Miniature Cookies from the 1960′s

So right now I am on this “eating plan” that limits you to certain foods, mostly the ones I create..ya know..the kind that contain white flour,white sugar and other “high glycemic” hellions .

The good news is I can take one free day a week.  I usually save Saturday for that…and lately I have been writing a list of things I want to eat on that free day…that’s just pathetic.

But not for my readers!

Last night as I lay in bed and dreamed about what I wanted to eat this Saturday, I was craving thick, and chewy cookies, something soul satisfying and utterly scrumptious.

Last week I went to Amazon to look for a cookbook that my sister and I used so frequently that the pages were stained, ripped and smelled of old cocoa.  Some of the pages were slopped up with so much fat  ( butter and shortening) that you could practically see through them. The cookbook was called : ” Betty Crocker’s NEW Boys and Girls Cookbook” it was published in the 1960′s .

There are two versions, one with only drawings and one with both drawings and photographs…we had the one with the photographs.  I found several coopies and decided to get one.  I am SO not sorry I did that!

The next morning I went to work finding those cookie recipes.

The first one I remembered was Molasses Crinkles

a chewy, medium thick cookie redolent of heady spices like ginger, cloves and cinnamon.

It was the first cookie we baked for Christmas gifts as a kid, and for the cookie jar. I remember helping my Mother make these.  She would give me a glob and I would roll it into a ball in my hands and then drop it in a bowl of granulated sugar.  I alway’s made sure it was completely covered in sugar and then I would place them on the sheetpan.  Mmmm the buttery-ness melding with the spices was intoxicating; however,  When I went to make these, I didn’t remember the dough being so loose .  I recommend chilling the dough or freezing it for a while to control the stickiness of the dough.  Don’t add more flour to compensate though, or your cookies will no longer be chewy. The tops crackle open like the Sahara and the dark and chewy interiors are visible under the sugary top coat! Sheer heaven!

The next favorite was “

Peanut Butter Criss-Cross Cookies

. WAY chewy and I am a peanut butter FREAK!  I used a small doll fork to create the criss-cross pattern on the top of the cookie,

but I also demonstrated using a toothpick for the criss-cross ( as in the photos). As I was making these, I realized that in miniature I could  make  ” Peanut Butter Blossoms”

by putting a standard size chocolate chip in the center after rolling it in the sugar. They are adorable! ( These weren’t in the Betty Crocker cookbook, but I have alway’s LOVED these cookies and whoever invented them was a genius!).

Moving on to number three… “Snickerdoodles”

( which we used to call: SCHNICKerdoodles)-we thought we were SO clever!

My sister LOVED these so this is an homage to her! These have a VERY specific flavor, only achievable ( in my humble opinion) by using the baking soda and cream of tartar as leavening agents ( this was what was used before baking soda was invented).  These spread more than any of the other cookies, so make the balls small to begin and adjust accordingly, especially if you are using the tiny cookie jars to store them in.

Number four: the “Sugar Cookies”. I specifically remember the picture in the book, even before I got it in the mail…the cookies were baked on a popsicle stick, and I had alway’s wished as a kid that we had made them that way, but we just cut them into circles and sprinkled

chunky Rainbow sugar

on them. Rainbow sugar is one of the sugars I most frequently use in my pink bakeshop, and when I use it, people alway’s remark that they remember it as a kid. it brings joy and smiles to me and reminds me of Christmas!

These cookies spread quite a bit so if you are making the mini version, start with a small ball and do a test-bake. If it’s too large you can alway’s adjust; I used a ball half the size of a mini marshmallow.

Last but certainly not least, the most popular cookie for most …the “Chocolate Chip Cookie”. I did make one small change to this recipe because I prefer thick and chewy to thin and crisp,unless it’s a tuile or snap cookie.  I substituted 1 of the 4 cups of flour with finely ground oatmeal. You could also use oat flour.

If you’re wondering how I got the cookies so small in the first place, it’s a great question! For most  of the cookie batters, I rolled the dough into thin logs and chilled them before cutting them and placing them on a cookie sheet to bake.

For the sugar cookies I used a small round fluted cutter, and rolled out the dough as I do with regular-sized sugar cookies.

The Snickerdoodles were rolled into a ball after slicing them and then rolled in cinnamon sugar.

The Peanut Butter Blossom cookies were done similarly, but they are rolled in granulated sugar after being sliced and rolled into a ball, and then a regular-sized chocolate chip is put in the middle before baking.

The purpose of rolling them into a log beforehand makes sure that each cookie is exactly the same size when sliced.  I sliced the cookies at less than a quarter inch, but you can experiment to see what works best for you.  If you are making them for Barbie dolls for example, they will have to be MUCH smaller. These are sized for American Girl Doll ®  or small teddy-bear sized toys.

NOTE: The Snickerdoodles and Sugar cookies spread more than the other cookies, so roll the logs thinner.  I rolled the cookie batter into small logs the size of my index finger.

These “SWELL” little cookie jars were found online in a wedding favor store, and I bought a whole case of them.

I guess I will need to re-roder them because they are a big hit in my Etsy store!  My daughter never seems to tire of me making miniature treats.  She set up this makeshift bakery to sell them to her doll friends.

I found the small natural-colored box in Michael’s near the candy and baking section.  They are a perfect size for the cookie assortment!

Tie some baker’s twine on them and include a little gift tag and give them to your daughter, or use these as favors for a little girls doll or teddy bear tea party! or use a really cute mini pink bakery box to give an assortment to a dear friend!

The Recipes will be posted tomorrow…I’m on vacation, with very SLOW loading so it’s taken me six days to get this finished for you!  SO SORRY! I hope you are all patient with me in the next few weeks!

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