Cream Puff Murder (Hannah Swensen, #11)(12)

CHOCOLATE CHIP MEGA COOKIES

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.



2 cups white (granulated) sugar

1 cup softened butter (2 sticks, 8 ounces, 1/2 pound)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 beaten eggs (just whip them up in a glass with a fork)

1 teaspoon molasses

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup chopped walnuts (or any other nut you prefer—nuts are optional)

2 cups chocolate chips (a 12-ounce package)

2 ? cups flour (not sifted—pack it down in the cup when you measure it)



Hannah’s 1st Note: You can mix these cookies by hand or use an electric mixer on slow speed.



Place the sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add the softened butter and vanilla extract, and stir until the resulting mixture is light and fluffy. Add the beaten eggs and mix well.



Mix in the teaspoon of molasses. (To measure molasses or any other sticky liquid, spray your measuring spoon or cup with Pam or another nonstick spray before you measure.) Stir until the mixture in your bowl is a uniform color.



Add the salt and the baking soda, and mix until they’re thoroughly incorporated.



Hannah’s 2nd Note: You have alternatives if your family doesn’t like or can’t eat the chopped nuts. You can use a cup of finely shredded coconut in place of the nuts, or a cup of rolled oats, or a cup of crushed breakfast cereal (measure after crushing), or even a cup of chopped dried fruit like raisins or apricots.



Add the nuts or their alternative and stir them in. Then add half of the chocolate chips and half of the flour. (You don’t have to be exact—the object is to add the flour and the chocolate chips in two parts so they won’t glob up when you stir them in.) Stir until the chips and flour are thoroughly incorporated.



Add the rest of the chips and the rest of the flour. Mix thoroughly. Let the dough rest while you prepare the pans.



You will use two and only two pans for this recipe. (They’re called “mega” cookies for a reason!) Use two 9-inch or 10-inch pie pans—glass, metal, or disposable, it really doesn’t matter. If you must, you can use three 8-inch pie pans, but the cookies will be much thinner and you’ll have to reduce the baking time by 5 minutes.



Line your pie pans with a big square of aluminum foil, pressing the foil down to conform to the bottom and sides of the pie pan and leaving the four corners sticking up. (You’ll use them later to remove the cookies from the pie plates.)



Once the pie pans are lined on the inside, spray the foil with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray.



Divide your cookie dough in half (or thirds if you used three 8-inch pie pans.) Form each half into a large ball. Place the balls in the center of your pie pans and smush them down with your impeccably clean hands. Continue to flatten the dough balls until they’re spread all the way out to the sides of the pan, and the tops are fairly smooth.



Bake the “mega” cookies at 350 degrees F. for 40 minutes (35 minutes if you made three cookies instead of two.) Test for doneness by using a time-honored method devised by Hannah’s Grandma Swensen. Press the back of a spoon down on the center of the cookie. If it sinks in and comes out gooey and squishy, the cookies need more baking. Try them again after 5 minutes. If it leaves only a slight indentation, your cookies are done.



Remove your cookies from the oven and cool them in their pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Then grasp two diagonal corners, lift the cookies out of their pans and continue to cool them on the wire racks until they reach room temperature.



When the cookies are thoroughly cool, carefully peel off the foil. They’re wonderful just as they are, but you can add to the enjoyment by decorating them if you wish.



Lisa uses a pastry bag to make little stars around the edge of her cookies, and then she personalizes them with a name written across the center. If you’re like me and you prefer not to use a pastry bag, you can buy little tubes of frosting in the grocery store and write a message and a name with them in your choice of frosting color.





Chapter Four




Hannah was in the kitchen refilling the large cookie jars they kept behind the counter in the coffee shop to display the day’s wares. She’d just put the lid back on the Raisin Drops when Lisa pushed open the swinging door that separated the coffee shop from the kitchen. “Mike’s here,” she announced. “Do you want me to send him back here?”

“Sure.” Hannah watched as Lisa crossed the floor and picked up two of the full cookie jars to take to the coffee shop. From day one, Lisa saw what needed to be done, and she did it without being asked. It was only one of the many characteristics that made her such a perfect partner.

Once Lisa was gone, Hannah took off the food service gloves she wore to handle cookies and reached up to smooth her hair. She knew it wouldn’t do much good. She could feel her unruly curls popping back up again the moment she removed her hand.

“Hi, Hannah.” Mike Kingston came in as if he owned the place, but Hannah didn’t mind. His self-confidence and assertiveness were two of the things she liked best about him. Of course she also liked his rugged good looks and the way he made her heart pound against her rib cage whenever he walked into the room. His towering height was impressive too. Hannah wasn’t petite and at over five feet, eight inches tall, she appreciated a man she could look up to, a man who made her feel dainty and feminine. This was a rare treat for the daughter Delores claimed was a throwback to her rotund paternal grandmother, not exactly petite either, but the best farmwife, cook, and baker that Hannah had ever known.