Cooking with my mother in her kitchen was among the best activities of my childhood. As her helper, I got to participate by measuring mostly, then graduating to mixing and churning ingredients in bowls and pans. The biggest thing, and most childhood helpers would probably agree, was observing how mom prepared the family dishes and having that ingrained in memory.
Later in life as a college student and an adult, we would sit down together as she prepared a dish and write down ingredient amounts, preparation tips and other advice for making a particular dish. I took notes and eventually compiled them into a recipe collection but in revisiting the recipes in later years, I’ve found those notes lacking and leaving a lot to the imagination or research. It seems we just seemed to know how to make these dishes and left a lot to trial and error plus later imagining.
On the plus side, some of these family favorites became part of my own cooking routines. Others turned out to be so laborious as not to be embarked on and remained preserved in the library alone. Among the keepers however were mom’s oatmeal chocolate chip crispy cookies which are always a hit with family and friends.
So in reading this cycle’s Cook the Books selection, “Relish - My Life in the Kitchen” by Lucy Knisley, I gravitated immediately to the chapter entitled “Cookies are all about comfort – sometimes something simple can comfort the most,” and to her recipe for “the best chocolate chip cookies.” With all due respect, I beg to differ that her cookies are the best. That honor goes to my mom.
All in all, the book, selected in this reading cycle by host Simona Carini, was quite intriguing in that it was composed entirely of cartoon illustrations with the text accompanying them along with recipes. At first I wasn’t sure how to follow such a narrative, but it turned out to be an enjoyable reading journey.
I particularly enjoyed finding her cookie recipe and comparing it to mom’s. Mom’s won in my estimation and I hope yours too.
This is my contribution to the February/March cycle of Cook the Books hosted by Simona Carini. of briciole. Anyone can participate by reading the current selection, taking inspiration from it and cooking/posting about an inspired dish.
Mom’s Oatmeal Crispies
Ingredients
1 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 beaten eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 ½ up flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3 cups oatmeal
½ cup chopped walnuts
½ package chocolate chips
Preparation
Cream shortening and sugars in. medium bowl. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well, several minutes. Add dry ingredients gradually till incorporated. At the end, stir in oatmeal, chips and nuts.
On long sheets of waxed paper, shape dough into 2 long rolls. Roll up completely in the waxed paper and chill overnight.
Take dough out of fridge for ~ 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With a sharp knife, cut dough into thin slices. You likely will have to do some hand shaping. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake for ~ 10 minutes. Let cool and remove from pan
