I grow old…I grow old…I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled…
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T. S. Eliot
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One of the unfortunate consequences of growing older is that everything starts to ache. As a result, we’ve had to make some changes to the way we do things in the kitchen. The cast iron pots are gone, having been replaced with much lighter (and dishwasher friendly) clay ones and my breadmaking now involves almost no kneading.
In addition, drop cookies have mostly fallen off my baking agenda. Three years ago, I already needed a wrist guard to shape balls of dough, and I’ll now only make traditionally shaped cookies in single batches.
These days, I’m far more likely to either bake my cookie dough in a slab, or shape it into a log which I pop into the fridge or freezer…
This weekend, I’ve made three different types of cookies, all of the “slice and bake” variety.
The first batch, which fed my craving for a good dunking bikkie, was a reworking of our gingernut recipe. Using the basic recipe, I shaped the dough into two logs, one of which went into the fridge (shown on the left in the photo below) and the other into the freezer for future baking …
The refrigerated log was cut into 1cm/½” slices, and baked in a preheated 150C fan-forced oven for 20 minutes…
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The second batch was a simple shortbread, based on the Jammy Dodger recipe. This is a very simple dough to make (it comes together in minutes in the food processor) and both my parents and Small Man adore it. It’s extremely versatile and worth keeping in the freezer for a last minute afternoon tea or dessert.
I have a large food processor – if you’d like to make a smaller batch, the quantities and original recipe are here…
- 350g plain flour
- pinch of sea salt
- 150g icing sugar or icing sugar mixture, sifted
- 250g unsalted butter (cold, and cut into pieces)
- 2 large free range egg yolks
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used homemade)
Blitz the flour, salt and icing sugar in the food processor, then add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Beat the yolks and vanilla together and add to the food processor, pulsing to combine. Once the dough starts to form a ball in the machine, it’s ready.
Divide the dough into two and shape them into logs. Wrap in parchment paper and chill in the fridge (or wrap in a further layer of foil and stash in the freezer).
Once the dough is cold and you’re ready to bake, line trays with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 150C with fan.
Remove the dough from the fridge and using a sharp thin knife, slice it into 4mm thick discs…
I like to trim the circles with my fluted cutter, but that’s definitely optional…
Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until golden brown, rotating the trays once during the baking time…
And don’t waste the eggwhites – I combined ours with 120g caster sugar and a dash of vanilla and turned them into meringues (recipe is here)…
. . . . .
Our third batch of cookies was a less than successful experiment – I tried combining a couple of recipes together to make a Cacao Nib, Hazelnut and Oatmeal cookie. Pete likes these, but they’re a bit too low sugar for me – we’ll see how they “mature”…
. . . . .
Have you had to make changes to the way you cook as you’ve grown older? We’ve found it an interesting transition, but we want to keep making as much as we can from scratch for as long as we can, so we keep trying to find easier ways to do things. I’d love to know of any tips you might have!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Love the look of your ginger nuts most certainly will try them. I always have a log of cookies in the freezer it’s the way to go along with crumble mix. The only thing I have changed to accommodate age is the fact I cant remember any thing!! I have to write the recipes on the kitchen wall……(where once it was probably my phone number on the toilet wall- nobody is looking for that anymore)
I usually keep a roll of cookie dough in the freezer as well, but I’d run out and it was time to restock! Need to make some more too, but now I’ve run out of flour.. :)
I’m lucky, everything seems to work fairly well still, although I have a bugger of a time unscrewing tight jar lids – it hurts my wrists too much. However, I am exceedingly lazy so am very happy to take short cuts like these delicious examples.
Amanda, I have two strapping young lads who now open jars and reach tall things for me AND drive me around – it’s sheer bliss! :)
I have also retired most of the cast iron skillets and pots. I’m baking less and searching for easier recipes. I’m looking up recipes on the internet rather than searching for them in heavy books. And I’m making far less cut outs because they have just too many steps.
Heidi, I REALLY like it when I find a clever way to do something – simple and efficient and just clever. Rolling out cookie dough to cut out shapes was something I never seemed to master – the dough always ended up too soft to cut and then transfer to the baking tray!
Your cookies look so much neater that my Snap Biscuits, which are I guess, drop cookies but take little mixing. I’m still using the Le Creuset cast iron, it’s heavy but I love the results, and I’ve only had them a couple of years.
My biggest change is timing and volume. I tackle one thing time where as once I’d have been juggling multiple baking-cooking projects, and collapsing in a heap afterwards. Now it’s biscuits one day, roast or slow cooked dinner the next, and I aim for several meals out of each.
That is one of my favorite poems and lines :)
ED, I agree, multi-tasking seems so over-rated now! :) And it’s a wonderful poem, isn’t it? Since we’re the same age, I bet we both studied it in Year 10! :D
I hear you Celia, my wrist casts are a bugger! These biscuits look delicious and the method is certainly a winner. My tip for dealing with aches and injuries is to bribe littlej. She has just dug and mulched all my garden beds as well as moving 15 Barrows of dirt for the bargain price of a new video game (are they still called that?) What I’ll do when she has a social life of her own I don’t know, but it works for now :) xox
Hon, I hope you’re feeling a bit better soon, you’ve had such a rough trot! I’m glad LittleJ is bribeable and biddable! :)
I only managed to make Pete’s chocolate cookies once before it became a slice and bake cookie; the thing I miss the most is the mortar and pestle; unless there is someone else in the house to lift it for me.
Elaine, I have a big mortar and pestle which I can still manage to drag onto the bench, but cleaning it out afterwards is an absolute pain! Everything goes into the mini food processor instead these days! :) Hope you enjoyed the slice and bake version of the cookies! x
I certainly did; thank-you. I will make some to take a birthday morning tea (special request) on Wednesday; do you know if I make it tomorrow will it be too soft on the day?
Oops, sorry, I missed this question Elaine! I hope they were ok – they firm up on day 2 (which I really like), so they should have been fine! :)
I’ve definitely tried to stream line things in recent years. Time is precious and while I still really value homemade I certainly don’t want (and can’t!) spend all day cooking a single dish or spend hours on perfecting the perfect biscuit. Freezer rolls and splat them where they fall kinda biscuits are my go to ones around here these days :-)
Brydie, you are very wise, time with a young family is pure gold and it disappears all too quickly! xx
Error, Will Robinson. “remove the dough from the oven and slice.”
I suspect that’s fridge :)
I agree that slice and bake is the way to go, especially if you’re making a lot of them. I never thought about cutting with a cutter once I’d sliced.
Got it, thanks a for picking that up, M! xx
Celia, such an interesting post, and who’da thunk you would see yourself as old! In my kitchen, I have had to think twice about buying any more enamelled cast iron bakeware too, as dearly as I love it, I find it so heavy to lift. I am tending to use my wok for many things, including making bolognaise sauce, grilling steaks and so on… And, like Tania, above, there are notes all over the place for things I have to remember to do : )
I swear some days I feel like I’m 110, Lizzy! My latest find has been the fabulous Falconware enamelled pie dishes – they’re cheap, lightweight and go into and come out of the dishwasher perfectly!
Oh dearie me, I keep forgetting to make changes. I can’t hold the frypan in my left hand while I roll the omelettes out because the hand kind of gives way under the weight. The fact that I forget indicates something else about growing old….I forget what it is though. ;)
Hehehe…don’t look at me, I can’t remember what it is either.. ;-)
No changes due to age yet but due to lack of time and eager small assistants. They love to bake much more than I do but it has to be simple and fast to get something done. I’ve never sliced biscuits but looks like a quick and simple way I may have to try! The recipes seem yummy too, thanks for the tip!
It’s lovely to have small helpers! I miss mine, although my 20 year old did make me lunch the other day!
Yes the cast iron pans are gone and most of the enamelled bakeware but not all. Could not cook without sauteing onion garlic and then throwing chopped veges in the pot and into the oven. So many meals from that one pot of vege.
The main change to my cooking is to attempt to make a few flavours marry perfectly with minimum processes. .
Madge, there is something very elegant about a few simple ingredients that blend perfectly together. I think that’s where I went wrong with the last cookie on my post – I was trying to incorporate too many bits and pieces…
I never realised the ageing process to start quite as early as it did Celia. I love the idea of slice and bake biscuits. I will try and see how that works out with a few of my recipes too.
Have a lovely week ahead.
:-) Mandy xo
Mandy darling, I think I’ve got quite a few years on you! I’m now in my late 40s and trying to be proactive – I get quite sore hands and wrists.. :)
I’ve started experimenting with frozen cookie dough that can be made into pastry or cookies. So far, a couple of successful multi-taking recipes! :-)
That’s good news! Our shortbread doughs work well for all sorts of things – I must make some more for the freezer (it keeps getting eaten!).. :)
Now I have an urge to bake some cookies!! There’s nothing better on a rainy Sunday that a cup of tea and a few biccies!
Misky, the ginger ones are very nice, but Pete’s convinced me to post the recipe for the oatmeal ones – they’re quite low sugar and you might like them?
Oh! Oh! Yes, please, Celia. I’ve been searching high and low for a recipe for oatmeal cookies that aren’t loaded with sugar. My mum used to make really good ones for my dad, who was also diabetic, but sadly she tossed out the recipe when she moved into her assisted-care flat. I’d love to see your recipe!
I’ll get it written up for you. It has only 1/2 cup added sugar in the recipe! :)
That sounds very good!
ps. No rush posting it, Celia, as I have builders and electricians here all week. Most days no power for hours on end.
Ha! I just sent it to you via email! :)
Thank you for your email. It’s raining cats and dogs here today. Thank you for again your lovely recipes, will spend a day cooking and will be making some of these. Sarah x
Thanks for stopping by, Sarah! :)
Celia, one thing you are not is old. My wrists are buggered from too much writing and typing but I am in denial. I still have my cast iron cookware and my copper cookware and I am not giving them up until I go into the nursing home :)
Too heavy for me, G. The Emile Henry Flame Ware has been a godsend! :)
I’m sorry to hear that your wrists bother you. I’ve had to make some changes, but since its my back/neck that are my problem, they are different. I only tackle 1 or 2 ‘fun,extra’ projects a week, and on those days I plan simpler one-pot meals for dinner. I always chop veggies, do any pre-cooking for dinner, in the morning when I feel better. Then I always lay down for an hour or two before dinner, and then I feel fine to make dinner. We’ve changed up chores a little bit, and now hubby does the after dinner dishes since I can’t manage.
I’ve got too much energy and enthusiasm for learning new things, to slow down much more than that right now. I’m just so thankful to not be where I was 8+ months ago. My kitchen aid does all my kneading for me, and if I get too sore w/ cookies, I just pop the dough in the freezer, and wait til a better day:)
Mel, I’m sorry it’s all still giving you problems, it’s been a long time for you. :( I guess we’re lucky to live at a time in human history where we have so many labour-saving options! Glad to know you’ve found a rhythm that works for you.. xx
love slice and bake cookies! that way i know they’ll always be the same size instead of all wonky as usual ;)
They do all turn out the same that way!
Lovely cookies! And such a clever way to deal with them. My poem in that theme is Warning. http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/warning/ I like the idea of ‘running my stick along the public rainings’.
I never got to cast iron pans. When I was young, I couldn’t afford them and now I can’t lift them. I reckon I was robbed!
There seem to be a lot of us with creaky joints ~ BTW, I thought the term ‘creaky joints’ was poetic licence till I heard mine for the first time. :-)
Like other folk, I pace myself and look for work arounds.
Pat, I remember ten years ago an older friend telling me that he was sore from getting out of bed. I just had no idea what he was talking about. Now I’m starting to get the picture.. ;-)
Slice and bake is soooo easy! Something I’m including in my bulk-cooking cookbook — making things when you do have the time for when you don’t have the time — these flavors are great!
I know what you mean about heavy pots, but the thought of not using my cast iron is grevious. Most of the time I do alright with it, but it is difficult to hold it up over a bowl to scrape, so I solicit help when I can or tediously spoon it out. I do think the short cuts, modifications, and making things easier that you mention are simply wisdom.
Judy, thank you – it’s all about listening to your body – something I’ve had to learn to do after years of stubbornly ignoring it. And I want to be able to keep up the pace, so modifications need to be made! :)
That first picture of the three racks of cookies is just perfect Celia, just love the abundance. Getting older really is a pain and I’m forever finding new aches and pains very surprising. You are very wise to try and take precautions.
Choc, in my mind, you’re always 25, so it surprises me to hear you talk about getting old! You always have so much energy and enthusiasm! :)
Join the club, Celia. My cast iron pots and pans went to different members of the family.
And what a difference a year can make! Up until last year I could spend a whole day cooking and gardening, this year it is just not possible, need frequent breaks. But all is not loss, I use the break time to admire my knick knacks and reminiscencing or, when outdoors admiring the flowers and wildlife.
Norma, your comment has reminded me of our old neighbour, Mrs M. When we met her, she was in her mid-70s, and she said to us, “you know, ten years ago, I could work all day in the garden. Now, four hours and I’m buggered!!”. Given that at 75 she was still trimming the edges of her lawn with a machete, we had to laugh! :)
Scuttling claws checking in here… can’t think of anything to say though – nice post xx
even that I don’t remember properly, damn, ‘ragged claws, scuttling’ heading off to bed dreaming of home made biscuits :)
I would love to be able to bring a tray of assorted bikkies over to your place for afternoon tea. I would even make jammy dodgers with mulberry jam.. :)
celia..you’re a genius.i’d never thought of using a biscuit cutter on the disks to make them look prettier..
my most troublesome problem is fatigue..i can still do most things but i’ve had to learn to limit the number of hours i work..that’s because i don’t feel tired at the time and then a day or two later i can crash in a heap on the couch..
Jane, the fluted cutters make us look clever – that’s very important! :D I’m sorry to hear you’re so tired, but I’m glad you have some understanding of how much your body can take.. xx
love this! what a great way of having cookies evenly sized :-)
Sandy, it’s much quicker too! :)
I think in every stage of life we’re always having to make adjustments. I’m sure that as long as we keep adjusting, we can keep doing all the things we love to do. I just made a batch of meringues! Same recipe almost. They’re still in the oven xx
Charlie, it’s all about being proactive and making sure we can keep going, old chooks that we are.. ;-)
So many excellent biscuits! Slice and bake varieties definitely have their advantages and your lot look lovely.
Kari, thank you – we make cheese biscuits in this way too!
Being able to make and keep cookie dough in the freezer is about the only way that I can have freshly made cookies. If I bake a batch of cookies, either I make a delivery to friends or I end up eating them all. Freezing the dough allows me to bake smaller batches and a couple of cookies straight from the oven is a great way to end the day.
John, I usually divide my doughs into two and bake one log at a time – it helps cut down on the overeating as you say! But after this batch, I did have to ring some of the neighbours and ask them to come over and help! :)
I love slice and bake cookies for the convenience. I use my bread maker to make dough to make life easier for me :)
Tandy, I think it’s amazing the number of things you do with your bread maker! We gave ours away years ago! :)
Celia I love the idea of cutting the rounds with a cookie cutter. I find that mine always have one flat edge from my dodgy cutting skills.
Knowing you’re only ever 15-20 minutes away from freshly-baked cookies sounds rather wonderful.
Claire, everyone’s log cookies are a bit flat on one side! The cutters just make us look clever.. ;-)
Sorry to hear that things are aching! I feel the same way this week as I’ve been working crazy hours but hopefully it’s just a phase. I hope! :D
You’ve been so busy Lorraine, I don’t know how you keep up the pace! Hope it calms down for you soon! xx
I’m so sorry you’ve got wood rot in your poor timbers Celia. Peter and I found a really good physiotherapist who helped enormously with ways to retrain muscles to help support joints, but I’m guessing you’ve already investigated ways to get on and do what you want. As you indicate, adapt and move forward – albeit with rolled up trousers!
Jan, it’s more a creak than rot, and I’m off to see Deidre with the iron massage hands today! She helps a lot! :)
Cookies in just a few minutes would be a god send on those days you just want something sweet and warm to go with your tea! I don’t know why I havn’t thought of having a log in the freezer earlier! Thanks for sharing Celia. As for your question, I don’t know! I’m 29 going onto 49 some days. I like to think having a 2 year old keeps me young but if anything looking after an active toddler has aged me! I have to pump out meals faster than ever to cater for my hungry family and so it’s very much about convenience these days…
Lisa, I needed to restock the freezer – in there, I now have chocolate sables, four cheese biscuits, gingernuts and muesli bar cookies – all in raw log dough form. It’s a warm fuzzy feeling to know I can pull a treat out of my hat with very little notice! Enjoy your toddler – best time of your life! :)
One of the good things about freezing logs of cookies is that I can slice off as many as I need rather than cooking a large batch and turning my back for two minutes to find them eaten. Having read all the above, I’m feeling guilty at noticing when MIL stopped chopping apples for our apple pressing day and went inside to rest (she’s 83) though my mother kept going (she’s only 78 though). My concession to age? None yet but probably I’ll just fall to pieces one day instead of gracefully declining.
83 and 78 and you’ve still got them working at cutting up apples! You’re a tough taskmaster, Anne! :) (But good on them! I hope I’m still as involved when I’m an octogenarian!)
This is great Celia! I freeze my cookie & tart dough ahead of time as well. It certainly is a huge timesaver! I also freeze pre-scooped cookie dough (usually choc chip) using a 1″ diameter cookie scoop. I just pull out a couple of balls and bake!
I smiled when I saw your shortbread recipe as it is very similar to my grandmother’s (she uses granulated sugar instead). I know how delicious they are ;) She also used her recipe as a crumble topping (you could freeze the crumbles too I imagine…) If you like crumbles or slices, you might want to give it a go- it’s a huge hit in our house. Hopefully I will do a post one of these days… xo
Crumble topping! That’s brilliant Em, thank you!
ha ha…almost a foreign language ” a bikkie to dunk”. I love gingernuts so shall try this. I have a breadmaker now for kneading, that lovely son bought me when I broke my arm. Probably so he didn’t have to listen to my whining anymore that I couldn’t make bread :)
Nanette, hope the arm is mended now! And yes, it’s very Aussie/Kiwi isn’t it, a “bikkie to dunk”. I read back over the post where I wrote “dunking bikkies” and suddenly thought..”I hope no-one thinks I was swearing!” :D
I am so excited to find your recipe for rolled cookie dough Celia! I am probably the last person to learn about making cookies this way but I can’t believe the good timing! I only read about the concept for the first time today in a historical fictional novel set in the 1800’s and thought “Wow! What an awesome idea! I’ll have to try and find some details!” I absolutely adore your blog Celia and have been reading every single post (sometimes a few days late!) for quite a while. Your just amazing! Keep up the great ‘work’!
Sharon, thank you, that’s very kind of you! Hope you have fun with the cookies – it’s a great thing to keep a log in the freezer! :)
The rolls of dough are sheer brilliance Celia! I’m always looking for better ways and you always seem to pull something out of your hat. I’ve had fibromyalgia and arthritis for years except for my hips and don’t you know after all this packing and moving I’ve irritated the sciatic nerve which led to and MRI which shows a mess of arthritis in my hips now. Getting old is not for sissies.
Oh Di, I’m so sorry to hear that. You’re absolutely right, it’s not for the faint-hearted! I had my monthly massage yesterday (an indulgence, but an essential one) and my therapist said (as she does every month), “you REALLY needed that..”
Left a comment yesterday but I think my phone ate it… These look so good I will give them a go with my young baker! Stupid question alert… What attachment do you use in the processor for mixing? Hope you’re feeling well! Xxx
Hi love, in the food processor, I just use the standard blade for making shortbread. In the standing mixer (Kenwood), I use the paddle for cookie doughs, and the whisk for meringues. x
Your slice & bake cookies look just wonderful & your meringues to be too! Yum Yum Yummmm!
Thanks Sophie! They were all fun and easy to make! :)
Made the dough for the ginger biscuits yesterday and cooked off one roll of it this morning. Very good, nice and crunchy and crisp, just how I like a gingernut. Have promised the recipe to my daughter, I like them so much! Best thing, I’ve still got another roll in the freezer for another day! I do love your blog, Celia. I am going to try Jamie’s chicken recipe soon, if you recommend it I know it will be good.
Jeannette, thank you so much for trying them! They’ve been a hit here too – both my boys liked them so much that Pete didn’t get one. Like you though, I still have a roll in the freezer! :)
My problem isn’t old age but pregnancy. I haven’t had to change anything yet, but I am much more forgetful than usual. I love the idea of freezing cookie dough in logs!
Ah yes, the legendary baby brain! :) I can still remember that…kind of.. ;-)
your blog gets better and better. I love the idea of rolling the dough into a log and slicing. So much simpler than faffing around rolling little balls and wondering if they are roughly the same size or not :)
Claire, I was using a small icecream scoop to get even balls of dough, and found that hard on my wrists! I think all those straight edged bikkies are very English/Aussie looking as well! :)
I’m finding unscrewing the lids of jars especially the larger jars a bit of an effort so have been handing them over to my other half and I’ve noticed he also is struggling a little. Thank god I didn’t marry a much younger man it would have been too difficult to keep up, these days we seem to spend time comparing our aches and pains but I still enjoy my baking and will be making your shortbread biscuits soon.
Chris, I find teenage sons very useful for unscrewing jars! :) Hope you enjoy the shortbreads! :)