I seem to have some kind of cookie deficiency. I mess them up almost every time. Today Aiden and I made chocolate chip cookies. Mmmmmm. I even added extra chocolate chips just for the heck of it. Heavenly! They turned out great... until the last batch. I forgot to set the timer, and I forgot I even put them in the oven. Luckily, I remembered before they turned into hockey pucks, but that is a rarity. Usually the last batch is always black and hard as a rock.
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When Ches and I were first married (like a few weeks), one Sunday afternoon I felt like being all domestic and stuff, so I decided to make some cookies. Ches had gone to take a Sunday afternoon nap (aren't those the best??) and I opened the cookbook and started to pull out ingredients. Then I decided to go to the bathroom. When I was finished with my business, I returned to the kitchen for my cookie making. I was going down the list and following the instructions. I thought some of the ingredients a little odd for chocolate chip cookies... like, cinnamon. I didn't know you put cinnamon in chocolate chip cookies! But maybe this was a recipe I had never used before. So I kept going.
Then I got to "One can pumpkin." Wha--??? Pumpkin?? I looked around the cookbook, and that's when I realized I was not making chocolate chip cookies! I was making pumpkin bars!!! Somehow, while I was in the bathroom, the page had flipped in the cookbook, and I never checked the title of the recipe, assuming I was still in the same place as before.
HOW was I to fix this? I didn't have a can of pumpkin. It's May, for Heaven's sake! I can't go to the store to buy any because it's Sunday and A) I don't go shopping on Sunday for religious reasons, and 2) this is Rexburg, Idaho, and the stores aren't open on Sunday anyway (because just about everyone in town has the same religious beliefs and not only won't go shopping, but won't work on Sundays). What was I do DO??
I looked at the recipe some more, and saw that you could substitute the can of pumpkin for a jar of applesauce and make applesauce spice bars (although it turned out to be more of a cake than bars). Luckily, during my grocery shopping trip the day before I had bought a jar of applesauce.
I finished the applesauce cake and put it in the oven. I went into our bedroom and flopped face down on the bed. I was so MAD! I wanted chocolate chip cookies, after all, and I felt pretty stupid for the mistake. Ches woke up and said, "What's wrong?"
"I'm making chocolate chip cookies," I replied very angrily.
"And what's wrong with that?" my dear, new husband asked, quite puzzled (and understandably so!).
"You'll see in about 30 minutes."
The cake came out, and Ches said it was very good. It looked and smelled good. But I don't think I had a single bite. I was still angry at that cake for not being cookies.
I have made the applesauce cake several times since then, and enjoued it every time. We call it Sariah's Chocolate Chip Cookies.
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My last year at Ricks College, I was on the Band Council. I helped plan the parties and such, and for one party we had assigned everyone to bring cookies or desserts or something. Treats to eat at the party. I decided to make Snickerdoodles. I don't know what I did wrong, but every single cookie was hard as a rock. I was runing late to the party and didn't have time to make new cookies or even go to the store and buy something (especially since I didn't have a car!!), so I brought my snickerdoodles anyway. I put them on the table and explained the problem, not expecting anyone to even try one. I figured we could find another use for the things. I mean, get a bunch of Mormon band nerds together, and who knows what could happen! We go crazy!! Seriously!
Candi Cannon, bless her heart (could I BE more southern?? heh), felt bad for me and proceeded to eat my snickerdoodles, claiming they weren't that bad! She ate several of them. She said "I like my cookies a little overdone."
She has always been close to my heart since then. I mean, I knew she was cool before, but this was the clincher. Candi is the coolest person I know. Or one of them, anyway! :)
p.s. check out the Recipe Exchange for the recipes for Sariah's Chocolate Chip Cookies and for Snickerdoodles. I made snickerdoodles a couple of weeks ago, and they were very yummy. Not a hockey puck among them.
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8 comments:
Well, I don't know what to say. I read your baking stories, and suddenly I don't feel so bad. Luckily you had applesauce.
Do you remeber making cheesecake for Father's Day? I shouldn't bring it up, but it was so funny. Yes, canned milk and condensed milk are not the same thing. He he!!
Once I put in 2 tablespoons of baking soda instead of 2 teaspoons those were the saltiest chocolate chip cookies I've ever tasted!
I can just imagine Candi eating those cookies. I've had my fair share of snickerdoodles and usually 50% are hard as a rock! ;-) don't feel bad.
And sorry I just had to giggle about the Applesauce Cake. It reminded me of the episode of FRIENDS where Rachel was in charge of making the trifle and the pages got stuck together so she had layer of jelly, pudding, ladyfingers, and then hamburger, onions and peas.
At least you were able to save the cookies and make the applesauce cake and it turned out yummy in the end.
P.S. my brother in law made the mistake of confusing canned milk with condensed milk too. Don't feel too bad about that either.
Okay, for the cheesecake I have to say it wasn't completely my fault. A lot of us wer involved in the making of that thing, and then we asked Mindy (our resident baker!!) if they were the same or what and she said yes, use that, and it was DISGUSTING!! So for one incident... it's not my fault!!
A couple weeks ago I was making spiced apples to go with our pork chops. We wanted a thicker sauce than it was turning out, so Ches asked for baking powder. I gave him baking soda (which is an unmarked Tupperware container). Those apples were NOT delicious. They were beyond saving. Tried again a couple of nights ago. Much better this time, except I put in too much cinnamon. Maybe the third time will be the charm.
LOL... Great stories! ... Sariah's Chocolate Chip Cookies... that one was the best! (I'm gonna check out your recipe for it now! :) Thanks!)
I'm just glad some chips finally made it into cookies--without me there to scarf them down--your fault--you started it, so I had to join in! Yum. But I'm seriously glad you got some cookies made. I wouldn't want the boys to be deprived!
And we all need kitchen witches apparantly--an 'old' superstition that having a kitchen witch will keep one from burning food. If so, then why doesn't every new bride receive one, and every time you move...
I think your story of Sariah's Chocolate Chip Cookies is hilarious, and I can just picture you as you're mad about it. hehe
I've been makin tons of cookies lately. So much infact, that last night I dreamed all night of making sugar cookies in the shape of Frankenstein's head (which I actually did do before bed). It wasn't a fun dream though, just bizarre, and not restful at all.
Sariah, I laughed so hard at the chocolate chip cookies! hehehehe!
Ok, so the trick on snickerdoodles. I am a snickerdoodle adict, so I have learned how to make them properly. Basically, Under cook them! If the book says cook for 8 minuites, cook them for 7 and a half. Then the true test is removing them from the cookie sheet as soon as they come out, placing them on a wire rack to cool, then COVER THEM! I don't know if it is the cream of tarter in the recipie or what, but if these steps are followed, perfect snicker doodles will come out every single time :-)
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