Recipe of the Week

One of my all time favorites, chocolate chip cookies! This recipe is the best I've found yet. It makes really light and fluffy dough and I get tons of compliments on these cookies."The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Ever"
Recipe courtesy George Duran, FoodNetwork.com
makes 36 cookies

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups (12-ounce package) chocolate chips

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Spray cookie sheets with nonstick cooking spray. (I never do this, mine have a nice patina.)

Put the flour, baking soda, and salt into a bowl and stir it with a whisk to combine. Set aside.

Using a hand or stand mixer, beat the butter until it is lighter in color. Slowly add in sugars and beat until it is light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time and beat until they are incorporated. Stir in the vanilla.

Add the flour mixture using low speed, then stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop by heaping tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are lightly browned around the edges, about 12 to 15 minutes.

Let the cookies cool for a few minutes and then transfer them to wire racks to cool completely.

Snickerdoodles!

Continuing my holiday recipe series, here is another one of my favorites. These cinnamon sugar cookies are a delightful little snack! I tried to look up the origin of the name, Snickerdoodles, but there was so much conflicting information I couldn't find any official authority on the subject. Oh well, it's a cool name, nonetheless!Snickerdoodles:

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1. Heat oven to 400ºF.

2. Mix 1 1/2 cups sugar, the butter, shortening and eggs in large bowl. Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt.

3. Shape dough into 1 1/4-inch balls. Mix 1/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

Yummy Christmas Cookies

What evokes pleasant holiday memories better than sharing food with family and friends? I'm going to celebrate the Christmas season by posting some of my favorite holiday recipes here throughout the month of December.Here is one of my favorites, Chocolate Crinkle Cookies! I remember making these as a child with my mother. The patterns the white sugar against the dark chocolate always surprised me. Some friends and I did a cookie swap last Christmas and these were voted the best by the husbands, so you know it's good!

There are several recipes out there for these cookies, but the one I grew up with is Betty Crocker's recipe. Two things to call to your attention before making these: 1) The dough requires refrigeration before baking. I tried to skip this step once. Only once. I ended up with a big sticky mess, more dough on my hands than on the cookie sheet. And, 2) They dry out very quickly, so freeze what you don't think will be eaten within a day. They thaw quickly, so don't be afraid of freezing them!

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies:

1/2 cup vegetable oil
4oz unsweetened baking chocolate, melted, cooled
2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup powdered sugar

1. In large bowl, mix oil, chocolate, granulated sugar and vanilla. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. Cover; refrigerate at least 3 hours. Be sure to periodically sneak into the fridge and pinch a bit of dough for a little snack! :)

2. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease cookie sheet with shortening or cooking spray.

3. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls into powdered sugar; roll around to coat and shape into balls. Place about 2 inches apart on cookie sheets.

4. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until almost no imprint remains when touched lightly in center. Immediately remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.