I tend to think of Tuesdays and Saturdays as my 'days off', in the sense that I have no real pressing things that must be done on those days. All the more serious tasks around the house, cleaning, laundry and whatever else must be done has been done. On those days it's only a matter of tidying up the kitchen and the bathrooms and preparing meals that take my attention.

Before heading out to the ravine for our daily ramble in the woods with Jackie and Jillie I thought I'd devote a little time to some baking.

So yesterday I decided it was time again to fill up empty cookie jars. I had several egg whites stored in a jar in the refrigerator, as left-overs from a different recipe days ago that had required only yolks, so I though it would be appropriate to bake coconut macaroons. That's a simple recipe, only requiring beaten egg whites, two cups of sweetened shredded coconut, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 2 heaping tablespoons of sifted pastry flour, and you're done, once the small mounds are baked for about 20 minutes in a 325-degree oven.

But I thought that since I was at it, I might as well bake another batch that looked intriguing, called Le Killer Star cookies, a recipe from someone named Dyan Solomon that I took from our local Lifestyle sections in Tuesday's newspaper. The ingredients sound improbable, and the methodology is certainly different, but I felt curious and that I'd give it a try: 

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1-1/3 cups milk chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/2 lb. semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (8 oz.)
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, diced
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 room-temperature large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup icing sugar

1. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper, preheat oven to 350-degrees F.
2. In a small bowl sift flour, baking powder and salt (I barely used any salt).
3. In another bowl mix chocolate chips together until evenly distributed. Place chopped semi-sweet chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over gently simmering water. Stir until melted and smooth (I melted both in the microwave). 
4. In a stand mixer fitted with whisk, beat sugar, eggs and vanilla until pale and fluffy, about ten minutes. (I decided to forego the mixer and mix by hand, repeatedly, repeatedly, repeatedly.) Using a spatula, gently fold melted chocolate-butter mixture into the eggs/sugar. Fold in the flour mix, and then add the chocolate chips.
5. Use a teaspoon to form walnut-sized balls of dough, placing them on the baking sheets, with room to spare between each. Bake in oven top shelf until dry in appearance, nine to ten minutes. (I used both shelves in the oven for the two cookie sheets and just exchanged their places halfway through the baking process.)
6. Use the icing sugar to sprinkle within a decorative star-shaped stencil in the centre of each baked cookie (I chose to omit this last step).

Both cookie types came out well. But the coconut macaroons are an especial favourite. The chocolate cookies came out nicely crisp and very chocolaty, though we didn't find them too sweet at all. After sliced persimmons for dessert, we tried out the cookies and declared them palatable, indulging perhaps more than we should have.

Dinner last night, was a fresh vegetable salad followed by French onion soup. It too was palatable.