Baking Traditions
This season has been so jam-packed with school work, doctor’s appointments, and plain old life, that we just haven’t done a lot of Christmas activities. So I’ve been trying to bake some of our traditional recipes over the past few days. My Daddy’s Chocolate Chip Cookies are always on the list, though I admit it took me over two years to bake them again after he went home to Jesus.
You see, I was baking them when I got the call, the call the began the hardest day of my life. I left the house in such a whirlwind that morning that I actually left them in the oven. Fortunately I remembered to at least turn the oven off before I ran out of the door.
Today, I am able to bake them while reminiscing about all the times my Daddy baked them for me. It’s still bittersweet, but I can do it. They are the cookies I remember the most from my childhood, and just so deliciously tasty. And they feel like Christmas.
Ingredients
- 3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 sticks butter, softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl.
- Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla extract in a large mixer until creamy.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Gradually beat in flour mixture.
- Stir in morsels (do not beat).
- Drop by medium-size scooper (about 1-inch dough balls) onto ungreased baking sheets.
- Bake for 7 1/2 – 9 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Cool on baking sheets for two minutes, remove to wire racks and cool completely.
(The only change I make on this recipe is that I use Pampered Chef stones and they take longer to bake. I don’t set a timer, I just watch until the top parts just barely start to get brown and then pull them out, usually about 15 minutes depending on the oven.)
Enjoy! Merry Christmas, my friends!
