December 4th is National Cookie Day! Time to celebrate!
Growing up spending the summers at my grandma and grandpa’s is where my love of cooking really began. My grandmother Doe spent hours in the kitchen and in her garden.
As soon as I ran through the door each summer I would reach for the cookie jar and devour the most mouth-watering chocolate chip cookie you’ve ever tasted.
I hold these memories of my grandmother and the time spent in her kitchen very close to my heart as we lost both her and my grandfather just a week apart from each other earlier this year. They had been married for 70 years. Naturally, as I grew into motherhood, I have tried to pass along those time-treasured memories to my kiddos.
When we heard about National Cookie Day a few years ago, it became its own little holiday in our house.
We love to make our cookie dough from scratch and even enjoy tossing some sugar cookies to bake and decorate into the mix. If you’d like to start a new family tradition this year, here are five ways you can celebrate National Cookie Day on December 4th!
1. Visit your local bakery for the best cookies you’ve ever had!
Snap a pic and share it with us! The top five bakeries in El Paso according to Yelp include Bella Cora Bakery, Weirdoughs Bakery, El Paso’s Bakery, Orange Peel Pastries, Cakes & More, and Supreme Bakery. My personal favorite is Bella Cora Bakery for its French-style pastries. The chef, Jessica Zaragoza, is a Certified Executive Pastry Chef, classically trained in Le Cordon Bleu, Ottawa, and The French Pastry School in Chicago.
2. Make your own morsels of fun! My favorite recipe is below.
Gather all the kiddos and have fun mixing, baking, and decorating your very own cookies to devour!
3. Have a bake-off!
Challenge your friends to make several dozen assorted cookies. Then exchange the delicious morsels.
4. Share your favorite cookie recipe.
Your friends and family would love to fill their cookie jars with a tried and true recipe.
5. Bake a few dozen for those in need.
Deliver small batches to those in need! Everyone enjoys a fresh-baked homemade cookie!
Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie from the Crisco Company
¾ cup (3/4 stick) Crisco Shortening
1 ¼ cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 egg
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1 – 1 ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans (optional)
Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Combine Crisco, brown sugar, milk, and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Beat egg into creamed mixture.
Mix flour, salt, and baking soda into a medium bowl. Add into creamed mixture just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips and pecan pieces.
Drop rounded tablespoons of dough 3 inches apart onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake one baking sheet at a time at 375 for 8-10 minutes for chewy cookies, or 11 to 123 minutes for crisp cookies. DO NOT OVERBAKE.
Cool for 2 minutes on the baking sheet. Transfer to cooling racks to cool completely.
Yields approximately 3 dozen cookies. *If nuts are omitted, add full 1 ½ cups of chocolate chips.
Substitute Crisco for butter or margarine in your favorite recipes . . . 1 cup Crisco + 6 teaspoons of water = 1 cup butter or margarine.
