If you are chocolate chip cookie freak like I am - in other words, you like to lick the cookie dough off the beaters like a little kid and run your finger around the bowl until it is dry - then you just might want to try this recipe.  (Mostly, I am thinking a bit selfishly here because if I give out this recipe than I expect if I am ever in your home town, then there better be some warm, gooey cookies waiting for me!)  Honestly, I can’t tell you if it’s any different than what’s on the back of a bag of Nestle’s Tollhouse - I don’t use them - but in my opinion, you better save only a few for yourself because you’ll find yourself going back for another again and again and again because they are so damn good.  I just made some the other day for my dad (since he won’t eat much of anything else right now) and they are killing me!

Here it is…

 1 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup cold butter (now here is where I use sweet cream butter - the real deal)

 1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

21/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

LOTS of Ghirardelli milk (my favorite) choc chips (at least 1 bag)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Beat together brown sugar through eggs until creamy and then add dry ingredients and then drop in your choc chips.  If you’ve got a sweet, bitchin’ Kitchen Aide mixer than throw it all in together and let the machine go to town.  Stop eating cookie dough before it makes you sick and then bake what’s left for ~10min on ungreased cookie sheet.   Make sure you eat one or two or three while they are still hot and gooey.

There is a very similar recipe in the back of the June issue of “Cooking Light”, although theirs is just a tad bit on the healthier side than mine.  But, speaking of “Cooking Light”, you should check out Tina Pic inside the mag.  She even makes drinking water look fun!

Now that heat and humidity has completely drained all my energy, I think I’ll take a wee nap…right after I eat another cookie.

-M&M

The Nature Valley Grand Prix wrapped up yesterday with a lot of yellow on the top step - and I am not talking just about the yellow leader’s jersey that was draped over Kristin’s back but also the yellow jerseys of TEAm Lipton as we stood on the top step after bringing home the overall team GC title, too.  The TEAm put forth a huge effort last week and Kristin brought home the goods.  From the word “GO” in St Paul, we took charge of the race, not relenting one bit until we crossed the finish line in Stillwater, and our hard work paid big dividends - 3 stage wins, overall individual GC and overall team GC.

Starting with the new and thrilling downtown St Paul Crit, the TEAm proved that we showed up to race our bikes.  After previewing the course, no one would have guessed that a break would end up going away but, sure enough, it did.  And to our advantage, Kristin, the biggest threat of the race, helped drive the break to the finish gathering a 20 sec lead on several other top competitors on day 1.  Brooke Miller (TIBCO) took the stage honors on day 2, and the security blanket of Lipton surrounded Kristin throughout the stage, protecting her and keeping her fresh for the following day’s TT.  Kristin once again smashed the TT, stamping her authority on the race and authenticating her World Champion rainbow stripes for the first time in the US.  Moving onto the downtown Minneapolis Crit later that evening - which was DRY for a change - the TEAm once again took control to make sure our yellow jersey-clad super star stayed out of trouble as the sprinters took over every 7 min for an intermediate sprint and the rest of the sprinters went gang busters for the stage win.  Day 4 was another spectacular day for us as a team - Kim, Lara and Brenda worked incredibly hard, flogging themselves tirelessly on the front, leading into the finishing circuits to bring back the break off the front so that Kristin had a clear path to launch her assertive attack.  Kristin put the hammer down on the first of 4 laps and never again looked back.  Although Kristin had an almost unbeatable lead going into the Stillwater Crit, we showed up to race our bikes.  And certainly not one to watch a race go on around her, Kristin solidified her domination in this race by rolling off the front -  only Mara Abbott (Webcor) having the strength to catch her -  and then crossing the finish line once more victorious.  It may have been a tough spring for this team but, just as we did last year at this race, we showed just what solidarity and teamwork can do.

Yet, with all the exciting events from this last week, we were hit with some pretty disheartening news at the beginning of it all.  First, we were told that Lipton will not be coming back as a sponsor in ‘08.  Alright, well, it is a damn shame but, on the flipside, Lipton has given us many wonderful opportunities these couple of years, and the TEAm they have helped develop has risen to the top, leaving a lasting impression on women’s cycling.  Second, Thomas, our loyal, big hearted director, will be leaving us (hopefully only temporarily) to tend to family issues back in Germany.  We may or may not see him again this year depending on how the situation works out for him, but we certainly wish him all the best and hope to see him stateside again in ‘07.  However, with all that being said, this TEAm still has a lot of fight left in it and the season is far from over so don’t expect us to hang our heads.  No way, we will show up to race our bikes at every event we enter!

Alright, alright, this write-up may have been a little more on the serious side then I would have liked so I’ll wrap it up with a few laughs from the week.

First, we’ve got Kristin’s face emblazoned on the gi-normous Wheaties blow-up box that was parked in the “fan zone” at every race…

Next, there is Jack, my favorite dog ever and a big lover of Smith sunnies, too…

Then, there is Matt, never one to take bike racing too seriously…

And, finally, here’s Courtnay Brown taking charge of the runaway horse in the parking lot at the Stillwater Crit…

And as our mechanic Stef (who REALLY DOES like us better than the Navigators!) would say…happy days!
-MM

Yeah man, we have got kick ass neighbors. Just next to us, David and Kathleen rode up Mt Evans this past weekend, which is no easy task for anyone, much less a couple who are probably in their 50’s - kudos to them!! And then across the street we have Shawn and Alison who are also outdoorsy people, ride rad cruisers from New Belgium Brewery, have a large stash of New Belgium Brews on hand, AND have a sweet, sweet dog. Besides being totally cool people, they have a great back porch that can accommodate a lot of people for BBQ’s and parties (4th of July, baby!). Just last night, this said back porch was designated as the summer community porch by those of us who were there admiring the views and sharing a glass or two of beer and wine. Next door to Shawn and Alison is another outgoing couple, Abby and Ray, who round out our little social corner of the neighborhood. They’ve got the hot tub so you better bet we’ll be there on cool summer nights and after long winter rides to indulge ourselves in some steamy pleasure!!

In the meantime, I fly off tomorrow to Minnesota for the Nature Valley Grand Prix. And from there I’ll head south to my parent’s house to give them both some reprieve around the house and a fresh face before they start to go crazy with each other!

-MM

With all the anxiety that had built up from finally nailing holes into our virgin walls, I had to get out for a long ride today so that I was too damn tired to think about the holes anymore. Plus, I hadn’t yet ridden to Estes so today was as good a day as any to tackle those damn switch backs after Glen Haven. Riding up the Big Johnson…wait, it’s the Big Thompson Canyon (I’d forgotten the proper name since I hear too many guys around here laugh about how funny it would be if it was really called the Big Johnson - real mature), is really beautiful with the river gushing alongside, the fly fisherman wading out to their waists waiting for the big johnson to come along, the fresh smells of pine, and the mountain views of Longs Peak that greet you at the top. Before reaching the top though, we had to ride through Glen Haven, which is a quaint, artsy town about 8 miles from Estes, that all the cyclists know for its famous cinnamon rolls. I had waited for over 2 hours of riding to eat so that I would be good and hungry for one of these delicious rolls, but once we were in Glen Haven I couldn’t do it. These things are HUGE, but the problem isn’t that I was afraid I couldn’t finish it, it’s that the steepest part of the ride is waiting just a mile or so up the road and I really didn’t want my stomach to explode. People had warned me about this but I just scoffed at the idea that I wouldn’t be able to eat a cinnamon roll. I mean, come on, after over an hour of climbing already, who wouldn’t be drooling at the mouth in anticipation of several hundred of the best calories you’d eaten in hours?! Well, I couldn’t do it - the thought of those switch backs looming in the near distance kept me from popping one of those delectable, gooey, icing filled rolls into my mouth. However, the red raspberry muffin suited me just fine. So, until I ride DOWN the switch backs next time I’ll just have to wait to shove that extra yumminess in my tummy to help me get down the descent even faster.

And what better way to end the day than with a homemade Mexican style pizza (that would be topped with black beans, tortilla chips, tomatoes, chipotle spices, cheese and potatos thrown on for good measure) accompanied by an ice cold, Cuban style drink (mojitos baby!!!)….mmmmmmmmm

Check out the flickr photos for a couple shots of Longs Peak.

-MM

After 3 difficult, unpleasant weeks in the hospital, my dad finally got to go home yesterday! The check-out process was painstakingly slow - each of many doctors had to stop by to give their last minute orders - but nevertheless, he is home resting comfortably in his favorite chair, restoring his energy with homecooked meals, and enjoying a steady stream of visitors who stop by to wish him well. I am thrilled that he has made it through these last few weeks with such a strong will and good spirits. Now he just has to get out for a bit of fishing to keep himself occupied - that is, as long as he doesn’t catch anything bigger than 10lbs!!

And I returned home yesterday to my NEW home! Montreal just about killed me this year - the crap weather, the crazy courses, the plastic dorm beds that stuck to my skin in the middle of the night when I’d wrestled all the sheets off the bed - so I was more than happy to leave Canada, and especially stoked to come home to a brand new house. There will be enough work to do around here to keep me busy for awhile, but hey, I can’t (or don’t) ride my bike all day anyway so decorating will be the perfect task for the next 7 days. I mean, we have done this enough times it’s like I can almost snap my fingers and things start to magically appear in their proper place. Well, almost. It’s my hesitation about putting holes in the clean walls that might take some time to pass. Using toothpaste to caulk unwanted holes just isn’t going to cut it anymore.

Philly was a blast as usual this year. Unfortunately, the women’s race is already ending just as the men are starting to make things happen in their epic battle, but Philly is Philly and short or long it is always a great race. And it never fails to make me more nervous than any other race all year. The crowds, the expectations, the Wall, wondering if luck will be on your side…it all makes the butterflies in my stomach flutter like mad. Luckily, the TEAm had a good day - Kristin took one of the podium spots by easily sweeping up the QOM competition - although we didn’t go home completely unscathed when Brenda went down pretty hard in the last km of the race…but crash or not she’s not one to let some road rash keep her from wearing her trademark tight ass jeans and having a good night out! As is tradition, many of the riders go out for a good time whether it’s to celebrate or drown the sorrows. The usual suspects were out in full force having a good time and maybe even talking about something other than bike racing for a change. Actually, probably not, but at least everyone was having a good time. Some people more than others (I won’t mention my teammate’s name) since jumping into the LOVE fountain - that would be the water fountain near the LOVE symbol, not necessarily the “LOVE” fountain - seemed to be a good idea, fully clothed and freezing cold. Ah yes, good times.

I’m going to find the most strategic place for that nail hole now…

-MM