Cookies For Kids' Cancer: All the Good Cookies

By Gretchen Holt-Witt

A new collection of delicious cookie recipes—all for a good cause

In 2007, Gretchen Holt-Witt set the lofty goal of baking and selling 96,000 cookies during the holidays, all in the name of funding research for pediatric cancer, the #1 killer of kids in the United States and the disease her young son was battling. Armed with the determination of a mom on a mission plus the knowledge that funds for research mean more treatment options, better survival rates, and hope for the future, Holt-Witt succeeded in selling all 96,000 cookies and raising over $400,000 for new pediatric cancer treatments.

Soon after, Gretchen and her husband Larry founded Cookies for Kids' Cancer (cookiesforkidscancer.org), a national nonprofit that inspires people to host bake sales of all sizes, from desktops and porches to entire corporations and communities, with some raising more than $100,000 in a day. Gretchen's first book, Cookies for Kids' Cancer Best Bake Sale Cookbook, raised thousands more for pediatric cancer research. All the Good Cookies gathers a mouthwatering collection of recipes that promise to satisfy any cookie craving, with the author's profits again going to the charity.

• Features a wealth of cookie recipes, from Raspberry Thumbprints to Boston Cream Whoopie Pies
• All of the author's royalties will benefit the charity Cookies for Kids' Cancer
• A follow-up to the successful Cookies for Kids' Cancer Best Bake Sale Cookbook

For anyone who loves baking cookies and making a real difference in the world, Cookies for Kids' Cancer: All the Good Cookies is a perfect way to do both at the same time.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: May 7, 2013
• ISBN: 9780544185975

Gretchen Holt-Witt

Gretchen Holt-Witt held her first cookie sale in 2007 after her two-year-old son, Liam, was diagnosed with pediatric cancer. To get involved in the cause or learn more, visit www.CookiesForKidsCancer.org.

Book preview

recipes

rainbow sables

sally’s potato chip sandies

mary hickey’s toffee bars

seriously short chocolate chip cookies

michelle sohn’s oatmeal chocolate chips

sally sampson’s kitchen sink cookies

cornflake cookies

lemon perfection squares

hermits

amazingly chewy oatmeal cookies

banana-nut bars

dr. la quaglia’s carrot-almond drops

chocolate chip heath crunch strips

faux re-os

jackie’s chocolate cut-out cookies

jackie’s vanilla cut-out cookies

maple doodles

rainbow sables

yield: about 7 dozen cookies

AFrench bakery classic, sables are the epitome of three basic ingredients (butter, sugar, and flour) coming together with little else to create a melt-in-your-mouth delight. Dressed up in sparkling crystal sugar, they shine.

2¼ cups all-purpose flour

⅔ cup granulated sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

2 sticks (½ pound) unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Colored decorating sugars

•   Place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse to blend until mixture looks like coarse cornmeal. Transfer the mixture to a mixer bowl and add the egg and vanilla. Beat to blend, then scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix again.

•   Divide the dough into 5 equal pieces. Form each piece into a 4-inch log and then roll each in a different color of decorating sugar. Cover each log and refrigerate for at least 6 hours and up to 3 days.

•   Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

•   With a serrated knife, cut the logs into ¼-inch slices. Place 1 inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly browned, rotating the cookie sheets on the oven racks halfway through the baking time. Cool on the cookie sheets for 3 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough on cool cookie sheets.

•   Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

sally’s potato chip sandies

yield: 6 dozen cookies

Sally, Fraya’s mom, has been making these cookies for decades and raving about them. Fraya just couldn’t wrap her head around the idea of potato chips in cookies and pooh-poohed them for years until she finally gave in and made them. We now know what all the fuss was about: The butter, nuts, and chips make them short and sweet—and prove that Mom really does know best.

2 sticks (½ pound) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for dusting (optional)

1 large egg yolk, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1½ cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup (2½ ounces) crushed potato chips

½ cup finely chopped pecans

•   Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

•   Place the butter and sugar in a large mixer bowl and beat until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and beat well. With the mixer on low, gradually add flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then gently fold the potato chips and nuts into the dough with a spatula.

•   Using a small (2-teaspoon size) cookie scoop, drop scoops of the dough about 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets.

•   Transfer to the oven and bake until the cookies begin to brown at the edges, 12 to 15 minutes, rotating the cookie sheets on the oven racks halfway through the baking time. Cool on the cookie sheets for 3 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough on cool cookie