Weekend with Jilly McBean! Part 3

.... and so, by Saturday afternoon--Jill and I set out to make cookies...

We made gingerbread Men from a tube of Pillsbury Gingerbread dough--I cheated and didn't make the dough this time.  It was a lot cheaper to just buy a tube o' dough.  The entire tube cost less than the butter it would take to make a batch. 

We also made Peanut Butter Blossoms (pictured on right).  It took me several attempts to make this recipe because the boys would not leave the chocolate kisses alone!  Meh.  I couldn't either--so I couldn't get mad even if I wanted to. 

Recipe is on the jar of Jif Peanut Butter.

Peanut Butter Blossoms

• 1/2 cup Crisco® Butter Shortening  (I used butter)
• 1/2 cup Jif® Creamy Peanut Butter  (I used generic)
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour (I used some other brand) 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Sugar
• 48 foil-wrapped milk chocolate pieces, unwrapped

DIRECTIONS:

1. HEAT oven to 375°F.
2. CREAM together shortening, peanut butter, brown sugar and 1/2 cup sugar. Add egg, milk and vanilla. Beat well.
3. STIR together flour, baking soda and salt. Add to creamed mixture. Beat on low speed until stiff dough forms.
4. SHAPE into 1-inch balls. Roll in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
5. BAKE 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.
6. TOP each cookie immediately with an unwrapped chocolate piece, pressing down firmly so that cookie cracks around edge. Remove from cookie sheets to cool.

Personally, I like more cookie than chocolate...  so, I made 'em like that. 

Jill added the pre-measured ingredients to the bowl of the mixer.  It was perfect time to get her acquainted with the concept of fractions.  I'm pretty sure she'll need this later.  For now, she's five.  I'm tickled that she can count to 100 and add single digits together.  

I have a cookie dough scoop that measures out perfect 1 inch balls of dough.  It's a high-end, professional scoop--like the ones former sous chefs use.  (At least one certain sous chef.)  I've had mine for 18 years and it's still looking and working as if it were new. So, I'm sensitive about who uses it and how.  Therefore, between Jill and myself, I took on the task of scooping the cookies.  Jill rolled them smooth and then covered the dough balls with sugar. 

Once baked, I let the cookies cool for a minute or two.  Jill was then able to press cookie kisses into each cookie without threat of burns.  (Note:  I have thin cookie sheets and I use parchment paper so I am able to slide hot cookies off the sheet and onto the counter for quicker cooling without messing 'em up.)  Allowing some cooling keeps the kisses from melting and becoming overly soft. 

Jill and myself--we had ourselves a ball. 

The kid, being put out about not being able to participate in our cookie making, proclaimed the cookies as being, "Your typical peanut butter cookie with a chocolate kiss on top.  Nothing special."  But when he wanted a cookie, I asked him why.  It was then he broke down and admitted they were delicious.  Evidently, he ate one.