Mom cooking is the best cooking.
That is the truth. And yes I discovered that again today.
On today’s to do list was a new recipe and an old one. I’ll start with the new one I found online.
Christmas Magic Cookie Bars
Easy to make. Made me think of a modern take on Hello Dollies. If you’ve never had Hello Dollies they are delicious. I wanted to try these new ones because they looked so festive. Well these new ones taste good. Of course I had to sample a bit. Don’t you? Can’t serve them on Christmas Day if they don’t taste good. 😉. I followed the recipe but the base did not hold together really well. Not as solid as I would have liked. I was able to salvage enough to put in the fridge and I’m sure that will make them better.
Then onto my mother’s Scotch Cookies recipe. So which is it, Scotch Cookies or Shortbread ? What do you make/call them? According to Walkers https://us.walkersshortbread.com/difference-btwn-shortbread-v-scottish-cookies/ Mom really made Shortbread even though she called them Scotch Cookies. Walkers states, “…the main differences between the two styles of cookies are butter content and inclusion of leavening agents.”. As Mom’s recipe contained no leavening agents I guess, as per Walkers, she made Shortbread. You learn something new every day.
Now for Mom the above recipe was great. (Loving that it’s in her handwriting. She had beautiful script.) She could follow these simple instructions ‘cause she knew what to do. She probably didn’t even need a recipe. (What recipes can you make from memory?) But this created some problems for me. I needed specifics. Hmmm. Mix? Mix? How do you mix the ingredients together? By hand or with a mixer? How do you roll out the dough? I seem to recall Mom saying “Don’t overwork the dough or it’ll be tough.” Or was that for pastry.? Can’t remember. How big to cut them? And I was not going to Google to find out. Had to do it myself.
Oh, by the way, I am a very messy baker. Not my countertop. I’m one of those bakers who has to clean up as I go. I can’t stand to have dirty stuff everywhere. So dirty utensils, dishes. pots and pans, go immediately into the sink and I wash up after every recipe. No. I mean myself personally. I get it all over me. I’m a mess. What type of baker are you?
This messy shirt is due to the fact that I started by using a mixer. Wrong choice. Went everywhere. Next. Mixed with my hands. Worked better. Oh no. No cookie cutters. Mom always used a heart one. Improvise. Something small. What better to use than a Limoges egg cup. Perfect.
Heaven help me. I was not prepared today. Went to ice them and I didn’t have the bag with special tips I like to use. Now I probably could have just used a knife but…Improvise. Baggie with the tip cut out. Worked. Not pretty but worked. I like things to look pretty and sadly these did not live up to my expectations. And Mom would have put a bit of red or green cherry or a walnut on each one but I only remembered that after I was done. Mary Berry would not be impressed.
Final verdict? These are not my mother’s Scotch Cookies. Look similar. Taste kind of similar. But not as flakey, or as white, and they don’t melt in your mouth like hers. They will still get gobbled up. I hope.
All in all not a horrible day. Both look and taste ok but as I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist, ok, ok, a great big perfectionist, I wasn’t over the moon ecstatic with them. But they are homemade and baked with love.
Onward and upward. Tomorrow is another day. Now off to the treadmill to try and wear off some of my sampling.
Bakin’ Cookies – The Ellas
Take care and stay healthy.
As always, thanks for your interest and thank you for reading.
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Debi's Junket Journal 