bought cookies. Nobody would ever know! BUT I do think you should try to make them from scratch because they are the most fun thing to bake.)