Balance

Blake woke up early this morning; Hadley slept in late.  I packed up the kids and we headed to Stroller Strides.  After a great workout, I was hungry, Hadley was hyper and Blake was tired.  We set off for home, where Blake gladly went down for a nap.  I asked Hadley what she wanted to do, and she said, "I bake cookies, and I eat them too!"

Not wanting to disappoint her, I happily obliged.  I figure if I work out for an hour, I can eat cookies for an hour.  You know, balance things out.  Right?  

                                          Two of my favorite things: a silpat and a cookie scoop

I made this recipe as written, but used all purpose flour as it was all I had on hand.  I had to eat 5 cookies to be sure, but these are quite good.  You can definitely taste the molasses, but they don't taste like a traditional molasses cookie.  

Some cookies on the last pan turned out really thin, dark and gooey.  They taste just like caramel.  I'm thinking maybe the bottom of the bowl didn't get mixed in as well, so it was mostly butter and sugar.  Yummm.... 

Chewy Molasses Chocolate Chip Cookies

recipe found on www.joythebaker.com      makes 3 dozen cookies      recipe adapted from Alton Brown 2 sticks unsalted butter 2 cups plus 2 Tablespoons bread flour 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon dark molasses, not blackstrap 1 egg 1 egg yolk 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups dark chocolate chips or chunks sea salt for sprinkling on top of cookies just before baking Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda and set aside. In a medium sized bowl, mix the granulated sugar and molasses until no large molasses clumps remain. Look at that! You just made your own brown sugar! Pour the melted butter in the mixer's work bowl. Add the homemade brown sugar. Cream the butter and sugar on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Add the egg, yolk, and  vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Chill the dough for about 20 minutes, then scoop onto parchment-lined baking sheets.  Lightly  sprinkle each dough ball with a few flecks of sea salt.  It really brings out the chocolate flavor. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown, checking the cookies after 5 minutes.  I like these cookies to be just a bit under-done. Rotate the baking sheet for even browning. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.