Let's Turn Off the TV and Make Some Cookies

So, this is what happens when I turn off the TV and get baking. Wait, I can explain.

Not so long ago, Pillsbury reached out to me to ask if I'd like to take part in this cool promotion they're working on. Basically, the idea was that they wanted bloggers to turn off the tech (TV, cell phone, etc) for a few hours and get baking with family. 

Well, I couldn't be more delighted! I think that it's very easy to get caught up in day to day stuff and become a slave to the "ding" of your various tech toys. So it was nice to have a break to bake with my boo and kick it with my two pugs.

In doing my research, I considered many different projects I could take on with the generous package of goodies (and a cool camera) that Pillsbury sent to me. 

But ultimately, since we were keeping it simple by turning off the TV, I decided to keep the recipe simple, too, and I followed my pet unicorn's sage advice: MAKE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES! What can I say, I do what my unicorn tells me to do. It's not a bad life philosophy. 

Pillsbury had sent me their "Purely Simple" cookie mix, which is made with easy to pronounce ingredients (yay!). 

We mixed it up per the package instructions. OK, one change: I added in some extra salt, because I LOVE SALT.

You tell me: is there a finer thing than cookie dough in this world?

And then, since I can't resist a little experimentation, we decided to see how the cookies might turn out when baked in various vessels.

So we divided the dough and baked a few as a "control batch" per the box instructions: classic spoonfuls on a lined baking sheet. How'd they come out?

But then with the rest of the dough, with no alteration other than the vessel, we tried baking it a few different baking pans. Curious about how the same cookie recipe came out in different pans? Here ya go!  

One Dough, Four Different (Delicious) Cookie Outcomes

The basic dough was un-altered, and the oven temperature was kept the same (375 degrees F) as suggested on the packaging. *all of these pans were greased to prevent sticking

Ramekin: 

We put about 2 cookies' worth of dough into a small (1/2 cup) ramekin and baked it up. It took a little bit longer than the regular cookies (which were about 8 minutes at 375 degrees F). It came out puffy but slightly deflated in the center after a few minutes. In spite of the deflation, it was amazing. It had an almost (but not quite) gooey center and was perfect for this soft cookie lover! 

Mini Donut Pan:

Dough was pressed into some of the vessels of a mini donut pan and then baked. This dough baked in less time than the regular cookies (about 5 minutes), and the cookie dough puffed over the donut shape, but I used my (clean) fingers to shoo it away.

After about five minutes out of the oven we inverted them, and oh me oh my I need to tell you that they were DARLING. For crispy cookie lovers, this is a great option, as you have a crispy crust on virtually all sides. 

Mini Muffin Pan: 

Mini is marvelous, so we decided to try cookie dough in a mini muffin pan, too. The portions were basically the same as the regular cookies, but (probably because of the height difference) they took 1-2 minutes longer to bake. You really had to wait 5 minutes before taking them out of the pan, and had to loosen the edges first, but they proved a delight. Once again, soft in the middle, ideal for me (the soft cookie lover). BTW, Porkchop the pug was getting very interested in the process by this point! 

Square Brownie Pan:

So, we have this square brownie pan that I despise because I don't like crispy edges but my darling one loves. So we tried out some cookie dough in it. The portion was about 1 1/2 cookies' worth per brownie square. They baked in about the same amount of time as the regular cookies (8 minutes). They puffed up, but then deflated slightly after baking. Not a bad thing, because (not pictured) I filled it with peanut butter and it was amazing and made me forget all about the crispy edges. 

So, to sum things up? 

This is a good cookie mix, and it's delicious. However, to tailor your cookie experience to be exactly what you'd like (crispy, gooey, alarmingly adorable) consider using an alternate pan to make the cookies really perfect! 

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Blogging can be a pretty online-heavy job, so it was nice to have the chance to get back to the pure joy of baking. Thanks, Pillsbury, for the awesome opportunity!