November 27, 2020
Just about everyone likes fresh-baked cookies, but finding a recipe, then buying and measuring all the ingredients can be daunting to some people. So, this holiday season, give the gift of convenience—pre-measured cookie mix that you pack into a jar. Your recipients will only need to add an egg and some butter.
I’ve done a lot of fraction math for a cookie recipe (with two flavor options) so that it will al fit in a mason jar, or another 16-ounce jar. Glass peanut butter jars work well, once you soak the label off, and if you’ll be mailing your gift, plastic 16-ounce peanut butter jars are good because they’re light and won’t break. Note—don’t use peanut butter jars if your recipient has allergies, even if you wash the jar well.
Pickle or relish jars also work, but you’ll need to make sure all the pickle or relish smell is off the jar and lid. This is also true of pasta sauce lids that fit on Mason jars. After washing the lid, coat it with a thick paste of baking soda and water and let it soak overnight. If it still smells, put a layer of wax paper or plastic wrap between the lid and the ingredients. If you’ve saved holiday cards that you received, you can cut a circle out of one to decorate the jar lid. A ribbon also adds a nice touch. Print the recipient instructions (download here and see below), fold them up and staple to the ribbon or tape to the jar.
Double Chocolate Oatmeal or White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
Gift-Giver instructions:
Pack the following ingredients, in this order, into the jar, gently shaking or tapping the jar on the counter between each ingredient.
¼ c. Whole wheat flour
¼ c. White flour (or ½ c. white flour if you don’t want or don’t have whole wheat)
1/3 tsp. baking soda. Since 1/3 tsp. measuring spoons don’t exist, use a little less than ½ tsp.
1/6 tsp. salt (use a rounded 1/8 tsp.)
1/6 c. white sugar (half-fill a 1/3 measuring cup – doesn’t have to be perfect)
1/6 c. brown sugar. Pack it down tightly into the jar with a spoon or your fingers.
Add-ins: for Double Chocolate cookies, add 1/3 c. chocolate chips, then1/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder. For White Chocolate Cranberry cookies, add 1/8 tsp. cinnamon,1/3 c. white chocolate chips, and ¼ c. dried cranberries.
1 c. oatmeal (either quick or old fashioned)
If there is still space at the top of the jar, add a few more of the add-ins (chips, cranberries). If you’re running out of space in the jar, it’s OK if you can’t quite fit in the entire cup of oatmeal, but push it down to fit in as much as you can. You need to include most of the oatmeal. If you can’t, your jar is too small. The jar should be filled tightly to keep the layers separated and looking pretty.
Recipient instructions
