Quarter of a Century!

Yesterday was Kaj's birthday! I've had to tease him the last 2 weeks about being such a "young pup", as I am 2 weeks older ;) haha. For his birthday, I surprised him a week early with... A helicopter lesson! He got an introduction to helicopter flying and then went up with the instructor and actually got to fly the helicopter! I had contacted the owner of the school a few months in advance and called him for the final plans about a week before. I knew not to give Kaj any hint of something going on, as he HATES surprises. He just can't handle not knowing what it going on... so, I decided to be nice and only taunt him about it for a day, rather than months. I told him the day before that he needed to be up early, because we had to leave the house by 9:15am. He had NO clue what we were heading off to do, and it drove him crazy. He admitted the suspense was worth it, in the end. He loved flying the helicopter. 

On our way to Spanish Fork... Kaj was being a little testy

Kaj's face when I told him what his birthday surprise was :)

On Kaj's actual birthday, I had another little surprise... Benihana for dinner! We looove sushi, and Kaj had never been to Benihana. They also happen to send out coupons for your birthday, so I signed Kaj up a few weeks ago, so we could actually afford dinner there! It was very good, although, we have definitely had better. We think we'll stick with our local sushi places, in the future.

My "But, it's so fun to watch you squirm" face ;)

Benihana

 Last birthday surprise... BACON cookies! That's right. BACON. What better dessert for the bacon lover of all bacon lovers, than bacon cookies? I found a recipe online while looking at some blogs the other day, and I knew they were exactly what Kaj needed for his birthday! I'll post the recipe below.

Why yes, yes that IS bacon in my cookie dough!

Peanut butter BACON cookies!

Someone's excited!

The cookies turned out pretty good. Kaj's verdict? "They need more bacon!" Figures. ;)

Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip-Bacon Cookies

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch of chipotle or ancho chile powder
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 5 strips bacon (1/3 pound)
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup roughly chopped honey- roasted peanuts
• 1/3 cup bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350* . Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, chile powder and salt in a large bowl.
Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 4 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; reserve 2 tablespoons of the drippings and set aside to cool. Crumble the bacon, discarding any chewy bits.
Beat the butter and reserved bacon drippings in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Beat in the peanut butter until combined, about 1 minute. Beat in the granulated and light brown sugar until creamy, about 4 minutes, then add the egg and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 more minutes.
Reduce the mixer speed to low; add the flour mixture in 2 additions, scraping down the bowl as needed, until just combined. Stir in the peanuts and all but 2 tablespoons each of the chocolate chips and bacon.
Form the dough into 12 balls and arrange 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten with your fingers (the cookies will not spread in the oven); press the reserved bacon and chocolate chips on top. Bake until golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Let the cookies cool 2 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.