cookies

The tradition started eight years ago when my sister Barbara bemoaned that she had never mastered our sister-in-law Ruth’s recipe for pumpkin rolls.

I invited Barbara over for a day and we made ourselves a batch of them. The secret really is just like Julia Child (at least supposedly) said: You can’t let the food know you’re afraid.  So when it comes time to flip those thin spongy cakes from the jelly roll pan to the prepared cloths to cool, you’ve got to show them who’s boss!

Each year our baking day has grown longer. My daughter plus my niece and her wife join my sister and me, so there are five of us in the kitchen. Baking Day had evolved into each of us bringing enough ingredients to make 2-3 batches of some yummy concoction.

So the day truly was a baking day. And doing dishes day. And being very busy day. And at the end, being extremely tired day!

For this year, my niece Allison suggested that we actually bake just one or two items together. And otherwise, everyone would bring fresh, homemade delights to share.

I’ll admit that I was at first secretly a little grumpy about the change in format, but decided to vote yes.

What a good suggestion from Allison! It was wonderful to actually have time to sit and talk with my family! We caught up on each others’ lives, laughed, and had the time to take a walk. And the end result was the same, after all—we each had a nice selection of desserts that freeze well, so that when Christmas company pops in, we’re prepared (just like our Grandma) to serve our guests a treat with their coffee or tea.

And I got to put a personal spin on the day by incorporating aspects to make it a heritage day.

As we tied on our aprons, I told them the story of where each had come from. I made my niece Sandy’s broccoli/potato soup for lunch, and together we baked our sister Beverly’s Texas sheet cake for dessert. I made my mother-in-law Rosalie’s spectacular iced tea.

And I tucked an extra dessert into their tins—our mom Bertie’s chocolate chip cookies. I’ve been baking those cookies since I was 17. They’ve been my contribution to countless parties and work events. I’ve remained close with friends from high school who still remember when my mom made them. I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve been asked to share that recipe.

So as much as I truly enjoy keeping up with established rituals, this revised version of Baking Day was our best one yet.

It’s a good reminder to me to not become so entrenched in a specific way of doing something that I don’t see how a change can actually be an improvement.

Because if I had insisted on keeping to the tradition, we would have missed out on the walk down a country road on what is likely the last 70° day full of blue sky and sunshine until next spring. And trust me– that would have been a shame.

Instead of a question, as a Thanksgiving gift to my readers, here is my mom’s cookie recipe.

Bertie Shingler’s Chocolate Chip Cookies  

Preheat oven to 350.

2 sticks of butter (save wrappers)           Combine these three

½ cup granulated white sugar               ingredients in mixer

1 cup brown sugar                                  and cream together. Beat well.

 

2 eggs – beaten                            Combine to above and mix

1 teas vanilla                                 Combine to above and mix

2 cups and 4 tbls white flour  plus 1 teas baking soda    Combine and then add to above mixture and beat well.

1 bag of semi-sweet choc chips            Add by hand to above (I prefer the mini chips)

Using the butter wrappers from above, grease two cookie sheets.

Place small spoonfuls of batter onto cookie sheets, a couple inches apart.

Bake 9-11 minutes just until lightly browned on top, slightly under-baked.

(Note: I use cookie sheets that are two layers, separated by air, to avoid excessive browning on the bottom of cookies.)

Remove from oven and let cookies sit on the cookie sheet for about a minute.

Carefully remove cookies onto a dish towel covered with two paper towels. Let cookies cool on this—that’s how they stay so soft! (The secret!)

As soon as cool enough to package, put in a ziplock bag.

Freeze whatever you’re not eating the same day to keep them fresh.