Do you remember refrigerator cookies – the kind that are homemade?
It is certainly convenient to go to the grocery store and pick up a pack of chilled cookie dough, but you not only pay for that convenience, you get a lot of unwanted additives in the process as well.
Ice box cookies, refrigerator cookies, slice and bake cookies are all names for the same thing. Homemade cookie dough that is rolled in waxed paper and chilled or frozen to be baked as needed. You can keep a couple of rolls in the refrigerator all week and slice enough for fresh, hot cookies each day.
Foundational Refrigerator Cookie Recipe
This makes about six rolls, or 18 dozen in all. You can store the rolls in the freezer for up to three months.
Ingredients:
- 4 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions:
- Mix the flour, soda, and salt in a bowl and set it aside.
- Cream butter and sugars in a mixer until they are light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time, making sure the ingredients are well blended.
- Mix in vanilla.
- Stir the dry ingredients by hand to make a stiff dough.
- Chill for one hour.
- Divide the dough into six 1-cup portions.
- Shape each into roll 1 3/4 inches in diameter.
- Roll in waxed paper and chill overnight, or refrigerate for up to one week, or freeze for up to three months.
- Slice chilled rolls into 1/8 inch slices, put on greased cookie sheets, and bake at 375F for 10 to 12 minutes.
Variations:
Add ½ cup of any of the following to each portion of dough.
- Coconut
- Mini chocolate chips
- Chopped nuts
- Toffee pieces
- mini M&Ms
You can also add one square of melted unsweetened chocolate to a portion of the dough.
photo credit: The Pink Peppercorn
