Tuesday, March 23, 2010

TWD: Dulce de Leche Duos

We recently replaced our ten year old tube TV with an LCD flat screen. Then just weeks later, after listening to our ancient desktop grind and sputter whenever we tried to switch between applications, we bought a laptop and got wireless in the house. After the cable guys left after installing the wireless, I could barely resist the urge to carry the laptop around the house and email my husband from each room: "Works in J's room!" "Emailing you from the garage." "Just thought I'd say a quick hello from the deck." Later that night, as we sat on the couch, David patted my back and said that we had finally arrived in late 2006.

But having the technology in the house does not mean that I understand any of it or can troubleshoot when things go wrong. None of this is intuitive to me, and to make matters worse, I find it a little boring, so I have a hard time paying attention when someone tries to explain it to me. Basically, I can turn the TV on and off, and change channels, and after much studying, I learned to switch between the TV and the Wii. But if one of the kids presses the wrong button and the screen goes to static? Well, there's just nothing to be done about that until David gets home.

Same with computer stuff. I can handle the most basic functions as long as nothing goes wrong, but as soon as it does, I wave the white flag. And that is why the only picture I can post of this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe, Dulce de Leche Duos, is this lone, sad "bottom of the cookie jar" shot:


I took other pictures of these cookies. I tried to make them look pretty and stack them up and take them outside in good light and everything. And I can see the thumbnails of these dulce de leche cookie pictures in the folder on my (old, since the dulce de leche pix pre-date our new) computer. The thumbnails are plainly dulce de leche duos. But bizarrely, when I double click on the pictures and/or upload them to Blogger, the dulce de leche duo pictures freakishly turn into pictures of my husband opening presents on his birthday.

Wait, that's not a Dulce de Leche Duo! It's David, opening the Star Wars Wii game, given to him by our seven year old, who just happens to have an interest in Star Wars Wii games himself:


Here's another one of my dulce de lecho duo thumbnails that, when double clicked, turns into a picture of David opening a pair of argyle socks:


Does this kind of thing even happen to other people? I can't even begin to find the right words for a google search to help me solve this problem. I'm just hoping that it's not a chronic situation and it goes away on its own.

I did happen to post one dulce de leche duo picture on Flickr, so if you are interested, you can find it here. But if I were you, I'd know that I could probably find a thousand better pictures of dulce de leche duos in other places.

I made these cookies over a month ago (around David's birthday, in fact) so I don't remember much about making them. I had a can of dulce de leche that I was excited to use. I loved the texture of the cookies -- soft and chewy and maybe a little cakey -- but I think opinions about the flavor of these cookies will come down to whether you like the taste of the dulce de leche that you use in the recipe. In the end, I wasn't a huge fan of the canned stuff that I used, and that affected my overall impression of the cookies. I know that several other people made their own dulce de leche for this recipe, and I'll probably give that a try next time. David, on the other hand, LOVED these cookies -- I would say he was as enthusiastic about these as he's been about any cookie I've made with TWD. The kids preferred the singletons over the duos - I guess for them a little canned dulce de leche goes a long way.

I will probably make these again because my hubs was such a big fan of them. I'll attempt my own dulce de leche next time and see how that goes. Jodie of Beansy Loves Cake picked the dulce de leche duos. These were fun to make - thanks for the pick, Jodie!

32 comments:

Jules Someone said...

I make my own stuff. It's pretty darn good. ;-) I liked the plain cookie best. Hmmm.

GratefulPrayerThankfulHeart said...

Hello! Stopping by for the first time and enjoyed your post about these Dorie cookies. I see from your sidebar you also participate in Barefoot Bloggers as I do.

Nice visiting with you!
Kindly, ldh

Mary said...

That is a funny story! Your cookie jar leftovers still look better than my first batch did. I ended up making a different cookie.

Leslie said...

I'm sitting here laughing so much I'm crying. I wonder if you tried to upload a photo of David opening his birthday presents...maybe that would be a dulce de leche duo picture?

I (almost) wish we'd never gotten an LCD because everything looks so darn fantastic that I was glued to the TV for the first six months. Even now, I have to make myself turn it off.

mike said...

It's all about David, isn't it? :) As long as he loved the cookies, all the work (and the canned stuff) was worth it. Actually, the make-your-own was pretty darn good - I could never find the store-bought stuff so I have nothing to compare it to. Great post!
-Posting wirelessly from my laptop in the kitchen.

Cristine said...

Your post is too funny! But apparantly the cookies were a hit because that cookie jar looks empty! :)

Di said...

I used store-bought dulce de leche back when we made the snickery squares, and didn't really like it. This time I made my own (the David Lebovitz oven version, with salt) and loved it. Congrats on the new computer! I got a laptop recently, too, and I know what you mean about the temptation to try things just because you can. =) As for the pictures issue, I'm generally pretty savvy, but I still run into problems with photos. My favorite (not) is when they seemingly randomly rotate themselves when I try to upload to Blogger. I've mostly got that one figured out, but it still happens once in a while. =)

Teanna said...

Hahahaha that is hysterical! I love that the cookie photos turn into present photos! Too funny!

Katrina said...

My son loves the plain cookies best, too. They do have the same strong ddl flavor without the mess, which is what bugs him, when he gets a little sticky on his fingers.
The ddl in a can isn't my favorite stuff either. I'd rather melt some caramels with some cream. I wonder if the ddl isn't salty enough or something.
Anyway, I feel your very same "pain and anguish" about tv/computers/electronics. I can't figure them out to save my life. Drives me nuts. I had to call my husband the other day because the sound wasn't working on one of the tv's. I know he rolled his eyes when he asked me if the audio cord was plugged in. (It wasn't.) How in the world does one learn all this stuff?) Sigh.
I'll stuck to working in the kitchen! Great post, Cathy.

Anonymous said...

You've just described my life in a handful of paragraphs. My husband is Chief Technology Officer in our house, and he also handles bug management, re-setting digital clocks, car seat-wrangling, and a host of other services that I'm incapable of mastering.

Unknown said...

This post was so funny! I agree with myfamousrecipe. You totally described my life well! The kids and my tech savvy hubby always have to trouble shoot for me. Welcome to the new age of technology!

CB said...

Hi from the kitchen. (Sorry I couldnt' resist!) Just be REALLY thankful that blogger uploaded D's birthday pics instead of pics from a folder marked "private". Or am I the only one with a private folder? HA HA! Glad you all enjoyed the cookies!
-CB
http://iheartfood4thought.com

Valen said...

I seem to have more and more trouble with technology as each day passes! I think you cookies look really nice!

TeaLady said...

too funny, cathy. If my son isn't home sometimes I have to just sit in front of the 'puter' and HOPE!!!

Cookies were a hit here too. Rather see an empty cookie jar than a full one.

BTW - congrats on new laptop. I WANT one!!!

natalia said...

Ciao ! happy belated birthday to David ! You probably could make a duce de leche duos cake next year !!

chocolatechic said...

I'm just giggling at your waving the white flag.

It is interesting that you mention getting a new computer, because Superman just suggested that I do that, but I refuse because this one is not on its last leg yet.

NKP said...

You are hilarious!
The pics of David opening his presents are a fun alternative.. :)

Did he get anything that he asked for?

Anonymous said...

Maybe your husband liked the cookies so much that he ate the pictures? I used David Lebovitz's oven method to make the dulce de leche and it was so easy!

Unknown said...

So funny! I actually saw your photo of the cookies on Flickr before your TWD post went up so I was wondering where it was before I got down to that part of the post :)

As for electronics, I'm actually pretty savvy, except with the tv/cable/multiple video game systems/receiver setup Shane has downstairs. I know how to turn it on and use it, but if anything goes wrong, I'm out of luck!

Like the kids, I enjoyed the cookies lots, but with the dulce sandwiched in between, they were WAY too sweet, even for me and I have a crazy sweet tooth.

Oh, and yes, Shane does hope to qualify for Boston. It's his long term goal, and I think he's hoping he'll get there before 35 (or is it 36?), when apparently the qualifying time goes up slightly. He thinks that would somehow be less "hardcore"...because running a marathon in 3:15 versus 3:10 is such a big difference :)

Jodie said...

Thanks for baking with me! I'm glad you liked them!

Susan said...

I was afraid I would wake the hubby laughing while I was reading your post. I was going to suggest the same thing Leslie did about uploading a picture of David opening a present and maybe it will be a cookie picture instead. :)

Deb in Hawaii said...

I am sure the cookies were delicious.

BTW: David looks pretty darned thrilled with his socks ;-)

Amanda said...

OMG that's so weird about your pictures! I had to do a rewind this week, didn't have the ingredients. Still want to make them though!

Marthe said...

That's a strange thing happening to your pictures!! Hahaha. I liked these cookies, didn't love them though... The coworkers did!

Tia said...

computers = weired things. DDL - yummy!

Pamela said...

I just saw your stacked sandwich cookies and they were quite lovely! I truly laughed out loud with the pics of your hubs popping up when you clicked on a cookie picture. Too funny, Cathy! Another fun post.

Maria said...

I haven't made these yet. I will have to give them a whirl. I always love your posts! You make me smile!

La Bella Cooks said...

Your posts always make me laugh or smile or both. These look delicious!

Audrey said...

Hi, Cathy - thank you so much for coming back! I've missed you too! I loved your comment...I once heard one of my nephews playoing "Ultimate Birthday Cake Challenge" with his legos. I'm glad your husband liked his birthday cookies! (they do sound great). And I love the photo of your chocolate and raspberry tart!

PheMom said...

Oh, wow. I wouldn't even begin to know what to tell you either! Anyway, all things considered, memory wise, much better that it is the cookies pictures and not your cute hubby's bday pictures that are disappearing. :)

Anonymous said...

I had the SAME issue this (that) week. My photos wouldn't load and Jamie, our resident computer expert, was nowhere to be seen. Actually, he was to be seen fixing up the house and sometimes you just know it isn't the right moment to bug someone to fix your blog. I did make my own dulce de leche and we loved these. Wireless is the best!

Kayte said...

I did click over to your flickr photos and see the cookies and they look great, not that they didn't look great at the bottom of the cookie jar as it just seems always like a little treasure when you stumble upon the last bits of cookies like that...sometimes that is all I manage to score as the guys can eat cookies faster than you ever imagined possible. We loved these. Looks like D had a great birthday. Is that a present opening chair? Mark is from a big family who always had a present opening chair...the birthday person sits in the chair and everyone watches him/her open gifts, all filmed through the years. They do it at Christmas as well...everyone moves in and out of the chair when it is their turn to open presents. Anyway, David looks like he could star in one of those films.

 
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