Malgieri, Nick. Cookies Unlimited. HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 2000.
Recently, a friend offered to do something for me. It was something that very much needed to be done. It had needed to be done for quite some time, and in my own defense it was something that I had made some attempts to do with no success on my part. So when my friend offered to take care of it for me, I offered him cookies as a reward. This gave me the opportunity to return to a cookbook I haven't used in a long time: Cookies Unlimited.
It had been so long since I'd used this book that I'd almost forgotten how much I enjoyed it when my boyfriend - now my husband - gave it to me eight years ago. In my youth, my favorite Sesame Street character was always Cookie Monster (well, and the Count. I am a recovering accountant after all.) This tome gave me so many new and different ways to indulge my passion! In my thank-you to Hugh, I made the Sesame Wafers (p. 54) and the Loaded With Chips Chocolate Chip Cookies (p. 55), which are easily the best chocolate chip cookies I've ever had.
My only real complaint about the book is his use of the stand mixer. This is only a complaint because I have no stand mixer. It is easy enough, however, to use the hand mixer or the scary immersion blender instead. The recipes aren't written in a kid-friendly manner, but a resourceful parent should be able to find tasks for their kids should the need arise. I highly recommend this book for anyone who likes cookies, needs to bribe people into doing favors, or spends any length of time in the company of small children.
Baking for Hugh provided me with an excuse to make cookies that is much rarer nowadays than it was eight years ago, when I received this book. Now that my nephew is turning three in May, I'm hoping that I'll find more and more excuses in the very near future! If Wes' mom and dad will allow it, I'm looking forward to being able to revisit this book again and again.
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