Chewy Chocolate Cookies

(Amounts can be halved and you'll still get plenty!)

You'll need a large mixing bowl (with a mixing spoon) plus a baking tray (and tea spoon).
A wire cooling rack would also be useful.

Ingredients

1¼ cup 250 g butter or margarine, softened
2 cups 400 g sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 cups 300 g unsifted plain flour
¾ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
½ tsp salt
1 cup finely chopped nuts (optional)

Method

Preheat the oven to 175°C.

  1. Cream the butter (or margarine) and sugar in a large bowl then blend in the eggs and vanilla.
  2. Add the flour, cocoa, baking soda and stir the mixture together.
  3. Stir in the nuts, if desired.
  4. Drop the mixture, by teaspoon, onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes.
    Do not over bake. The cookies will be soft. They puff up while baking and flatten while cooling.
  5. Cool on the cookie sheet until completely set (about 10 minutes) then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes about 4½ dozen.

Mud Pie

Ingredients

175 g butter
125 g sugar
1 tbsp cocoa powder
125 g mixed fruit
250 g broken biscuits
1 milk chocolate bar

Method

  1. Melt the butter.  Add the cocoa and sugar.
  2. Sir in the fruit and biscuits.
  3. Line a cake tin with foil and pour in the mix.  Press it down and place in the fridge for about 2 hours.
  4. Melt the chocolate and pour over the pie, spreading it out.
  5. (Wait as long as you can before you) cut it into slices and eat it.

Alternatively: Make in bun cases to have individual pies.