Soft Chewy Cookies

The Mommy-15

37 is a good age to finally accept 15 pounds of extra weight, don't you think?

In a recent post, I opened up about locking myself in the library with cheap coffee to start a tiny IM operation. Well, what better accomplice to cheap coffee than cheap pastry which, surely, induced the Mommy-15. Then, at home, our daughters Jo and Jax like to bake for fun. So we bake, and eat, and bake, and eat...

Alright. Life has finally caught up, and granted me the Mommy-15.

It's like the Freshman-15, except you keep it--FOREVER!

Whatever little fashion this blog had is pretty much gone.

And now you know why: can't fit into old clothes! Oh well. Before buying bigger sizes and attempting to look fashionable, how about recipes for the soft and chewy cookies our daughters and I made? They may not be clean, but they taste good.

1. Soft Butter Cookies with Sugar Frosting

Ingredients

For Cookie: 
- 1 cup of unsalted butter, softened
- 3⁄4 cups of granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
- 21⁄2 cups of all purpose flour
- 1 tsp of baking powder
- 1⁄4 tsp of sea salt

For Frosting:
- 1⁄2 cup of butter, softened
- 21/2 cups of confection's sugar
- 1 tsp of real vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp of milk (optional)
- Food coloring

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. Using an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar at medium speed, with the paddle beater attachment.
3. Reduce mixer speed to low, add egg and vanilla, and continue to mix until content seems smooth. Turn mixer off for a second.
4. In another mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Mix ingredients together with a spoon.
5. Turn electric mixer on at medium speed, add flour to creamed mixture a little at a time until flour bowl's empty. Ensure that you mix content well. Content should have the consistency of cookie dough at the end of the process.
6. On a clean counter top, sprinkle a few pinches of flour for rolling. Knead dough for about 30 seconds.
7. Break off a handful of dough and place the rest back in the bowl. Roll dough out with a rolling pin until it is at about 1/4 inch thick.
8. Using cookie cutters, cut cookies from dough, and place on baking sheet.
9. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes, depending on desired softness.
10. Let cool for 10 minutes.
11. While cooling cookies, make frosting by mixing together butter, vanilla and 2 cups of confection's sugar with an electric mixer at medium to high speed.
12. Continue to mix, and slowly add the rest of the sugar.
13. If frosting appears too dry, add few drops of milk -- BUT NOT TOO MUCH! 
14. When frosting reaches a thick, creamy, spreadable texture, reduce mixer speed to low and add food coloring.
16. Continue to mix until color appears even.
17. Frost cookies. Top with sprinkles if you want to.

Enjoy!

2. Yummy Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

- 21/4 cups of all purpose flour 
- 2 cups of unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 tsp of baking soda
- 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
- 1 cup of organic brown cane sugar
- 1 tsp of sea salt
- 2 tsp of pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, both at room temperature
- 2 cups of dark chocolate semisweet morsels

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line cookie sheet with foil or parchment paper.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine flour and baking soda. Mix well and set it aside.
3. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter with both types of sugar in mixer's bowl, and beat content on medium speed until it becomes creamy and fluffy. 
4. Reduce mixer speed to low. Add eggs, vanilla and sea salt, and beat at low speed for one minute.
5. Slowly pour in flour from step 2, and continue to beat until flour bowl's empty.
5. Keep mixing on low speed and slowly stir in chocolate morsels.
6. Using an ice-cream scooper, spoon dough onto baking sheet. Ensure each scoop's a few inches apart. Slightly press each scoop with fingers to flatten top.
7. Bake for 14 minutes, or until cookies are golden on the outside
8. Remove from oven, and let cool for one minute.

Now, enjoy the sweetness!

Thanks for visiting!

Hope you enjoyed the soft and chewy cookies.

See ya.