Do you remember when long, long ago when there was no such thing as the internet, or Pinterest? Remember when you needed a recipe for something and you reached for….your church cookbook? I grew up at St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Green Bay, Wisconsin in the 60s and 70s. For many years, my mom belonged to, and was active in, the Altar Rosary Society. This group of devoted women did everything for the parish, from bake sales and making and serving lunch after funerals, to holding huge rummage sales, running the church picnic, and hosting parish holiday parties. But the big deal every year was the parish cookbook. I remember mom pouring through recipes to pick out just the right one to share. I don’t remember it being a competition, per se, but your name was in print and attached to that recipe as long as the cookbook was around.
Ladies on a Mission
In those days, the ladies collected the recipes of a period of months, sorted and categorized them, then took them to a printer to be type-set, printed and bound. The books were hawked by those same ladies after every mass, and I don’t think a single family was spared the purchase!
When this book was published in 1961, there were 698 women’s names listed as members of the Society! By far, one of my family’s all-time favorite cookie came from this book. The recipe was submitted by “Mrs. H”, who I never knew in person, but I sure knew in cookie form! We made these cookies so often that while the book still survives, the page is permanently stained and crusted with errant dough. I love how my mom wrote the note “double it”. Clearly quantity was key with these cookies! Mrs. H called them “Drop White Cookies”, but our family will always call them the “Smash with a Glass” cookies. Grab an ice cold glass of milk and enjoy these buttery sweet goodies. Cheers to you, Mrs. H!
Smash with a Glass Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 C butter soften at room temperature (do not melt!)
- 1 C shortening
- 2 C sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 4 T milk
- 5 C flour sifted
- 1 tsp soda
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 C granulated sugar this is used for smashing the cookie balls
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350*. Cream the butter and sugar, then add eggs, milk and vanilla. While the mixer is still going, slowly add in the flour, and mix until well-combined.
- Before shaping the dough, place ½ C granulated sugar (white or colored) in a shallow bowl or on a plate. To get your squashing started, dip a flat-bottom glass into dough to create a sticky bottom, then into the sugar.
- Shape dough into golf ball sized balls and place on a greased or sprayed cookie sheet leaving about 2” between each. Squash the dough balls down with the sugar coated glass, to a thickness of approximately ¼”. Re-dip the glass in sugar between each dough ball.
- Bake at 350* for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven before the edges begin to brown. Cool on parchment paper or cooling rack. Store in an airtight container.
