peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies

The Birth Of The Chocolate Chip Cookie

2012-06-19T22:13:00.000-07:00

Adrift in our memory banks are the smells and tastes of the food of our childhoods. One whiff of something familiar coming from the kitchen and we are instantly kids again. And no food is more closely aligned with that of childhood than the chocolate chip cookie. Warm and gooey, hard and crunchy, filled with nuts or deliciously plain, the chocolate chip cookie embodies all that is sweet and wonderful about childhood.

As owners and operators of the Toll House Inn in 1930's Massachusetts, Ruth Wakefield and her husband tended to all of their guests' needs in an effort to give them a unique experience. Ruth herself worked in the kitchen, quickly gaining popularity with her scrumptious desserts. One favorite, the Butter Drop Do cookie called for baker's chocolate. Having run out of baker's chocolate during one of her weekly cookie bakes, Ruth instead substituted semi-sweet chocolate from a bar given to her by one of her guests - Andrew Nestle of Nestle Chocolate Company. Needless to say, the new chocolate chip cookie became quite a hit, as tasters enjoyed the softened chocolate nestled inside the cookie - a far cry from the baker's chocolate, which melted entirely.

The chocolate chip cookie rocketed to stardom taking Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate along with it. Eager to align his company further with this popular treat, Andrew Nestle traded Ruth Wakefield a lifetime supply of chocolate for the rights to print her chocolate chip cookie recipe on all of his chocolate packaging.

That famous recipe stands today delighting generation after generation with its simple goodness. Of course, as the years have gone by, those trying to elevate the chocolate chip cookie to the next level have added all manner of different ingredients. Contests are held all over the world in search of the best chocolate chip cookie. But most cookie enthusiasts will tell you that the very best chocolate chip cookie is the one that is simple in its creation. As the saying goes, sometimes less is more.

For the baking challenged among us, the chance to make the chocolate chip cookie is still within our grasp. Advancements in packaging have given way to pre-made chocolate chip cookie dough - ready to slice and bake; no mixing of ingredients, no mess of any kind - and in 10 minutes you have fresh baked cookies right out of the oven.

But if you want to give chocolate chip cookie making from scratch a try, you can always find the sweetest recipe of all - right on the back of Nestle's Chocolate Chips!

For easy to understand, in depth information about chocolate visit our ezGuide 2 Chocolate.

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

2012-06-17T05:16:00.000-07:00

Here's a delicious Pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe that is easy to make and receives rave reviews.

First for the ingredients for your Pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe.

Recipe:

1 c. pumpkin 3/4 c. sugar 1/2 c. oil 1 egg 2 c. flour 2 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. milk 1 c. chocolate chips 1 tsp. vanilla Nuts (optional)

Here's how you will prepare your Pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe

Preparation:

Dissolve baking soda in milk; set aside. In large bowl add pumpkin, sugar, oil, and egg; stir. Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda mixture. Mix well. Stir in chocolate chips and vanilla. Serve on top of cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees 10 to 12 minutes or until done.

Alternative Pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe:

For a change you can have a try at this delicious recipe here, and am sure it will create impression on everyone. Here's the ingredients you will need for this Pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe.

Recipe:

* 1/2 cup shortening

* 1 1/2 cups white sugar

* 1 egg

* 1 cup canned pumpkin

* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

* 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

* 1 teaspoon baking powder

* 1 teaspoon baking soda

* 1 teaspoon salt

* 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

* 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

* 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

As for the directions to the alternative Pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, and then stir in the pumpkin and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon; gradually mix into the creamed mixture. Stir in the walnuts and chocolate chips. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until light brown. Cool on wire racks.

Enjoy this delicious and easy to make Pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe! Both recipes are popular which is why we wanted to give you both of the pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipes.

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Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

2012-06-12T13:18:00.000-07:00

Delicious peanut butter chocolate chip cookies recipe

This is a very good recipe for all you peanut butter people! This will surely leave a lasting impression on everyone once it's inside your mouth. Give it a try!

Here are the ingredients that you will need to make this Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.

Ingredients:

* 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

* 1 tsp baking soda

* 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

* 1/2 cup softened butter

* 1 egg

* 1/2 cup peanut butter

* 1/4 tsp salt

* 1 cup (6 oz. package) semisweet chocolate chips

* 1/2 cup sugar plus 1 tbsp for making tine marks

* 1 tsp vanilla

Here's how you prepare the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Preparations:

* Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

* Combine sugar, brown sugar and margarine in a large bowl. Beat with an electric hand mixer until fluffy.

* Add peanut butter, vanilla and egg. Blend well.

* Add flour, baking soda and salt to dough mixture and mix well.

* Stir in chocolate chips.

* Take small dollops of dough and shape, with your hands, into 1-inch balls.

* Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. (Cookies will spread.)

* Dip a fork into sugar and flatten the balls lightly with the fork in a crisscross pattern.

* Bake cookies for 6 to 9 minutes, or until golden brown.

* Remove cookies from sheets immediately and place on wire racks to cool thoroughly.

Well I hope the first has already made your day, but for a change you can always try this alternative recipe which you may find is a better peanut butter chocolate chip cookie recipe. Ingredients:

* 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

* 1/2 cup chunky or smooth peanut butter

* 1/2 cup granulated sugar

* 1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

* 1 egg

* 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

* 1/4 teaspoon salt

* 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Preheat oven to 375°.

Cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars until light. Add the egg and mix until fluffy. Blend the flour, baking powder, soda and salt together well. Add these dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Add the chocolate chips. Drop cookie dough by teaspoonfuls onto lightly greased baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 375°.

We hope you will enjoy the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!

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How to Make Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

2012-06-07T02:04:00.000-07:00

Chocolate chip cookies can be soft, crunchy, or whatever you like, but a favorite of many is soft chocolate chip cookies. Making soft chocolate chip cookies is not hard if you just follow these tips that I will give you.

First you'll need to make the chocolate chip cookie dough. If you're looking for a good recipe, search around or use the recipe on the back of the bag of chocolate chips. This is usually a standard chocolate chip cookie recipe.

Mix together the sugars and butter thoroughly. Use an electric mixer to do it fast and well. Don't be until it's really fluffy, just combine to remove all lumps of butter and/or sugar. Then add in the eggs and vanilla.

This step is important to get soft chocolate chip cookies. Do not beat the batter with the eggs so that it becomes fluffy and airy. You are not trying to make a cake or a meringue. Just stir until combined and that is it.

Next, in a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir it with a spoon and sift according to the instructions. If it says sifted flour sift it and then measure it. If is says flour sifted, measure it and then sifted it. This makes sure that you get the right amount of flour.

Now you can gradually add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Add a little bit out of time and mix in thoroughly. Again, there is no need to be just mix it completely. Then stir in the chocolate chips.

Refrigerate the dough for at least two hours or preferably overnight. Preheat the oven to make sure it is completely heated before you put the cookies in. Roll the cookie dough into 2 inch balls and place then about 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheet. Make sure the cookie she is not warm especially between batches. Put the cookie sheet in a refrigerator beforehand to make a cold to ensure that it's not warm.

Bake according to the instructions until very lightly golden brown across the whole cookie. You do not want dark brown or it will be hard and crunchy. Still, make sure you cook all the way or else it will just be gooey dough instead of soft cookie and gooey chocolate.

Learn how to make soft chocolate chip cookies and find more information about how to make chocolate chip cookies in general. You will find lots of helpful tips and tricks to make soft cookies and tasty cookies.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Samantha_Asher

Help! I Need an Easy Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

2012-06-07T00:39:00.000-07:00

Chocolate chip cookies are staples in most household, no matter how old that household's occupants are. Often, depending on the daily schedules of the occupants, a house's chocolate chip cookies could be store bought, made from frozen dough or made from scratch. This article is for people who are looking for an easy cookie recipe's.

Easy chocolate chip cookie recipe #1: The pre-packaged cookie

Step One: Go to local store

Step Two: Pick out favorite brand of chocolate chip cookies

Step Three: Pay for favorite brand of cookies and take them home.

Step Four: Once you have returned home, open bag or container of favorite brand of chocolate chip cookies.

Step Five: Eat.

Repeat steps as needed.

Easy chocolate chip cookie recipe #2: The frozen cookie dough

Step One: Go to local store

Step Two: Pick out favorite brand of frozen cookie dough

Step Three: Buy favorite brand of frozen chocolate chip cookie dough as well as any extra ingredients called for on the back of the frozen cookie dough package and take items home.

Step Four: Cook favorite brand of frozen cookie dough according to the directions on the back of the package.

Step Five: Eat.

Repeat steps as needed.

Easy recipe #3: Cookies from scratch

Ingredients:

One teaspoon of salt

One teaspoon of baking soda

One teaspoon of vanilla flavoring or vanilla extract

Three fourths cup of white sugar (granulated) Three fourths cup of brown sugar (packed)

One cup (or two sticks) of unsalted butter (softened)

Two large eggs

Two and one fourth cups flour (all purpose works well)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to three hundred and seventy five degrees Fahrenheit. While the oven is pre-heating, mix together one teaspoon of baking soda, one teaspoon of salt and two and one fourth cups of flour together in a small bowl. In a large bowl, beat together the one cup (or two sticks) of softened unsalted butter together with three fourths cups of white sugar, the three fourths of a cup of brown sugar and the teaspoon of vanilla flavoring (or extract). Beat the ingredients together until they are creamy.

Once you have made a creamy mixture add the eggs one at a time and make sure they get beaten in thoroughly before adding in the flour mixture. Slowly add in the flour, salt, baking soda mixture until you have formed a slightly firm and smooth cookie dough. Stir in the chocolate chips (most easy chocolate chip cookie recipes recommend two cups' worth, but you can add as much or as little as you want). Next, use a teaspoon to drop blobs of cookie dough onto cookie sheets. Make sure the drops are a couple of inches apart and then bake each sheet for nine to ten minutes at a time. Cool the cookies for ten to fifteen minutes after they are taken out of the oven.

Enjoy these easy chocolate chip cookie recipes!

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Dreams And Tarot Two Threads From The Same Cloth

2012-06-06T12:39:00.000-07:00

For some, it is acceptable to work with dreams but not with the Tarot. With the Tarot comes some unfortunate baggage. It is quite possible, in fact, to utilize the Tarot to facilitate self-growth and understanding. No divination required.

With the Tarot, as with a dream, comes many and varied images - and images do pique the unconscious in the most delightful way.

In this article, we'll discuss how dreams and the Tarot may be cut from the same beautiful cloth, yet are distinct threads.

First, the Tarot and dreams both are ripe with symbols.

Tarot decks like the Rider Waite Smith and the Thoth Tarot have a finite symbol set, as the originators aren't alive to produce more cards. (There are many who have taken it upon themselves to create decks with their own symbol vocabulary, but it is not those decks I'm referring to right now.)

With dreams, on the other hand, the symbol set is constantly being added to by the dreamer, even multiple times per night!

Second, both dreams and the Tarot yield insight from way more than just the symbols.

With the Tarot, many factors contribute to the meaning of a reading: the question asked, the layout of the cards, the position in which a card lies, the meaning of a given card, the pattern across and connection between cards (e.g., "elemental dignities" which way characters in the cards are facing, etc.)

The richness of dreams certainly doesn't come from just the symbols (contrary to a "dream dictionary" approach). The meaning of dreams comes from the gestalt of the dream, the sequence of events in the dream, and the emotions within the dream, to name a few elements off the top of my head. You can even ask a question before you go to sleep, called "incubating a dream," and stimulate a dream that relates to your question (no guarantee that it will make sense on a surface level).

With dreams, also, symbols are both uniquely the dreamer's but also carry an element of universality (how many people do you know that have dreamt of their childhood home? why not take a poll right now and send along your results!)

Both Tarot and dreams can be consulted in the service of set-breaking insight.

Both modalities tap into looser, more associative ways of thinking rather than logical a->b thinking, with swirls of images and evoked emotions. This may represent something spiritual to you (a Highest and Best Self or Higher Wisdom), or it may be simply a source of creativity or innovation.

A big difference between Tarot and dreams?

The Tarot is helpfully external. You don't have to go to sleep or go into a reverie to produce the symbols in a Tarot deck and you don't have to put effort into remembering them or recording them in the dead of night - they already exist in the world to project onto, on easily shufflable card stock.

Dreams are internal. They have to be brought out from within. They are, as the Talmud is reputed to say, a letter that needs to be opened. However, dreams may benefit the dreamer without being communicated. Seriously! According to some theories, simply experiencing the dream may be enough sometimes.

Happily, I've noticed a complimentary relationship between Tarot and dreams, that is, working in one modality stimulates the other. When I work with Tarot cards, my dream source "perks up". It's funny, though, Tarot images don't find their way into my dreams. Working with dreams, on the other hand, has improved my ability to read tarot cards in a more holistic, less "keywordy" way.

Suzanne Carter Ph.D. is a social psychologist by training, a senior research analyst by trade, and a dreamer for life. http://www.Dreamcurrent.com was founded to share Suzanne's expertise and her unique and open way of working in the service of the dreamer and the dream. Her goal for the coming year is to personally enable coaches and practitioners of the therapeutic arts to facilitate the personal and spiritual growth of their clients (as well as to enjoy the insights and growth inherent in dreams themselves).

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Suzanne_Carter

Did You Know That The Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookie Was An Accident

2012-06-06T03:49:00.000-07:00

The chocolate chip cookie is almost mainly eaten where it hailed from in the U.S. , although it is most indeed popular around the globe, and contains chocolate chips in every bite of the cookie, of which there may be many different kinds and shapes. The chocolate chip cookie is also recognized as the Toll House cookie, and came into being accidentally when baked by a woman named Ruth Graves Wakefield who owned a hotel called the Toll House Inn.

When she was baking some chocolate cookies, Ms. Wakefield ran out of baker's chocolate, and was forced to replace it with semi sweet chocolate that she thought would melt in the batter. Since that didn't happen, the first chocolate chip cookies came into being and because they were so delicious she was also able to trade this recipe to the Nestle Chocolate Company, and in return she would get a lifetime supply of all the chocolate chips she ever needed.

According to recent surveys more than seven billion chocolate chip cookies are eaten annually, and as many 50% of all American households make them to eat at home. The main ingredients that go into a chocolate chip cookie are brown and white sugars, flour, eggs, and semi-sweet chocolate. Some people also choose to add nuts to the batter. Anyone can mix and match the ingredients to what they desire them to be, though the Toll House Cookie recipe is the one that most aspire to equal.

To bake the chocolate chip cookie, the baker would have to cream the sugar and butter at a very high velocity usually done with a whisk or electric mixer, then the brown sugar and eggs, and then add some flour and baking powder. Chocolate chips can be added to the mix at the end of the whole process before scooping the cookie dough and placing it on a baking sheet to bake the cookies, although many people like to eat it by itself, something I seem to enjoy as well.

This sort of cookie is a big thing in the United States, and there is much talk of it in the press. It is also mentioned in TV shows such as Sesame Street, who can forget the Cookie Monster? Midwest Airlines bakes and serves fresh chocolate chip cookies on board their flights. Also a fact not widely known to many is that the desert camouflage pattern that U.S. military wore during the first Gulf War was nicknamed "chocolate chip," since it greatly resembled chocolate chip cookie dough having brown, black and light tan specks all within the pattern of the uniform.

Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Beach, Florida. Find more about chocolate as well as chocolate gift baskets [http://www.chocolatesforeveryoccasion.com] at [http://www.chocolatesforeveryoccasion.com]

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Classic Chocolate Chip With a Twist Sour Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies

2012-06-02T08:25:00.000-07:00

Chocolate chip cookies can be soft and chewy or crispy and chock full of nuts. In this version, sour cream and white sugar give the cookies a lighter color and texture. Don't worry about getting a cookie that tastes sour. You won't taste the sour cream at all, not even in the dough.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and prepare your cookie pans by greasing lightly. You could also use a cooking spray, parchment paper, of a silicon pad.

Cream together 1 1/2 cups white sugar, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla and one egg in a medium bowl. Use an electric mixer on medium speed if possible, but you may also mix it by hand if you prefer.

Sift together

2 14 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt

Add the flour mixture to the creamed batter and mix well. Stir in 2 cups of mini-chocolate chips. Optionally you can use an equivalent measure of chocolate chunks, white chocolate chips, or milk chocolate chips. You may also stir in 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts if you like.

Drop the cookie dough onto the prepared cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. I use a cookie scoop, which is like a small ice-cream scoop, to give me uniform size cookies, but you could also drop from a tablespoon. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until just beginning to brown. Be sure to cool on a wire rack after about two minutes set time on the cookie sheet when you remove it from the oven.

My grandmother used to adapt recipes for everything. One of the first ones we watched her 'create' was a chocolate chunk sour cream cookie. This was in response to several children asking her for their favorite cookie. Not that we didn't love her other cookies, but sometimes you just got to have chocolate chips. Here is the version she came up with.

You will need

3 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt

Sift the dry ingredients together and set aside.

Cream together

1/2 cup peanut butter at room temperature 1/2 cup soft butter 2 slightly beaten eggs 1 cup white sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar

until light and smooth. Blend in 1 cup sour cream and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Be sure the mixture is creamy in appearance. The texture should be smooth.

Add the flour mixture gradually, a little at a time until you get a soft dough.

Fold in 1 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup chopped pecans. (you can omit the nuts if you like but they are great in combination with the chocolate chips).

Cover the mixture with clear plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator.

When ready to bake, Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Drop cookie dough by tablespoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Be sure you space the mounds of dough about 2 inches apart as they will puff up and spread out.

Bake the cookies 10 to 12 minutes or until the tops of the cookies begin to turn a golden brown.

Cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container, that is if there are any left to store once your family gets a taste of these.

Optional: during the holiday season I will substitute red and green candy coated chocolate pieces (you know the name brand) for the chocolate chips. You could also try this with white chocolate chips and chopped candied cherries for a pretty and tasty addition to your holiday cookie exchange table.

These are only two of the myriad of variations for chocolate cookies. Once you taste these versions you may not want to go back to those old standbys. And, if you have always bought your chocolate chip cookies in a bag from the grocery store, you are in for a tasty treat that will delight your senses and may spoil you with the warm goodness of freshly baked cookies.

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At [http://www.caglecooksonline.com] you can download free cookbooks and find great lots of recipes. Check it out and don't miss the Master Site Index with links to all my online content. My Holiday cookbook is ready now and my newest cookbook, for Diabetics, is almost ready and will be available soon. So, head on over and see how I can help YOU today?

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Beloved Recipes Chocolate Chip Cookies As Baked At The Legendary Toll House Inn

2012-05-30T13:28:00.000-07:00

Although we tend to think of them as one of our older and long-loved recipes, chocolate chip cookies have actually only been with us since 1937. As American as apple pie, chocolate chip cookies history starts with what may have been a failed experiment or an accident in Whitman, Massachusetts. Fortunately for us, this event created one of the most popular chocolate chip cookies recipes ever.

It all started when a toll house was built on the old coach road between Boston and Bedford, Massachusetts. Built in 1709, this was where those who used the toll road paid their toll, changed horses, and were provided with hearty home-cooked meals. Over the years, the toll house developed a reputation for providing a night's solace for weary travelers.

When Ken and Ruth Wakefield established the Toll House Inn in 1930, they pledged to uphold the old tradition, and served only food they cooked themselves - lovely home-cooked meals. Ruth soon gained fame for her desserts and even authored a cookbook. But, it was her creation of the most loved of all chocolate chip cookies recipes that gained her, and the Toll House Inn, a place in baking history.

Of all the cookie recipes, chocolate chip cookies are one of the most beloved. How they came to be is still disputed, but one thing we know for sure - the chocolate chip cookies history has its beginning at the Toll House Inn.

The Controversial Chocolate Chip Cookies History

The version made popular by Nestle - the Swiss chocolate company - tells us that Mrs. Wakefield was making chocolate cookies, when she ran out of her regular baker's chocolate. Not ready to call it quits, she chopped up a Nestle semi-sweet chocolate bar and tossed the bits into the batter - thinking they'd melt into the batter. Of course, they did not and the famous Toll House cookie was born.

However, the story told by a former Toll House Inn employee shows that the chocolate chip cookie was a freak accident. Mrs. Wakefield was quite well known for her sugar cookies, which she offered with every meal and sold in the inn's lobby. One day, while mixing up a large batch in her monster Hobart mixer, a Nestle bar rattled off a shelf, and fell into the mix. With chocolate bits throughout her cookie dough, Mrs. Wakefield believed her batch of cookies to be ruined. Fortunately, her frugal employee talked her into baking the batch.

Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipes Become An American Staple

Whichever story is true, the Toll House Inn is indisputably the birthplace of this favourite of recipes. Chocolate chip cookies were born in this homey inn, and soon became a famous treat.

During WWII, soldiers from Massachusetts received Toll House cookies from back home, and shared them with their comrades in arms from other parts of America. Soon, hundreds of letters started a nation-wide craze for Toll House cookie recipes, chocolate chip cookies, and the Nestle semi-sweet chocolate that made them possible.

How To Make Chocolate Chip Cookies The Toll House Way

Even today, amongst the most popular cookie recipes, chocolate chip cookies are still tops, and half the cookies baked in American homes are chocolate chip cookies. Recipes for the famous Toll House cookie vary, but my favourite is a faithful rendition of the original. See, Nestle streamlined the recipe by simply tossing the baking power in with the dry ingredients, but the couple extra seconds needed to dissolve it in water is worth it.

First get all your ingredients out on the counter. You'll need one cup of butter - no, margarine will not cut it here. Measure out 3/4 of a cup each of brown and white sugar. In a small bowl, beat 2 eggs. Measure out 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 2 1/2 cups of flour, one teaspoon salt, a cup of chopped walnuts (my special addition to this tasty recipe), 12 ounces of chocolate, and one teaspoon vanilla.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and prepare a 10 x 12 baking sheet. Although you can simply grease the sheet with some extra butter, it's a lot easier to remove the baked cookies if you lay down a layer of parchment paper for baking. Note that this is not just any parchment paper, but parchment paper for baking - a special paper that is food safe and oven safe.

Now, in a large bowl, cream the butter well with a wooden spoon - no plastic imitation gives the same feel. Slowly add the sugars and cream them into the butter with good strong strokes. Creaming with good strong strokes is how to make chocolate chip cookies that have that perfect texture we all love.

Next, add the egg and vanilla, and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. This should take about 3-5 minutes with an electric beater, or more by hand.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour and salt. Add about half of this flour mixture to the liquid ingredients, and beat well.

Dissolve the baking soda in one teaspoon of hot water, and add to the cookie dough, stirring it in well. Then, add the rest of the flour mix and beat until completely mixed.

With a knife, chop the chocolate into large chunks and - along with the walnuts - stir into the dough.

Drop the dough onto the cookie sheet - or parchment paper for baking - by large heaping spoonfuls. Place the dough balls about 2 inches apart and flatten them with the back of a fork - to a little under 1/2 inch thick.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until they are lightly browned all over. The outside should be crisp and crunchy. This is how to make chocolate chip cookies that the whole family will love.

Let them cool on a rack, and soon you'll enjoy one of the world's beloved cookie recipes, chocolate chip cookies from the old Toll House Inn. You'll be biting into a piece of chocolate chip cookies history.

Toll House cookies are just one of a number of delicious chocolate chip cookies. Click here for more great recipes - chocolate chip cookies galore! Try out all the delicious variations at: http://recipeschocolatechipcookies.blogspot.com

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Chocolate Chip Cookies How We Love America's Favorite Cookie!

2012-05-29T22:23:00.000-07:00

Don't you love it when your kids are getting ready for bed and you hear, "By the way Mom - our class party is tomorrow, and I signed up for three dozen chocolate chip cookies!"

Cookies are America's most popular dessert, and for all those late night, emergency cookie baking sessions, or almost any cookie occasion, about half the cookies baked are chocolate chip.

Did you ever wonder what chocolate chip cookies and President John F. Kennedy have in common? Perhaps not, but here are some historical chocolate chip cookie tidbits.

There are an estimated 2,000 varieties of this popular cookie, from chocolate chip banana to white chocolate chip raspberry, but the most popular is the Toll House cookie recipe seen on the back of every Nestlé chocolate chip package.

In 1930, Ruth Wakefield and her husband, Kenneth, established the Toll House Inn, near Boston, Massachusetts. Their tourist lodge was housed in a building (circa 1709) where, at one time, travelers paid their tolls, changed horses and enjoyed home-cooked meals.

The Toll House Inn was well-known for Ruth's cooking, especially her desserts. She often sent travelers on their way with a plate of her delicious cookies. One otherwise uneventful day in 1937, Ruth added small chunks of a Nestlé's Semisweet Yellow Label Chocolate bar to her butter cookie dough.

Results? Instant success!

The story goes that Ruth received a lifetime supply of chocolate in exchange for her recipe, which Nestle' printed on the back of their semisweet chocolate bar packages. The cookie recipe was so popular that Nestlé began marketing chocolate chips to be used especially for cookies.

Over the years, the popular Toll House Inn included many well-known guests, including - guess who? - President John F. Kennedy.

Almost a century after Ruth dropped that first piece of chocolate into her cookies, every bag of Nestle chocolate chips in North America continues to have Wakefield's original, Toll House recipe printed on the back.

Just like Ruth's recipe, all basic chocolate chip recipes call for flour, sugar, butter or margarine, baking powder and/or baking soda, eggs, vanilla, and chocolate chips. The taste and texture varies with recipe. Some chocolate chip cookies bake puffy and others flat. The easiest to decorate are flat.

Decorate chocolate chip cookies? Yes, these are especially unique for Jenny and Jeff's school parties - that is, if you aren't too tired after your all night baking session! Chocolate chip cookies are tasty enough without icing, but a little decoration will make you the most popular mom in the class!

Decorated Chocolate Chip Pan Cookie

Instead of the more time-consuming individual cookies, the chocolate chip pan cookie can be a life-saver when you've awakened at midnight, realizing you forgot to bake those cookies for tomorrow's first grade celebration of "National Play Doh Day."

After you bake the cookie, pipe on a balloon (royal icing border filled in with gel icings) and message like "Happy Imagining!"

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bouquets

While chocolate chip cookies don't lend themselves to the fancier, polished cookie bouquets, they can be very cute and cheerful - exactly the thing for 85-year-old Aunt Myrna, who married her yoga instructor, or Cousin Jim who just graduated from bungee-jumping class - with flying colors!

Here's one idea:

Cookies and Milk Bouquet

1 batch of Toll House chocolate chip cookie dough

Lollipop sticks (rolled paper, not plastic) of varying heights

Royal icing

Preheat oven to 375° F. Roll cookie dough into 2-inch balls. Arrange four balls on an ungreased cookie sheet. Insert a lollipop stick into each ball. Press dough down slightly.

Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are crisp. Cool on baking sheet for 1 minute; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Once cooled (about 20 minutes), decorate your cookies with a decorating bag and royal icing. Use icing sparingly so as not to detract from the wholesome cookie taste. For the "cookies and milk" theme, you might want to add white icing milk moustaches.

After the icing hardens, wrap each cookie in cellophane and tie with a ribbon. Arrange in a mug (for the milk!) that matches your theme.

If you're interested in creating the beautiful cookie bouquets made from sugar cookies you see selling for $40 to $80, you can learn how from classes, books and videos, such as the "Cookie Decorating Made Easy" Video Books that this reader used:

"Hi Michael! I bought your cookie video books on Friday and made cookies with my kids on Saturday. It was the funnest time and the cookies turned out beautifully."

Chris B.

Las Vegas, NV

One last tip. If you want to be the mom with the most original cookies, bake your chocolate chip cookies in various shapes. Just fit a large decorating tip to a pastry bag, fill with your dough, and pipe out drop flowers or other shapes onto your cookie sheet.

Samantha Mitchell, Co-Author Cookie Decorating Made Easy! Vol. 1 & 2 The World's First Cookie Decorating Video Books. For more cookie decorating tips along with online videos from our "Cookie Decorating Made Easy" Video Books, sign up for our free newsletter at http://www.CookiesMadeEasy.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Samantha_Mitchell

Chocolate Chip Cookie America's Favorite Cookie

2012-05-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

One of the things that the cookie business has taught me is that people are passionate about their Chocolate Chip Cookies in all of their variations!

Discussions about what types of cookies people like, Peanut Butter, Snickerdoodle, and Oatmeal Raisin are fine but when we talk about these cookies the discussions never get as heated as they do when we discuss the Chocolate Chip Cookie.

American original, this cookie was invented by the proprietor of the Toll House Inn of Whitman Massachusetts in the 1930's, Ruth Wakefield created this menu item as a way to satisfy the sweet tooth of her guests. Years later she would publish a cookbook Toll House Tried and True Recipes that included her recipe for Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cook that was soon being baked by housewives all across the country.

The debate rages over which is better, thick or thin, chewy or crisp, big or little, everyone has their personal preference. I prefer a chewy one but with crisp outer edges, the best of both worlds if you ask me. But whether you like them crunchy or soft there is sure to be a cookie that has the perfect texture for you.

Not Just Chips

The chocolate chip cookie has been transformed into more types of products than any other cookie. It may have started with only chocolate, but today variations include white chocolate morsels, Reese's Pieces, M&M's, walnuts are often added to the dough to give them a bit of crunch, or maybe Macadamia nuts. Chocolate and Peanut Butter is a classic combination so why not Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies?

Don't like a cookie, turn them into a bar and lets call the Chocolate Morsel Bar Cookies baked in a brownie pan!

How about a GIANT cookie? There is such a thing as a 12 inch diameter, 27 ounce monster cookie that would feed an entire children's birthday party, or one really, really hungry cookie monster.

A flavor that we get asked to make a lot is Oatmeal Chocolate Chip, and we have a customer that LOVES his Oatmeal Walnut Chocolate Chip cookies.

What started in a little country Inn has grown into something remarkable and while there are many variations of this American classic one thing is for sure...we love our Chocolate Chip Cookies in all of their forms. What is your favorite?

Find recipes for Chocolate Chip Cookies and more at our website.

Sean Lannin is the owner of http://www.bendcookie.com which offers custom, hand decorated sugar cookies arranged in bouquets, tins and baskets for all life's celebrations.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sean_Lannin