I don't ever remember it being this hot, do you?? We could be buried under 3 feet of snow like a few months ago, though. Here's something good about this heat: it's perfect for "baking" cookies in your car! If you've never tried, it's a fun thing to do and perfect to do while you're at work. I park my car in the parking spot that gets the most sun, and by 2 or 3PM we've got fresh "baked" cookies. This is also a fun experiment to do with your kids. The main thing to keep in mind is that you can't open your car door until you think the cookies are done.
Here's what you need:
A car
A REALLY hot day - temps 95 degrees or above
Refrigerator cookie dough
Cookie sheet
Parchment paper or foil
Towel
Here's what you do:
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil. Evenly and thinly slice the cookie dough (about 1/4" thickness) and place on the lined cookie sheet. Take the cookie sheet and towel out to your car. Lay the towel over the dashboard as a precaution (you could not put one down...but do you really want to find out what will happen if you don't??). Place the cookie sheet on the towel. Close the car door and keep it shut! The heat in the car will rise to about 200 degrees and will bake the cookies in about 4 hours. The cookies will be pale, but you'll know when they are done when the edges are firm and the center doesn't feel "doughy."
Have fun experimenting! Jack wants chocolate chip and Engineer John wants peanut butter, so it looks like we'll have a smorgasbord of cookies tomorrow :D
--Erin
I may do this with my summer camp kids tomorrow! how fun! :) thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! Hope they have fun!!
ReplyDeleteA smorgasbord of Dashboard cookies if you're bored!
ReplyDeleteWe used to do this all the time in MS when I was growing up, Mom said so she didn't have to heat up the house with the oven but I know the truth...it's just FUN!
ReplyDeleteWe have LOTS of those hot days here in Dallas. :) I've never heard of this. Hmmmmm. Interesting.
ReplyDeleteJust a safety check... you need to add two things to this procedure to ensure the safety of what you're eating.
ReplyDeleteFirst, you'll need to put the cookies in some sort of enclosed metal container. There are a whole slew of toxic things "baking" in your car that you really don't want to eat with your cookies...
Second, you need to have a temperature gauge that is visible through the window. That temperature gauge needs to reach at least 180° and stay there for the duration in order to actually cook the eggs. If not, all you're really doing is "dehydrating" the cookie dough, which isn't enough to get rid of the e.coli recently found in the Nestle brand (eww, sorry).
LOL! I think I could do this in my HOUSE cuz we don't have air conditioning. I think I'll take a pan up the the third floor right now... :o)
ReplyDeleteHhmmmm, wonder if I could do this with dinner so I don't have to heat up the oven/kitchen?!?!
ReplyDeletetry raisinets instead of chocolate chips- they're fabulous!
ReplyDelete