“There’s only one recipe in my cook book. Ingredients: Love, Preparation time: All your life, Serves: All friends and family, and enough left over to share.”
~Toni Armenta Andrukaitis
*********************
When I cook and bake, I don’t mess around. I never learned to cook for one, so when I go through the trouble of a culinary endeavor, I make sure there is plenty to share. Deciding to make some of my favorite chocolate chip cookies, I pulled out my well worn favorite cookie recipe. I really need to copy it down, as it’s worn and torn and probably over 25 years old. I love it because it calls for flour and ground oatmeal, 9 cups total. (I don’t grind it too fine, then even reserve a cup or two of it whole) Being an over achiever, I always double the recipe. Yes, 18 cups of flour/oatmeal, 4 cups of butter, 8 eggs, etc. I think I used 5 bags of chocolate chips. (No bars chopped)
I can’t fit all the ingredients in one bowl, so I just mix the butter, sugars, eggs etc., in the mixer, then scoop out half of the wet portion, working from there.
I make a big mess, flour flying all over, wrappers flapping around, music playing in the background. It’s an all day event.
I always like to save a small lump of the mixture to add peanut butter to. Yum! Peanut butter cookies, dredged in sugar before baking, then dipped in melted chocolate on the ends, like Mrs. Fields used to do.
Now, here’s my tip. I make this huge conglomeration and store in the fridge. I take some of the mixture and form into rolls with Saran Wrap. These can be frozen or given to friends. I gave a couple rolls to Jim to take back home with him yesterday.
The reason I doubled the recipe is so I can have plenty of cookies to bake fresh and take over to Fire Station #5 and #2 for Septemebr 11. I’ve been taking baked goodies to my local fire station every 9/11 since…well…since after the first 9/11. This year, I’ll probably stop by on 9/10, because the stations are usually involved in some commemorative ceremony or out on calls on 9/11. Scoop or slice, both are nice. (A little rhyme)
Parchment paper on the cookie sheets prevents them from sticking and burning, and the sheets can be used over and over, and even flipped over for more usage. No parchment paper, no problemo. Cut open a brown sandwich bag, works great. Plus, I do a LOT of baking, so I invested in the Airbake insulated cookie sheets. They cost a little more, but I’ve had them for eons. A good investment. But, the parchment or brown bag helps any surface.
This small batch is going with me to my St. Gabriel support group tonight.
Ah…just out of the oven now…kitchen smells good!
Or lots of love and lots of butter!
Tags: baking, Better than Mrs. Fields cookies, chocolate chip cookies, everyday life, quotes, recipes
Toni Andrukaitis 