Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies

     There's a cookie recipe that I have been wanting to try for quite a while, ever since my co-worker and friend Marie told me about it.  She kept talking at work about a chocolate chip mint cookie recipe that was so good that she would make a batch and they would be gone in a day.  Everyone in her family loved them.  She even warned me to be careful because the cookies (and the cookie dough) were so good that you couldn't stop eating them.  I just had to try it!
     I begged the recipe off of her, but received it right before Scott and I flew back east.  On a whim, I decided to bring the recipe (and my whole recipe book) with me.  On another whim, I decided to buy all the ingredients to make it.  On a final whim, I decided to make them last night.  Well, there are five cookies left.  Out of like 40.  Yeah, they are definitely good!
     The recipe that she gave me is written in little kid writing.  I guess it is her friend's son that wrote out the recipe for her and she provided a copy.  The writing and misspellings are so cute that I am going to copy the recipe exactly as it is.  Here you go:


Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies


Ingredients:


3/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon bakeing soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips


1. Preheat oven to 350.  lightly grease a cookie sheet
2. Cream together butter and sugars at high speed.
3. Beat in egg.  Stir in vanilla and peppermint
4. Sift together dry ingredents, and add this to the butter mixture along with chocolate chips.  Stir until well combined
5. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto cookie sheet  Bake 12 to 15 minutes, at 350; Remove from the sheet immediately, and cool on rack
6. Start eating.


     Of course, it would be a lot cuter if you could actually see the little kid writing.  They came out quite delicious. When they were just out of the oven, they tasted like brownies (all crisp on the outside and soft, gooey and chocolatey on the inside).  They have just the hint of mint and the chocolate chips are quite good (I used milk chocolate chips).  When I get the opportunity to, I am going to try to make them with mint chips... and maybe a little bit more peppermint.  What makes me super happy about making them is that they are coming out quite well.  I used to think I was cursed with cookie making (I could never make a good cookie; just mediocre ones), but lately all my cookies have been coming out delicious!  Mmmmm....

Chocolate chip mint cookies

Happy Valley Cinnamon rolls

     Last week, I made frozen yogurt at work with yogurt I made from scratch (blog hopefully coming up on that one soon).  I then shared some with my coworkers and enjoyed it so much that I decided to make a new tradition of cooking something for my coworkers whenever I direct.  I will do my best to stick to it!     So, that being said, the question was what to make for this week.  I looked at various recipes and then started browsing a Happy Valley favorite recipes from the past and present cookbook that Scott bought.  I came upon the cinnamon roll recipe, saw that it needed a standing mixer (which I now have), and knew I found my match. Happy Valley was a camp that WOLF (my job) used to work at until a few years ago.  They always had the most delicious food and had a special tradition of making cinnamon rolls on the last day.  Considering that the last day menu is typically french toast and that french toast makes me nauseous so I can't eat it plus my love of cinnamon rolls, Happy Valley always had a special place in my heart.  They had the best food of all the camps.  So, on to the recipe:

Cinnamon rolls (Sticky Buns variety)
Serves 25

Ingredients:
1 qt. water, lukewarm
2 T. yeast
1 T. salt
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. oil
2.5 lbs bread flour
oil
2 c. sugar
1/4 c. cinnamon
nuts and raisins (opt)
brown sugar
butter
whipping cream (not whipped)
walnuts or pecans

Procedure:

1) Combine first 5 ingredients in a mixer bowl with a dough hook attached.

2) Turn mixer on low, and gradually add flour, until dough starts catching on the side of the bowl and pulling away ("spider webbing").  Mix for about 8 to 10 minutes total.  Leave dough to rise in bowl for about 45 min. to 1 hour.

3) While dough is rising, prepare a  3" deep 9 x 13" baking pan by putting a 1/8" layer of brown sugar on the bottom.  Distribute dabs of butter (about 3" apart) on top of brown sugar.  Pour 3/4 cup of whipping cream (not whipped) on top of sugar and butter.  If desired, sprinkle walnuts or pecans on top.

4) Turn dough out on floured surface.  Do not knead.  With dough cutter, cut dough into thirds.  Roll dough into rectangular shape 1/4" thick.  Spread lightly with oil, then sprinkle mixture of cinnamon sugar liberally all over surface.  Dab water on edge of dough closest to you.  If desired,sprinkle with nuts or raisins.

5) Roll up the dough, starting from the top edge.  Seal at the dampened edge.  Then, using sharp knife or dough cutter, cut in 1" thick slices.

6) Place the rolls right next to each other in the pan.

7) Place in a warm place to rise until doubled.  Bake for 30 minutes or longer in a 350 degree oven.

8) When done (poke knife down in middle to see), loosen rolls around edge and turn pan upside down on platter/pan and rolls will fall out.  Scrape an caramel left in pan out onto the rolls.

     So there you have it.  Sticky cinnamon rolls.  I made a couple of mistakes when it came to making these rolls.  One, I didn't put enough flour into the mixer.  I did stop adding in flour when it started "spider-webbing" (or at least it looked like it was spider webbing to me), but my dough was just too stick when I started rolling it out.  It stuck to everything and I had to use liberal amounts of flour.  I guess I am still getting used to making dough in the standing mixer.  The second mistake that I made was not preparing another 9 x 13 pan.  Instead, I smooshed them all together onto one pan.  So, instead of separate rolls, they made something that looks like a big square cinnamon roll.  I was still able to separate them after they came out, thought.  What really amazes me about this recipe is that you add all that butter (the original recipe calls for margarine but I substituted in butter), brown sugar and whipping cream and you come out with something that looks and tastes like caramel.  Where did all that white cream go?  I should also mention that I cut this recipe in half, since I didn't want to have too many rolls.  I am amazed that the recipe calls for bread flour.  I would have thought that the extra protein in the flour would have made the rolls tough.  But they came out really well.  Too well, in fact.  Especially after I ate my third... 

Cinnamon roll.  Errr... cinnamon corner