Joanne Fluke's Lake Eden Cookbook
Page 13
½ teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
4 cups flour (no need to sift – pack it down in the cup when
you measure it)
1 package of candy corn
Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl for 90 seconds on HIGH.
Add the sugar to the melted sugar and mix well. Set the bowl on the counter and let the mixture cool to room temperature.
When the butter and sugar mixture has cooled, add the egg and stir it in until it’s thoroughly incorporated. Then add the mashed pumpkin, chopped walnuts, raisins, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, vanilla extract, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix thoroughly
Add the flour in one-cup increments, mixing after each addition. Let the cookie dough sit for 5 minutes to “rest.”
Drop by spoonfuls on a greased cookie sheet, 12 cookies per standard-sized sheet. Flatten the cookies with a greased spatula. (If the dough is too sticky, refrigerate it for 20 to 30 minutes and then try it again.)
Bake the Corn Cookies at 375 degrees F. for 8 to 10 minutes.
When the cookies come out of the oven, leave them on the cookie sheets and immediately press pieces of candy corn on top as a design. Do this right away so that the candy will stick after the cookies have cooled.39
Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 2 minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 6 to 7 dozen, depending on cookie size.
Tracey’s friends really loved these cookies and they all offered to help me decorate them next year.
*CRANBERRY PINEAPPLE DROP COOKIES
DO NOT preheat your oven — this cookie dough must chill overnight before baking.
2 cans (8 ounces net weight for each can) crushed
pineapple (I used Dole)
1 cup (2 sticks, 8 ounces, ½ pound) salted butter, softened
2 cups white (granulated) sugar
8 ounces sour cream (that’s one cup)
½ teaspoon pineapple extract (if you can’t find it,
substitute vanilla extract)
1 and ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons baking powder (that’s 1 Tablespoon)
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 large eggs
3 cups sweetened dried cranberries40
5 cups flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)
2 cups chopped pecans (or any other nut you like)
1 cup white (granulated) sugar in a small bowl for rolling dough balls41
Hannah’s 1st Note: Mixing up these cookies takes no time at all if you use an electric mixer.
Open the can of crushed pineapple and dump it in a strainer. It needs to drain while you start the cookie dough.
In a large bowl, mix the softened butter with the sugar until they’re light and fluffy.
Add the sour cream and mix well.
Mix in the pineapple extract, vanilla extract, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition.
Pat the drained, crushed pineapple down in the strainer to get out all the juice. You can even pat it dry with a paper towel. When it’s as juice-free as you can get it, add it to your cookie dough and mix it in.
Mix in the sweetened dried cranberries.
Add the flour in one-cup increments, mixing after each addition.
Mix in the chopped pecans (or other chopped nuts) and mix well.
Cover your cookie dough with plastic wrap, pressing it down on top of the dough in your bowl. Refrigerate it overnight.
When you’re ready to bake the next morning, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
Use a teaspoon (one from your silverware drawer, not a measuring spoon) to scoop out enough dough to make a ball that’s 1 inch in diameter. Drop the dough ball into the sugar in the bowl and roll it around with your fingers until it’s coated. Then place it on a greased (or sprayed with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray) cookie sheet, 12 cookies to a standard-sized sheet. (You can also cover your cookie sheets with parchment paper or baking paper.)
Use the flat blade of a metal spatula to flatten the cookies on the cookie sheet.
Bake the Cranberry Pineapple Drop Cookies at 350 degrees F. for 15 to 18 minutes or until nicely golden on top. (Mine took 16 minutes.)
Let the cookies cool for two minutes on the cookie sheet and then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: Approximately 6 dozen delicious cookies
Hannah’s 2nd Note: When we bake these down at The Cookie Jar, Lisa and I usually top half of the cookies with red sugar and the other half with green sugar.
Lisa’s Note: Pineapple is Herb’s favorite fruit. Last Christmas I had to bake 4 batches of these cookies. Every time I baked a batch and put them in the freezer, Herb found them and ate them before I could serve them to company. I guess I should have wrapped them in freezer paper and labeled them Lutefisk, the way Hannah suggested. By the way, Cranberry Pineapple Drop Cookies freeze beautifully.
DESPERATION COOKIES
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
2 cups melted butter (4 sticks, 16 ounces, 1 pound)
3 cups white (granulated) sugar
1 and ½ cups brown sugar
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons salt
4 beaten eggs (just whip them up in a glass with a fork)
5 cups flour (no need to sift – pack it down when you
measure it)
3 cups chips42
4 cups chopped nuts43
Melt the butter. (Microwave it for 3 minutes on HIGH in a microwave-safe container, or melt it in a pan on the stove.)
Mix the white sugar and the brown sugar into the bowl with the butter. Let it cool down to room temperature.
When the mixture is cool, add the vanilla extract, baking soda, and salt. Mix thoroughly.
Add the beaten eggs and stir it all up. Then add half of the flour, all of the chips, and the chopped nuts. Stir well to incorporate.
Finish by adding the rest of the flour and mixing it in thoroughly.
Drop by teaspoons onto greased (or sprayed with Pam or another nonstick baking spray) cookie sheets, 12 cookies to a standard-sized sheet. If the dough is too sticky to handle, chill it 20 to 30 minutes and then try it again.
Bake the Desperation Cookies at 350 degrees F. for 10 to 12 minutes or until nicely browned.
Let the cookies cool for 2 minutes, then remove them from the baking sheet and transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Yield: Approximately 10 dozen delicious cookies.
DOLL FACE COOKIES
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
(THIS IS NOT AN OMISSION – THESE COOKIES HAVE NO EGGS)
½ cup melted butter (1 stick, 4 ounces, ¼ pound)
1 cup brown sugar, tightly packed
½ cup molasses44
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 and ½ cups flour (no need to sift – pack it down in the
cup when you measure it)
½ cup milk
1 cup (approximately) golden raisins, regular raisins, or currants to decorate
Melt the butter in a large microwave-safe bowl on HIGH for 50 seconds. Set the bowl aside on the counter to cool to room temperature.
When the butter has cooled, stir in the brown sugar and molasses. Add the baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix thoroughly. Then mix in the teaspoon of lemon juice.
Add half of the flour to your bowl and mix it up. Slowly pour in the milk, a little at a time, and mix as you go. Add the rest of the flour and stir until it’s thoroughly incorporated.
Drop the dough by rounded teaspoons onto UNGREASED cookie sheets, 12 cookies to a standard-sized sheet. Put three raisins on top of each cookie. Use two for the eyes and one for the mouth.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes at 375 degrees F. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 2 minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 4 to 5 dozen, depending on cookie size
Immelda Giese, Father Coultas’s housekeeper, ordered three dozen Doll Face Cookies for Father’s altar boys. When she came in to pick up the order, one of the cookies looked just like Sister Theresa. (She thought it did, not me!) The last I heard, Immelda was trying to talk Father Coultas into displaying the cookie in a glass case at the church.
*DOUBLE CHOCOLATE PUFFS
(CHOCOLATE WHIPPERSNAPPERS)
DO NOT preheat your oven quite yet — this cookie dough needs to chill before baking.
1 large beaten egg (just whip it up in a glass with a fork)
2 cups Cool Whip (measure this – Andrea said her tub of
Cool Whip contained a little over 3 cups)
1 cup mini chocolate chips (Andrea used a 6-ounce
package of Nestles Mini Morsels)
1 package (approximately 18 ounces) chocolate cake mix,
the size you can bake in a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan
(Andrea used Betty Crocker Chocolate Fudge)
½ cup powdered (confectioner’s) sugar in a separate small
bowl (you don’t have to sift it unless it’s got big lumps)
First of all, chill 2 teaspoons from your silverware drawer by sticking them in the freezer. You want them really ice cold. This will make it a lot easier to form the cookies after the dough is mixed.
Pour the beaten egg into a large bowl.
Stir in the Cool Whip.
Stir in the mini chocolate chips.
Sprinkle the cake mix over the top and fold it in, stirring only until everything is combined. The object here is to keep as much air in the batter as possible.
Hannah’s Note: Andrea said this dough is very sticky. It’s much easier to work with if you chill it. Just cover the bowl and stick it in the refrigerator for an hour.
When your cookie dough has chilled for an hour, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
Take your dough out of the refrigerator, your spoons out of the freezer, and scoop the dough one teaspoon at a time into the bowl of powdered sugar. Roll the dough around with your fingers to form powdered sugar-coated cookie dough balls.
Place the sugar-coated cookie balls on a greased cookie sheet. (Andrea used parchment paper sprayed with nonstick cooking spray on top of a cookie sheet.) Place 12 cookies on each cookie sheet.
Bake the cookies at 350 degrees F., for 10 minutes. Let them cool on the cookie sheet for no more than 2 minutes, and then move them to a wire rack to cool completely. (This is easy if you line your cookie sheets with parchment paper — then all you have to do is grab the corner and pull it onto the wire rack.)
Yield: 3 to 4 dozen yummy cookies, depending on cookie size.
DOUBLE FLAKE COOKIES
DO NOT preheat oven – dough must chill before baking.
This recipe is from Lisa’s cousin, Betty Harnar. Betty’s cookies are slightly different than the ones we make at The Cookie Jar, so if you don’t like them blame us. If you love them the way the folks in Lake Eden do, please give Betty all the credit.
1 cup melted butter (2 sticks, 8 ounces, ½ pound)
3 eggs
1 and ½ cups white (granulated) sugar
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon coconut extract (if you don’t have it, you can
use vanilla extract)
1 and ½ cups flour (no need to sift – pack it down in the
cup when you measure it)
2 cups instant mashed potato flakes
1 cup coconut flakes, firmly packed
¾ cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts (measure AFTER
chopping)
approximately ½ cup white sugar in a bowl for later
Melt the butter. Set it aside to let it cool a bit.
Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl and whip them up with a whisk for a minute. (They don’t have to be fluffy, just thoroughly mixed.)
Pour the sugar into the eggs and stir it all up. Add the cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and coconut extract. Mix well.
If the melted butter is not so hot it’ll cook the eggs, stir it into the egg mixture.
Add the flour in one-cup increments, mixing after each addition.
Measure out two cups of mashed potato flakes and add them to the mixture. Then add the coconut flakes. (If you’re like me and you don’t care for stringy coconut, chop it up in a food processor with the steel blade before you add it to your bowl.) Once the coconut has been mixed in, stir in the chopped nuts and mix thoroughly.
Cover the dough tightly and refrigerate it for at least 4 hours. Overnight is even better.
When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the center position.
Form balls of cookie dough, 1 inch in diameter, with your hands. Roll the balls in the bowl of granulated sugar and place them on a greased cookie sheet (I used Pam — you can use any nonstick cooking spray), 12 sugared dough balls to a standard-sized sheet. Flatten the balls a bit with a metal spatula or the heel of your impeccably clean hand.
Bake at 350 degrees F. for 10 to 12 minutes, or until Double Flake Cookies are golden around the edges. Cool them on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes and then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: Approximately 8 dozen yummy, crunchy cookies, depending on cookie size.
Mother likes these best as sandwich cookies. I spread one cookie bottom with chocolate frosting and sandwich another cookie on top. (The bottoms should be together, making the cookie sandwiches slightly convex.) Bertie’s customers down at the Cut n’ Curl like them best if the sandwich filling is raspberry jam. I think that’s because the chocolate melts if they eat them under the hair dryers.
Hannah’s Note: You’re really supposed to chill this dough, but if you absolutely positively can’t wait to bake them, you can. Just be prepared to wet your hands frequently as you roll the cookie balls so the dough won’t stick to them.
FUDGE-AROONS
DO NOT preheat oven – this dough must chill before baking.
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup butter (2 sticks, 8 ounces, ½ pound)
½ cup brown sugar
1 and ½ cups white (granulated) sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 beaten eggs (just whip them up with a fork)
3 and ½ cups flour (not sifted – pack it down when you
measure it)
Put the cup of chocolate chips and the cup of butter in a 4-cup measuring bowl and microwave on HIGH for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth, take it out and set it on the counter to let the mixture cool while you do the next step.
Combine the brown sugar and white sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add the vanilla, salt, and baking soda. Mix in the two beaten eggs.
Check the chocolate chip and butter mixture. If it’s cool enough to touch, add it to the sugar mixture and stir thoroughly.
Add the flour in half-cup increments, stirring after each addition.
Cover your bowl and refrigerate it. This dough must chill for at least an hour. (Overnight is fine, too.)
The coconut (“aroon”) filling must also chill. Mix it up now.
COCONUT FILLING:
2 cups shredded coconut
1 cup white (granulated) sugar
1 cup flour (not sifted – pack it down when you measure it)
½ stick cold butter (¼ cup, pound)
2 large eggs
In a food processor with the steel blade, zoop up the cocon
ut with the sugar and flour. Pulse it several times so that the coconut flakes are no longer than a quarter inch.
Cut the butter into 4 pieces and add them to your work bowl. Pulse again, until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
Crack the eggs into a small bowl or a cup, and whisk them up with a fork. Add them to your work bowl and pulse until they’re incorporated into the mixture.
(If you don’t have a food processor, you don’t have to buy one to make this cookie – it’s just a little messier when the coconut flakes are longer. To make this cookie without a food processor, just add all of the ingredients except the butter to a small bowl and stir them up. Then melt the butter and mix it in.)
Cover and chill the coconut mixture for at least an hour. (Overnight is fine, too.)
When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
Form balls of chocolate dough, 1 inch in diameter, with your impeccably clean hands. Place them on a greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard-sized sheet. Press them down with the heel of your impeccably clean hand to flatten them.
Form balls of coconut just a bit smaller than the chocolate balls you made. Place them on top of each squashed chocolate ball. Squish those down. Now you have two balls, both squashed.
Make 12 more chocolate balls, the same size as the first ones, and put them on top of the squashed coconut balls. Press them down slightly to make little “sandwiches.”
Bake at 350 degrees F. for 9 to 11 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for at least two minutes. When they’re cool enough to remove, use a spatula to move them to a wire rack to complete cooling.
Yield: 5 to 6 dozen yummy cookies.