thecookieblogger.com

to dunk or not to dunk, that is the question! these anise toasts are some of the most traditional biscotti i remember eating as a child. apart from being the first cookie many italian children eat, they are the perfect adult cookie to be eaten with a demitasse or a cup of strong coffee.

though i’m not a dunker, i do remember adults around me dunking when i was a small child, and i always thought they looked really silly, though quite content. i’m still not sure if the coffee accents the flavor of the cookie, or the cookie flavor melds into the cup of hot brew. in any case, they work well together, and i’ve only grown to love these cookies more as my tastes have matured.

this recipe is based upon a recipe from sweet maria’s italian cookie tray by maria bruscino sanchez. i highly recommend maria’s cookbooks – each one is filled with a delightful array of italian sweets!

anise toasts
ingredients:
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon anise extract (do not use anisette, as the flavor will not be as potent)
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 cups all-purpose, unbleached flour

instructions:
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. beat eggs, sugar, oil and anise extract together until they are well blended.
3. gradually mix in the baking powder along with 1 – 1 1/2 cups flour until blended.
4. remove dough to a lightly-floured board and knead in the remaining flour. you may not need to use all of the remaining 1 cup, but the dough should not be sticky. Once it loses its stickiness, you’re in good shape.
4. divide the dough into two pieces, and form a 10-inch long loaf
5. line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and place the loaves a few inches apart on the sheet.
6. bake 20-25 minutes, until golden brown and toasty. remove from oven.
7. carefully lift the loaves off the cookie sheets and cool on wire rack. (the easiest way to lift the loaves off the sheet is to use two offset spatulas to lift.)
8. After the loaves are cool, place on a cutting board and using a serrated knife, slice each loaf diagonally into biscuits approximately 1/2 inch thick. place on cookie sheet, leaving a little bit of space between each cookie.
9. bake in 350 degree oven for approximately 11-14 minutes, or until sides of each cookie are golden brown. remove from cookie sheet and cool on wire rack.
enjoy!!

i have been the family baker for as long as i can remember. i can’t recall the actual process of being “taught” to bake, but i do recall snippets of using a measuring cup or rolling out dough at an early age. and of course i remember my cherished easy bake oven. ah, but i digress…

my first vivid and complete recollection of baking cookies ‘outside of the home’ was in the kitchen of the school cafeteria. once in awhile we had the opportunity to take a mini class, and i chose baking with our gym teacher, mrs. panzer. and the first cookies she taught us how to bake were these pudding cookies.

more than thirty-five years later, i still make batches of these for my mom and dad, who eat them heartily, though dad likes them a bit more “burnt” than mom. no matter, a batch from the oven is usually gone within the day.

mrs. panzer’s pudding cookies
ingredients:
1 cup bisquick baking mix
1 package jello instant vanilla pudding
1/4 cup wesson vegetable salad oil
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
sugar to flatten dough
colored sugar to decorate

instructions:
1. mix all ingredients together.
2. drop onto ungreased cookie sheet.
3. dip bottom of glass in sugar, and flatten dough out.
4. add sprinkles of colored sugar.
5. bake for 8 minutes, until edges begin to get golden brown.
6. remove from cookie sheet, and cool on wire rack.
7. enjoy!

Cookies are the ultimate comfort food — at least that’s what I’ve been told by cookie connoisseurs the world over. Bar cookies, drop cookies, cut, molded and shaped cookies — the varieties are delightfully and deliciously endless.

Having said that, it’s always been quite a mystery to me that the best cookie bakers I know lock away their rolling pins, cookie sheets and aprons until the cool days of autumn. Why should those shiny oven walls be denied the heavenly aroma of a tray of freshly baked treats? And why should a cookie-scented home be reserved for only five short weeks each year?

For every season, there is a cookie.

Actually, I’ll take it a step further…
For every day, there is a cookie.

And as the self-appointed Cookie Blogger, I have made it my mission to bake a cookie-a-day.

Now, for all practical purposes, there is no realistic way I could bake and eat a different stack of cookies each and every day of the year. Impossible, no. But realistic, well… with just me, my trim hubby, Owen and our basset hound Goldiehound, there’s no way we could eat the mounds of sweets that would spill from my oven onto my cooling racks.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s not that we couldn’t eat them. But between the baking and the eating, I don’t think there would be much time left for the aerobics necessary to burn off all those calories.

So, as I embark on my cookie baking adventure, I’ll be tasting one of each batch, then passing them along to unsuspecting friends and family, neighbors and co-workers.

But, what would drive me to bake a batch of cookies each and every day of the year? Well, I’m hoping that my crazed cookie baking will encourage you to reconsider your “holiday-only” baking mantra, pull out those cookie sheets and cooling racks — and get baking cookies. After all, a full cookie jar is a very happy cookie jar!