Favorite Cookies

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Favorite Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies
A classic chocolate chip cookies is one of the world's best cookies. Nothing compares to the smell and taste of a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie. Here is an absolute favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 1/4 cups flour ( I like to mix 1 cup whole wheat flour with 1 1/4 cup white flour to make a more flavorful and full bodied cookie)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Start by mixing the dry ingredients (flour, salt and baking soda) in a small bowl and then set aside. In a larger bowl cream together the butter and sugar, you want the texture to be light and fluffy. Next slowly stir in the dry ingredients, being sure to thoroughly mix. You can cream and stir all the ingredients together with a wooden spoon. If you wish to work a bit faster you can use a hand mixer. Finish by stirring in the chocolate chips, do not use a hand mixer to stir in the chips.

One note about making fluffy chocolate chip cookies, you have to keep your dough cold. If you dough is warm when you put it one the cookie sheet and putting in the oven you will have flat and crispy cookies. If you like flat, crispy cookies then allow your dough to warm slightly. If you prefer a soft and fluffy cookie then be sure to cool your dough after stirring on warm days.

Next place large spoonfuls of dough on an ungreased cookie sheet. You will want to space them about two inches apart. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow to cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Molasses Cookies
I have a weakness for cookies of almost any type, but it is hard to beat a nice soft molasses cookie. These cookies have an amazing flavor, the combination of spicy and sweet is hard to beat.

2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup molasses
3/4 cups (1 1/2 sticks) cool, yet soft butter
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and cloves) in a small bowl and set aside. Cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix thoroughly. Add the molasses and mix well. Slowly mix in the dry ingredients, making sure to combine thoroughly, but do not over mix your dough, the ingredients should just be incorporated.

Place large spoonfuls of dough onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake until the cookies are just beginning to brown around the edges, but are still soft in the center, about 10-11 minutes. Midway through the cooking you can sprinkle sugar over the top of the cookies if you like the sugar coated molasses cookie. Take out of the oven and cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

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Cream Wafers
These delightful little cookies are light and buttery and are a family favorite. We make them rarely, but everyone loves them and they are a favorite request among the entire family.

Cookies:
1 1/2 cups soft butter
1/2 cup whipping cream
3 cups flour
Granulated sugar

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Mix the flour, butter and cream well. After your dough is mixed cover and chill for an hour or so. The dough needs to be firm and cold before you can roll it out, if the dough is too soft you will have a mess.

Divide the dough into quarters, roll out one section at a time, and keep the remaining sections chilled. Roll out the dough on a floured cloth. You want the dough to be about 1/8 inch thick once rolled out. Cut the dough into 1 1/2 inch rounds, for this you will want a floured circular cookie cutter if you have one, small biscuit cutters also work. You will want to make sure you have an even number of cookies since they will be put together into little cookie sandwiches.

Put some granulated sugar on a plate or piece of wax paper. Carefully transfer each uncooked cookie onto the sugar and turn over so the entire cookie is coated with a thin layer of sugar. Place the cookies onto an ungreased baking sheet and prick with a fork about 4 times. Bake your cookies for about 7-9 minutes; they should be set but not brown. Allow the cookies to cool, while they are cooling prepare the almond cream filling.

Filling:
3/8-cup soft butter
1 1/8 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla until fluffy and smooth. If you want more festive filling you can divide the cream into 2 or 3 parts and add drops of red and green food coloring to the icing. You can also add almond extract to the filling to make a slightly different flavor for your cookies.

Once your filling is ready, use the baked cookies to make little cream wafer sandwiches. Spread filling on one cookie and top with another. Once all of your cookies are put together you are ready to serve and enjoy.

Best Potato Salad

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Best Potato Salad

Potato salad is a classic summertime dish.  Potato salads are served at family picnics and almost every family has their own recipe. If you want to try a new recipe or different style of potato salad, here are two that are definitely worth a try.

Classic Potato Salad
2 lbs potatoes, either russet or other white potato, peeled and cut into quarters or smaller depending on the size of the potato
1 medium onion, chopped fine
3-4 hard boiled eggs, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup yellow mustard, or to taste
pickles diced (optional)

After peeling and cutting the potatoes boil them until they are just tender, be careful not to overcook the potatoes or you will have mushy potato salad. Once the potatoes are boiled and cooled, chop the onions and hard boiled eggs. Next add as much mayonnaise and mustard as you see fit. The secret to making great potato salad is to experiment until you find the perfect proportions for your personal taste.

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German Potato Salad
This type of potato salad is different than the classic potato salad, and it can be served warm.
2 lbs red potatoes, cut in halves or quarters
6-8 oz bacon cut into one inch strips
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp whole-grain mustard, or dijon if you cannot find the other type
1/4 tsp black pepper, or more to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves

Start by chopping the potatoes and boiling them. When the water is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer until the potatoes are just tender. Drain the potatoes, but set aside about 1/2 cup of the cooking water.

While the potatoes are cooking, fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir the bacon until it is brown and crisp. When the bacon is done transfer it to a plate lined with paper towels and allow the grease to drain off. Reserve 1/4 cup of the bacon grease in the skillet. Saute the onions in the bacon grease until they are soft and beginning to brown. Add the sugar to the onions and stir until it is dissolved.

Next, add the vinegar and the reserved cooking water. Bring to a simmer and cook until it has reduced to about one cup. Remove from heat, stir in the mustard and pepper. Finish by adding the potatoes, bacon and parsley.

Homemade Fair Food

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Homemade Fair Food

Fairs always have so much to offer and it seems that there is never enough time to enjoy everything at your local fair. This year, if you missed out on some of your favorite treats, or if you just want to enjoy your favorite fair treats at home, try making your favorite fair foods for yourself. Here are two recipes for classic fair fare. These treats are simple, but amazingly delightful and will calm your fair food cravings.

Funnel Cakes
The funnel cake is a treat that can be found at almost any fair. It is the treat that many of us look forward to having once a year at the local fair. Now, you can learn to make these sumptuous treats for yourself, family and friends.

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups milk
3 eggs
vegetable oil
powdered sugar

1) Mix the dry ingredients, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Add wet ingredients, milk and eggs and mix until the batter is smooth. (Note: if you don't want to make your own batter, you can purchase boxed plain white cake mix, which makes a decent replacement for homemade batter)
2) Fill a deep, medium sized skillet with about 2 inches of vegetable. Heat the oil over medium heat until the oil is about 350 to 375 degrees.
3) Pour batter into a gallon sized re-sealable bag and clip one corner off to squeeze batter through. You can also use a squeeze bottle or a pastry tube.
4) When oil is at the desired temperature, squeeze the batter into the oil. As you are squeezing the batter into the oil you want to make a light, lacy lattice pattern. Your batter should have plenty of holes, you don't to create a blob, the holes help the batter cook evenly.
5) Cook about 1 min on each side, turning only once. Each side of the funnel cake should be golden brown.
6) When the funnel cake is done remove from the oil and place on a plate lined with paper towels. Allow the cake to drain and pat gently with a paper towel to remove any excess oil.
7) Sprinkle the cake with powdered sugar, top with whichever toppings you enjoy and serve hot.

Lemon Shake Up
The ever-present, classic Lemon Shake Up is the universal fair drink. If you are looking to enjoy this cool and refreshing drink on some hot day, here is the simple recipe so you can make them for yourself rather than waiting for the fair!

Ingredients (makes two 16 oz drinks):
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
2 lemons
2 cups ice cubes (minimum)
1 cup ice water

1) Boil the water and sugar in a small sauce pan, boil for about 5 minutes stirrring constantly, or until the sugar is completely dissolved. This is called simple syrup and can be used in many drink recipes that combine sugar and water. Boiling the sugar and water together helps keep the sugar from settling at the bottom, which keeps the flavor of the drink even.
2) Cut the lemons into halves. Juice all four halves, reserving the rinds.
3) Add the lemon juice to the simple syrup. Chill the lemon syrup in the fridge.
4) Crush the ice cubes in a blender. Put half of the crushed ice, about 1 cup, into a cocktail shaker. Add half of the chilled syrup to the ice in the shaker, about 1/2 cup. Add 1/2 cup ice water to the shaker, cover and shake well. If you don't have a shaker combine the ice, ice water and syrup into a tall glass and stir well.
5) Place one reserved lemon half into a tall glass and pour the contents of the shaker into the glass.
6) Repeat steps 4 and 5 to make the second drink. Serve immediately.