Chocolate Mint Sugar Cookie Drops

I found this little jewel of a recipe in the Nestle Toll House Recipe Collection cookbook copyright 1987.  It's a thin, spiral bound cookbook filled with delicious chocolate recipes! 

Ingredients:
2  1/2 C all-purpose flour
1  1/2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt (I usually cut this in half)
1  1/4 C sugar, divided  (1 C for the cookie recipe and 1/4 C for rolling the cookie in prior to baking)
3/4 C vegetable oil
2 eggs, at room temp
1 t vanilla extract
1 10oz pkg (1 1/2 C) Nestle Toll House Mint Chocolate Morsels *

In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.  In large bowl, combine 1 C sugar and the vegetable oil; mix well.  Beat in eggs and vanilla extract.  Gradually add flour mixture, blending well between each addition.  Stir in mint chocolate chips.  Shape into small balls (about 1 t of dough), roll in remaining sugar.  Place on ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350º for 8-10 minutes.  Cool completely on wire racks.

Makes approx. 5 1/2 dozen, 2" cookies (perfect for popping in your mouth!)

*Back in the day, Nestle made an all-chocolate mint chocolate chip.  A couple of years later, they discontinued those chips, so I had to use the Andes Mint chips.  Last year, I found Nestle Dark Chocoalte & Mint chips in the store which were dark chocolate chips and green chips, as seen in my pics.  I think I would prefer a solid chocolate mint chip and will probably go back to using the Andes Mint pieces in the future.

Also, this recipe is also good doubled for a larger number of cookies.  If you double the recipe, do NOT double the amount of chips used.  You'll end up with about 1/4 of them in the bottom of the bowl.  Of course, you could eat them all...

Momma's Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have such wonderful memories of baking with my mom.  I miss her so much at this time of year, but I'm thankful that she shared her love of cooking and baking with me.  I can't remember a time when I wasn't in the kitchen helping my mom (& dad).  This is my all-time favorite cookie and recipe.  They make a lovely, crunchy cookie.

Mom's Toll House Cookies

**This recipe is doubled and makes a TON!**

Preheat oven to 375º.

Combine and set aside:
4-1/2 C All purpose flour
2 t baking soda
2 t salt  (I cut this in half to help make it more heart friendly)

Blend in mixer:
2 C Crisco
1 1/2 C brown sugar, very firmly packed
1 1/2 C sugar
2 t vanilla
1 t water
4 eggs at room temperature

Add:
1 to 1 1/2 C of chopped pecans or walnuts
1 large package (12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips (I use 2 C)

Cream Crisco, sugars, vanilla, water and eggs until nice and creamy.  Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture a little bit at a time and mix well.  Scrape sides of bowl frequently.   Stir in chips and nuts.  Drop by rounded teaspoons onto cookie sheet.  Bake 10-12 mins or until browned to your liking.

**I use a regular long teaspoon from my utensil drawer.  The smaller you make the cookies, the more cookies you get! ;)  I also refrigerate my dough in the fridge for several hours or overnight to keep cookies from spreading so much.  Lastly, I use the water displacement process to measure my Crisco.  If you use Crisco sticks, either use a couple of tablespoons less or increase your flour by about 1/4C to prevent spreading and pancake cookies.

Here's a treasure I pull out every Christmas.  This is from a cookbook my mom and her co-workers put together in 1987.  This is one of my most treasured possessions, and as you can see, much used.