Chocolate Tea Cookies - Helen J.

These were suppose to post on the 23 of Sept. with some others but I did something wrong so the other one will come later.....I chose to do two cookies because we have extra ones and I needed some to send on a backpack adventure trip that might hold up while hiking with a pack.  When I got the dough made and it reminded me of  soft tootsie rolls, I remembered tea cookies are usually hard and just bite sized to not leave a mess while eating in your fancy dress.  They definitely don't leave a mess.  They are what they say they are.
I choose to use my small cookie cutters so they would be bite sized.  As you can see on the plate I sprinkled the little cookies with sugar before baking.  The large round ones are dipped in powdered sugar before baking.  The recipe also gives you the option of just doing them as drop cookies so the front one is that.  I wondered if it would bake to the center because the dough was so stiff.  It did.  The flavor is OK, kind of like a tootsie roll.  I probably would not make these unless I was say, the nursery leader and didn't want a mess to clean up.  Little ones would enjoy the little cookies.  It is kind of like having chocolate animal crackers!  For a tea cookie it is good but we seldom use tea cookies with our lifestyle and they don't strike me as a wedding type cookie.

Chocolate Tea Cookies - Helen J.

1  C. Butter or Margarine                                            4  1/2 C. Flour
1  3/4 C. Sugar                                                           1  tsp. Baking Powder
2  Eggs                                                                       1/4  tsp. Salt
4  tsp. Vanilla                                                              4  Tbs. Cocoa

Cream together butter and sugar.  Add eggs and vanilla, mix well.  Gradually add sifted dry ingredients and mix until dough.  Do not over mix.  Either roll out and cut or drop by teaspoon on baking sheet.  Bake 10-12 min. at 350o F.  (You may leave them plain or dip in sugar or powdered sugar before baking.)