A Hostess Hack

Photo by Bobbi Lin

I have a new party trick. Nothing wild, of course. I'm a suburban mom now ;)

Fake homemade cookies. Hear me out. Remember in Clueless when Cher famously said, "Whenever a boy comes, you should always have something baking?" She then proceeded to burn a full cookie dough roll. But the idea is genius.

A while back we went to my cousins' house for lunch and after eating the main meal I noticed a cookie sheet perched on a kitchen counter. Atop the baking tray lay scoops of chocolate chip cookie dough, ready for the oven. Like me, the hostess doesn't spend a lot of time in the kitchen, so I was surprised to see homemade dessert prepared.

It turns out she had simply put store bought cookie dough on a baking sheet before we arrived. Such a nice touch. What's better than a warm, freshly baked chocolate chip cookie? Recently I've been buying a bag of pre-made cookie dough balls from our local grocery store. The cookies take mere minutes to bake, and they're delectable. We had friends over last weekend for tacos. The meal was a team effort; it was my first time attempting tacos, and I needed guidance. But dessert I had under control; I baked and served the pre-made cookies after dinner. They were a huge hit. Now I just have to figure out some dinner hacks.

AES