Butterscotch Blast Cookies

The whole whirlwind of getting things ready for school also includes making cookie dough and cookie mixes so that when the kids need either something in their lunchbox or an afterschool snack... I'm at the ready. This particular recipe can also be put into quart-sized jars and given as gifts, with instructions to add the butter, egg, and vanilla. I usually just blend the dry ingredients, pop it in a freezer bag, and leave them in the freezer until I need them. One can also mix the wet ingredients in and freeze the dough. Either way, this makes a dozen and a half 2 inch cookies.

Butterscotch Blast Cookies

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup english toffee baking bits (such as Heath Bits-o-Brickle)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 egg
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350*F. Blend flour, salt, soda together in a bowl. Set aside. Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg, and blend to combine. Add vanilla. Add the flour mixture slowly, until well mixed. Stir in oats, pecans, chips, and toffee bits. On a parchment-lined baking sheet, drop by heaping tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes and let cool on the baking sheet for one minute longer. Makes 18 cookies.

For Gift Jar instructions: Mix 1/2 cup softened butter, 1 egg, and 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract together. Add dry ingredients and stir until well combined. On a parchment-lined baking sheet, drop by heaping tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes and let cool on the baking sheet for one minute longer. Makes 18 cookies.

Five Spice Crispychews

I'm relatively obsessed with five spice. I have a tendency to use it in anything that calls for- or looks like it may call for- cinnamon. Don't get me wrong, cinnamon has its place. Heck, five spice has cinnamon in it. But, when you compare five spice to cinnamon... cinnamon shows up as a dowdy, quiet cousin who comes to visit from Iowa or Kansas and no, doesn't want to go out clubbing with you and your friends. Cinnamon wants to say home and do economics homework.

Five Spice Crispychews are the sophisticated version of a molasses cookie recipe I had. While the traditional molasses cookie is a bit up front in spiciness, Five Spice Crispychews flirt with you from across the room.

Five Spice Crispychews

1/2 cup butter-flavored Crisco (I don't recommend substituting)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 egg

1/3 cup molasses (not blackstrap)

2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp Five Spice powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup demarara sugar (or granulated sugar) for decoration

Cream the Crisco, butter, and sugars together until very well combined. Add egg and mix well. Add molasses and vanilla, mixing until thoroughly combined. In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients, then add all at once to the butter mixture. Mix until all of the flour is combined. Cover and chill for 3 hours, or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350*F. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls (about the size of a walnut.) Roll the balls in the demarara sugar and place on a greased or parchment-lined cookie sheet, leaving 2 inches between cookies. Bake for 11 minutes. Let cool for 1 minute before transferring to a wire rack to continue cooling.

Yield: 3 dozen