Cookie Season: Chewy Brownie Cookies

They look a little like piles of poop, but I swear they are amazing!

Arguably one of the best cookies I have every made. I'm not sure where my mother got the recipe, but I'm glad she gave it to me. Instead of making cookie dough, you end up with more of a brownie batter and it makes a delicious pile of cookies! I won't lie to you, these are a pain to make in comparison to other cookies, but if you have a stand mixer it won't be as bad.

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup shortening
• 1 ½ cups packed brown sugar
• 1 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup baking cocoa
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• 2 cups chocolate chips

1. In large mixing bowl, cream shortening, brown sugar, water and vanilla. Beat in eggs.

2. Combine flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda in separate bowl.

3. Gradually add to creamed mixture and  beat just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

4. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2” apart on ungreased baking sheets or parchment paper.

5. Bake at 375° for 7-9 minutes; do not overbake. Cool 2 minutes before removing to wire racks.

Eat until you bury the feeling of regret.

Cookie Season: Crackles

I posted the recipe for Chocolate Crackles long ago on my old blog and since this is the time of year for family baking, I thought I would give the post a face-lift.

This is obviously not my original recipe since it was published as early as the 1970s (who knows how far it goes back). There are many variations that people use and if you type "Crackles cookie" in Google it has tons of pics that all look the same, but this is the one I always made with my mom with a couple changes.

Changes I made:
-Original: 2 Slightly beaten eggs
  I don't beat the eggs at all (I always forget, they turn out well anyway, maybe better)
-Original: Grease the cookie sheet
  Parchment paper on the cookie sheet makes them better in appearance and taste.

This is a great cookie to make with kids because...

1. It is super easy.
2. There's no mixer required
3. Powdered sugar is messy and fun, but relatively easy to clean up.*
4. When you make them clean up the mess, they learn a valuable lesson about being tidy.

*You should totally make a mess when baking, but it doesn't have to be a 'get in the floor scrubbing for hours' mess. 

The best part about Crackles is that you can be creative and not spend all afternoon doing it. An hour of your time can yield 50+ cookies and they can be whatever cake mix flavor you can find.

Combo Funfetti/Orange and Funfetti/Lemon

Ingredients

1 Package Cake Mix (go crazy!)
2 Eggs 
1 Tbsp water
½ cup vegetable shortening
Confectioners Sugar

1. Combine everything except the confectioners sugar and mix with spoon until well blended.

2. Shape into balls and roll in confectioners sugar.
3. Bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes on baking sheet covered with parchment paper

Step 4: If you didn't get sugar all over your counter, let the kids sling the open bag around.

I use a little more water sometimes if it looks particularly dry, especially depending on the cake mix. 
The original recipe I made with my mom called for Devil's Food cake mix, but I have tried many more flavors this year.

Here are the flavors and combos I have made so far:

• Red Velvet
• Strawberry
• Lemon
• Orange
• Funfetti
• Milk Chocolate
• Strawberry/Devil's Food (Almost tasted like Neopolitan)
• Lemon/Funfetti
• Orange/Funfetti

A couple more notes on the individual flavors...

• Strawberry tastes EXACTLY like Frankenberry cereal... it is amazing.
• The red velvet and sugar free devil's food were extra sticky and hard to work with so be careful how much water you add! Don't add more than the one tbsp until you have it mixed really well.
• The lemon was by far the easiest to work with as it became more like playdo and I was able to pump them out at super high speed!
• The funfetti was a bit dry and remember there are sprinkles in it so it was okay to work with, but don't let it sit too long.

I made the orange, lemon and funfetti all at once (made the dough for all 3 first) so I could make the combo flavors. If you do this, work quickly.

Happy Baking!