Recipes from Rensselaer Libraries & Archives staff for the Rensselaer Community to bake and enjoy in celebration of National Cookie and American Archives Month.
Check out the Archives blog post Baking Powder Revealed
Peanut Butter Cookies (Elizabeth Ann Baker via Rumford Chemical Works, circa 1930)
Ingredients
2 tbls butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup sweet milk
2 cups flour
2 tsp Rumford Baking Powder (now Clabber Girl)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Directions: Cream the butter and peanut butter with the sugar. Add the egg, beaten lightly, then the milk, alternatively with the mixed and sifted dry ingredients. Add the flavorings last. Roll thin on a floured board. Cut into amusing shapes with cookie cutters. Bake in a medium hot oven, 375 degrees, for ten to twelve minutes.
Oatmeal Macaroon (Rumford Chemical Works circa 1906)
Ingredients
1 tbls butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 tsp Rumford Baking Powder (now Clabber Girl)
1/4 teaspoon salt
Directions: Cream the butter, add the sugar and eggs, then the salt, oats and baking powder. When well mixed drop by small spoonfuls on a greased pan and bake about ten minutes in a moderately hot oven. [perhaps about 375 degrees by today’s standards]
Italian Lemon Cookies (Connie Fritz, recipe from her Mom)
Cookie:
3 Cups Flour
1 Stick Butter
½ Tablespoon Vanilla
½ Teaspoon Lemon Extract
5 eggs
6 Tablespoon Baking Powder
½ Sugar
Cream butter and sugar. Beat eggs separately. Add all ingredients together and mix until dough is soft and pliable. Roll long pieces and twist shape.
On a cookie sheet bake for approx.. 12 minutes in a preheated 400 degree oven. Cool completely and then glaze
Glaze:
1 Cup Confectioners’ Sugar
Milk
Nonpareils
To the confectioners’ sugar add milk a little bit at a time until you get a glaze consistency. Dip cookies in the glaze and sprinkle on the nonpareils.
Outrageous Double Chocolate-White Chocolate Chunk Cookies (Michele via Betty Crocker)
Ingredients
1 – bag (24 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (4 cups)
1 – package (6 oz) white chocolate baking bars
1 – cup butter or margarine (2 sticks), room temperature
1 – cup packed brown sugar
1 – teaspoon vanilla
2 – large eggs
2 1/2 – cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 – teaspoons baking soda
1/2 – teaspoon salt
1 – cup pecan or walnut halves
Directions : Heat the oven to 350°F. In a 1-quart saucepan, heat 1 1/2 cups of the chocolate chips over low heat, stirring constantly, until melted. Cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes, but do not allow chocolate to become firm. Meanwhile, cut the white chocolate baking bars into 1/4- to 1/2-inch chunks; set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and melted chocolate until light and fluffy. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour, baking soda and salt. Stir in the remaining 2 1/2 cups chocolate chips, the white chocolate chunks and pecan halves. For each cookie, spoon dough into a 1/4-cup dry-ingredient measuring cup and level off with a knife. On an ungreased cookie sheet, drop the dough about 2 inches apart. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until set (centers will appear soft and moist). Cool on cookie sheet 2 minutes, then remove from cookie sheet to a cooling rack, using a turner. Cool cookie sheets between batches.
Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies (Jen’s Grandma)
Ingredients:
½ cup butter or margarine
1 ½ cups sugar
2 eggs
1tsp. vanilla
3 cups sifted flour
1 tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 cup dairy sour cream
Cinnamon—sugar
Directions: Cream butter to consistency of mayonnaise; add sugar gradually while continuing to cream. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. Mix and sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. For 3 inch cookies drop by heaping teaspoonful’s on well-greased cookie sheets. Flatten drops with spatula. Bake at 400 degrees 10-12 minutes. Makes approximately 30, 3 in. cookies. For chocolate sugar cookies add 2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled to creamed mixture.
Toll House Chocolate Chips with a Twist (Pat Hults-Tech Services)
Ingredients:
2 1/4 – cups all-purpose flour
1 – teaspoon baking soda
1 – teaspoon salt
1 – cup butter, softened
1/2 – cup granulated sugar
1/2 – cup packed brown sugar
1 – teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ of an orange peel zested
2 large eggs cups mix of Semi-Sweet and Dark Chocolate Morsels – Fair Trade brand*
Directions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add orange zest. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. This recipe reduces the sugar of the original recipe and adds the orange zest. It makes a cakier cookie with a hint of orange.
For more information on the connection between chocolate production and child labor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children_in_cocoa_production
Soft Pumpkin Cookies (https://verybestbaking.com) YUMMY!
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 cup LIBBY’S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions: Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease baking sheets. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl. Beat sugar and butter in large mixer bowl until well blended. Beat in pumpkin, egg and vanilla extract until smooth. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Drizzle Glaze over cookies.
Grandma’s Molasses Cookies (Mary and Coach Earl)
Preheat oven 375 degrees
Ingredients:
1 cup of vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 cup of sugar
1 cup molasses (dark or light)
1 cup sour milk (make sour milk by adding 1 tsp. of vinegar to 1 cup of milk)
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
½ tsp. salt
5 cups of flour
Directions: Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Chill dough for ½ hour in fridge before baking. Bake 9-10 minutes. Touch in center it they bounce back up they are done.
Mocha Cookies: The Bakery (SVR1824 found this, and tried them from Gourmet Magazine)
Ingredients:
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 stick (1/2) unsalted butter, cut into bits
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp. double-acting baking powder
½ tsp salt
4 eggs at room temperature
1 ½ cups sugar
1 ½ tbsp. instant espresso powder(or use instant coffee)
2 tsp. vanilla
Directions: In a metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water melt the unsweetened chocolate, 1 ½ cups of the chocolate chips and the butter, stirring until the mixture is smooth, and remove the bowl from the heat. In a small bowl stir together the flour, the baking powder, and the salt. In a bowl beat eggs with the sugar until the mixture is thick and pale and beat in the espresso powder and the vanilla. Fold the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, fold in the flour mixture, and stir remaining 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips. Let batter stand for 15 minutes. Drop the batter by heaping tablespoon onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper and bake the cookies in the middle of a preheated 350 degrees oven for 12 minutes, or until they are puffed and shiny and cracked on top. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets, transfer them to racks, and let them cool completely. Makes about 36 cookies.
Chinese Almond Cookies (from http://www.tablefortwoblog.com/chinese-new-year-almond-cookies/)
Ingredients:
1 1/3 cup almond flour , lightly packed
1 cup unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes
Pinch of kosher salt
2 eggs
1 tsp. almond extract
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup + 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
Sliced almonds
Directions: Place the almond flour, butter, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.Beat on low speed for 3 minutes. The mixture will be coarse and chunky looking. Add one of the eggs, reserving one for later, and the almond extract. Beat together until just incorporated. Whisk together flour, sugar, and baking soda in a medium bowl and add to the stand mixer. Mix until just combined.Pour mixture out onto saran wrap and form into a disc. Wrap it up and chill in the fridge for 2 hours.Preheat oven to 325 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Beat the egg you saved in a small bowl and have a pastry brush ready.Take pieces of dough and roll them into balls, about 1 inch wide. Place on the prepared baking sheet and gently press them down with your palms to flatten into coin shapes.Take your pastry brush and brush the tops of the cookies generously with the egg wash then place a sliced almond on top, pressing gently to keep it in place.Bake for 15-17 minutes or until the cookies start to turn a dark golden color on top.Remove and let cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Oatmeal Gingersnaps (Tammy Gobert via Sandy Lipsky)
Ingredients:
3 Cups all-purpose flour
2 Cups Sugar
1 ½ Cups Quick cooking rolled oats
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground ginger
½ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp salt
1 cup butter flavored Crisco
½ cup dark molasses
2 eggs
sugar
Directions: Stir together 1st 7 ingredients. Blend in shortening, molasses, eggs; beat well with mixer or by hand at least 2 minutes. Form into 1” balls and roll in sugar. Place 2” apart on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for about 8 minutes (watch’em like a hawk!). Makes about 5 dozen cookies.
Herb Seed Tarts (Tammy Gobert via Cornell Plantations)
Cream together:
1/2 Cup butter
1 Cup Sugar
Add 1 egg
Mixed these together:
1 ¾ cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. caraway seeds
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
1 tsp. anise seeds
Add everything together and chill in refrigerator.
For the Glaze:
1 unbeaten egg white
1 Tbsp. sugar
3 ¼ tsp. cinnamon
Directions: Roll out 1/8” thick; cut and place on greased cookie sheet. Brush with egg white. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
*These retain their freshness well
*Freeze well!
