Sunday, February 13, 2011

Grammy's Cookie Recipe

As promised, here's one of Grammy's favorite cookie receipes.  Keep in mind, this goes back many years -- maybe even before I was born and I'm OLD !!!  :-)  She called them "Old Fashioned Blondies", and they are actually more of a cookie bar.  Much faster to make than individual cookies since you bake them all in one pan.

Here's the ingredients:

2 cups brown sugar
2/3 cup butter
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda

The above part was typed onto paper that is now quite yellowed with age, but I can make out the additional notes in her own handwriting.

Add any of the following as preferred:
8 ounces grated baking chocolate for chocolate cookie.
1 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans).
1/2 cup raisins.
1/2 cup candied fruits.
1/4 cup molasses or maple syrup.  If either of these are added, reduce the number of eggs to 1.

Then the mixing and baking instructions are:
Coat a medium size baking pan with butter, and set aside.  In a saucepan, heat the brown sugar and butter, stirring until the mixture bubbles.  Remove from stove and let cool slightly, then stir in the eggs one at a time, and add the vanilla.  Stir well.  Add the sifted flour, the baking powder, and the baking soda.  Stir well. Spread the mixture into the coated baking pan.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until done.  Cut into rectangles while still warm.

Again, in her handwritten notes:

Add any of the optional ingredients to the mixture before spreading it into the baking pan.  Drizzle small amount of molasses, if desired, over the mixture before baking.

Still sounds good to me, and I've been baking all afternoon.  I don't need to tell you how wonderful my house smells.   Mmmmm, ahhhh, yes! 

I'm guessing in this day and age, you could substitute chocolate chips for the grated baking chocolate (8 ounces would be 1 cup), and you could probably use margarine instead of butter.  Grammy would never have used any substitute for butter but then, she grew up on a farm where they churned their own butter.

I'm not sure how big a "medium" size baking pan is but I know she used a rectangular pan, not a square cake pan, so I'm guessing about 13" x 9", give or take.

If you try this receipe, and love the cookie bars as much as I did, leave me a comment and let me know.

Happy baking!  :-)

One last note, posted by one of my fur babies.



She insists that it's time for me to give some attention to her and stay away from the blog until tomorrow.  G'night!  NanaConnie

Thursday, February 10, 2011

A Great Beginning

     My New Year's Resolution was to get a blog up and running this year and it's only February!  HOORAY!! This is my first day blogging, and I want to share with you why my Blog is named "Grammy's Attic." 
     When I was a young child, I loved visiting my grandma.  She was always baking something in the kitchen, and always had a hug for us as soon as we walked in the door.  The grandkids' play area was the whole attic, up a narrow set of stairs that opened into a completely open space nearly as big as the whole house.  The two best places in the attic were the 'trunk corner' and the spot right over the kitchen where we could smell the cookies baking. 
     The 'trunk corner' is where Grammy stored all things old and wonderful: dress up clothes, hats, a hand mirror, an old phonograph complete with records, boxes of stationary, buttons and laces, keepsakes from her own childhood, hand carved toys, and photographs.  It was a delicious array of "goodies" -- there for touching, reading, seeing, trying on, or even smelling in the case of the old perfume bottles!
     Whenever I am in one of my 'crafty' modes, as I dig into my various stashes for just the right embellishment, I find myself thinking about those "attic days" of childhood.
     I want to share some of my projects with fellow enthusiasts, and I hope perhaps you can get a feel for the hours of joy spent in Grammy's Attic. 
     Here is a card I made for a sketch challenge over at Operation Write Home.  The image is from Sparkle 'n' Sprinkle.  It's colored with Copic markers and I used Oval and Scalloped Oval Spellbinder's dies.  The design paper and ribbon are from Gina K and they're just luscious! This card reminds me of the old hats that were in Grammy's attic.  :-)


      If you're not familiar with OWH (http://www.owhstarsandstamps.org/ ), they're a great organization that takes handmade cards sent to them by people just like us who love to make cards, and they send them to military folks who are away from home so that they can write a few lines and then mail the cards off to their loved-ones.  Since my eldest grandson serves in the Marine Corp., this is a cause near and dear to this old Nana's heart. 
     Hope you have yourself a grand day, and find a little bit of Grammy's Attic in your own memories.  :-)