Nothing can beat the aroma of a freshly baked cookie. Homemade cookies make a wonderful gift to brighten someone's day and they are great fun to make with your family.
The word cookie has become commonplace all over the word but in Britain the word biscuit is also used. Cookie comes from the Dutch word koekje and it means little cake. Biscuit on the other hand comes from the French bis cuit and it means twice cooked. This harks back to the days when bakes puts slices of fresh baked bread back in the oven to dry out and they became hard like rusks.This of course improved the keeping qualities, and was especially important when such foods were taken on long sea voyages and had to keep for a long length of time. Nowadays, soft cake-like confections are known as cookies (choc chip cookies for example) whereas crisper versions, such as shortbread are known as biscuits.
Apart from the obvious satisfaction which comes from making your own cookies, there is the added advantage that you can use the best ingredients and know exactly what they contain. Cookies are easy to make and many in this book are of the free-form kind, which you either spoon onto a tray or shape with your hands, so no extra equipment is needed. Homemade cookies are always popular so if you refrain from making them because they will disappear in a flash, then make the refrigerator type where you slice of the raw dough as you need them or make sure you have some freezer bags handy to pop some in the deep freeze. Cookies are not only great as a midmorning treat, they are also good in lunchboxes and make a great quick dessert when accompanied by ice cream or thick fruity yogurt.
There is something very therapeutic about baking cookies - it is to do with allowing ourselves to play again. Children love baking and you can have such fun with them. Get baking and bring pleasure to yourself and those you love.
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