Baking Tips

How to Make a Large Cookie Cake

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There are few things quite as sweet and delicious as cookie cakes. Almost everyone loves a giant chocolate chip cookie. Super-size that sentiment, add a bit of frosting, and you have a delicious cake that is perfect for any occasion. The best part of this treat, though, is that it is super-easy to make.

Shape and Pans

The key to any good cookie cake is the pan itself. While most cookie cakes are about a 12 inch round, you can certainly go with any size or shape that works for you. You won’t need a special pan for this. Your cookie cake is going to come out in the size or shape of the pan you choose to bake it in. If you’re looking to go with the more traditional 12 inch round shape, just use a simple pizza pan.

The Recipe

Once you have your shape issues worked out, the next step is to find the single best chocolate chip cookie recipe on the planet. You’ll certainly want to choose one that is well suited for bar-style cookies, but beyond that, feel free to select one with delicious add-ins like chocolate candies, macadamia nuts, or even shredded coconut. Here’s a great one from Food.com if you don’t already have one in mind.

Take 1 cup of softened butter, ½ cup granulated sugar, and 2/3 cup brown sugar and beat them together. Add in 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 2 cups chocolate chips. Mix together. Add the dry ingredients to the batter. Mix until you’ve blended them well. Spread the dough in an ungreased pan. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

It’s important to note that whether you use this recipe or another, your baking time will probably vary depending on the type of pan you use. It’s important, no matter what recipe you use, to leave about an inch of space between the edge of your pan and the giant cookie you’re creating. That gives it a little room to spread out. Once your giant cookie cake is done baking, you’ll want to pull the pan from the oven, then allow it to cool completely on a wire rack.

Icing the Cookie Cake

Your final step is icing and any other decorative touches you want to add. Almost any icing recipe will work for a cookie cake. A standard buttercream icing is typically a great choice. Many people also glaze the entire thing with a simple chocolate glaze recipe. You could also simply go with a can of store-bought icing and pipe on a cute design or slogan to fit the occasion. For an added touch, put some sprinkles or small candies on top of the icing to help decorate the cake a bit.

Cookie cakes are easily the perfect addition to any celebration whether you’re talking about a child’s birthday party or a retirement party at work. They’re easy to make, too, so grab your ingredients and start baking!

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Cookies with Kids: Making Baking Fun

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Today, we present a fun guest post by Bethaney Wallace:

For bakers everywhere – even occasional dabbers – the idea of letting a child into the kitchen is one that causes stress and anxiety. While this is somewhat true for mothers, fathers, and daycare providers, the fear rises steeply by those who aren’t used to having youngsters around. But no matter a person’s comfort level with children, some fear is to be justified – after all there’s necessary heat, electric appliances, and the possibility for one humdinger of a mess.

However, with a little coaching and persuading, baking with kids can actually become a welcome treat – one that even includes a literal treat (which is a great point to tell any helpers).

Follow these easy tips to help baking with any age a fun, bonding, and fruitful event.

Start out by having a pre-cookie talk. Depending on the age of the child/children, you’ll want to explain that only adults use the oven (and why), and that unless directions are followed, the cookies won’t be edible. Once this is understood, it’s time to get out the recipe, ingredients, and baking sheets, as doing so beforehand may be distracting.

When making dough, be sure to involve the kids as much as possible. If they’re old enough to measure, let them do so. If not, let them pour in each ingredient – after all, that’s the fun part! Side bowls can also be used to make sure there are no accidents such as a broken shell or overuse of flour. While mixing the dough, you can also incorporate other fun elements, such as listening to kiddie music, wearing hats or aprons, or taste testing individual ingredients, like scientists or professional bakers might do.

As for the cookie divvying itself, let your helpers use their hands. It will be messy, but they’ll have fun … and its’ much easier than teaching the whole two-spoons technique.

As for cooking and cooling steps, this is a great time to prepare any icing or toppings, and clean up any dough or batter mess. (And what a great time for a lesson on cleaning up after oneself.) Here, rely on the music or dancing to transition to the next fun part.

Finally, it’s time for decorating, which is likely to be their favorite part – aside from the eating. Provide an option of candies and frosting colors for sugar cookies, while chocolate chip or monster cookies can use a douse of sprinkles or powdered sugar – anything to let them add a final touch.

Of course eating the cookies will be an obvious reward, but another benefit will be the quality time you spent together, as well as the lessons learned. Remember that baking with kids is a fun and exciting activity, and all it takes is getting them involved to have a fun and delicious afternoon.

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Food Allergies and Baking

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For most people who are diagnosed with having food allergies, being told to lay off wheat, dairy or eggs by your doctor is much akin to being ordered to lay off happiness. And for those poor souls who love to bake it seems the insult runs even deeper, after all, how do you go about baking a birthday cake for a child who is allergic to wheat and eggs?

The answer, in a nutshell, is to know your enemy (the allergen) and how it serves to function in the baking process. If you can pinpoint the particular role a certain allergen, such as the protein in eggs, plays in the baking process, well then it becomes a simple matter of substituting an ingredient that fulfills the same role, but without setting off an allergic reaction. Little Johnny certainly can have his gluten-free birthday cake and eat it too if you bake smart and substitute wisely.

When you’re baking with substitutes the most important thing you need to keep in mind is the functionality of the ingredient you’re looking to replace. Take eggs for example. Eggs are the second most common food allergy for kids. Being allergic to eggs is one of the most frustrating things to be allergic to, because in the world of baking, eggs find their way into just about everything. They serve to bind ingredients together, provide structure, act as leavening to make things rise and they add a soft texture to dry ingredients. Fortunately however, there are a few great substitutes for eggs when baking and by incorporating these into your anti-allergen baking arsenal you will be pleasantly surprised by the results, leaving your taste buds none the wiser.

Finely ground flaxseeds make for a great substitute in anything that calls for a nutty flavor. So cookies, muffins and pancakes are back on the menu. To substitute for 1 egg simply add 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed to 3 tablespoons of water.

For adding fluffiness to cakes and muffins simply combine a little vinegar and baking soda. It’s neutral in flavor so it won’t overpower the other ingredients. To substitute for 1 egg combine 1 tablespoon of vinegar with 1 teaspoon of baking soda.

Pureed fruit such as ¼ cup of applesauce or ½ a mashed banana will help add extra sweetness and flavor which makes cakes and cookies an absolute pleasure. Just be sure to keep watching the oven because pureed fruit does tend to extend the baking time a little.

Egg replacer powder is another substitute that has most eggs looking to leap from the nearest wall in consternation. To substitute for 1 egg use 1 ½ tablespoons egg replacer powder with 2 tablespoons of water. Whisk it with warm water for a light, frothy texture and with hot water for a thicker, binding effect.

Gluten is another formidable allergenic adversary when it comes to producing great tasting, freshly baked breads, cakes, muffins and all things delicious. Fortunately it is also one of the most easily substituted for ingredients. Tapioca flour is a light, white and very smooth flour which gives white and French breads a wonderful, chewy texture.

To whip up a batch of nutty flavored chocolate brownies, Soy flour is your best bet. It has a high fat and protein content and works beautifully in anything that calls for a nutty or fruity flavor whereas both corn flour and white-rice flour are great options for breads, muffins, pancakes and waffles.

The last category of allergens has proven to be arguably the most difficult to substitute for, purely because of the rich, characteristic flavor these ingredients bring to the table; dairy, predominantly milk and the mother of all baking ingredients, butter.

Milk can be substituted for with a variety of ingredients such as rice milk, soy milk, oat milk, almond milk and even fruit juice depending on the recipe. But it is replacing butter that remains the bane of many a baker’s existence. Although it is difficult to substitute for, it is not impossible. Olive oil is a heart-healthy oil that works wonderfully in breads, muffins and cakes that incorporate herbs, citrus or strong flavors like pumpkin.

Organic coconut oil will ensure a beautiful, silky texture and mild taste making it perfect for sweet recipes. And if all else fails a wise tactic to employ is to add an extra teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Allergen-free baking does not have to be a second rate attempt at replicating ‘the real thing.’ The world of flavor is incredibly diverse and more often than not, simply by educating oneself as to the function of a food in the baking process, it becomes a simple and richly rewarding experience to produce something from the oven that tastes just as good as it looks, without costing you a trip to the emergency room.

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