If You Give A Mouse A Cookies

Yes, I know... "A Cookies" is grammatically incorrect.  "But it works, mate."

If you haven't guessed already, these treats are from the classic If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, by Laura Joffe Numeroff, and illustrated by Felicia Bond.  In this story, for those who have not yet read it, a young boy gives a mouse a cookie.  But of course, you know what's going to happen if you give a mouse a cookie, right?  He's going to want a glass of milk.  Naturally; who wouldn't?  But our mouse doesn't stop there.  The progression of requests - a domino effect that makes the little boy in the pictures exhausted from running around all day - gets siller as the book goes on, and ends - spoiler! - with the mouse wanting another cookie.

I love the logic in this book, warped as it may be, and that it's a never-ending circle of silly if you, the reader, are careless enough to get it started.  I love the happy little mouse, and the look on his face when he realizes that he needs a haircut.  And his little overalls always give me a little squeak of enjoyment when I pick this book up, probably because I always forget that he wears overalls.

(Ms. Numeroff and Ms. Bond have also teamed up to bring us If You Give a Pig a Pancake and If You Give A Moose a Muffin, among others.  I'd love to gush about how I enjoyed them, but to tell the truth, I haven't read them yet.  They're on my list, I swear.)

For these mouse cookies, I've chosen to use a recipe given to me by my friend Christina, which she calls "Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies," or simply, "Those Awesome Cookies That My Friend Makes."  (Yes, she got them from her friend.  I have no idea where this recipe originally came from.)  Christina said, when I asked if she minded my using her recipe, "Good choice! Those will be perfect for that book."  But she did add the stipulation that, in the photo, there is a glass of milk, thus staring the vicious mouse cycle.  (I gave him the straw, too.  I couldn't help myself.)

If You Give A Mouse A Cookies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups light brown sugar, firmly packed
2 large eggs, at room temperature (take them out of the fridge a few hours before, or use the warm water trick we discussed in the Amelia Bedelia cookies post)
1 tbsp. vanilla extract

12 oz. bag of semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and set aside.

3. Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

4. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and mix to blend.

5. On low speed, add the flour mixture, a little at a time, until just blended--do not overmix!  Stir in the chocolate chips.

6.  For mouse-sized cookies, I used a small ice cream scoop (a melon-baller size) to drop dough onto cookie sheets.  You can use a larger size for larger cookies without making any changes to the recipe.

7. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown.

I've been nibbling on these cookies as I write this, and I find that, like the mouse, I keep wanting more.