Quite a variety of chips off the old block of chocolate

My, how chips have changed the last couple of years. No, I don't mean potato chips, although that industry really has changed, too, I mean baking chips or baking morsels.

I made Snickerdoodle quick bread last weekend using cinnamon baking chips, and in looking at that line of products in the store, it has really come a long way.

In the chocolate variety, you can select, semi-sweet, milk, dark or white and they come in regular size, mini ships, chunks and mega morsels. Then there are the flavors such as butterscotch, peanut butter, mint and cherry. Not to mention the red and green for Christmas season, yellow and pink for spring and orange and brown for fall. It is amazing what the baking aisle in the store has become.

In addition to the morsels, you have products such as Heath, Reece's chips and Bits of Brickle. The possibilities are endless when thinking about things you can make with these products. If you don't believe me, try hopping on the Internet to see how many thousands of recipes come up using these products.

Today, I will only share a couple with you and let you figure out the other million ways to use them.

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chip Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats

1 2/3 cups (10-ounce package) cinnamon chips

3/4 cup raisins

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in bowl until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Combine flour and baking soda; add to butter mixture, beating well. Stir in oats, cinnamon chips and raisins (batter will be stiff). Drop by heaping teaspoons unto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes on until lightly browned. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Makes about 48 cookies.

Bar cookie variation: Spread batter into lightly greased 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool; cut into bars. Makes about 3 dozen bars.

Cherry and Cream Cookie Bars

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup cherry flavored chips

1 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla mixing until well combined. Slowly add flour, baking soda, salt, white and cherry chips. Mix until just combined. Transfer dough to prepared baking pan, pressing evenly. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown and baked through. Let cool completely then cut into squares to serve. Makes 12 servings

Oh, my goodness, these cookies are really good. I love anything with brown sugar and toffee, then when you add in browned butter, how could they not be good? This recipe will certainly find its way into your favorite recipes file.

Brown Butter, Oatmeal, Butterscotch and Toffee Chip Cookies

2 sticks unsalted butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons vanilla instant pudding mix

3/4 cup quick oats

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/4 cup butterscotch chips

1/2 cup Heath Bar Toffee Chips/pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with a silicone liner or parchment paper. Place butter into a small saucepan over medium heat. Swirl and heat until deep golden brown. Remove heat and let cool for 5 minutes.

Place browned butter and little bits from the pan into a stand mixer along with the brown and granulated sugar. Beat to combine then add eggs and vanilla beating to combine. Add flour, pudding mix, quick oats, baking soda, salt and chips. Mix on low until just combined.

With a medium cookie scoop, place dough onto prepared baking sheet about 1-inch apart. Bake for 10 minutes, until baked through. Remove and let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to cooling rack. Serve and enjoy.

These cookies are not peanut butter cookies, they are a wonderful light, soft cookie with peanut butter chips added. The perfect cookie for someone who wants a little peanut butter, but not an entire peanut butter dough cookie.

Reese's Original Peanut-Butter Chip Cookies

3/4 cup butter or 1 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups unsifted flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

Reese's peanut butter chips, to taste

Cream butter (or shortening), sugars, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat well. Combine flour and baking soda. Add to batter and mix well. Stir in chips. Place by teaspoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

This recipe also calls for browned butter, but if you don't want to or are short on time, just skip browning the butter and use it room temperature. Browning the butter adds a richness and flavor you don't get from using it at room temperature.

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

9 ounces milk chocolate or semi-sweet chunks, about 2 cups

1 cup chopped pecans

Brown the butter by melting the butter in a medium sized, thick-bottomed, stainless steel saucepan (use stainless steel so you can tell when the butter has browned) on medium heat. Continue to cook while the butter goes through various stages of bubbling up and releasing its moisture. Whisk frequently over several minutes. When you start to smell the nutty aroma of the butter browning, and you can whisk aside some of the foam to see small browned bits at the bottom of the pan, remove from heat and pour off into a bowl. Do not dawdle at this point as it is easy for the butter to go from browned to burnt.

Place the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a bowl and vigorously whisk together. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour browned butter into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the sugars and beat until smooth. Add the eggs, beating after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and beat for 3 more minutes. Stir the flour mixture into the butter sugar mixture a third at a time. Stir in the chocolate chunks and the nuts. Up to this point you can make ahead a day or two and store the cookie dough in the refrigerator until ready to bake.

Line cookie sheets with silicone mat or parchment paper (or just lightly buttered cookie sheets). Spoon out heaping tablespoons of batter onto the cookie sheets, separated by at least 2 inches, allowing room for the cookies to spread as they bake. You may need to work in batches. Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes, the edges of the cookies should be just a little browned. Remove from the oven, let cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes. Then remove the cookies to cool completely on a rack.

Have a great week, and until next time, happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at news@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, MO 63702. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by Southeast Missourian staff.