C is for...
Happy holidays, everyone!
I am working on a couple, more cogitative posts and experiencing intermittent writer's block. In the meantime, 'tis the season to share cookies and cookie recipes!
Cookies are my favorite food. They are compact, benign, and easy to share. Cookies are to me now what casseroles were to my Mom when I was growing up.
Today, if my husband Heath and I have a random ingredient that needs to be eaten, I will find a way to turn it into something we can eat, preferably cookies. I have baked cookies with potato chip crumbs (especially these, yum!), shredded carrots, dried cranberries, maraschino cherries, broken pretzels, applesauce, to name a few. All were at least edible, at best excellent. It is hard to botch a batch of cookies.
I like to try at least one new cookie recipe every holiday season. This year we have butterscotch chips leftover from when my Mom was visiting. She made Hello Dolly Bars, the dessert casserole of my childhood. The leftover chips inspired me to find this recipe. I am excited to try it, along with a couple of these tried-and-true personal favorites...
I like online recipes, but these old-school hard copies have my notes on them– reminders and call-outs (TOAST PECANS FIRST!), as well as adjustments I have made over time. You may find them helpful too. Click to enlarge. Scroll to the end for printable PDF links.
Since we bought a deep freeze, I started freezing cookie dough instead of baking them all at once. If there are 2 dozen cookies, I will eat 2 dozen cookies, and cookies are best baked fresh anyway. I scoop out the individual dough balls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and freeze them until they are solid, about an hour. Then I seal the frozen balls of dough in batches of 4, 6, or 8. You can bake from frozen– just add a minute or two.
Nut allergies? Nuts can be omitted from the Oatmeal Raisin and Hot-Chocolate Cookies. Replace peanut butter chips with white chocolate or butterscotch chips in the Pretzel Cookies. Replace peanut butter with cookie butter in the Blossoms.
Prefer coconut oil? Substitute butter using a 1:1 ratio.
Gluten free? There are lots of alternatives to wheat flour but I have not tried them in these recipes.
Vegan? Someday I want to try baking with flax eggs.
Click on the links below for printable PDFs.
For more recipes, visit my "cookies" board on Pinterest.