Comfort for a Rough Weekend

It's been a rough couple of days. Among other things, I found out yesterday that someone I treasure passed away of a heart attack on Friday night. I've spent the weekend holed up in my flat remembering, baking, and making art. It's what I do when I want to honour someone's impact on my life.

Monty and I had an ongoing, intermittent conversation about the richness of life. He seemed like a good person to ask about it because he was always smiling, always kidding around. He taught me a lot about what it meant to be generous with your self rather than your pocketbook. He also taught me what it looked like to find little ways to make yourself happy regardless of what was going on around you. Despite the age difference - he's a good 25 years older than me, I think - our ideas about being happy were remarkably similar. The one thing that he was better at than I was was not waiting for something else to come around to cause delight. He'd look for it... never seemed to waste any time. Took me a while to figure that out; it's a skill I am still working on. He also never lost the chance to hug someone. That's something I try to not take for granted, either.

I've had this recipe hanging out for a few months now. Found it online, and tucked it away with the intention of making it with a friend via Skype when we found the time. It took me realizing that Monty probably had a to-do list somewhere of things he intended to get around to that he didn't get to finish for me to decide to pull it out. That, and the caramels in the centre reminded me of hugs. It seemed appropriate.

 Apple Cider Caramel Cookies

1 cup unsalted butter, nearly melted
1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (7.4 ounce/10 packages) box Alpine Spiced Apple Cider Instant Original Drink Mix (Not sugar free)
2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 (14 ounce) bag Kraft Caramels

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. It has to be parchment this time.

2. In a stand mixer, cream together butter, sugar, salt, and all 10 packets of apple cider mix until smooth and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract, then mix in the baking soda and baking powder. Add the flour and mix until just combined.

3. With a standard (size 50) cookie scoop, scoop the dough scrapping off the excess as you go up the bowl. Flatten the dough slightly in your hand and place a caramel in the center. Work the dough around the caramel sealing well. Place the cookies two inches apart on the sheets.

4. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. After baking, carefully slide the parchment with the cookies onto the counter. Let cool until they are no longer soft but still slightly warm. Twist gently to remove, and cool the rest of the way upside down on the parchment or on a cooling rack.


Notes: If cookies get too cool before you twist them off, freeze the whole sheet for a few minutes and they’ll come right off.

I didn't make too many modifications to the recipe, other than I used Werther's soft caramels (they were on sale) and cut them in half. I got ~60 medium sized cookies out of the dough, although the last dozen or so had no caramel in them (they are still delicious). 

To any of the Drummers who are reading this, I am very sorry I can't be there on Friday for the Memorial. I hope that you all have an excellent evening of community and memory. <3