Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Pass the Hardtack!

When I was  a child, the concept of 'refrigerator cookies' came into vogue. Refrigerator cookies merely means that you prepare the dough, form it into a roll, and then slice and bake them when the dough is cold. My mother was always interested in trying new things so she mixed up a batch. I don't know if she misread the directions, the recipe hadn't gotten the kinks worked out, or if it was just a bad recipe. The cookies were okay but spread more than desired during baking and were thick and hard. My mother was disappointed but left them on the table and we could help ourselves. She didn't have much hope of the cookies ever getting entirely eaten and was dismayed about the waste of ingredients.

A few hours later, she was surprised to find half the cookies gone! Just as she stood there musing over this, I raced in and grabbed another handful. Curious, she followed me outside and discovered me and a bunch of neighborhood children standing by a billowing old sheet we had attached to the fence. We were all munching on her failed refrigerator cookies. She smiled to herself thinking that, perhaps, the recipe did have some appeal, afterall. As she headed back to the house, she heard one of us shout, "Ahoy, maties! Pass the hardtack!" Hey, pirates need to eat, too!

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