As I was writing posts on using bread crumbs last month, a little memory got jogged. I remembered reading something about Bread Crumb Cookies in the Tightwad Gazette, a newsletter and series of books from the late 80s and early 90s that definitely helped my family lead a more thrifty life. Even though they are a bit dated now, I highly recommend them. There is still so much we can all learn about trimming the budget and being frugal.
Last month, if you’ll recall, I had a batch of bread fail, mostly due to trying to multi-task. I’m not as good at it as I used to be. Brain’s getting a little addled, I fear. It's a beautiful fall day in my little corner of the world, and my son, two daughters-in-law, and granddaughter all decided to drop by for a visit and some games.
Bwahaha. I had some test subjects, including two brand new ones--my new daughter-in-law and a granddaughter who is now six months old and ready to eat. It seemed like a perfect opportunity to try out a new recipe.
So I looked up the recipe for bread crumb cookies.
Bread Crumb Cookies
1 1/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2/3 cup melted shortening
2 cups bread crumbs
Sift together the dry ingredients. Combine the wet ingredients and add to dry
mixture. Stir in melted shortening and bread crumbs. Drop by spoonfuls onto a
cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes
or until done.
I hate it when people try out a recipe and say they didn't follow it, but that's pretty much what I did here. Sorry. But I don't think my substitutions affected the outcome in any substantial manner. I used powdered milk and powdered eggs. I've never found them to have any ill effect in baked goods like breads and cookies. I also substituted coconut oil for the shortening, which I've also done with many baked goods without issue. Because one of the reasons behind using this recipe is to save a little money, I opted to use almond extract instead of the drastically more expensive vanilla extract.
So here are the family reviews:
Six-month-old Sweet Pea: No go. She kept spitting it out.
Everyone else agrees that the flavor is very acceptable. The texture is the issue.
Lydia found the cookies rather disappointing. She said chocolate chips would vastly improve them. (Of course, if you have chocolate chips, you probably don't need to scrimp by using bread crumbs.) In the interest of full disclosure, she did just make a batch of (quite fabulous) double chocolate chocolate chips cookies the day before.
Buttercup: "My cousin recently told me, 'I don't question dessert. I just eat it.' They are edible. They are yummy. If you are a connoisseur of desserts, they probably aren't at the top of the list."
Belle thought they would be better if the cookie dough had been able to rest for awhile to let the bread crumbs absorb some moisture. She took the rest of the cookies to her parents' house, where her mom said she really liked them and the kids, aged 8-16, devoured them.
Professor said they'd be perfect when out camping, but at home you expect better cookies.
I thought that perhaps using soft bread crumbs instead of dry bread crumbs would yield a better texture.
So nobody would make these for company. I guess I wouldn't make them for family. But I have also stored a whole lot of food. If we reach a point where we have used all the good stuff and are relegated to using bread crumbs and other leftovers, I know they'll be happy to eat these.
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