Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies

My husband reminds me multiple times a week that his favorite cookies are of the chocolate chip variety. Whenever he hears me having a serious discussion with my kids about what kind of cookies we should make today, he inserts his opinion, and the answer is always the same: chocolate chip. And these cookies received his chocolate chip cookie expert overwhelming stamp of approval.

This is my mom's recipe, the cookies I grew up eating as a little girl. Normally I like cookies that use butter over shortening, but this recipe is fabulous. I love the flavor because they are heavy on the brown sugar. They are soft and chewy and perfect with a glass of milk.

1 cup shortening
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda dissolved in 3 Tbl. of water
3 cups flour
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream shortening and brown sugar. Add eggs and cream well. Add vanilla, salt, baking powder, soda dissolved in water. Add flour one cup at a time and mix well. Finish off your cookie dough with 12 oz. chocolate chips.

Bake at 375 for 9 minutes. Allow to cool on cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to counter top to cool. Enjoy!

Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are really good, especially for how easy they are. These are really soft and cakey. I think they taste better after they've had time to cool rather than hot out of the oven.

1 30 oz can pumpkin
2 spice cake mixes
1 12 oz bag chocolate chips

Mix together gently until combined. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes.

When this batch makes 48 cookies, each cookie is 1 WW point.

No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Sometimes you just need some cookies without all of the mess and cleanup. Voilà!

1 cube butter
½ c. milk
2 c. sugar
2 Tbl. cocoa
½ tsp. salt

Cook together in pot and bring to a boil. Then add 1 tsp. vanilla and 3 c. oatmeal. Spoon onto wax paper or foil with a spoon and let cool.


Originally posted 2/21/07 without picture

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've been on the lookout for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe. When the activity day girls brought these by my house, I was pretty sure I had found it. This is Leslie's recipe, but I don't think she even knows I tracked it down. Thanks, Leslie! Now I just have to get mine to look as pretty as hers did. She claims the secret is to undercook them - and the pudding.

I also have another chocolate chip cookie recipe to post, so watch for that to come in the next few days.

Have a favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe? I'd love you to email me or post it in the comments.

1 1/2 c. butter or margarine softened

1 c. firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 c. granulated sugar
3 eggs

1 pkg. (6 serving size) Jello Brand Vanilla instant pudding mix

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
3 1/2 c. flour

3/4 pkg. Guitard milk chocolate chips

1 1/2 c. chopped nuts optional

Mix flour with baking soda. Combine butter, sugars, pudding mix, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl; beat until smooth and creamy. Beat in eggs. Gradually add flour mix then stir in chips. Batter should be stiff, if not you may want to add a bit more flour. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Makes about 4 dozen.

The Best Sugar Cookies You Will Ever Eat

The best part about this recipe is you don't have to refrigerate the dough before you use it! So they are fast and easy, plus they have the added benefit of being the best tasting sugar cookies you will ever eat. They are soft and cakey with just a hint of nutmeg. I have had people who swear they don't like sugar cookies ask me for the recipe. I honestly can't decide if I like them better frosted, or just plain without the frosting.

1/2 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. sour cream
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. nutmeg
3 1/4 c. flour (double batch = 6 c. flour)

Mix well. Roll out to about 1/4 in. thickness on a floured surface and cut shapes. Don't roll them out too thin. No crunchy sugar cookies allowed. You do not need to grease the cookie sheet.


Bake at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes. You want them to be soft. Frost and top with sprinkles or other decorations if desired.

Here's a good frosting recipe.

Snow's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Our neighbors brought these cookies over to us, and they were soo good.

1 c. butter
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 c. flour
2 1/2 - 3 c. oatmeal
6 oz. chocolate chips (half a bag)
1/4 bag Reeses peanut butter chips

Bake at 400 degrees for 8-9 minutes.

Originally posted 1/13/06 without pictures

Gingerbread Cookies

Go make yourself some festive gingerbread men, or as we like to call them, cookie boys.

1 c. sugar
1 c. shortening
1 egg
1 c. molasses
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. boiling water
1 Tbl. ginger
1 Tbl. cinnamon
1 Tbl. soda
3-6 cups flour to make soft dough (I used 5 c.)

Roll out dough on floured counter and cut cookies.

Bake at 350 for 7-8 min so they are still soft.

Originally posted 11/25/07 without picture

Sour Cream Cookies

UPDATE: Emily made these and I loved her variation on the frosting.

Emily said: "If you like my hieroglyphic cookies, here's what you do: add more milk to thin the Browned Butter Icing, be too scared to brown the butter and just melt it real good, and use a Ziploc to make random squiggles/cave paintings. And then give them to all your favorite people that don't know Japanese."


Cool, no? Thanks, Emily!

The original recipe is below.

I got this recipe from my aunt Lisa, who made them for our bus tour for my grandparents 50th anniversary. I had never had them before, but these cookies are GOOD.

I think they must be the softest cookie I've ever had. Because when I accidentally left them sitting on the counter for too long, I expected them to be dried out and hard - but they were still as soft as when they came out of the oven!

1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3 c. sifted flour
1 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. sour cream

Cream butter and brown sugar; add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition; add vanilla. Sift dry indredients together and add alternating with sour cream to creamed mixture. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes. (I do 7 or 8). Cool and frost. Makes 6 dozen.

Frost with Brown Butter Frosting.

Brown 3 tablespoons butter, add 1 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar, 1 Tablespoon milk, and 1/2 tsp. vanilla. Beat until smooth. Be careful not to brown the butter in the frosting too much. :)

Originally posted 11/14/06 without picture

Cowboy Cookies

1 c. shortening
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. flour
2 c. rolled oats
1 package chocolate chips (2 c.)

Drop by teaspoon onto greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.

Originally posted 4/3/07 without picture

Rolo Cookies

1 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
3/4 c. cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. flour
1 bag Rolos

Let your kids unwrap the Rolos for you.


I made a double batch in these pictures, so there were a lot. By the end, I was giving them each 5 at a time and having a race to see who could unwrap them first.


Combine butter, sugar, eggs, and remaining ingredients, except for the Rolos of course.

Roll dough around Rolo to make small ball. They will be fairly large, about inch and half in diameter. Roll in sugar.


Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes. When they come out of the oven, they will still be rather round and tall.


Drop pan to flatten and spread the melted Rolo through cookie. Sometimes even after I do this I have to use my spatula to whack them and flatten a little bit. Let them cool on pan.


Obviously these taste best while still warm so the inside is melted, but they are still good when cooled. After they cool you can microwave for a few seconds to melt the inside.



Originally posted 12/1/05 without picture

Fudge Cream Cookies

Cookies:
1 c. shortening
2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. soda
8 Tbl. cocoa
1 1/2 c. milk
2 tsp. vanilla
4 c. flour

Spoon onto lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Cream Filling:
3 c. powdered sugar
1 c. softened butter (don't melt)
4 Tbl. flour
4 Tbl. milk
4 tsp. milk (odd measurments, but easier to remember)



Mix well and spread between two of the cookie wafers. Or eat them open faced.

(Try to make your cookies small. Otherwise it's like eating a sandwich.)

Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies

These cookies? One of my all time faves. I have people ask for the recipe all the time. Because really, can you go wrong by dumping some chocolate pudding powder into the dough?

2 sticks butter or margarine
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 c. flour
1 package (4 oz.) instant chocolate pudding
1 package (12 oz.) chocolate chips

Combine. Batter will be stiff. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375 for 8-10 minutes.

Alternate: use the larger size box of chocolate pudding and reduce flour by 1/4 c.

M&M Cookies

One of the few cookie recipes I like that uses shortening instead of butter. The hardest part is remembering to buy M&Ms at the store.

1 c. shortening
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 c. flour
1 1/2 c. M&M's

Blend shortening and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Stir in 1/2 c. of candies. Drop by teaspoon onto ungreased cookie sheet. Decorate cookies with remaining candies.

Bake at 375 for 10 minutes.

*It was a good activity to let my kids decorate the cookies with M&M's right before they went into the oven. We could tell which cookie belonged to which kid because each happened to decorate with only their favorite color. For awhile we had several cookies with only blue, only orange, or only red M&M's.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

I've been looking for a good recipe for these so I could make my own (as much as I love the ones at Macey's grocery store). Then I went to a party down the street and these were so good I had to get the recipe. Thanks Julie.

1/2 c. butter or margarine
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 1/2 c. flour
1 c. chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg, pumpkin, and vanilla. Mix and sift baking powder, soda, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, and flour. Add to creamed mixture. Add chocolate chips.

Drop onto well greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Makes 5 dozen.

Gingersnaps

These are one of my favorite things to bake at Christmas.

3/4 c. shortening
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1/4 c. light molasses (yellow lid)
2 tsp. soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
2 c. flour

Roll into small balls and roll in sugar. Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 7-10 minutes. (Watch them closely, you want them to be soft and chewy when they cool.)

Chocolate Dipped Ritz

Ritz Crackers
Almond Bark, or other dipping chocolate
Pure mint extract

Melt 12 oz. of chocolate, add 1 capful to 1.5 capfuls of mint extract and stir until combined. Dip Ritz crackers in chocolate, and cool on wax paper or foil.

24 oz. (1 block) of chocolate will take 2-3 capfuls of mint extract, and cover about 4 stay fresh packs of Ritz crackers. (About 140 cookies.)

May also use peppermint extract.