FOUR DIFFERENT KINDS OF COOKIES FOR ALZHEIMER'S IDAHO FIELD TRIP

If you follow this blog you know I volunteer for Alzheimer's Idaho (local grassroots organization) making the dessert for their monthly dinner is one of the things that I do.  This month these lovely ladies and some of their daughters are going on a field trip for their dinner. They are off to a local "Paint & Sip" for some creativity while they munch on Subway sandwiches and then cookies for dessert. 

Each month there is a drawing for a "Door Prize" and the hostess and I take turns providing the prize - it's my turn this month so a cute gift (it's a surprise) bag and ribbon and a door prize label and it's ready to go.

The first cookie is a hubby favorite - the Triple Chocolate Chip Cookie. I just made some simple labels in Corel Draw and printed them out on an 8 1/2 x 11 full sheet label and cut them out and applied to the bag. Tied with a cute black and white ribbon.

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 375°

1 cup butter
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups flour, preferably King Arthur AP
1 cup old fashioned oatmeal
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup Toll house Delightfuls, filled baking morsels (if  you cannot find these you could add milk chocolate chips, the larger size.
1 cup California walnuts, chopped (or pecans, walnuts best)




Melt the butter in a sauce pan, remove from heat and stir in the brown and white sugar and mix until all combined, then put in the fridge for about ten minutes. Remove and test to make sure it is cool (don't want to scramble your eggs) and add the egg, the egg yolk and the vanilla. Then add the flour, oats, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and mix well (if you make sure you use a large sauce pan, this entire recipe can be made in the pan) one at a time add the three chips and then the walnuts - the dough will be a little stiff, but that is OK.  Form balls and place on a Silpat lined cookie sheet and bake for 12-14 minutes, depending on your oven.  The yield will depend on how big you make the cookie balls - my yield was about 3 dozen good size cookies. 

A perennial favorite with most folks the yummy Peanut Butter Cookie.

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 350°

2 cubes butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar (preferably Bakers Sugar)
1 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups peanut butter (preferably Adams, no sugar added)
2 1/2 cups King Arthur AP flour
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda

In your mixer cream the butter and the sugars, add the peanut butter, vanilla and eggs, mix until it is all incorporated then carefully add the flour and soda (mix them together before adding to the sugar/peanut butter/egg mixture.

Roll them into balls (smaller than a golf ball) and then roll them in sparkling sugar and place on Silpat lined baking sheet and I like to take the meat tenderizer mallet and with the tenderizer side press down on the cookies - and since the cookies have been rolled in sugar the mallet will not stick and the holes from the mallet will all look uniform.

Bake for approximately 10-12 minutes, depending on your oven.

Yield: At least 3 dozen, depends on the size of the cookies.


Hubby's all time favorite Aunt Gert's Dunking Platters. I have big history with this cookie.  This recipe can be doubled, tripled, etc.  I used to fill my big yellow Tupperware bowl with this dough and make cookies for my now two grown sons to sell as little boys, at their lemonade stand on the weekends, at the Mace Meadows golf course in Pioneer, California.

Recipe:

Preheat oven to: 350°

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour, preferably King Arthur AP
1 cup old fashioned oatmeal
2 cups Grape Nuts Flakes (nothing else will be the same) 
1 cup chopped California walnuts

Combine the butter and the sugars, then add the eggs, vanilla extract and combine.  Mix together the soda, baking powder and the flour and add to the sugar/butter mixture, then add the Grape Nuts Flakes, the oatmeal and the walnuts.  The batter will be stiff.

Make balls (smaller than a golf ball) and place on a Silpat lined cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12-15 minutes.

The reason they are called "Dunking Platters" is that they do not fall apart when dunked in milk or hot chocolate and the platter part is my Aunt Gert would sometimes make them very large as a big treat. We were allowed to dunk them till age 12 and after that she said it was considered rude but in fact she just looked the other way.

 

The most challenging cookie I make, the Sugar Dream.  This recipe is from a bakery in Fresno, California and I used to give myself a treat of one of these cookies while out shopping as they have stores in shopping areas.  One is all you need as they are melt in  your mouth good, like the best dreamy shortbread you have ever had, very rich - that is if you bake them correctly and therein in lies the rub.  No matter how you bake them they are still good but in order for them to be soft you have to find that exact balance between are they done and yikes they are too done.  The minute you see one edge start to turn brown take them out and let them sit in the pan for a few minutes before trying to move to a rack otherwise they will fall apart.  These are not soft but they will still be yummy.

Recipe:

Preheat oven to: 400°

1 cup (-2T) Wesson Oil
4 cups flour, preferably King Arthur AP
2 cups (+2T) Sugar, preferably Bakers Sugar
2 cubes (+1T) Butter, softened
2T Sour Cream
1t Soft Cream Cheese
1 1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 t Baking Soda
1 t Salt
1 egg yolk

You can probably tell from this odd recipe that it was cut down from a bakery, very large yield, recipe.  That is why the 1 cup minus or plus items.

In a mixer add butter, cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Mix at medium speed until all combines and smooth, add sour cream and mix to blend, add the oil and the egg yolk, mix at low speed till the oil is just blended.  Add the flour, salt and soda that has been mixed together, mix until blended then add ten more seconds (more craziness) cover the dough and let it sit for 6-8 hours. Then make less than golf ball size dough balls and roll them in Bakers Sugar and put on a Silpat lined cookie sheet and using the flat bottom of a glass press down on the cookies until they are about 1/4 inch or so, bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes checking them after 8 minutes, when you see the edges start to turn brown, take them out immediately, let them sit for a few minutes on the cookie sheet and carefully transfer them to a rack to completely cool. 

Your yield will depend on how large you make the cookies - I believe my yield was about 3 dozen.  If you make them too big they may fall apart. 
  

Of course some cute napkins for those artist fingers, don't want them to get crumbs on their creations.

Some cellophane around the plastic platters for serving the cookies, (lined with white doilies) a nice ribbon, ready for delivery.

Resource

Cellophane rolls, craft stores and Ebay
Avery 8 1/2 x 11 full sheet labels, Staples, online, etc.
Ribbon, Costco
Plastic platters (2), Dollar Tree
Napkins, Dollar Tree
Doilies, Dollar Tree
Ribbon for cookie sacks, Hobby Lobby, Michael's
Cookie bags, Wilton, Walmart, online, other stores
Sparkling Sugar, Wilton, Walmart, online, other stores

Thank you for stopping by.