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My husband and I are total cookie monsters. We have a definite sweet tooth and always like to have some kind of pudding available to treat ourselves after the daily toil that is convincing little J that he wants to go to bed. Sweet little baby, he doesn’t want to miss out on anything!
Today he also decided that morning naps are Sooo last week, so instead he busied himself trying to empty a kitchen cupboard and I made cookies. These are so quick, I literally had them mixed, in and out of the oven, and cooling on a rack in half an hour. My husband quickly tried one and pronounced it ‘homnomnomnomnom’!
Happiness is partly about finding those precious moments when you press pause and think ‘damn, life is good!’ For me, those moments can often be found with a little break for a cup of tea and a homemade cookie.
Breathe in for a count of 4, and out for a count of 7.
Just take a moment to relax your jaw, lower your shoulders, snuggle your feet into some cosy slippers if possible, and focus on the sensory pleasure of having your hands around that warm drink. If any little worries or guilty feelings pop into your head, just tell them ‘everyone is allowed a moment just to be present.’
It is so important to both mind and body to practise relaxing on a daily basis. I got into the habit when preparing for the natural birth of our baby through hypnobirthing. Our society today is all go go go- if you’re not late for something, you’re not achieving enough. What people tend to forget is that those things are only as important as you let them be. Stop, breathe. This moment, now, is also important.
Cocoa Crisp Cookies
- 100g butter
- 50g demerara sugar
- 50g caster sugar
- 1 egg
- 100g plain flour
- 50g cocoa powder
- Bicarbonate of soda
- Baking powder
- 100g cereal (I like to use a crispy one but you could use granola or anything oaty)
- handful of raisins
- Melt the butter in the microwave. You might as well use your mixing bowl, unless it’s made of metal of course
- Add your sugar and mix well, followed by the egg.
- Add the flour a bit at a time, mixing as you go, to avoid lumps
- Mix in your cocoa powder
5. Sprinkle in your bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. These work to add some air to your cookies so they aren’t just flat and hard.
6. Now stir in your chosen cereal. Sometimes I use one with added nuts or fruity bits. This time, it was honey and nut flavour. Follow with the raisins.
7. Spoon the mixture into blobs on your baking tray. Using parchment is an easy way to stop it sticking. Mine covered two trays, spread out to avoid them merging as they bake.
7. Bake the cookies in the oven for 10 minutes. There is just enough time to wash up and make a cuppa. They should come out looking quite squidgy still but if you lightly press the top it shouldn’t stick to your finger. I have overcooked them many times because they still looked soft and I expected them to already feel crisp on the outside, but they continue to cook a little on the tray and firm up a lot, so if you overdo them you are left with biscotti!
8. Leave them on their trays to cool for 5-10 minutes before placing them onto a wire rack. I forgot this before and they fell apart as I lifted the parchment off the tray!
I started making cookies using the recipes from The Cookie Book, but for some reason mine were not turning out like the ones in the pictures, so I started tweaking the recipes until they are barely recognisable. I think this is what learning to bake is all about. You start off following someone’s guidance and then as you learn more about what each element brings to the table, you can start growing your confidence to make adjustments. Then hey presto, you’re baking!
Hygge Family Life 