My twin grandchildren, one male, one female, returned to college last week. One attends a large state university the other attends a small private school. Both of my grandchildren are please with their college choices. This year, instead of living in a dorm, my grandson is renting an apartment with three home-town buddies.
There are two bedrooms in the apartment and each has two beds. One room is for “The Neats” and the other room is for “The Slobs.” The kitchen is small, but efficient, and the young men will be preparing their own meals and cleaning up after themselves. One of the roommates is a pretty good cook and so is my grandson.
Last year I sent my grandchildren care packages from home and they were a hit. In February I sent them Valentine boxes. I tucked a small teddy bear in my granddaughter’s parcel. She liked the contents so much she photographed them.
Another year has started. What should I put in my first care package? The Bright Bulb website says college students like packages with holiday themes. Chocolate chip cookies, coffee, tea and cocoa mixes are favorite items. Students also appreciate batteries, stress balls, phone and gift cards.
Since my grandson likes cookies I decided to make a batch. I had some coconut in the freezer and decided to use it in a basic cookie recipe. A cup of mini chops, left over from previous baking, added a chocolate twist. Finally, I added vanilla and almond extracts. The cookies were amazing!
Are you getting ready to send a care package to a college student? This recipe for Coconut Dream Cookies with Mini Chocolate Chips will get a five-star review.
Ingrediets
1 stick butter (half cup) or 1 stick I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1 cup mini chocolate chips
1 cup pre-sifted regular flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Method
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. In a marge bowl cream butter and sugar together. Beat in egg. Add extracts, coconut and mini chips. Add half of the flour mixture. Work in the remaining flour mixture with a wooden spoon. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of batter onto baking sheets, leaving two inches between each cookie. Bake 10-15 minutes, until the edgs start to brown. These cookies brown quickly so keep your eye on them. Remove cookies from oven and let them cool for several seconds before removing them from the pan. Store cookies in an air-tight container. Yield: About 3 dozen.