Crumbled Cookies Add Flavor and Texture to Recipes
By Harriet Hodgson
When my daughters were little I baked homemade cookies for them every week. Now I bake them for my grandchildren. Though the cookies disappear fast, sometimes a few stale ones are left. As I discovered, these tasty tidbits may be used in ice cream, pie crusts, coffee cake, trifles, and more. Homemade cookies taste best, but you may also use store-bought. Of course, you have to sample each kind before adding them to recipes.
Chocolate or vanilla filled cookies. Place in plastic zipper bag and crush with a rolling pin, leaving a few larger chunks. Fold into soft vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt. Swirl in chocolate sauce at the same time if you wish.
Gingersnaps. Place in plastic zipper bag and crush finely with a rolling pin. Transfer crumbs to a small bowl. Add 1/4 cup melted butter or margarine. Do not add extra sugar. No baking is needed. Use this butter-crumb mixture for pie crusts and parfait desserts.
Shortbread. Put cookies in a small bowl and crush, leaving a few larger chunks. Whisk in 1/4 cup uncooked oatmeal. Sprinkle mixture over apple, peach, or cherry pie. Dot top with butter and bake pie as recipe directs.
Chocolate wafers. Place in plastic zipper bag and crush until very fine. Gently press these crumbs all around the side of a frosted layer cake. You may also sprinkle a few crumbs on top.
Oatmeal cookies. Put cookies in a small bowl and crush until you have 1/4 cup of crumbs. Add 1/2 cup brown sugar, a half stick of cold butter (cut into small pieces) 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and 2 tablespoons of flour. Swirl mixture into coffee cake and bake as recipe directs.
Vanilla wafers. Leave cookies whole and use in Tiramisu. In a medium-sized bowl, combine 8 ounces low-fat cream cheese, 8 ounces Mascarpone cheese, 1/3 cup powdered sugar, 2 tablespons rum (or 1 teaspoon rum extract), and 2 cups Cool Whip Free. Put a layer of cookies in the bottom of a glass dish. Frost with cream mixture, layer more cookies, and continue layering, ending with cheese. Dust with cocoa powder. Chill at least four hours before serving.
Sugar cookies or Snickerdoodles. Leave cookies whole and use in trifle. In a medium-sized bowl, combine 1 small box instant lemon pudding, 1 1/2 cups skim milk, 1/2 container of Cool Whip Free, and zest of one lemon. In a separate bowl, combine 1 pint of sliced strawberries with 2 teaspoons sugar. Layer cookies, pudding mixture, and strawberries in trifle bowl. Decorate the top with 1 pint of whole berries. Chill at least four hours before serving. You may also use instant vanilla pudding and orange zest in this recipe.
After you start adding cookies to recipes you will find many more uses for them. And that's the way the cookie crumbles!
Copyright 2009 by Harriet Hodgson
Harriet Hodgson has been an independent journlist for 30 years. Before she became a health writer, she was a food writer for a local magazine. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Association of Health Care Journalists, and the Association for Death Education and Counseling. Her 24th book, "Smiling Through Your Tears: Anticipating Grief," written with Lois Krahn, MD, is available from Amazon.
Centering Corporation in Omaha, Nebraska has published her 26th book, "Writing to Recover: The Journey from Loss and Grief to a New Life." The company has also published a companion resource, the "Writing to Recover Journal," which contains 100 writing prompts. Please visit Harriet's Website and learn more about this busy writer and grandmother.
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