It’s hard to believe that ten years have passed since that day. It’s a day I will never forget and I can remember vividly. At the time, my husband and I were working for the same company and so we drove the short distance to our office here on Long Island together. But this day was different. My husband’s car needed an oil change so I drove myself to the office and he went over to the dealership, about 20 minutes away. It was one of the few times we were not together.
As I’m working I suddenly discovered that it was near impossible to access my company’s public facing website, something I needed to do for my job. People around me started fussing, obviously they were also having connection issues…
There was a a television playing in the dealership waiting room and my husband was watching. He saw the first plane hit and as he watched in disbelieve, thinking at first this was a tragic accident, a plane in trouble with no where to go among the tall buildings in Manhattan…then the second plane hit.
My husband called to tell me what had happened and suddenly I understood why our site was down. At that same moment I started hearing gasps and screams and lot’s of oh no’s. Everybody got up and as if we were of one mind, we went to the testing lab which had a large screen TV and we watched in horror as the scene was replayed. At first you could have heard a pin drop but then all of a sudden people started reacting. A woman, who I don’t know, fell to the floor in fitful tears, her husband worked in one of the towers. Many of my coworkers knew people in those buildings; you see the industry I was in at that time had a significant presence in the twin towers.
An announcement came over the loud speaker telling all non-essential personnel to evacuate the building. I frantically tried to call my husband to let him know I was headed home. I remember telling him to forget the oil change and to please just come home NOW.
The phone lines were jammed and it was very difficult to get in touch with anyone. I managed to contact my parents who were supposed to be coming for a visit later that day. When I finally reached them my mom told me that one of my cousins was scheduled to be in one of the towers. My uncle, who lived in North Carolina, got in his car and attempted to drive up to NY but because the bridges were closed he never made it. It seemed to take an eternity but eventually my cousin managed to get in touch with my mom to say she’s okay and they got word to my uncle. As it turns out, at the last minute her boss told her to switch with someone else and so she was in a different part of Manhattan at the time of the attacks. The woman who went in her place was killed…
As time moved ever slowly that day, word of the fate of friends and loved ones began to travel. Unfortunately my husband and I learned that a coworker from the company we worked at prior to this one was on flight 93. Knowing his personality I can tell you one thing: I am sure he was one of the people on that flight who fought back.
I don’t think there is anyone who hasn’t been touched by this tragic day in some way. This day changed all of us in such a big way, I know it changed me. And at the same time we stand tall and refuse to let anyone bully us around.
I feel for the families who lost loved ones, I feel for the first responders and anonymous bystanders who reached out to help, many whom are now sick from exposure to who knows what kind of toxins. And I salute the brave men and women who protect us today; from police officers, to fire fighters, to all branches of our military. On this day and every day, I am proud to be an American.
Marla of Family Fresh Cooking, who’s blog I found through Twitter, put out a call to bloggers to “bake to remember”. I’ll be honest, at first I was a little unsure but then I thought there is no personal gain from this, except perhaps a way to express one’s feelings. It’s part of what we bloggers do; we react to events, both good and bad, in the best way we know how, through our words and our craft.
So I asked myself what is it I want to feel from what I bake for this particular day. I thought about it and I realized what I wanted was comfort food. There is but one baked item that comes to mind: chocolate chip cookies.
I will be sharing these cookies with the people around me, friends, coworkers, people I meet.
This is my tried and true chocolate chip cookie recipe. I have adapted it from one in the February/March 2003 issue of Fine Cooking.
Ingredients
3 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs lightly beaten, cold
1 tablespoon vanilla
18oz all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
1. Using a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown and granulated sugars on low until combined, slowly increasing speed to high. COntinue to mix about three minutes until light and fluffy.
2. Scrape down the bowl and paddle. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on medium until combined, about one minute.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, salt and baking soda together. Gradually add to the butter/sugar mixture while the mixer is on it’s lowest speed. When you have added all the flour turn off the machine and continue to mix gently until the almost combined.
4. Add the chips and mix just until the flour has been incorporated.
5. Split the dough into three equal parts, placing each onto a sheet of waxed or parchment paper. Roll up into a log and refrigerate for an hour.
6. Arrange two oven racks in the middle of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees.
7. Remove the logs one at a time from the fridge and while the oven is heating, slice the dough into 1/2 inch thick slices and place on two ungreased cookie sheets.
8. Baked the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly golden brown, rotating the sheets halfway through.
9. Allow to sit on the sheets out of the oven for 4-5 minutes and then transfer to cooling racks. Continue with the other logs.
Cooks Notes
Quoted from Family Fresh Cooking:
Do you remember where you were when you heard the news about the attacks? Do share if you wish…
Here is a hashtag we can use on Twitter and Facebook #cakes2remember
Please link up your cakes and such here. This link up will be open until Wednesday 9-14-2001 to give you all an opportunity yo share.
I am so glad that you joined us to unite with love & remembrance to bake. Your story is heart warming. The silence & then that poor woman melting to the floor is so painful. Thanks so much for baking cookies. I hope you get to enjoy them with someone you love today. xo
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[…] Chocolate Chip Cookies Knitstamatic […]
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Those look like unbelievably delicious cookies! Thanks for sharing your story.
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Thank you, thank you for sharing your story. Your cookies look awesome. What a wonderful thing Marla put together.
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Thank you for sharing your story Deb! Your cookies look perfect. Full of buttery goodness.
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