PATRICIA'S DOUBLE TREE INN COOKIES

 When we were back in CA recently, we spent the entire week catching up with friends we hadn't seen since our last visit just before the country shut down because of COVID four years ago. It is always a good thing to be with people who are special to you and that you share many fond memories. 

One evening with spent with our dear friends Lyn and Diane. Lyn, who retired the same year I did, was one of the counselors at the middle school where I spent my last 16 years teaching easily 75% of the classes there. 

I started out teaching special education classes (four periods) and filled the other two periods with classes that needed a teacher. While it was interesting, it also required a lot of prep time on my part. One year after teaching seventh grade core for the first time, the principal told me she wanted me to teach something different the next year. I told her I really wanted to teach the same classes the next year; I had read all of the novels for seventh grade and planned them out. Her response to me was that was so boring. I told her I would like to bored just once. It didn't work. 

I don't remember what two classes I taught the next year, but it was never boring. My experience teaching there just made me more "well-rounded". Miss C was an interesting lady. I started the position as a long-term sub and she asked me at the mailboxes one day after I had been there for two weeks, if I would stay on full-time. I was so surprised. I had not interviewed with her at all. She had stuck her head in the classroom a few times, but that was all. When I questioned her about it later, she told me she didn't need to, she could tell just by talking to someone how good of a teacher (s)he would be. She later retired and had moved away. Lyn told me she had died since our last visit.

For dinner, Diane made stew in the Instant Pot and Lyn made these delicious cookies for dessert. Naturally I took a picture and asked her for the recipe. I was making them within a week after getting home. 

I did make one change from the Double Tree Inn's recipe for their signature cookie that you don't have to make if you want to follow the original recipe, but we really liked them. The recipe calls for 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour and I substituted 1 cup of whole wheat flour for one of the cups of all-purpose flour. We just like the results of using two flours in a lot of recipes. 

It's not really a change, but I didn't have 2-2/3 cups of chocolate chips, so I used a 10 ounce bag of my favorite 70% cacao chips and filled in the rest with mini-semi-sweet chocolate chips to make the 2-2/3 cups. I substitute the dark chocolate chips for semi-sweet chips most of the time and don't really think of them as a substitute, but technically they are.

The same goes for substituting stevia for the sugar in recipes. Society eats too much sugar anyway and we try to do our part. 😊 Lyn did the same when she made hers.

Anyway, I hope you will give this recipe a try. You definitely won't be sorry that you did.

PRINT RECIPE.

 PATRICIA'S DOUBLE TREE INN SIGNATURE COOKIES

2       sticks of butter, softened (1 cup)

3/4 + 1 tablespoon sugar (I used stevia)

3/4     cup packed light brown sugar (I also used a brown sugar blend) 

2        large eggs

1-1/4  teaspoon vanilla

1/4     teaspoon juice

2-1/4  cups flour (I used 1-1/4 cups of all-purpose flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour)

1/2     cup rolled oats (I used old fashioned oats)

1        teaspoon baking soda

1        teaspoon salt

pinch of cinnamon

2-2/3  cups chocolate chips (she note above)

1-3/4  cups chopped walnuts (I omitted the nuts)

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. (Yes, 300 degrees F.) Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugars on medium speed for about 2 minutes.

Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.

Add the eggs, vanilla, and lemon juice with the mixer on low speed for 30 seconds,

then increase the speed to medium speed for an additional 2 minutes or until light and fluffy,

scraping the sides of the bowl.

With the mixer on low speed, add the flour(s), oats, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; blending for about 45 seconds.

Don't overmix.

Scrape the sides of the bowl again. 

Add chips and walnuts, if you are using them, and stir with a wooden spoon.

I did try using my spoon, but decided to mix together with the mixer a couple of seconds. Lots of chips. 

Scoop dough and place about 2 inches apart. I use a cookie scoop to form cookies and

I found if I place the dough on the sheet on its side instead of the flat end and press lightly, the cookies will flatten more when they are baked. I love using my cookie scoop but I also like flat cookies. (The original recipe says to scoop 3 tablespoons of dough, but I wanted to make more smaller cookies so I used my 1-1/2 tablespoon scoop.)

Bake the cookies for 20 to 23 minutes or until edges are golden brown and center is still soft. 

First pan...

Second pan...

Remove the baked cookies from the oven and allow to cool on the cookie sheets for 1 hour before removing to a wire rack.

Hard to wait an hour to bite into one...

After I cooked two sheets about 20 cookies, I scooped up the rest of the dough and froze it in the freezer to bake at another time.

After they were frozen, I placed them in a freezer bag. To bake later, remove however many you plan to bake from the bag and preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. and place the frozen cookie dough on a parchment lined cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake until the edges are brown and the centers is still soft.

Here is a picture of Lyn's cookies we enjoyed that night. She did add the nuts and more dough than I used but not the full 3 tablespoons the original recipe called for.