Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookies

Funny Story, no lie...  My girlfriend Stephanie calls me up and says, " Hey what ya doing right now."  I said, "I'm making cookies, do you guys want to come over and make some with me."  She says, "Really? I was calling you to see if you wanted to come over cause I'm making cookies."  Then she says " what are you making them for?" I say, "for the Relief Society Meeting tonight, I didn't sign up but figured I'd take some anyway." She says "ME TOO!  What kind are you making?"  Me- "Chocolate chip!" Her- "No way" Lots of laughter.  I mean really what are the odds! So then she says "have you started yet, I just softened the butter."  I said,."yeah, I am softening the butter right now."  Hilarious!!!   So she dropped by a plate for me on her way out, and I traded her with a plate of mine. Also, to top off the randomness... my daughter was playing at a friends house, and the friends mom brought her back with a plate of chocolate chip cookies for us! I had planned on making up a plate for them, but my batch was not quite done yet. Ahh I haven't had chocolate chip cookies in months. So weird that the three of us were making them all at the same time.

I wish I could take the credit for this recipe.  These cookies are SO yummy!  All the credit goes to my Aunt.  This is her recipe.  These cookies are rockin!  I've got a list of tips below to help out in the process of constructing the perfect chocolate chip cookie.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

¾ C. sugar

¾ C. packed brown sugar

1 C. butter

1 tsp. vanilla

1 lg. egg

2 ¼ C. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp salt

1 C. coarsely chopped nuts (optional)

1 C. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Beat, with electric mixer, sugars and butter. Add vanilla and egg. Beat well. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt. (dough will be stiff). Stir in nuts and chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoons about 2 inches apart on baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Do not over bake. 1-2 minutes and remove from baking sheet onto wire cooling rack.

Freezing Tip: If you would like to double the batch and freeze the dough, you can do so.  I drop them onto a greased cookie sheet, the same as above, except I put them really close together.  Put the pan into the freezer.  When cookies are frozen.  Then take them off and place them into a zip lock bag and freeze.  Then take out as many as you need and thaw them. Then bake as instructed above.

Baking Tips: Use real butter

It's better to under cook the cookies and let them sit on the baking sheet for a couple of minutes out of the oven to finish hardening.

Chocolate chip cookies should be slightly rounded. If not, read below...

Chocolate chip cookies are flat and spread.  Causes: Butter was too soft or partially melted. Under-measurement of flour, dough placed on a hot or warm cookie sheet.

Chocolate chip cookies don't change shape and are hard:  Causes: Over-measurement of flour.

Coconut Macaroons

Here's another coconut recipe for you.  Can you tell we like the tropical flavors in my house?  I checked out an everyday food video at the library, and found some super yummy recipes on it. This one was one of them.

These are so easy to make.  And only 4 ingredients! You can't beat that!!! 

Coconut Macaroons

3 large Egg Whites

1/2 C. Sugar

1/4 tsp salt

14 oz package of sweetened coconut

Whisk the first 3 ingredients until frothy. Stir in coconut. Spoon onto a greased cookie sheet (or you can use parchment paper). They suggested scooping out out with a tbsp. It gives it the perfect shape and size. Bake at 350 for 20-30 min.  Makes 2 dozen cookies.



Snickerdoodles

I have been making Snickerdoodles for as long as I can remember.  Then one day I made them and they were so hard, we would bang them on the counter and they still wouldn't break.  It made for a fun night of playing around with hard cookies, but I kind of lost my passion to make them after that.  Just recently I started making them again.  This batch was my best ever.  I didn't realize until just now, that when I made them, I forgot the shortening.  The joys of Pregnancy brain!  Anyway, If you like them to look like this, leave the shortening out and add just a tad less flour. If you like them a little flatter and gooeyer (ha, is that a word?) then add in the shortening.  Either way, yummy!  By the way, this recipe comes from my aunt. She is a fabulous cookie maker. I've got a few of her recipes to share in the future.

Snickerdoodles

1 ½ C. sugar

½ C. butter or margarine

½ C. shortening (I left this out)

2 eggs

2 ¾ C. all-purpose flour (you could do a little less (like 1/4 cup at most) if you decide to leave out the shortening.)

2 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

3 Tbsp. sugar

3 Tsp cinnamon

Heat oven to 400 Degrees. Mix 1 ½ Cups sugar, margarine, shortening and eggs in a large bowl. Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Shape dough by rounded teaspoons into balls. Mix remaining sugar and cinnamon; roll balls in mixture. Place about 2 inches apart on baking sheet. Bake until set, 8-10 min. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Makes about 6 dozen.



Husband Catcher Cookies

Happy Valentines Day Everyone!!! Back in my single days, we used to call valentines day "Singles Awareness Day."  Isn't it so true?  It's the day that tells the world whether you are taken or single. Gotta love it. I was one of those that never had a valentine on Valentines Day.  True story. My very first Valentine was my husband.  I wouldn't have it any other way either! In an effort to keep from getting sappy... I'll get on with the post. :)

I went to visit a friend of mine in Utah one day. She and her mom were making these cookies. I asked her what they were called and she told me, "Husband Catchers." Ha ha, I love it! They are so good, they'll take away the "single" stamp you've got on your forehead.

These have got to be my favorite cookie ever!  The caramel in these really makes the cookie fabulous. They are delish! I'm not sure where she got this recipe but I'm glad she shared it with me! If you are single...give it a try. Maybe it'll work.

Husband Catcher Cookies

2 1/2 c. all purpose flour

3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1 c. sugar

1 c. firmly packed brown sugar

1 c. softened butter

2 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

1/2 c. chopped pecans (optional)

48 Rolo (caramels in milk chocolate), unwrapped 9 oz. pkg.

4 tbsp. sugar

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup and level off. In a small bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and baking soda; blend well.

In a large bowl, beat 1 cup sugar, brown sugar and butter until light. Add vanilla and eggs; beat well. Add flour mixture, blend well. Stir in 1/2 cup of the pecans.

For each cookie with floured hands, shape about 1 tablespoonful of dough around 1 Rolo, covering completely.

In a small bowl put in 4 tablespoons sugar. Roll cookies in sugar and place 2" apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for 7 to 10 minutes or until set and slightly cracked. Cool 2 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet to cool on wire rack.

The Ultimate Valentine- Sugar Cookies

My 5 year old daughter gets to go on a special date tomorrow night with her daddy. Her school is doing a daddy daughter dance for valentines day. How cute is that? We were in charge of the cookies for her class party so I thought... why not make a big sugar cookie valentine for her valentine... her daddy!  I think that the daddy daughter relationship is absolutely priceless!  So that's why I named this post, the ultimate valentine.

I found that if you roll them out a little thicker, they tend to keep their shape better.  This time I used the Betty Crocker cookie icing. It dries really quick. I usually just use cake frosting, but I think I really like this kind.

Sugar Cookies

1 C. Butter

1 C. Sugar

2 eggs

1 tbsp. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

3 C. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs. Add the rest of the ingredients. Mix well. Roll out dough on a floured surface and cut into shapes. Bake 7-10 minutes. Use Frosting to decorate.