As some of you may have noticed over here at Street Prophets we call the tip jar, cookies. It probably says a lot about our love of food. One of the major comfort foods in the world has to be cookies and milk. Cookies come in all sizes, shapes and flavors. They can be a rustic comfort food or an elegant dessert served in high class restaurants. One thing they will always be is delicious.
Cookies are one of our oldest foods, as ancestors 10,000 years ago would drop a mixture of grains and water onto hot rocks. As ships sailed out exploring they always had a supply of hard cookies or biscuits. They were not the tastiest things but they would last forever. They may have been the inspiration for J.R.R. Tolkien’s dwarf bread.
In the Middle East cooks started lightening the recipe with cream, butter and eggs and using honey and fruits to sweeten them. These are more like what we call cookies today. The Persian Empire had these treats during the seventh century. With the Crusades and the invasion of Spain and the developing spice trade Arabic cooking was introduced to Northern Europe.
During the Renaissance cookies had become popular and by the seventeenth century they were commonplace. With the advent of self regulating ovens in the 1900’s the number of cookie recipes exploded.
The fancy shaped cookies that are popular at Christmas are believed to originate in Medieval Germany. Today lebkuchen, spritz, fattigman and Pfeffernüesse are still popular cookies. Cookies are now made around the world. The Chinese Moon Cakes are part of the Moon Festival. One of the joys in eating at a Chinese restaurant are the fortune cookies. Mexican Wedding Cookies are very popular. Biscotti is a very popular Italian cookie.
There are several different types of cookie used around the world. One of the most common forms is drop cookies where the dough is just dropped by the teaspoonfuls onto the cookie sheet. Refrigerator cookies are rolled usually in a log and chilled and then sliced and baked. Molded cookies are usually rolled into a ball and sometimes flattened. Bar cookies are made in a pan and then cut into bars after cooking. Rolled cookies are popular around Christmas where the dough is rolled out and then cut with various shaped cookie cutters. Pressed cookies are pushed through a cookie press into various designs.
So that is a quick tour around the world of cookies. I have some of my cookies recipes below. Please feel free to add your favorite cookie recipes. If you have more history or even if you want to talk about your favorite childhood memory when it comes to cookies please feel free to share.
Chocolate-Coconut Macaroons
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Cookies : 65
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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14 ounces fat-free sweetened condensed milk
1 egg white, whole
14 ounces coconut flakes
6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon almond extract
1/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 pinch salt
1/8 cup slivered almonds
Mix milk, egg white, coconut, chocolate chips, almond extract and flour together.
Drop by teaspoonfuls on a well greased baking sheet. Press slivered almonds into top of cookie.
Bake at 350°F for 12 minutes or until cookie is lightly browned.
Remove from sheet immediately and cool on a rack or waxed paper.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 63 Calories; 3g Fat (39.9% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 9g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 29mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Fruit; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1/2 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.
Birthday Cookies
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Cookies : 64
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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14 ounces low-fat sweetened condensed milk
1 whole egg white
14 ounces coconut flakes
6 ounces white chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup walnuts -- finely diced
5 ounces maraschino cherries -- reserve juice
1/2 cup rainbow candied sprinkles
3 tablespoons chocolate candied sprinkles
1/2 cup cherry juice
Heat oven to 350°F.
Cut cherries into approximately 8 pieces and set aside.
Mix milk, egg white, coconut, white chocolate chips, vanilla, flour, baking powder, walnuts, cherry juice and rainbow sprinkles together until well mixed.
Drop mixture by heaping teaspoonfuls onto a greased baking sheet. Put a few of the chocolate sprinkles on top of cookie and place a cherry piece on top of the chocolates.
Bake for 12 minutes. Remove from baking sheet and let cool on a baking rack.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 76 Calories; 4g Fat (41.7% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 2mg Cholesterol; 33mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Fruit; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1/2 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.
Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Cookies : 48
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter -- softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons vanilla extract -- pure
2 large eggs
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup walnuts -- chopped
1 cup maraschino cherries -- chopped
Heat oven to 375º.
Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla extract until creamy.
Add eggs one at a time, beating until thoroughly mixed each time.
Add salt, baking soda and flour and beat until mixed.
Add chocolate chips and cherries and mix well.
Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets and bake 9 to 11 minutes.
Cool on a wire rack.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 140 Calories; 8g Fat (47.3% calories from fat); 2g Protein; 17g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 19mg Cholesterol; 96mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1/2 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1 1/2 Fat; 1 Other Carbohydrates.
Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Cookies : 48
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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1/2 cup butter -- softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup dark brown sugar -- packed
1/2 cup sugar
2 each eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract -- pure
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 cup raisins, seedless
3 cups oats, rolled (raw)
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Cream together butter, shortening, brown sugar, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. Add to butter mixture.
Add oats and raisins. Mix together.
Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet and let cool on rack.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 108 Calories; 5g Fat (38.0% calories from fat); 2g Protein; 15g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 14mg Cholesterol; 84mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1/2 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Fruit; 1 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.
NOTES : I use 1/2 cup regular raisins and a 1/2 cup golden raisins.
I use butter flavored shortening.
The Ultimate Ginger Cookie
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Cookies : 60
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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3/4 cup butter -- softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar -- packed
1/4 cup molasses
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 whole egg
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon ginger root -- finely minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 ounces crystallized ginger -- ground fine
4 tablespoons sugar
Heat oven to 350°F.
Cream butter, sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
Stir in the molasses and egg.
Add flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, crystalized ginger, and ginger root.
Shape dough into walnut size balls and roll in sugar. Put on ungreased baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes.
Cool on rack.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 64 Calories; 2g Fat (34.2% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 10mg Cholesterol; 67mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1/2 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.
Daddy's Pfeffernüesse
Recipe By :Michele Wilson
Cookies : 90
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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1/2 cup dark molasses
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup butter
2 whole eggs -- beaten
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon anise seed -- ground
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 cup confectioner's sugar -- sifted
In saucepan combine molasses, honey and butter. Cook and stir until butter melts. Cool to room temperature.
Stir in eggs.
Sift together all the dry ingredients except the confectioner's sugar. Add to molasses mixture; mix well.
Chill several hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Shape chilled dough into 1 inch balls. Baked on greased cookie sheet for 12 minutes.
Cool; roll in confectioner's sugar.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 159 Calories; 4g Fat (20.1% calories from fat); 2g Protein; 30g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 22mg Cholesterol; 87mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1/2 Fat; 1 Other Carbohydrates.