Double choco chip cookies

A perrrrfect afternoon snack, with coffee.

Double choco chip cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cocoa powder (or half cocoa powder, half melted baking chocolate)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup butter, softened
1.5 cups white sugar (or use half brown brown and half white)
2 eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla extract 1 or 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (or use M&Ms)1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In large bowl, beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; stir into the butter mixture until well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
3. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. You can also refrigerate before dropping onto sheets. Bake for 7 minutes in the preheated oven, or just until set. Cool slightly on the cookie sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Banoffee pie

Jaw-achingly sweet but so addictive.

Ingredients
1 can condensed milk about 400g
3 large bananas
One packet digestive cookies (eg McVities)
Half-pint of double cream, or whipping cream
2 tbsp butter or margarine

Crush the biscuits in a ziplock or any plastic bag with a rolling pin until reduced to crumbs. Gently melt butter in a saucepan. Mix butter with the crumbs until they start to bind together, and transfer to a round Pyrex dish. Pat down with a spoon or your fingers. Make sure entire base of dish is covered. Allow to set in the fridge.

Boil can of condensed milk -- unopened! -- for 2 hours and make sure can is entirely submerged in the water. Allow can to cool down and when cool enough to handle, open carefully. Spoon the toffee from the can onto the biscuit base of the Pyrex dish. Refrigerate again.

Slice the bananas and arrange them decoratively on top of the toffee. Whip the cream until peaking, then fold on top and smooth out. Dust with chocolate powder for effect. Keep in the fridge until needed, covered with clingfilm.

Pinoy-style chicken macaroni salad

When I make this in Hong Kong, I usually omit the pineapple -- I like to make it more tart than in the usual version we make at home.

Ingredients
· 250 g. of elbow or salad macaroni
· 2 cups mayonnaise
· 1/2 kilo of chicken breast
· 1 celery stalk, diced
· 2 tbsp minced red onion
· 2 hardboiled eggs chopped
· 1 cup (or more) of drained crushed pineapple (15 oz can) - optional
· ¼ cup sweet pickle relish
· 1 cup diced or shredded cheese
· 1/2 cup chopped carrot (1 small carrot, maybe boiled)
· a handful or two of raisins
· salt, white pepper, bit of sugar

1. Drain the pineapples and pickle relish. Reserve some of the juices in case you need to season the mayonnaise later.

2. Boil chicken breast in salted water, then drain and chop. Reserve liquid

3. Bring chicken liquid to a boil, cook pasta till al dente.

4. In a big bowl, combine all ingredients except the pasta and mayonnaise.

5. Add about a cup of mayonnaise, salt, pepper and sugar. Toss until well blended.

6. Add another cup of mayonnaise, toss to blend then taste. Add more salt, pepper and/or sugar.

Chill, in a covered container, for several hours. Before serving, you can add a few more tbsps of mayo to moisten, and maybe a bit more salt and pepper to taste as the macaroni would have absorbed most of the saltiness.