Originally found on Every Day Food (and now on Martha Stewart), John's Kitchen Sink Cookies call for a little bit of everything including chocolate, nuts, raisins and oats. Some Kitchen Sink Cookies use quite a bit of oats, but "John's" recipe is a little different in that the cookies are more like a big, flaky, chocolate chip cookies with barely noticeable oats. The recipe also calls for only brown sugar (no granulated) and a tiny bit of corn syrup, so the dough is sturdy and less sweet and can hold a lot of add-ins.
My first batch baked up high with a crispy shell and moist and light inside. The dough was on the dry side, but I kind of liked it because it reminded me of a very rich scone or biscuit studded with chocolate. I’d be interested to hear what other people think.
Reading the reviews on Every Day Food was entertaining. A few people complained that theirs were “flat as pancakes” which baffled me, as mine were almost as high as biscuits. Some people described the texture as cakey. I don’t think that quite fit either. All I know is I liked John's Kitchen Sink Cookies and might try the next batch with European style butter.
The only changes I made to John’s were to use dried cranberries instead of raisins, bittersweet chips instead of chunks and golden syrup in place of light corn syrup. I also made half a batch which yielded 12
John's Kitchen Sink Cookie
1 ¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon coarse salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 stick (114 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup brown sugar (100 grams)
¾ teaspoon corn syrup
1 large egg
½ tablespoon vanilla extract
¼ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
¼ cup pecans
1 cup chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda; set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and vanilla until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, scraping bowl often.
With mixer on lowest speed, stir in the flour mixture, followed by the oats, nuts and chips.
Drop by 2 inch balls onto baking sheets. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until golden brown, about 12 to 14 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheet 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
Anna says
Katrina, thanks for the tip. I still haven't made the others yet. I keep forgetting to buy buttermilk!
Julie, sorry I'm slow in responding. I think it *would* screw up the cookies. I think they would be too dry. I'll have to see how yours turn out ;).
Katrina says
For a great looking biscuit and recipe go to Sweets by Sarah and scroll down to March 27. Now those look like a biscuit--and no shortening!
P.S. I made the Roman Chicken for dinner last night. It was pretty good. The chicken was very moist. Thanks for the recipe, I don't think I'd seen Giada make that one.
Julie O'Hara says
I've just been reading some of Kitty Crider's recipes, and of course the Angel Biscuit story. She's really great!
I have a question about these cookies and maybe just cookies in general: would it screw up the texture too much if I made them just a little smaller? Maybe rounded tablespoon size? Or would they lose that soft interior? I always wonder because I like smaller cookies...I should probably just give it a try and see what happens!
Catherine says
I too like a dry dough...I get plenty of buttery moisty, chewy cookies in this house! Scones are my favorite and I'll have to try these "everything" cookies. And cranberries do seem a better choice.
Randi says
Here is the Martha recipe I used to make. I remember liking them a lot!!
Makes 4 about 4 dozen
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup sweetened flake coconut
1 cup raisins
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with Silpat baking mats or parchment paper.
In a large bowl with a wooden spoon, beat butter, sugar and brown sugar together until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well blended. Stir in vanilla.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Gradually stir into butter mixture until well blended. Add oats, chips, coconut, raisins, and walnuts, and stir until well blended.
Drop batter by heaping tablespoons or with a 1 ounce ice-cream scoop onto silpat about 2 inches apart. Press tops down with the bottom of a glass to flatten cookies evenly. Bake until golden, about 16 to 18 minutes. Cool on pan for 2 minutes. Remove from pan, and finish cooling completely on wire rack.
Randi says
I used to make a Martha Stewart recipe for Kitchen sink cookies. I wonder how this compares.
Nocat says
Wow, a lot of great recipes here. There is a new MacGourmet software for organizing all ones recipes, people might be interested in.
Anna says
Katrina, thanks for the report. The ones they gave us as the party were very small too. They weren't high and light, but they were tender and had a great flavor. Fuzz loved them. I am going to make another batch with soft wheat flour (White Lily).
Katrina says
The biscuits were just okay (yummy just because of the story), but I did use a 2" cutter like the recipe said and they were somewhat flat and small. I still have 1/2 the dough in the fridge and will try them bigger. I think using the food processer mixed the dough too much, which could be what has made them not as light and fluffy. I would chill the shortening and the dough (we'll see if that helps when I bake the rest). I would also cut the shortening in with a pastry cutter next time. I even purposely only blended the dough til it barely came together so not to overmix it, but it still seemed a bit much. Having one right out of the oven with jam is the best, though we had them for dinner and they were no longer warm, so not as good. I have a recipe for biscuits that I do like better (no yeast). It was fun to try them though.
Anna says
Judi, golden syrup is made from cane sugar. Its consistency is similar to corn syrup, but it has kind of a caramel flavor. The brand I use is Lyle's. If you can't find it, just use corn syrup. However, if you come across some Lyle's, it's good stuff! It's a British import.
Katrina, I'm looking forward to a second opinion. I'm also dying to hear how your angel biscuits turn out. The ones Whole Foods gave us were small and thinner than I expected. However, Fuzzy loved them so they weren't bad. I suspect they are supposed to be higher and lighter, though. I will make them tomorrow.
Cai, H.E.B. had tilapia. I bought snapper because that's what the recipe called for and I know nothing about fish, but I think tilapia is a more reasonable option. The snapper was a bit expensive.
Cai says
YUM! And yay @ golden syrup a lot easier to source here in aus than corn syrup 🙂 Golden Syrup is made from sugar cane, unlike other syrups. Here in Aus we use it like you would use corn syrup or even maple syrup.
Katrina says
Speaking of "high like biscuits", I'm making the angel biscuits right now for a dinner with some friends tonight. I'll let you know about those, too. Have you made them? Great story to go with it.
Katrina says
I'll have to give them a try, I've always got plenty of "stuff" to throw in these. I'll let you know about how mine turn out--flat, high, etc.
judi0044 says
Hi Anna:
My you are a prolific baker-cook. May I ask what Golden Syrup is? I've never used it and it almost sounds like a pancake syrup but I suppose it isn't. Those cookies look good and I like the idea of 'craisin' as I usually have some around the house.