I do enjoy dunking home baked biscuits into a glass of cold, creamy milk. Oh, and I don’t believe one is ever too old to do this. There is something so deliciously satisfying about eating biscuits, still warm from the oven, quickly dipped into milk and glistening with droplets of milk. Just remember to wipe your chin with a serviette!

I must admit that the impetus for baking this abundant batch was a lack of biscuits in my pantry and a craving I had for “bickies and milk”. All I had left were a couple of cracked Arnott’s Milk Arrowroots and a packet of Italian sponge finger biscuits that I had set aside for tiramisu.   


These are just some of the 55 Chocolate Chip Cookies that I pulled out of the oven this afternoon and enjoyed with my children for afternoon tea.  I had written about this bit of baking bliss on the 21st September but have since further revised my original recipe. Just using little more butter and some desiccated coconut, has improved the overall texture and also added a delicate flavour that compliments the oats and chocolate chips. 

By baking a big batch, you are guaranteed to have plenty of cookies for every little pirate or princess in your circle of family and friends.  

55 Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients
300 g unsalted butter melted
2 cups loosely packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
230 g – 250 g good quality dark chocolate chips 
2 cups self raising flour
2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup desiccated coconut

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees fan bake mode. 

Using a hand whisk, beat together the melted butter, sugar and vanilla until combined and lump free. 

Add the eggs and beat in until silky smooth. 

Add all the other ingredients and at this point put away the whisk. From here you will use your hands which I am assuming were washed thoroughly before beginning this recipe. Combine the ingredients using a kneading and turning motion with one hand, while the other hand steadies the bowl. 

Once everything has completely combined, take small portions of dough in your hands, moulding and rolling into smooth balls, each one the size of a walnut shell. Position on your baking tray allowing enough space for the cookies to spread out as they are baking. Gently press the top of each dough ball with your fingers to flatten slightly as shown in the photo above. 

 
Place in your preheated oven for 15 minutes. No longer or they will dry out. Stick to the 15 minute mark. Allow to cool for five minutes before eating to avoid burning your tongue on the molten chocolate chips. Once cool, they can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week .

What’s for dinner? Yes, my children asked this question minutes after walking through  the door after school today. A healthy Friday Night Mixed Salad with Locantro Lasagne left everyone feeling full and content. The beauty of this salad is that you can toss together whatever salad ingredients are in the fridge to make an easy side dish for an end of week dinner. My number 1 dressing for this type of a simple salad is as follows: 

My Favourite Salad Dressing

Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
juice of a small lemon
1/2 tablespoon vinno cotto
good grind of sea salt and black pepper
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Place all the ingredients into a screw top jar. Give it a good shake and pour over the salad before serving.