Chocolate Drop Cookies

Many of the cookie recipes I have are very good but a little labour intensive so I'm posting some that are easier to make but just as delicious.

While looking through some recipes that we’ve enjoyed for years I came across the one I've posted below.

Instantly I had a flashback to sweet memories of days gone by. A batch of these cookies cooling on the kitchen counter was always a welcomed sight for my kids after a long hard day at school.

I originally came across this recipe in a cookie book that provided pictures for every recipe in it.

If I could show you the picture that was printed for this particular cookie you may have just flipped the page and looked for something that offered a little more presentation.

A good description would be irregular blobs of dough camouflaged buy a swirl of thick chocolate icing.

The ingredients however seemed to hold great potential. A little cosmetic makeover was all these cookies needed to become a little more appealing to the eye.

Piping the dough into uniform size rounds with a pastry bag instead of dropping with a spoon, substituting a thin chocolate glaze for the thick frosting and adding a little embellishment on top completely transformed this tasty little cookies’ visual appeal.

The wonderful, soft, cake like texture of the cookie itself needed no adjustments.

After baking a batch for my post I filled a glass cookie jar full and placed it on the kitchen counter.

That day a visit from one of my grown children revealed that he also had some fond memories. I quote “How long has it been since you’ve made these!!” as he headed straight for the jar.

A picture of the cookies sent via email to my daughter brought back childhood friend memories and a request to save some for her.

My live at home son had little to say but a lot to eat.

Finally, I filled a cute little cookie tin full and went to visit my grand children… time to make some more good memories!

Chocolate Drop Cookies
½ cup butter or margarine (softened)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 squares unsweetened chocolate (melted and cooled)
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt

1. Mix butter, sugar, egg and melted chocolate thoroughly.
2. Stir in buttermilk and vanilla.
3. Sift together flour, soda and salt and blend into wet ingredients.
4. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of dough (or pipe rounds with a pastry bag and plain tip) about 2 inches apart on lightly greased cookie sheet.
5. Bake in a preheated 375 degree F. oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until no imprint remains when touched lightly.
6. Cool on wire rack then frost with thin chocolate icing.
7. Makes approximately 4 dozen cookies.

Thin Chocolate Icing
1 square unsweetened chocolate
1 teaspoon butter
1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons boiling water

1. Melt chocolate and butter together over hot water.
2. Remove from heat and blend in sugar and water.
3. Beat mixture with a spoon only until smooth but not stiff.

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Substitute buttermilk by placing 1 tablespoon white vinegar into a measuring cup then add enough milk to measure 1/3 cup.
• Don’t over bake to preserve the cookies’ soft cake like texture.
• Parchment paper instead of greasing cookie sheets makes for a faster cleanup.
• No chocolate squares? Substitute ½ cup cocoa for the chocolate squares and increase butter in the recipe to 2/3 cups.
• Substitute 3 heaping tablespoons of semi sweet chocolate chips for the 1 square of unsweetened chocolate in the thin frosting.
  
• Tops of cookies may also be decorated with sweetened flaked coconut, chopped nuts or anything else your sweet tooth desires.
• Add decorations immediately after frosting each cookie as frosting sets and hardens quickly.
  
• These cookies freeze very well.