It's a Monday Two-fer!!!

I am making dinner for myself- a lovely piece of fresh wild sockeye salmon, cooked in the usual way, which will be paired with zucchini and squash matchsticks in a lovely wine-mustard-tarragon sauce, which I made up myself. I'm driving to Austin tomorrow, but working with my Dallas crew, so I'm making cookies to take to them. And also, I'm drinking wine. It's from Argentina and I'm quite fond of it. :)

wine-mustard-tarragon sauce:
a dollop of olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp fancy whole-grain mustard
a liberal dash of white wine (+ more for the chef)
a liberal dash of broth (I used onion tonight but you could use chicken or vegetable)
1 tsp+ flour
1 TBSP tarragon leaves, roughly chopped
salt & pepper, to taste

In a small saucepan, heat the oil and sautee the garlic and tarragon. Add the broth and flour to make a roux. Stir in the mustard and wine and reduce. Add more wine or broth if it gets too thick, more flour if it gets too thin.

In a larger skillet, lightly sautee the zucchini and squash matchsticks to al dente. Add the sauce to the vegetables and serve with a dusting of parmesan and fresh cracked pepper.



And nooooow, for the cookies!!! (Especially since I know Krysten and Chanelle are just scrolling through to the dessert.)

I got this recipe from an old boss of mine when I worked at the Komen Foundation, and I'm pretty sure I wasn't supposed to share it, but I tweaked it more than once to get it to its current state of perfection, so this is the new and updated ... better version. Seriously, they're so good. I feel like Phoebe- I can't make them all that much because it's just not fair to the other cookies:

Oatmeal-Cranberry-Pistachio Cookies
2 sticks salted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 C brown sugar
1/2 C sugar
2 large eggs
2 t vanilla
2 T milk (I use 1/2 & 1/2)
2 C rolled oats
2 C flour
1 t baking soda
a pinch of salt
1 t cinnamon... maybe a pinch more
1 C dried cranberries, halved (make sure you get really good quality, no-sugar-added, fresh & dried, if possible, none of that pre-bagged Craisin crap)
1 C roasted, unsalted pistachios, shelled & chopped

Cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Gradually beat in eggs, vanilla, and milk. In another bowl, combine oats, flour, soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add to butter mixture a little at a time & stir in just until mixed. Add the pistachios and cranberries, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight (or at least 2 hours).





Heat oven to 325-350. Drop by spoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet (I have always used my 2 T coffee scoop to make the perfectly sized and shaped cookie). I find it helpful to put the remaining dough back in the refrigerator while each batch is baking. Bake 12-14 minutes and cool on a wire rack. Eat while warm, with a Baileys on the rocks. Cheers!