The Way the Cookie Crumbles
Cookies are my absolute favorite things to make. They make the house smell wonderful and they put smiles on my favorite faces. Here are my 2 go to recipes, which happen to be a favorite almost everywhere I take them.
One part of baking and cooking that seems to befuddle people is the science part. All items are affected by the weather – cookies included. Sometimes more flour is needed on days with higher humidity – this is why I always do a test cookie! I have modified the traditional cookie recipes just slightly. Following the bag recipes always ends in a brittle, flat, greasy, salty mess. Try these and see what you think!
Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 Eggs
3/4 c Sugar
3/4 c Brown Sugar, packed
1 c Butter, melted (note: not just softened!)
2 t Vanilla Extract
3 1/4 c Flour
1 t Baking Soda
2 c Dark Chocolate Chips (prefer Ghiradelli because they aren’t faux chocolate)
Blend together first 5 ingredients. Sift together the baking soda and flour in a separate bowl. Fold flour mixture into moist mixture. This is important because if you stir too much, your cookies will be tough! Fold in chocolate chips once flour mixture is incorporated. Use 2 teaspoons to drop cookies onto sheet – about a tablespoon quantity mounded. Bake a test cookie on an ungreased cookies sheet at 375 for 10 minutes. If the test cookie looks good, or if your husband devoured it faster than you could check it, proceed to make a full sheet of cookies spacing them a couple inches apart, but this time, start with 10 minutes for the time and add only 1 minute at a time until just golden.
For a twist, change flour to 3 cups and sift in 1/4 cup cocoa powder to the flour mixture – DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES! Yum!
Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
2 Eggs
1 t Vanilla
1/2 c Sugar
3/4 c Brown Sugar, packed
1/2 c Butter, melted (note: not just softened!)
2 c Flour
1 t Baking Soda
1 t Ground Cinnamon
3 c Oats (use the name brand, the offbrand ones are crumbs in the bag)
1 c Raisins
Blend together first 5 ingredients. Sift together the baking soda, cinnamon and flour in a separate bowl. Fold flour mixture into moist mixture. This is important because if you stir too much, your cookies will be tough! Fold in oats once flour mixture is incorporated. Fold in raisins. Use 2 teaspoons to drop cookies onto sheet – about a tablespoon quantity mounded. Bake a test cookie on an ungreased cookies sheet at 350 for 10 minutes. If the test cookie looks good, or, again, if your husband devoured it faster than you could check it, proceed to make a full sheet of cookies spacing them a couple inches apart, but this time, start with 10 minutes for the time and add only 1 minute at a time until just golden.
For a twist, change out raisins for chocolate chips and have CHOCOLATE CHIP OATMEAL COOKIES!
