A Whole New Kind of Crack Cookie: The Smack Cookie

Name courtesy of The Husband.

I think I may have just made a cookie I like more than Crack Cookies. And, let's face it, that's saying a LOT!

Truth be told, they are Crack Cookies, but with a twist--Cinnamon. Everybody together now: mmmm.

I've been wanting to use cinnamon chips for a long time but no store I checked had them. Finally, about six months ago, I spotted them at the nearby Albertson's, but still didn't buy them. Then a month or so ago, a friend suggested Crack Cookies with cinnamon chips, so I figured it was about time.

Of course, I couldn't just replace the chocolate chips with cinnamon chips. I needed more. One of the things I love best about cinnamon is eating it with butter and sugar. An idea was born and I think it totally makes them.

Sissy's Variations:

• Add cinnamon to taste (oh, come on, we all know you taste the cookie dough). I added it during the creaming of the butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla. I don't know if made a difference, but that's where I felt it needed to go.
• Here's the real kicker:  melted butter with cinnamom and sugar brushed on top. I did this as soon as they were out of the oven, so for my cookies, that meant when they were still a little soft on top. I think this allowed the butter to seep in good, but then also gave a good almost glaze to the top.

I have to say, even The Husband asked for a second cookie right away. He said it kept getting better the more he chewed. Can't beat that. I told him he got to name them, thus, Smack Cookies--at least for now. I really hope they are as good next day, not hot out of the oven. Because hot out of the oven, these may be the best cookies ever!

Crack Cookies Gone Wild

In case you're wondering, yes, I've probably lost my mind. The very first recipe I ever blogged about was Crack Cookies, which are just crazy good chocolate chip cookies that I make that are kind of famous. So, last week my very good friends Dina had unexpected back surgery. Two days before her surgery, I had told her I'd make some Crack Cookies to bring to work that week to make her feel better (she LOVES my Crack Cookies--I bake them for her as her Christmas present every year). Well, her surgery ended up being scheduled way before we expected, so I didn't get to make them beforehand, so I told her that as soon as she was up for it after surgery, I would send her a whole batch via her sister (who I also work with). So, not knowing when I'd need to make them, I just got all the stuff to make them and decided to play with recipe a little bit.

Recently, I had bought some dark chocolate and white chocolate chips and some semi-sweet chocolate chunks.

 

So, I bought some more milk chocolate chips (the ones I prefer to use) and headed home to check out what all I had.

 

 

I found some Mini M&Ms for baking and some semi-sweet mini chocolate chips.

 

 

I had a plan. If they were already Crack Cookies, jazzing 'em up this way could only mean one thing: Crack Cookies Gone Wild. Hey, I already said I know I've lost my mind!

The recipe makes 4 dozen cookies, so I decided to try 4 different kinds of Crack Cookies.

I made up the dough as usual. Then I split the dough into four 3/4 c. batches. I used about 1/2 c. (probably a little more) of add-ins for each dozen since the original recipe calls for 2 c. chocolate chips.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regular (milk chocolate)

 

 

 

 

Dark Chocolate Chip

White Chocolate/Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chip

Mini M&M/Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunk

Unfortunately, I was a bit distracted and the first night's batch didn't turn out quite as good as I liked. They were a little more over cooked than I usually like, but they were still good, so I hear. That batch went to work with Bill. I made the same thing the next night to take to work with me, and while they didn't get quite the same reception as regular Crack Cookies, they were enjoyed. The white chocolate in particular seemed to be a hit.

Update 9/10: I made Dina her Crack Cookies this week. Her sister was going to be able to take them to her on Tuesday, which happened to be the same day she got her staples out. I got an email from her this morning saying they were the best batch ever. I had to agree. I knew as soon as I pulled them out of the oven that they were perfect, and of course I had taste one. There really is no other cookie like a Crack Cookie!

Peanut Butter Cookies

I'm not the biggest fan of peanut butter cookies (weird, since I really love peanut butter in every form), but others really do, so I figured I'd give them a try. Since my very favorite cookies are my Crack Cookies, so I really wanted to find a peanut butter cookie that was close. In searching my Google Reader, I came across these Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip cookies from Fresh From Cate's Kitchen blog. The recipe is really similar to my crack cookie recipe, so I decided to try it.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
(adapted from Fresh From Cate's Kitchen)

Ingredients:
1 stick (1/2 c.) butter, softened
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 12-oz. bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat.

2. Stir together flour, baking soda, and salt.

3. Mix the butter and both sugars in stand mixer on medium until fluffy. (The recipe doesn't specifically mention where to add the peanut butter, so I added it here.) Stir in vanilla and egg and mix on low until combined.

4. Add the flour mixture and mix on low just until the flour is no longer visible. Stir in chocolate chips.

 

 

5. Drop by large spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake 8-10 minutes, or until just set. Remove from the oven and let cool on sheet fro 5 minutes, then eat or transfer to wire wrack to cool completely.

 

Sissy's Variations:
I made two batches and I wanted one with nothing in it, so I made plain PB cookies. The other batch, I used  semi-sweet chocolate/peanut butter swirl chips because they looked fun.

Unfortunately, somebody was distracting me (we won't name names!) and they cooked a little longer than I would have liked. They were still good (yes, I tried them), but a little on the crispy side for my taste. Everybody liked them, but I will do better next time.

And I'm thinking I may try to adapt the crack cookies to peanut butter cookies one of these days.

Ashley's Crack Cookies

So, I make these really basic chocolate chip cookies. Really simple, from my good old Betty Crocker cookbook. But for some reason, they are the best cookies ever. Seriously. So good that they have become known in my circles as Crack Cookies.

A couple of years ago, I decided to make gift baskets as Christmas gifts for friends and family. Since I already knew that a lot of people loved my chocolate chip cookies, I decided to include those in the baskets. B (oh, that would be my soon-to-be-hubby, Bill; see our blog to your left) and I have these friends, Jamey and Kelly, who happen to be sisters. Both received these gift baskets from us. So, Jamey and Kelly are talking about how they have each already eaten their cookies and wondering what I put in them that makes them SOOOO good. Kelly says I must put crack in them because they are addicting. And so they became known in our little circle of friends as Crack Cookies. Now, I had already made these cookies and taken them to work on numerous occassions. When I relayed the Crack Cookie story there, the name stuck and now it's official.

Betty's Recipe:

3/4 c. granulated sugar
3/4 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. butter or stick margarine, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 large egg
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. coarsely chopped nuts (I skip these because I don't like nuts in my cookies.)
1 bag (12oz) semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups)--Sometimes I use milk chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Beat sugars, butter, vanilla, and egg in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt (dough will be stiff). Stir in nuts and chocolate chips.

3. Drop by the rounded teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.

4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light brown (centers will be soft). Cool 1 to 2 minutes; remove to wire sheet rack.

Sissy's Variations:

Now, a couple of things that we have determined recently that may be the cause of these being deemed "crack cookies." I use salted butter instead of unsalted butter and I do not omit the other salt from the recipe. I also add a splash more vanilla than the recipe calls for (did it by accident the first time and they were so good I kept doing it). And, in my opinion, the most important part is taking them out of the oven before they appear to be fully cooked. They actually almost look underdone, but once they sit out for a minute, the harden nicely on the outside, but are still nice and gooey on the inside.

I'll try to remember pictures next time!