cherry coke

Yet another rainy weekend in Sydney – which has both pros and cons! When it rains, there’s more time to bake which isn’t a bad thing. I now split it over two days – dough on Saturday and baking on Sunday. I’m not sure if it makes it more or less time consuming but it’s working so far!

This week’s cookies definitely have a very American, very soda fountain, almost 1950s-esque vibe. Two recipes are from Christina Tosi’s All About Cookies…and again one is from Chat GPT.

Christina Tosi’s cookies are some of my favourites- this week’s are Sugar Sugar Cookies and Nana Nilla Cookies.

The Sugar Sugar Cookies are SWEET. Like too sweet. Thomas liked them but he’s 8. And he loves sugar. They’re sugar cookies with sugar sprinkles and white chocolate chips. Like I said, sugar on top of sugar, flavoured by sugar, sweetened with sugar, sprinkled with sugar. But kind of fun, because of the coloured sugar on top and in them.

The other cookies, the Nana Nilla Cookies, are basically banana pudding cookies. Banana pudding is yummy, but not sure I love it in cookie form. Still, I had planned to bake them for ages (ever since I bought Nilla wafers earlier in the year) but hadn’t done it yet. I’m not sure how well liked they’ll be I’m glad I did them.

The last flavour is actually one of my favourite cookies I’ve ever baked. It’s Cherry Coke flavour. Cherry Coke is my absolute favorite soft drink. I LOVE it and used to have one every day growing up! I know it’s not for everyone but it’s MY personal favourite- so I asked ChatGPT to create a recipe for Cherry Coke Cookies….. And of course, like any faithful and loyal friend, it did. And they’re not bad! I went offscript and added a bit of actual cherry coke to the batter, which possibly made them too wet. The good news is that I can ask ChatGPT to tweak the recipe to include the liquid for next time.

ChatGPT called it a “ fun and nostalgic recipe that captures the flavor of Cherry Coke — fizzy cola sweetness, tart cherries, rich vanilla, and a hint of spice — all in a chewy cookie. Inspired by notes of: Cherry (obviously), Cola (vanilla, caramel, cinnamon, a hint of citrus), Slight fizziness or bite. This recipe mirrors those with cherries, vanilla, soft brown sugar (for caramel tones), a dash of cinnamon and optional cola glaze.”

I didn’t do the optional cola glaze but everything else (except the extra Cherry Coke dash) I followed exactly!

And to be honest, I LOVE Them. Not everyone will love these, but these are for me. Even if no one else likes them, I do. They’re a perfect blend of nostalgia, and my favourite flavours. They have a great depth of flavour from the almond, cinnamon, and chocolate, but also a nice sweet cherry pop from the maraschino cherries. LOVE LOVE LOVE!

So that’s the cookies for this week. It’s going to be a big week. We just celebrated our wedding anniversary, we have an interview for a high school, and my project at work is entering its final phases. Lots happening!

So obviously with a new month comes a new challenge. Eating vegan at home was awesome! We loved it – and it really expanded our horizons.

As a result, we’ve pledged to eat less meat, less often. We’re not going to give up meat completely but I can safely say we’ve discovered a new way of thinking about food and a new way of approaching what we eat.

Last night for the first time in 2 months I made steaks at home– I’m not sure if was the mustard sauce or the change in diet or our conscience haunting us- but both The Runner and I woke up complaining about how badly we slept and what weird dreams we’d both had. He dreamt he was a drug dealer being chased by police and I had four or five short small dreams that left me shaken and upset…very coincidental but very strange.

This month’s challenge– No Sugar March. It’s The Runner’s idea– which is weird.

For me, it’s a minor inconvenience of thinking a bit more about what I eat. I don’t really buy sweets very often, and when I do, it’s almost always M&Ms. I like desserts, but I can also happily not have it. For The Runner, it will be tough. Very Tough.

The Runner has a sweet tooth and is a snacker. A serious snacker. Partly because he trains so much and partly because of who he is, he eats constantly and loves sweets. There are very few cookies, sweets or desserts that the man does not eat. His favourites are Jaffa Cakes and Irish Cadbury chocolate, which his Mum lovingly sends from Ireland, but he eats most, if not all cookies and candies. When we first started dating, he used to put chocolate chips and nuts in his pockets and eat them while watching TV- similar to a squirrel tucking into his winter provisions. So for him to choose to give up sugar, I was pretty impressed– and worried.

We’re cutting out all candy, added sugar, sugary drinks, sugary foods, ice cream, cakes, basically everything with sugar in it except for fresh fruit and alcohol. (Wine comes from grapes, grapes are fruit, therefore wine stays in!)

For me, the hardest thing will be ~~not having sugar in my coffee~~ (actually, it’s Day 3 and I’ve gotten used to no sugar in my coffee).

I think the hardest thing for me will be giving up Cherry Coke. Yep, you read that right Cherry Coke. I don’t have it often, but it’s my feel good, cheer up food- or drink. If I’m having a bad day, I’ll get one after lunch. If I’m a bit tender on a Sunday morning, I’ll have a Cherry Coke to bring me back to life. I used to have one nearly every day at lunch in high school– just.because.I.love.it!!! If I’m happy I have one to celebrate how happy I am. It’s literally the equivalent of Gummiberry Juice for me.

If you’re not a child of the 1980s, you can read all about Gummiberry Juice here. Ok, in reading about it again, Gummiberry Juice sounds a bit creepy, and a suspiciously a bit like wine.

Anyway, back to Cherry Coke and true confession. For the first few years I was in Australia, other than family and friends Cherry Coke was the only thing that I seriously missed about the US. The one thing that I REALLY craved about home that I couldn’t ship over here and couldn’t get over it– until one day it started magically appearing….here, in Australia. And you could buy it by the case from Costco and find it in convenience shops and our local corner store and lots of places now. And I’m hooked all over again…. but not for the next 28 days….

Oh well, only 672 more hours until I can have one again!!!