Childhood Envy.

When I was younger, it was my sister’s job to make the cookies. Chocolate chip cookies to be exact. I was so jealous that she was the one who was always asked to perform this task. Was I not capable? Was I a lousy baker? Whatever, I was like 8. This drove me mad. I wanted so desperately to, just once, be asked to make the cookies. Yea, they weren’t anything special, just the standard from-the-back-of-the-bag cookies from Tollhouse. I guess it was just the point of it.
Well, guess what? Now, no one has to ask me to make the cookies! I can make them my damn self. And let me tell you, ever since I've found this fantabulous Nigella recipe, I’ve been making A LOT of cookies!





The best chocolate chip cookie recipe I have ever found. (and I’ve been searching for a while! lol!)

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from “Nigella Kitchen” by Nigella Lawson (LOVE HER!)

1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) soft unsalted butter. (I use 1 1/2 sticks REAL salted butter)
2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 cup superfine sugar (regular sugar works too!)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg, refrigerator-cold
1 egg yolk, refrigerator-cold
2 cups All-Purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 x 11.5 ounce bag milk chocolate morsels or chips

* Preheat oven to 325 degrees

* Melt the butter and let it cool a bit.Put the brown and white sugars into a bowl, pour the slightly cooled, melted butter over them, and beat together.

* Beat in the vanilla, the cold egg, and the cold egg yolk, until mixture is light and creamy.

* Slowly mix in the flour and baking soda until just blended. fold in the chocolate chips.

* Scoop the cookie dough into a quarter cup measure or a 1/4 cup ice cream scoop and drop onto coolie sheet. (this makes HUGE cookies….. when making these for home, I use a regular cookie scoop!) Keep cookies about 3 inches apart on coolie sheet. You will need to make these in 2-3 batches refrigerating the dough between batches.

*  Bake for 15-17 minutes (I bake them for about 20 minutes, Your oven may vary!) Let cool on cookie sheet before transferring to cooling rack.


  

Sugar? Butter? Crisco? How could it NOT taste good???

I'm addicted to cookies. Well, sugar in general, really. I also love to bake, and consider myself to be pretty good at it. Enter the biggest road block ever. I'm always trying (wishing, anyway) to lose weight. But I LOVE COOKIES. Of course, Matt could go through life without any sweets (crazy, I know) For God's sake, he doesn't eat his own birthday cake! So, when I bake, I'm forced to eat it all! (Or bring some to work...)
Anyway, for Father's Day,  I made Matt some sugar cookies. He will eat sugar cookies, and peanut butter cookies.
* I might add that, while these are no "Grandma Barber Sugar cookies" they're still pretty damn good! and they really do melt in your mouth. (must be the Crisco??!!)

Melt In Your Mouth Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
1 Teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon salt ( I omit, as I use salted butter)
3 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 300  degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine butter and shortening. Mix with electric mixer on medium/ high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, salt, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Beat until combined. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla until combined, scraping sides  of bowl occasionally. Beat in as much flour as you can. Stir in remaining flour.
Shape dough into 1 inch balls ( I use a scoop!) Bake for 15 minutes, or until sides are set. Cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute (very important, or they'll fall apart when you try to transfer them!) Transfer to wire rack, let cool.

* Recipe courtesy of  Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, 12th edition.