Bookalicious :: Maida Heatter's Cookies

I adore cookies.  Cookies could be one of my favorite things.  Ever.  I make them all the time - keep a jar filled in the kitchen - and adore new recipes.  So when Maida Heatter's Cookies arrived in the mail I was thrilled.  Not only is Ms. Heatter and expert in the field of baking, but she shares the same attitude toward baking cookies that I do ::


"A few days ago I heard a doctor talking on television about the dangers of stress.  It can kill you.  It can cause a heart attack or stroke.  The doctor listed ways of coping with stress.  Exercise.  Diet.  Yoga.  Take a walk.  I yelled, "Bake cookies!"  I often talk to the television.  I yelled it again and again.  The doctor went on with his list of 12 ways to reduce stress... and he never once mentioned my surefire treatment.  


Baking cookies is a great escape.  It's fun.  It's happiness.  It's creative.  It's good for your health.  It reduces stress.  If you are reading this book, chances are you know what I mean.  You have probably baked cookies.  You could probably tell me a thing or two about what fun it is.  But if you have not baked cookies, then let me tell you.  Bake cookies!  Happiness is baking cookies." 



Could I argue with that?  Absolutely not.  So I dug through the book trying to find the most interesting cookie I could make with what was in the pantry.  I landed on something called "Joe Froggers."  The intro for these cookies describes them as "molasses cookies" but they land far outside of my opinion of what a molasses cookie is. They are crispy, spicy, and smooth. And while they were supposed to stay soft when fishermen took them out to sea, they only continued to crisp up when I made them.  It could be my inattention to precise baking times that caused the problem, or maybe they were too thin?

Either way, we declared these cookies "really good" but only if you like Gingersnaps or (as the Scandinavians call them) Pepparkakar.  My nephews and niece ate them up.

This week we are trying more cookies from the "fairy godmother of anything sweet, spicy, crunchy, chewy, or fluffy" - as Wolfgang Puck calls her.  I can't wait to dig further into the book.  And if you are looking for a definitive guide to any and every cookie - this is the book for you.  But there are no pictures, so beware.  The book is available today!