davidmanning's Full Review: Betty Crocker Cookie Mix, Sugar, 17.5 Oz Pouches (...
Yeah, I enjoy making cookies. Usually I just whip up chocolate-chip cookies using the recipe on the chip package, but why not mix it up and go for something a little "cleaner" in taste, right?
The local grocery was selling pouches of Betty Crocker low-effort cookie mixes at a healthy discount, so I figured what the heck. Since the mixes only require the addition of butter and one egg, there's little to screw up, and one can expect each pouch to make the same cookies as the one before.
Simple Directions, Simple Cookies
The directions are about as simple as can be. Add a melted stick of butter and an egg to the pouch contents, mix until everything sticks together, and drop by the spoonful onto a cookie sheet. Since I planned to roll the dough and use shapes, as I do -- I have the cookie cutters, I ought to use them -- I cut the butter to a 1/3 cup (2/3 of a stick) and add a couple tablespoons of flour, as per the instructions, to make the dough thicker and able to handle cutting and baking without massive spreading.
I found that the cookie dough tended to stick to my counters anyway, so a fine-edge spatula was necessary to transfer the cookies to the baking sheet without fingerprints and torn-off star points. Without flouring the rolling surface (and subsequently transferring the unwanted flour to the cookies), it's kind of a tradeoff.
Popped in the oven for 7-9 minutes at a time, being careful not to reuse a cookie sheet until it's cooled back down, and I have a pile of cookies in about 25 minutes from pouch opening to cooling on the racks, ready to dunk in a big glass of milk. I managed around 20 large cookies, stars and interlocked hearts (awwww), from the mix, with a cookie's worth or so eaten raw.
Worth Eating?
With a qualified yes, I enjoy these cookies as produced from the package. Freshly out of the oven (after standing the required minute), the ones that came out well are tasty, chewy in the center, crisp on the edges, all-around good. The sugar is surprisingly not overwhelming; I think my mom overdid it in my youth with her recipe.
But a couple days after, even though they rest in an airtight container, the chewy centers are gone. The crispness overtakes the entire cookie, and it's pretty much a requirement that the cookies be served with milk (or coffee). Fortunately, most of the cookies disappear in the first two days.
Ingredients, Nutrition, Yada Yada Yada
The pouch will make 36 small sugar cookies, using the teaspoon-drop method. A serving size of about two such cookies will give you 120 glorious energizing calories, with but 2.5 grams fat (0.5 saturated), but alas, one gram trans fat per serving. It's been a long time since I saw a product admit to trans fats.
Of this 28 grams of mix, 13 grams are sugars of the 22 grams total carbohydrates. All else, nutritionally, is negligible. The trans fat apparently comes from the "partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oil." Sugar is the main ingredient.
Do note, that, of course, this is wheat flour, you add an egg, Betty Crocker tosses in some nonfat milk, and a bit of soy flour to boot. All we need are peanuts to complete the allergen set.
Final Thoughts
Yeah, I didn't buy a twelve-pack. I could have, but decided that was unwise. At less than two bucks a pouch, I figure I got a deal considering the compare prices on Epinions.
Are they worth it? I think so, if you're making them for a party in proximity to the baking time. They appear to be sturdy enough for icing, and when warm they'll take colored sugar like a champ.
I thought about adding cinnamon to the mix just to see what would happen, and with my final pouch I think I will. There's little wiggle room, of course, with a mix like this, so of course I have to attempt to put my stamp on these. It'll end badly, I presume.
For now, though, yes, the pouch can deliver decent cookies. I'm still partial to cookies from scratch, though, and this feels a little too short-cutty for my mind. Pressed for time, though, this is acceptable alternative.
Case of 12 17.5-ounce packages (total of 210 ounces) Made with sugar and enriched flour Homemade cookies ready in 20 minutes Just add butter and egg; ...More at Amazon
Case of 12 17.5-ounce packages (total of 210 ounces) Made with sugar and enriched flour Homemade cookies ready in 20 minutes Just add butter and egg; ...More at Amazon Marketplace
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