Laura's Busy Kitchen

My mom is an amazing baker.   As a small child, we rarely had “junk food” (packaged/store bought cookies and crackers)  in the house, but there were plenty of made-from-scratch cookies and in the summer months, peach cobblers and plum crisps made with freshly picked fruit from our very own backyard.  My mom was always in charge of making pies for holiday family get togethers (I’m partial to her lemon meringue pie) and her carrot cake is on the top of everyone’s birthday cake request list.  In fact, most of my early childhood memories of my mother involve her delicious sweet treats.  I fondly remember sitting on the green and white linoleum kitchen floor, reading The Giving Tree, while my mom busily baked her next creation near by. Or laying in front of the TV on the olive green shag carpet, watching Three’s Company reruns, as the smell of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies began to waft through the air.

One of my favorite childhood sweet treats are these Applesauce Cookies, which have a consistency similar to a muffin. They are still a favorite to this day and the recipe was the first one I asked for when I moved away from home.   The origin of this recipe has long been forgotten.  It may have been passed down from my great grandmother or picked up on one of our fall apple picking trips to Oak Glen.  I updated the recipe passed down to me, by using white whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour, and dried cranberries in the place of raisins.  The white whole wheat flour gives the cookie a denser texture with a slightly nutty flavor, but they are still just as moist as the original.  Now that I’m more accustomed to the taste of whole wheat, I actually prefer these cookies made with the white whole wheat flour.

Applesauce Cookies
Printable Version

Makes 3 dozen

Ingredients:
1 stick butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1  cup applesauce
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped nuts, optional

Directions:
Heat oven to 375°.  Mix butter, sugar, egg, vanilla and applesauce.  Stir in baking powder, baking soda, flour, salt, cinnamon,  and nutmeg.  Fold in dried cranberries and nuts.  Drop by tablespoonfuls on to greased cookie sheet.  Bake until light brown, 8 to 10 minutes.  Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet.

Source: Passed down from old family recipe; original origin unknown.

Nutritional Information:*
per serving (w/o nuts) :  70 calories; 10 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams fat; 1 grams protein; 1 grams fiber

*These calculations are for educational purposes only and can vary according to a particular brands product formulation.  Check labels for more information and follow the advice of your healthcare provider.

Posted on Thursday, March 10th, 2011 at 9:49 am in Desserts   |  RSS feed |  Respond  |  Trackback URL