Chai Spice Cookies

I found this recipe in a hand-me-down issue of Better Homes and Gardens.  How could you possibly go wrong with chai spice tea and molasses?!  

I followed the recipe exactly the first time (stars) but just can't rationalize cut-out cookies in my schedule.  Pretty? Sure! Tastes just the same? Yup. 

So instead of rolling the dough, I made them like my Great-Grandma's refrigerator cookies and voila - my absolute favorite go-to cookie. 

Chai Spice Cookies

Prep: 25 minutes

Chill: 3 hours-3 weeks (or freeze)

Makes: 48 2" cookies

Bake: 10 minutes

Oven: 350° F

2 spiced chai-flavor tea bags, like Stash's Chai Green... mmm

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
(or 1/4 t clove, 1/4 t allspice, 1/2 t ginger, 1 t cinnamon)

1-1/2 cups salted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

2 egg yolks

2 T molasses

1 recipe Powdered Sugar Icing (below)

In large bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin pie spice and contents of tea bags, set aside.  The flour mix alone is intoxicating!

In Cuisinart (or large mixing bowl) combine remaining ingredients and beat until light and a little bit fluffy.  Add to flour (I usually end up mixing with my hands until I can create a ball of dough to work with.) Divide dough in half.   

Here's where I divert from the recipe. Roll each half of the dough into a long cylinder, about 2" diameter and wrap it up in parchment, then plastic wrap, and stow it in the fridge 3 hours, or a couple weeks.

When ready to bake, unroll the parchment and cut off enough to line your cookie sheet.  Then cut 1/4" slices of the dough and make round cookies.  Bake 10 minutes, remove to a rack to cool.  Drizzle in crazy pattern with icing.  They're beautiful (super yummy) and everyone marvels that I can have cookies ready at the drop of a hat!  

Powdered Sugar Icing: In medium bowl combine 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 4 teaspoons milk. Stir in additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until piping consistency.

to store: Layer cookies between waxed paper in covered airtight container. Store at room temperature up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months.

Modified from: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/cookies/chai-spice-girls/

Updated: 12/12/10 (after making 7 consecutive batches in a Christmas baking marathon)

Disappearing Oatmeal Cookies

Stan's favorite with chocolate chips - my favorite with tart cherries.  Adapted from the Quaker Oats recipe for oatmeal raisin (you could use raisins, but, why???)


Oatmeal Chocolate Chip OR Oatmeal Tart Cherry Cookies
2 sticks salted butter, softened
3/4  cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2  cup granulated sugar
2  eggs
1-1/2  teaspoons vanilla

1-1/2  cups all-purpose flour
1  teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2  teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4  teaspoon salt 
3  cups oats, uncooked
1  cup chocolate chips (or coarsely chopped dried cherries)

Preheat oven to 350°F. 

In large bowl, or stand mixer, beat butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla until creamy.

In large bowl mix together all but chocolate chips.  Stir butter mix into flour and oats, then add chocolate chips or cherries, mix well.  I put the dry into my stand mixer and let it do the stirring, chips/cherries and all.

I use a small cookie dough scoop to form small balls and usually fit 8 at a time on my parchment paper lined cookie sheet.   Bake 10 minutes, allow to cool 3 minutes on cookie sheet, then remove to wire rack.  Cool completely, store tightly covered.  

** Holiday cookie tip: store crisp cookies separate from moist cookies, or your moist will dry out and your dry will get soggy.  I use disposable foil roasting pans purchased in bulk with foil or press-and-seal.  

http://www.quakeroats.com/cooking-and-recipes/content/recipes/recipe-detail.aspx?recipeId=474

Breakfast Cookies

I adapted these from a recipe on the Cheerios website.  I liked them, Stan not so much, but he's not really a breakfast person anyway.  The cereal on the outside was still a little crunchy, like it would be normally, and the ones in the middle were just part of the cookie. 

Cheerios Breakfast Monsters

1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup almond butter (or peanut butter)
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat or oat flour (toss your oats in the blender until it resembles flour)
1 cup old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats
1 cup dried cranberries (or raisins)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
4 cups Cheerios® cereal

1. Heat oven to 375°F.

2. In large bowl, stir together sugar, butter, almond/peanut butter, water, vanilla and egg. Stir in remaining ingredients except cereal. Gently stir in cereal. (If you want crunchier finished cookies, bake these now - for softer finished cookies let the dough stand a while.) On large cookie sheet, lined with parchment paper, drop dough by rounded 1/2 cupfuls (rounded 1/3 cupfuls for 15 cookies) 4 inches apart. Flatten dough to about 1 inch thick.

3. Bake 13 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before removing from cookie sheet. DON'T OVERCOOK.  Store loosely covered.

PB Oatmeal Cookies

Pulled this recipe off the Rumsford jar:

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

Blend/whip together:
1/2 c (1 stick) salted butter
1/2 c peanut butter (I used crunchy, mmm...)
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c granulated sugar
1 egg
1/4 c milk

Sift/whisk together:
1 c oatmeal
1-3/4 c all purpose flour
2-1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt

Stir butter mixture into flour mixture. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto parchment, use fork dipped in warm water to make criss-cross pattern.  Bake at 375F for 7-8 minutes.  Makes about 3 dozen.

But what to call them...?

I created a new cookie last night... and am now at a loss for what to call them. I think cookie names should be descriptive and fun. It should give people an idea what they're about to bite into; but the name itself shouldn't be a mouthful.

Help me out if you would (and make a batch to enjoy for yourself too).

Yummy chewy, oatmeal, cranberry, orange-y with chocolate chips, cookie yet-to-be-named...

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

8 tbsp (1 cube) butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg + 1 egg white
1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup orange flavored dried cranberries
(sub.: 1 t orange zest and increase regular dried cranberries to 1 cup)
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Place flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt in a bowl; stir with a whisk. Add oats, cranberries and chocolate chips, toss to coat.

In a large bowl or food processor, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, vanilla extract (and orange zest if using).

Add to dry ingredients and stir until blended. Drop dough by rounded tablespoons on to cookie sheets, about 2 inches apart.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden. Cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 24 cookies.