10 Things About Cookies

Here are the cookies I baked a couple of days ago.  And here's ten things about baking cookies (mostly I love to write in bullet points if you haven't noticed):

1. I always use quality ingredients when baking (real butter, not margarine; real vanilla, not the fake stuff, etc).
2. Cookies are super simple to make (I can't believe people buy store-bought cookies when making your own are less expensive and usually taste better!).
3. I usually add whatever is on hand when I bake.  This is especially true for baking banana bread because I can add chunks of apple, chunks of banana, raisins, dried cranberries, chocolate chips...basically anything and it still comes out well).
4. I don't add nuts to any of my recipes when I bake.  Because I usually give away some of the things I make and because nut allergies are so prevalent these days I figure it isn't worth the risk to add any sort of nuts to my baked goods.
5. When I made the cookies above I halved the recipe since it is only the hubby and I (and I didn't want to eat an entire batch of cookies by myself!).  The cookies still come out fine when I use half of each ingredient as called for in the recipe.
6. One blogger suggested that instead of halving the recipe to make fewer cookies that I instead make a full batch and freeze the other half of the batter so I can bake the rest of the cookies at a later time which is a really good idea.
7. I keep all of my recipes on my computer (this is an especially good idea when you usually use the recipe on the back of a product--like Quaker Oatmeal cookies or Nestle Toll House Cookies--but this time you bought a generic brand of oats of chocolate chips which doesn't include the recipe you usually use).  On a side note, if you haven't done this and are using a generic product you can Google the original recipe online.
8. I can't cook.  I can bake.  Hubby has never baked but he is an excellent cook.  This works out well for us, especially when it comes to parties.
9. I always use quality baking pans.  Fortunately I have found many of these pans (bread pans, cookie sheets, etc) at the Goodwill but a good pan is worth paying even full price for because the result of using these pans is superior to using cheap, thin pans.  Ditto for buying a good wooden spoon, nice mixing bowls, a quality cast iron pan, etc.
10. Baked goods make a good gift.  It's an Asian thing that whenever you go to someone's house, you bring something to give the person you are visiting.  Most people bring wine, flowers, pastries from a bakeshop, etc.  Whenever we go to visit someone I bring baked goods.  This is much cheaper and I feel it is a much more personal gift.