One sunshiny day last summer during a car ride with a few of my grandchildren, we all got a little silly. We'd just made a stop at the local chocolate shop for some candy treats. Giggles escalated to hardy belly-laughs as we sang nursery rhymes opera-style with brief pauses for licks of Sugar Daddy caramel lollipops (the grandchildren) and bites of a thick dark chocolate-dipped apricot (me).
Our wacky fun turned livelier when 10-year-old Emily referred to her sweet treat as a shoogie dadder. She was as surprised as the rest of us when those funny words came out of her mouth. Her hilarious new term for a Sugar Daddy prompted another round of side-splitting laughter in the car.
Shoogie dadders ignited creativity in the other two comedians in the vehicle.
"Lollie babies," 7-year-old Madison yelled out with glee.
"Oh, baloney-o's," chortled 4-year-old Tanner.
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In my food-focused world, the comical words of my grandchildren sounded like the start of new recipes. They agreed. Together, we decided Shoogie Dadders must be some kind of cookie.
Inspired by the playful words of my grandchildren, I got a little silly with some cookie dough.
Shoogie Dadders began as oatmeal cookies. With the addition of grated apple, oatmeal cookies become moist and chewy. With candy-coated caramel bits stirred into the dough, oatmeal-apple cookies become taffy apples in disguise.
A shoogie cookie only gets better with a dadder of glaze drizzled over the top. Butter and brown sugar boiled together and sweetened with powdered sugar offer the flavors of browned butter and caramel. Ribbons of the sweet caramel glaze cling to each cookie.
The dough for these soft cookies can be refrigerated for up to a couple of days before baking. The day you turn on the oven, you'll have cookies to eat in no time.
Shoogie Dadders are quite good just as they are. The candies melt into the dough as the cookies bake, turning into soft toffee that melts in the mouth. But add a drizzle of Caramel Glaze and the cookies become absolutely irresistible. Or, shabsholoogie dirresistible.
Now, it's on to lollie babies and baloney-o's.
Shoogie Dadders
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 (6-ounce) box or ¾ cup Sugar Babies
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup grated peeled apple
1 1/2 cups quick oats
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Sift flour with baking soda and cinnamon into a bowl and set aside.
Use kitchen scissors or a sharp knife to cut each Sugar Babies candy in half. Set the candies aside.
In a large mixing bowl, use electric mixer to beat butter with brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat to blend. Add sifted dry ingredients to mixing bowl and blend on low speed. When dry ingredients have almost disappeared into the bowl, add grated apple and mix. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the uncooked quick oats. Stir in the Sugar Babies. Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least one hour or overnight.
At baking time, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Drop walnut-sized pieces of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, arranging them far enough apart to allow for the cookies to spread. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven for about 10 minutes, or until cookies are set and just beginning to turn golden brown.
Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for a few minutes, then slide the paper, with cookies still on it, from pan to kitchen counter. Allow cookies to cool completely on the paper. Drizzle with Caramel Glaze. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.
Caramel Glaze:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3/4 cup powdered sugar
4 teaspoons milk or half-and-half
Place butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Heat on medium-low burner, stirring to combine as the butter melts. Bring to a boil. Allow to bubble for 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Add powdered sugar all at once. Use a wire whisk to mix. It will get very stiff. Add 2 teaspoons of the half-and-half and whisk to blend. When mixture is smooth, add remaining 2 teaspoons half-and-half, one teaspoon at a time. Use a fork to drizzle warm glaze over cookies.
Tips from the cook
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--If you use a knife to cut each candy in half, it will help to lightly coat the blade with non-stick cooking spray.
--You will probably need 2 batches of Caramel Glaze to drizzle over all of the cookies. Don't make a double batch of glaze all at once. The glaze thickens quickly as it cools.
