Day 4 – Grandma R’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

Going old school on you today.  Woke up this morning and thought today’s cookies need a different look, but then I thought a new look can wait another day – I need to go old school.  I wanted to start Day 1 of this adventure with this recipe but John was baking on the first day and he looked at the recipe and said, “I’m not baking anything that calls for shortening”.  Well, these aren’t Grandma R’s cookies if you don’t use shortening.  It’s my day to bake and I used shortening.  (I looked at the shortening we had and it said use by 2009 – so that tells you how long it has been since we baked these cookies – I did toss that and started fresh).

There is a trick to these cookies – you beat the batter by hand and it is stiff batter so you get a good workout.  I can remember watching my grandma well into her 80’s and 90’s make these cookies and wondered how she still had the strength to beat the batter.  I can’t imagine how many times she made these cookies over the years but you can ask anyone who ate them – they were consistent.  These are a crunchy chocolate chip cookie so they are a perfect companion to a glass of cold milk.

As they came out of the oven I could tell they were pretty close to the original.  I watched them with tender loving care as they baked because I wanted them to be perfect.  I’m not sure if these taste so good because of the taste or if it is from all of the memories, but the first bite took me back a number of years.

This recipe came well before technology, so there is no link for this recipe - here you go:

Grandma R’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

½ Cup Shortening

½ Cup White Sugar

¼ Cup Brown Sugar

1 egg

1 Cup sifted enriched flour

½ teasp. Salt

½ teasp. Soda

Chocolate Chips (about 8 oz)

1 teasp. Vanilla

Mix shortening and sugar; add egg; sift soda and flour together – add to mixture; add chips and vanilla.  Mix with wooden spoon until well mixed.

Bake at 350-375 for 9-11 minutes.  (I baked at 345 for 11 min.)

They rise a bit in the oven but when you remove them they continue to brown slightly and they fall to a thin, crunchy cookie.

Grandma always wrapped these cookies in wax paper and served them out of a greenish-golden tin.  I’ve carefully wrapped these in wax paper and the USPS is helping us distribute – they are headed around the east coast to a few long-time friends who have had and enjoyed the original.  They can compare and see how these match up.  Today was fun, I baked with the recipients in mind.  

Can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.