There’s something about the smell of cookies baking in the oven that brings back a flood of nostalgic memories. And when it comes to cookies, few are as iconic as the Toll House Cookie. This classic recipe, with its perfect blend of buttery dough and chocolate chips, has been a staple in American households since the 1930s. The recipe was originally developed by Ruth Graves Wakefield, who owned the Toll House Inn in Whitman, Massachusetts. She added chopped up bits of a semi-sweet Nestle chocolate bar into a cookie and the rest, as they say, is history. These cookies are not just delicious, they are a piece of culinary history that embodies the warm and comforting vibe of home baking. I love this recipe because it’s simple, straightforward, and the results are consistently fantastic. Whether you’re a seasoned baker or just starting out, this recipe is a great one to have in your repertoire. So, let’s get baking!
Ingredients
- 1 c. shortening
- 3/4 c. brown sugar
- 3/4 c. white sugar
- 1 1/2 c. sifted flour
- 1 tsp. soda
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 tsp. hot water
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 c. oatmeal
- 1 c. chopped nuts
- 1 pkg. Toll House chocolate chips or butterscotch chips
Baking Instructions
- Mix together
- shortening,
- brown sugar and white sugar. Sift and add
- flour,
- soda, eggs, hot water, vanilla and salt. Add oatmeal,
- nuts,
- chocolate chips
- or
- butterscotch chips. Drop by teaspoonful on
- cookie
- sheet.
- Bake at 350° for 10 to 15 minutes.
Calorie: 150
Total cooking time: 30 minutes
Difficulty level: Easy
The Great Toll House Cookie Debacle
One fine day, I decided to put on my apron and embrace the sweet chaos of cookie-making. Not just any cookie, mind you, but the classic Toll House Cookies, with their trademark blend of crunch and gooeyness that I crave at the most unreasonable hours.
The Gathering of the Culinary Artillery
Now, the first rule of cookie-making is to gather your troops. In this case, my troops were an army of ingredients. A cup of shortening, 3/4 cup of brown sugar (the good sticky kind), and an identical measure of its sibling, white sugar. Then, 1 1/2 cups of sifted flour (because clumpy flour is a cookie’s worst nightmare), a teaspoon of soda (not the fizzy drink, mind you), and two eggs, beaten (but not scrambled, this isn’t a breakfast dish after all).
Also in attendance were a teaspoon each of hot water (not lukewarm, not boiling, but hot), vanilla (the one ingredient that makes everything smell like a bakery), and salt (because a little bit of salty surprise never hurt anyone). Then came my personal favorites, 2 cups of oatmeal (because who doesn’t want to feel a little healthy), 1 cup of chopped nuts (for the crunch), and a package of Toll House chocolate chips (or butterscotch chips, if you’re feeling adventurous).
The Mixing Mayhem
Mixing. Ah, the sweet chaos of blending different ingredients together! Starting with the shortening, brown sugar, and white sugar, I watched as they melded together to form a sugary, shortening soup. Then, I sifted in the flour, soda, eggs, hot water, vanilla, and salt. The combination looked less like cookie dough and more like a science experiment gone wrong. But, as I added the oatmeal, nuts, and chocolate chips, it started to take on a familiar form.
Drop and Pop!
With the dough ready, it was time for the “drop by teaspoonful on cookie sheet” part. Now, I must confess, my teaspoonfuls may have been slightly generous. But hey, who ever complained about cookies being too big? After all, the bigger the cookie, the more chocolate chips it can hold, right? Into the oven they went at 350°, and I sat back, waiting for the magic to happen.
The Waiting Game and the Final Verdict
The next 10 to 15 minutes were a test of patience. The aroma of baking cookies wafted through the house, taunting me with their mouth-watering fragrance. When the timer finally beeped, I practically tripped over my own feet in my hurry to get to the oven. And there they were. Golden, slightly gooey, and with just the right amount of crunch.
They say cooking is an art, but I think it’s more of a comedy show where the food is the comedian and I’m the unsuspecting audience. But in the end, there’s nothing like the triumph of pulling a batch of perfectly baked Toll House cookies out of the oven. Despite the mayhem and mishaps, it’s always worth it.
And if you’ll excuse me, I think I hear another batch of cookies calling my name. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it.
