Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or Silpat. (If you don’t have parchment paper or Silpat, lightly grease and flour baking sheets.)
Beat egg whites, salt and sugar together until stiff peaks form. (This may take a little while, depending on the power of your mixer.)
Fold in the vanilla or almond extract, chips and nuts. Drop by heaping teaspoonful onto lined cookie sheets.
Place the cookies into the preheated oven, shut the door and count to 60. Turn the oven off immediately. DO NOT OPEN OVEN DOOR. Let cookies sit in the oven for 3 hours or overnight.
Makes about 18-24 cookies.
NOTE FROM JAN: Have you put together a family cookbook? I’d love know about it or you can send me a couple of your favorite recipes and stories to
jan@jandatri.com. My kitchen is always open, so I can’t wait to hear from you!
The Story
I can’t imagine a better cookie to bake on a hot summer day in Arizona than yummy ones that bake for only 60 seconds! Can you imagine? You pre-heat the oven, bake them for one minute and then turn off the oven and forget about them! Guess what they’re called? Forgotten Cookies. No heating up the kitchen with these gems of days gone by. Simply whip up a couple of egg whites and some sugar, add just a few more everyday ingredients and you’re done.
Well, almost. Here’s the catch. You have to literally forget about them for at least three hours or, better yet, overnight. (You may be able to resist the temptation to open up the oven door and snitch one. For me, it’s almost impossible. They’re so light, airy, sweet and tasty!)
I decided to pluck this particular recipe from a great family cookbook that was given to me from Arizona resident Steve Wagner. The Grandma Wagner’s Recipe Book is a compilation of Wagner family favorites like Joe Froggers, No Peek Chicken, Hornet’s Nest Cake and of course, Forgotten Cookies.
I would imagine they would be elegant on a cookie platter for a holiday buffet but right now, in the heat of the summer season, they’re a light, energy-saving treat and a no-brainer to whip together. I had my nieces over last night and today my cookie jar is empty. They left me completely meringue-less! So I’m making another batch today and I’m going to add chopped walnuts to the chocolate chips. You’ll find lots of variations for Forgotten Cookies but the cooking method is very basic. Whip the whites into peaks…but no peaking!
(Courtesy of Denny and Linda (Kaylor) Curry, Wagner Family Cookbook)
Kids
Rescued Recipes