EASY NO-TIME-TO-BAKE COOKIES

I'll let you in on a little secret. I HAVE time to bake, I just choose to spend it quilting or reading or doing something that doesn't require me to wash a lot of dishes and cookie sheets. But the weekend is coming up and DSO will be looking for something sweet, so I thought I'd whip up a batch of cake mix cookies. That's right, foodie friends, when you just don't feel like creaming butter and sugar and adding a bunch of dry ingredients etc., etc., just grab a box of your favorite cake mix and cookies are a half hour away. And that half hour includes washing up!

Yield: 3 1/2 dozen small cookies
Ingredients:


•18 oz. pkg. cake mix (any flavor)

•1/2 cup butter, softened

•1 egg

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients at low speed until dry ingredients are moistened and dough is thoroughly mixed. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls 2" apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 9-12 minutes. Cool two minutes on cookie sheets, then remove to wire racks to cool.

If using chocolate cake mix, add 2 Tbsp. water along with egg. You can stir in chocolate chips, coated candy pieces, chopped nuts, or oatmeal. You could even go hog wild and frost the cookies, using canned frosting, or make sandwich cookies by spreading frosting between two cookies. These cake mix cookies should be stored tightly covered at room temperature so they stay soft.
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TASTE NOTES
The pantry turned up a box of white cake mix and a bag of white chocolate chips (who bought those???) which produced some very welcome treats for DSO. In the interests of reporting to my readers, I enjoyed one with my afternoon tea. The cookie was satisfyingly sweet and I doubt anyone would know it was made from a mix. If you like to bake with your children, or if you don't like to bake but want something better than those dreadful store-bought cookies, give these a try.