1/2 oatmeal, 1/2 everything else cookies

these healthy little morsels come via the January 1978 issue of Home Cooking. They are healthier than your average cookie because they include no butter or flour.  But then I added chocolate to make them more satisfying.  This might cancel out the healthy, but it doesn't cancel out the delicious. 

dry ingredients.

teaspoonfuls.

 kicking back with my recipe book and a warm cookie.

ULTIMATE OATMEAL COOKIES
2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup nonfat powdered milk
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips, chopped
1/2 cup dried fruit or nuts, chopped (apricots or raisins)
1/2 cup coconut
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup honey

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Beat eggs and mix wet ingredients in a seeparate bowl. Slowly pour wet ingredients into dry while mixing.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a parchment covered cookie sheet. Bake at 300 for 20 minutes.

gotta get a grahamy

my mom used to make homemade crackers when I was little. it was a long time ago and that was very nice of her, but i don't remember them. Nevertheless, I'm sure they were delicious. i still love animal crackers and graham crackers and have been curious about what the homemade version would be like. also i wondered where is this graham flavor coming from? I am aware of no spice called "graham" and cannot identify any flavors that resemble graham. now that i've seen a recipe, the code is cracked, apparently graham = brown sugar + honey.

here is the result.  these babies do not disappoint, they are similar in flavor to a gingerbread, but softer than most store bought graham crackers. I would definitely make them again and recommend serving them with cream cheese frosting or just plain dipped in milk.

Ingredients
(Makes 10 4 x 4.5-inch graham crackers or 48 2-inch squares)

2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
1/3 cup honey
5 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract

Topping
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Make the dough: Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade or in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Pulse or mix on low to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse on and off on and off, or mix on low, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal.

In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, milk, and vanilla extract. Add to the flour mixture and pulse on and off a few times or mix on low until the dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky. Lay out a large piece of plastic wrap and dust it lightly with flour, then turn the dough out onto it and pat it into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Wrap it, then chill it until firm, about 2 hours or overnight. Meanwhile, prepare the topping, if using, by combining the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and setting aside.

Roll out the crackers: Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be sticky, so flour as necessary. Trim the edges of the rectangle to 4 inches wide. Working with the shorter side of the rectangle parallel to the work surface, cut the strip every 4 1/2 inches to make 4 crackers.

Place the crackers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets and sprinkle with the topping. Chill until firm, about 30 to 45 minutes in the fridge or 15 to 20 minutes in the freezer. Repeat with the second batch of dough. Finally, gather any scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and re-roll.

Adjust the oven rack to the upper and lower positions and preheat the oven to 350°F.

Decorate the crackers: Mark a vertical line down the middle of each cracker, being careful not to cut through the dough (this is for the traditional cracker shape). Using a fork, prick the dough to form two dotted rows about 1/2 inch for each side of the dividing line.

Bake for 15 to 25 minutes, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even baking.

it's cookie time

A few weekends ago Sarah and I got into the holiday spirit with some cookie baking.  We listened to holiday tunes, drank some eggnog lattes and ended the day with frosting all over our clothes and approximately 26 decorated cookies (plus about 1/2 a batch of uncooked dough and 2 dozen undecorated cookies).

We learned that our parents must have been very patient to have baked cookies with us as children, turns out it's quite a process and a pretty sticky mess. These cookies were very tasty and I would make them again. Last weekend I frosted up the rest of the batch and threw eggnog into the frosting for some extra x-masness. 

snowflakes, doves, whales, snowmen, leaves, mittens, lightbulbs and reindeer!

the decoration journey begins.

3 hours later, you've got yourself two plates of decorated cookies!

SUGAR COOKIES

1 cup (2 sticks) butter , softened

1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoons baking powder

In large bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat butter and sugar until blended. Increase speed to high; beat until light and creamy. At low speed, beat in egg and vanilla. Beat in flour and baking powder just until blended.

Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. Wrap each piece with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour or until dough is firm enough to roll. Or place dough in freezer for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. On lightly floured surface, with floured rolling pin, roll 1 piece of dough 1/8 inch thick. With floured 3- to 4-inch assorted cookie cutters, cut dough into as many cookies as possible; wrap and refrigerate trimmings. Place cookies, 1 inch apart, on ungreased large cookie sheet.

Bake cookies 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough and trimmings.

When cookies are cool, prepare Ornamental Frosting if you like; use to decorate cookies as desired. Set cookies aside to allow frosting to dry completely, about 1 hour. Store cookies in tightly covered container (with waxed paper between layers, if decorated) at room temperature up to 2 weeks, or in freezer up to 3 months.

ORNAMENTAL FROSTING
1 cup confectioners sugar
2 teaspoons milk
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
assorted food coloring

In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Beat in corn syrup and vanilla extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup or milk.

Divide into separate bowls, and add food colorings to each to desired intensity. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush.