A Small Taste of Heaven

By Casey Gustafson

As a girl who has been baking her whole life, I have encountered a plethora of cookie recipes. While I’ve had found sweet success with some (pun intended), I have suffered through unspeakable disappointment with others. Recently, I discovered a cookie recipe that puts all other recipes to shame. To sum it up, the day I came across soft-batch chocolate chunk and M&M cookies were probably one of the most miraculous days of my life.

During another aimless Pinterest scroll, I came across a recipe for soft-batch cookies. This sparked my interest more than most cookie recipes do, as I often find trouble with keeping cookies soft for more than a few hours. I had always thought it was impossible for cookies to maintain that fresh-out-of-the-oven texture, that is until I found this recipe. Originally created by food blogger Trish Rosenquist from “Mom on Timeout”*, these cookies will impress anyone who makes the best decision of their life and bakes them.

These cookies can be made at any time of the year, however, since the holidays are fast-approaching, I have been using holiday M&M’s to add a bit of cheer. I recommend using Nestlé Toll House semi-sweet chocolate chunks, but other brands will still work. Pay close attention to the softness of your butter, as the texture of the dough depends on it. The butter should be soft enough to be molded by your fingers, but not so soft that it begins to melt. Also, be sure to use precision when measuring your flour and other dry ingredients, as the dough may become bready and difficult to roll if there is too much flour. By having patience and following the steps below, you will be on your way to composing an incredible cookie!

Soft-Batch Chocolate Chunk and M&M Cookie Recipe

Prep Time: 1 hour and 15 minutes

Bake Time: 10-12 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour and 25 minutes

Servings: Around 50 cookies (dependant on dough size)

Ingredients

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 tbsp vanilla extract (this may seem like a lot, but the flavor evens out)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks
1 cup M&M’s, plus more to top cookies if desired (you can use holiday M&M’s for some extra flair!)

Directions

Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Cream butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla until thoroughly combined.
In a separate small bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt.
Gradually add dry mixture to wet ingredients and stir until just incorporated.
Fold in M&M’s and chocolate chunks.
Roll the dough into small 1-inch balls. For more evenly-sized dough balls, use a cookie scoop to gather cookie dough before rolling into balls.
Place dough balls onto the prepared baking sheets. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for an hour or overnight. If you are freezing the dough overnight, be sure to let the cookies stand at room temperature for at least 10 minutes before putting them into the oven. If you are freezing for an hour, you may bake the cookies immediately.
Preheat oven to 350℉ and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Place cookie dough balls onto baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between each ball, and bake for 10-12 minutes. Be careful not to overbake the cookies, as they will appear underbaked even when they are done.
Let the cookies cool on trays for several minutes before transferring onto a wire rack (or before eating immediately!) The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week.

As a dessert enthusiast, I always have a ball making these cookies (and eating them!). They are the perfect solution to all of your chocolatey, chewy, sweet cravings, and everyone who I have made them for has agreed. I hope you enjoy them just as much as I do!

“Bakery Style M&Ms and Chocolate Chunk Cookies.” -Trish Rosenquist, Mom On Timeout www.momontimeout.com/bakery-style-mms-and-chocolate-chunk-cookies/.

Lemon Drop Cookies

By Maro Coulibaly & Nicole Brown

We have been friends for ten years, so of course we have had our turn at baking together, around holiday time especially. The first time we made these cookies was around the holiday season too, so these cookies always remind us of Christmas time and the holidays. When we were discussing different things to write about and heard holiday cookies was a topic, we both agreed this is an easy recipe perfect for the holidays.

These cookies may not be the most difficult but they do taste amazing and are fun to make. It is important to precisely measure the lemon extract and oil before mixing into the bowl, because too much extract can overpower the whole dish, and too much oil can make the texture too liquidy and oily.

Easy Lemon-Drop Cookies

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 6-9 minutes

Total Time: 26- 29 minutes

Serving: 2 dozen

Ingredients:

1 package of lemon cake mix
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon of lemon extract
⅓ cup of vegetable oil
½ cup of confectioners sugar

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375.
In a large bowl sift lemon cake mix, to make sure there are no clumps of mix, making it easier to mix in later.
In a separate bowl mix the eggs, extract, and oil.
Slowly mix the liquids into the dry bowl, until everything is mixed into a dough.
Pour ½ a cup of confectioners sugar into a bowl.
With damp hands (so the dough won't stick) roll 1 teaspoon of dough into a small ball.
Roll the dough into the powdered sugar until the outside is completely coated.
Space the cookies out on an ungreased cookie sheet, about an inch away from each other.
Bake at 375 for 6 to 9 minutes, making sure to take the cookies out when the bottoms become golden brown.
Remove the cookies and let them cool, before moving onto a plate or eating!