| C O O K I E S |
| DOUBLE CHOCOLATE MINT PRETZELS. Have on hand: 1 lb Vanilla Almond Bark or White Chocolate (depending on the look you want to create, see "Variations" below) Cream together: 9 Tbsp Oleo (softened) 1 cup Sugar 1 pck Vanilla Sugar (OR 2 tsp Vanilla Extract) 2 Eggs 1 Tbsp Chocolate Extract (be generous) Sift in: 2 cups Flour 1-2 Tbsp Cocoa Powder (unsweetened, not drinking chocolate) Add: 1/4 cup Milk Mix well, then add: 1 cup Flour, mixed with 2-1/2 to 3 tsp Baking Powder Have on hand: 1 cup Flour Add this last cup of flour gradually while kneading, you might not need it all; if you use too much, the dough gets brittle and is nearly impossible to shape. Stop when it feels smooth without sticking to your hands and looks shiny. Take small pieces, roll to about the thickness of a pencil (a wee bit thinner perhaps); put on ungreased baking sheet in the shape of a small pretzel. Bake in preheated 425 deg. F oven for about 8 mins. Cool slightly, then transfer to airtight container (or you'll end up with hockey pucks!). After they have cooled thoroughly, melt Chocolate or Vanilla Almond Bark (the lowest setting on the microwave works pretty well), then add a few drops of Mint Extract until it's as "minty" as you like it. Dip your cookies, throw on some Chocolate Sprinkles, put on waxed paper to cool (put your waxed paper on a baking sheet first, then let them harden in the fridge for a while). Then store in airtight container. Variation 1: For a more spectacular visual effect, separately melt some Milk Chocolate Bark, drizzle onto the melted minty Almond Bark, swirl with a fork before dipping the cookies. You might want to dispense with the Chocolate Sprinkles because the swirls alone can be quite pretty. Alas, since Milk Chocolate Bark is hard to find, I recently melted 1 part of Milk Chocolate to 2 parts of Dark Chocolate (leftovers from Halloween :). Tasty! Variation 2: Dip in the minty Vanilla Bark, put on waxed paper, then drizzle with melted Chocolate. More cookies -- less work: Instead of shaping pretzels, make little rings or "cigar" shapes. |
| DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES |
| 2 sticks Oleo 3/4 cup Brown Sugar 3/4 cup White Sugar 2 Eggs 1 tsp Vanilla Extract 1 tsp Chocolate Extract (optional) 1 tsp Cinnamon 1/4 tsp Allspice 2 oz Semi-sweet Baking Chocolate (grated) 2-3/4 cups Flour 1-1/4 tsp Baking Soda 1/2 cup Semi-sweet Choc. Chips 1/2 cup Milk Chocolate Chips 1/2 cup White Chocolate Chips 1 cup Walnuts (crushed) |
| a.k.a. "Mom's Oral Orgasm Cookies" (so named by a bunch of precocious teenagers) |
| Preheat oven to 375 deg. F. Cream together Oleo and Sugars, whip in Eggs, add Extracts and grated Chocolate. Sift in the dry stuff, stir in Nuts and Chips. Using two teaspoons, put equal-sized little heaps on ungreased baking sheets and bake for 9 mins. After removing from oven, let sit on sheet for 2-3 mins before removing them to a cooling rack, let sit there for about 10 mins before storing in airtight container. Depending on size, makes about 3-4 doz. |
| Variations: |
| RHASPBERRY CHIP COOKIES: same as above, but use 1 cup of Rhaspberry-flavoured Chips and 1/2 cup Semi-sweet Chips. Omit Vanilla Chips, use a bit less Cinnamon and Allspice. CINNAMON CHIP COOKIES: same as above, but use 1 cup of cinnamon- flavoured Chips and 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chips, increase Cinnamon to about 1-1/2 tsps. Grate in a bit of fresh Nutmeg, a dash of ground Cloves is optional. |
| SNICKER- DOODLE VARIATIONS |
| Vanilla Flavour: 1 cup Oleo 1-1/2 cups Sugar 2 Eggs 2 tsp Vanilla 2-3/4 cups Flour (scant) 2 tsp Cream of Tartar 1 tsp Soda 1/4 tsp Salt Anis Flavour: Instead of Vanilla, add 1-1/2 to 2 tsps of crushed Anis Seed |
| No, I'm not claiming to have invented the Snickerdoodle ... I got this recipe years ago from the wife of a co-worker. But everyone loves them, and I like to make two different flavours; the preferences seem to be divided 50/50 -- there are some who just simply hate Anis. So in case you're new to the wonderful world of cookie baking, here's the recipe: Cream Oleo, Sugar, Eggs. Sift dry stuff into wet stuff. Might want to refrigerate this for a bit so it's easier to handle. Shape into walnut-sized balls, roll each in a mix of equal parts Sugar and Cinnamon. Place about 2" apart on lightly greased baking sheet, bake in 400 deg. F (preheated oven) until lighly browned but still soft (8-10 mins). Makes about 3 doz. |
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| Unless otherwise noted, all recipes copyright Valkyrie Grant |
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