I had the opportunity this past Sunday to teach a lesson in the women's organization (the Relief Society) of my Church (the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints). In fact, the lesson was on the organization of the Relief Society in 1842. The initial meeting of the women was held "in the parlor" of Sarah Granger Kimball's home. Inasmuch as history tells us that Sarah Kimball had a seamstress, I think it's fair to assume that her home was perhaps a bit "grander" than some of the early families could afford. Is it also fair to assume, as I pointed out to the women in my class on Sunday, that there would have been TREATS at that meeting? I think so; therefore, I asked the women to pretend we were in the parlor at the Kimball home, and I served them treats (cookies). Many asked for the recipes so I will include them here. I did not have time or foresight to photograph all the cookies while arranged on the fall platters, so I borrowed a couple of each kind from the few I kept to put in my granddaughter's lunch box this week. The first cookie--the Gingersnap--is a long-time favorite and comes from Betty Crocker herself.
GINGERSNAPS (BETTY CROCKER’S COOKBOOK)
A pungent gingersnap—crispy on the edges but soft in the center.
¾ cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 egg
¼ cup molasses
2 ¼ cups Gold Medal Flour*
2 teaspoons soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon cloves
¼ teaspoon salt
Granulated sugar
Mix thoroughly shortening, brown sugar, egg and
molasses. Blend in remaining ingredients except
granulated sugar. Cover; chill 1 hour.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Shape dough by rounded
teaspoonfuls into balls. Dip tops in granulated sugar.
Place balls sugared side up 3 inches apart on
lightly greased baking sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes
or just until set. Immediately remove from baking sheet.
4 DOZEN COOKIES.
*If using Self-Rising Flour, decrease soda to 1 teaspoon and
omit salt.
The second is a Gooey-Butter Cookie. Our family has loved Gooey Butter Cake for as long as I can remember. So when several asked for the recipe and I said it was similar to Gooey Butter Cake, and they were not familiar with it, I was surprised. For that reason, I decided to go ahead and include all the variations, from vanilla to chocolate and inbetween. I knew I'd find them on Paula Deen's site (FoodTV) because she's an avid fan of these. And wallah!
I'll provide the recipe for the Gooey Butter Cookies first, and then the Cakes. You can alter the cookie recipe in the same manner as the cake recipe to make any flavor of Gooey Butter Cookie you choose:
CHOCOLATE GOOEY BUTTER COOKIES
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting
1 (18 ounce) box moist chocolate cake mix
1 (8-ounce) brick cream cheese, room temperature
1 egg
1 stick of butter, room temperature
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg. Then beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in the cake mix. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to firm up so that you can roll the batter into balls. Roll the chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls and then roll them in confectioner’s sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake 12 minutes. The cookies will remain soft and gooey. Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioners’ sugar, if desired.
Servings: 2 dozen cookies
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 15 min
Difficulty: Easy
GOOEY BUTTER CAKES
From: The Lady & Sons Just Desserts by Paula H. Deen
"Butter Gooey Cakes. Ooey Gooey Butter Cakes. Ooey Booey Gooey Cakes. These are just a few of the names I've heard our guests at The Lady & Sons call 'em. But to quote Shakespeare:
What's in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.
This is exactly how I feel about our Gooey Butter Cakes. No matter what you call them, they're like that sweet rose that Shakespeare wrote about. These delectable cakes were an instant hit the first day they showed up in The Bag Lady basket and they immediately became one of my most requested items. These little sweeties actually resemble a bar-type dessert instead of what we know as a traditional cake. Over the years, I have made every flavor imaginable, using this basic recipe. I'll give you some of my recommendations but by all means experiment and have fun creating your very own version of our signature Gooey Butter Cakes.
Cake
• 1 (18.25-ounce) box yellow (or your choice) cake mix
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
• Filling
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 (16-ounce) box confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well. Pat into the bottom of prepared pan and set aside.
3. Still using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth; add eggs and vanilla. Dump in confectioners' sugar and beat well. Reduce speed of mixer and slowly pour in butter. Mix well.
4. Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Don't be afraid to make a judgment call on the cooking time, because oven temperatures can vary. You want the center to be a little gooey, so don't bake it past that point!
5. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares. Just remember that these wonderful little cakes are very, very rich, and a little will go a long way-even for piggies like me!
Pumpkin Gooey: This variation has to be at the top of my list, especially around Thanksgiving. For the cake part, I sometimes use a spice cake mix. I have even used a chocolate cake mix, but I think my favorite is the basic yellow cake mix. Follow the original recipe, adding a 15-ounce can of pumpkin pie filling and an extra egg to the cream cheese filling. Bake as usual, remove from oven, and allow to cool. Cut into squares and top each square with a pecan half. Serve with a dollop of fresh whipped cream. I promise you'll never want pumpkin pie again!
Pineapple Gooey: Add a 20-ounce can of drained crushed pineapple and an extra egg to the cream cheese filling. Proceed as directed above.
Lemon Gooey: Use a lemon cake mix in place of the yellow cake. Add the juice (approximately 1/4 cup) and zest of 2 lemons to the cream cheese filling. Proceed: as directed above.
Carrot Cake Gooey: Use a spice cake mix, and add 1 cup chopped nuts and 1 1/2 cup finely grated carrots to the cream cheese filling. Proceed as directed above.
Peanut Butter Gooey: Use a chocolate cake mix. Add 1 cup creamy peanut butter and an extra egg to cream cheese filling. You can sprinkle the top of batter with 1 cup chopped peanuts if you like. Proceed as directed above.
Chocolate Chip Gooey: Use either yellow or chocolate cake mix. Sprinkle 1 cup chocolate chips and 1 cup chopped nuts on top of filling. Proceed as directed above.
Banana Gooey: Use a yellow cake mix. Prepare cream cheese filling as directed, beating in 2 ripe bananas and an extra egg. Proceed as directed above.
Nutty Gooey: Use a yellow cake mix, and add 1 cup chopped nuts to the cake mixture. Proceed as directed above.
Chippy Gooey: Stir 1 cup white chocolate chips, peanut butter chocolate chips, butterscotch morsels, Heath Almond Toffee Bits or Heath Milk Chocolate Toffee Bits into filling. Proceed as directed above."
(end of Paula's comments)
Nancy again:
I love the Relief Society organization, a charitable Society, which allows women to act according to their natures and feelings of charity and benevolence. I particularly like the following quote, which is advice given to those first women who desired to have such an organization, by Lucy Mack Smith, the Prophet Joseph Smith's mother:
"We must cherish one another, watch over one another, comfort one another and gain instruction, that we may all sit down in heaven together."
What a wonderful promise this is to look forward to. I invite you to enjoy both the hope of that promise, and the recipes!
