Sugar & Spice by Celeste

Gracious, this summer has been busy!  How are these warm, summer days going for your family? We've had an ABUNDANCE of rain...there have even been a few days where I wondered if it would ever stop.  My veggie garden has mostly loved all the rain, but even a garden doesn't like too much.  Alas, powdery mildew and early blight usually make an appearance at some point in my backyard garden, but for right now, it's still going strong! This year, my cucumbers have done much better.  Last year they did okay but not great.  I built a trellis out of bamboo stakes this year, and they really seem to like their new spot.  I grow them mainly for one reason...pickles! My family LOVES them, and homemade pickles are SOOOOOO much better than store-bought.  Have you ever tried making your own?   It's easy-peasy!  Really! Slice your cucumbers, place them into a jar and pour a hot mixture of vinegar, water, garlic and salt over the top.  Place the lid...

The garden is in full swing over here at our house, and my fresh chocolate mint is trying to take over, as it likes to do.  If you let it, it will grow like a weed...but it smells oh.so.divine. In the past, I've plucked the extra, unruly mint from the garden and discarded it, but no more, friends!  No...from now on, I'm letting it grow however it wants and using it to make these deliciously minty cookies! Up until now, I've mainly just used my fresh mint to infuse teas.  A cookie craving hit me the other day, though, and these were the wonderful result. After a quick google search, I discovered a recipe by Andrea Bemis.  She brilliantly steeped melted butter with fresh mint, which you then strain and use in the cookie batter.  This perfectly infuses the butter with the flavor of fresh mint.  It comes through well in the finished cookies, but isn't completely over-powering.   If you are a mint chocolate chip fan, you MUST try these!  Or, if y...