Pillsbury bake-offs have been happening for over 50 years. We are so used to hearing about them, that other than looking at the little cookbooks by the grocery check out, I bet not many of us even think about them. I found a newspaper clipping from 1952 reporting the results of one of the first few bake-offs. I hope you find it as amusing as I did.
Here’s Real “Dough” Cookie
Chicago Houseife Wins $25,000 For Her Recipe In Flour Company Contest
New York , Dec. 9 (AP)
Mrs. Peter S. Harlib, the brunet wife of a Chicago policeman, today won $25,000 and the title of cook-of-the-year, 1952, for a “snappy turtle cookie” with a chocolate shell.
Mrs. Richard Nixon, the wife of the Vice President-elect handed out the national annual homemaking awards at the Walforf Astoria Hotel.
Mrs. Harlib got the idea from one of her twin 10-year-old sons who rolled her cookie dough onto turtle legs improvised of pecans when she was talking on the phone one day.
This is the “snappy turtle cookies” recipe that won first prize for Mrs. Harlib.
1. Info for Snappy Turtle Cookies: Recipes From Long Ago
- Cook Time: unavailable
- Total Time: unavailable
- Servings: unavailable
- Calories: unavailable
2. Ingredients for Snappy Turtle Cookies: Recipes From Long Ago
- 1½ cups sifted Pillsbury’s Best enriched flour
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- ⅛ tsp maple flavoring
- pecan halves
- 1 egg white
- frosting
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 2 squares (2 ounces) chocolate
- 1 cup powdered sugar
3. Directions:
- Sift together flour, soda and salt.
- Cream butter; add sugar gradually, creaming well.
- Add egg and egg yolk; beat well.
- Blend in flavorings.
- Add dry ingredients gradually; mix thoroughly.
- Arrange pecan halves (round side up) in groups of three on greased baking sheets to resemble head and hind legs of turtle.
- Mold dough into balls (use rounded teaspoonful of dough for each).
- Dip bottom into egg white and press onto nuts.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
- Do not over bake.
- Cool and frost generously.
- For frosting: combine chocolate, milk and butter in top of double boiler.
- Heat over boiling water until chocolate melts; blend until smooth.
- Remove from heat; add powdered sugar.
- Beat until smooth and glossy.
4. Tips and advices:
- I didn’t separate the egg and just threw in 2 eggs which made the dough stickier so it went right on the pecan halves. Next time I will just use 1 egg. I used a silpat and so didn’t grease the cookie sheets. For the frosting, I threw the milk, chocolate and butter into a Pyrex bowl and microwaved them until the chocolate was melted, then I beat in the sugar. I thought it was a bit runny, so next time I will only put in 2 Tbsp of milk.
