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Basic Home Cookie Recipe

This is a basic recipe for cookies similar to the base for a 'Toll House' chocolate chip cookie.

Ingredients

Moist Bowl
Chocolate Chip Cookies

  • 1/4 lb shortening
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla

Dry Bowl

  • 1 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
  2. For the 'moist bowl', combine 1/4 lb shortening, 2 tbsp milk, 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup white sugar in a mixing bowl and beat on high for 2 minutes.
  3. Add egg and vanilla to mixing bowl and beat until completely mixed (about 30 sec). 
  4. For the 'dry bowl', combine 1 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt in another bowl and mix dry ingredients thoroughly. 
  5. Add flour mix to first bowl, about a half cup at a time and beat until all flour is mixed and mixture is consistent (same) all the way through. 
  6. Add flavorings or other ingredients and mix with a spoon until evenly distributed. [For instance, add about 7/8 cup of chocolate chips to make chocolate chip cookies. See notes below.]
  7. Put parchment paper on to cookie sheet and distribute approx 1 1/2 tbsp balls about 3 1/2 inches from center to center: 
  8. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 10 - 14 minutes until golden brown. 
  9. Depending upon ingredients, amount of cookie dough and cooking conditions this recipe makes from 18 to 24 cookies about 3 inches in diameter. On an 16-18 inch wide cookie sheet cookie dough can be measured out to about 2 tablespoons before cookies touch. 
  10. Let cookies sit on the parchment covered cookie sheet outside the oven for about 2 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack for about 15 minutes -- about as long as it takes to bake another sheet of cookies. 

    Notes

    Add about 7/8 cup of chocolate chips to make chocolate chip cookies. 

    How long you bake and the exact temperature depend upon a number of things:

    Lower temperature and longer time for chewier cookies. About 350 degrees is the lowest to go, about 390 is the highest. 

    Changing the ratio of brown sugar to white sugar makes cookies chewier with more brown sugar, more crispy with more white sugar. You need at least about 1/8 cup of brown sugar to make sure the cookies can rise properly. 

    Substituting a third of a cup of the flour with rice flour makes a slightly grainy richer flavored cookie. 

    Less flour yields chewier cookies. You can go down to 1 cup for very soft cookies. 

    More flour yields drier cookies, up to about 3 1/2 cups for very stiff cookies. 

    Adding another egg will make chewier cookies. 

    Flavourings: 

    To make spice cookies, add 1 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg. 

    To make chocolate chip cookies add 3/4 cup to 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips depending upon taste. We normally add about 7/8 cup. 

    To make peanut butter cookies, cut back shortening by about 4 tbsp and add about 1/4 cup peanut butter. Peanut butter cookies take longer to bake and are very fragile when they first come out. Let them cool on the cookie sheet a few minutes longer, carefully transfer to the cooling rack and let stand a bit longer -- about 20-30 minutes. 


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