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Paul’s Award Winning Cookies (Last Updated Fall 2017)

Preface: please read through the directions so you can plan the steps in advance. I typically make the dough a day or two prior to baking. The frozen cookie balls and the frozen cranberries will stay for several months.

Step 1: 4 sticks of unsalted butter (No, not margarine) softened not liquid. 2 cups white sugar and 2 cups dark brown sugar. Now cream together well the butter and sugar in a large bowl.

Step 2: 4 large eggs. Mix them into the result of step 1, one at a time.

Step 3: Dissolve 2 teaspoons of baking soda and 1 teaspoon of salt into 5 teaspoons of hot water. Stir in 6 teaspoons of vanilla extract (No fake stuff). Mix well into the combined results of step 1 and 2.

Step 4: Next you will need 6 cups of flour. Mix 2 cups of flour at a time into the result of step 3. Note: I do this all by hand. I have never used a mixer. If you break your mixer it is not my fault.

Now you have the base cookie. At this time you can add what you want to them or follow what I do to make them mine.

Step 5: Add in 40 oz of Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips to the dough while it is still at room temp (much easier to do) then refrigerate cookie dough for 4 hours.

Step 6: Freeze your fresh cranberries after you bring them home.

Step 7: After dough has been refrigerated ball the dough into the size cookie you are trying to achieve and freeze. I tend to keep mine small, quarter size dough balls. Keep frozen till you are ready to bake them. If you have a plastic container deep enough for more than one layer use plastic wrap between the layers.

It's time to bake the cookies. I absolutely recommend air-bake cookie sheets.

Step 8: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Step 9: Place dough balls on cookie sheet and bake for 6-7 minutes. (Note if you are making bigger cookies you may have to add a minute or two. What you are looking for at the 6-7 minute mark is that the cookie ball has spread out mostly and is no longer a ball)

Step 10: Pull cookie sheets from oven and place 1-3 frozen cranberries at center of each cookie and bake for 9-14 more minutes (the size of the intended cookie makes a difference) you are watching for the color change around the edge of the cookies. If you are using more than one cookie sheet when you put them back in the oven rotate which shelf they were on from step 9.

Step 11: When you see the color change pull the cookies and let sit on baking pan for at least 1 minute to let the cookie set up. If you remove them from the cookie sheet too soon they will squish up upon removal from the pan. If you leave them on too long you can potentially over cook them and they will adhere to the pan and be difficult to remove. You can always practice with a small test batch. I use a large wooden cutting board as my cooling surface. A wire rack is not recommended.

Step 12: Let them cool prior to eating to avoid burning your tongue. ((:

Special Note for those with Celiac's: You can replace the 6 cups of wheat flour with 6 cups of Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour without any other changes in preparation or cooking.

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