Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde plus Split Personality Cookies

It's Cookie Bookie Week! Come back every day for spooktacular October reading recommendations plus a few of my favorite fall cookie recipes.

Let's start today with The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by one of my favorite authors, Robert Louis Stevenson. It is not my intention to give away the plot of any of the books that I recommend, but I'm guessing you already know that Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are two distinctive personalities inhabiting one body. Mild-mannered Dr. Jekyll, in the interest of progressive science, creates a break-through potion in his London laboratory. Who can test the safety and effectiveness of this new formula? Dr. Jekyll drinks it down. In so doing, he transforms himself into the evil, vicious, violent, rabble-rousing Dr. Hyde. But here's the kicker: Dr. Hyde is just an outward symbol of the evil that lurks in all of us. We think ourselves good, kind, and benevolent, but with a little slip, we could transform ourselves into the inquitious, corrupt and hideous. At least in literature. (And maybe a wee bit in real life too.) Take care dear readers, because if you invite Mr. Hyde for a ride in the car, he will very soon want to be the driver. For Dr. Jekyll, there was no turning back. Lend an hour this October to read this charming novella and be prepared to transport yourself to the inky lamp-lit streets of 18th century London. And now for the cookie (and please ignore my Mr. Hyde-ish cookie sheet)....

Since Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde coinhabit one body, I've rolled two polar cookie personalities into one treat: The Split Personality Cookie. With one side evil chocolate and the other innocent buttery vanilla, it's guaruntee to appeal to both sides of our moral spectrums. It's simpler than it looks; you take a straightforward batch of cookies, split it in half and mix a little cocoa powder into one side and a little extra flour into the other. The result is both angelic and devilish. And you're going to love it.

Split Personality Cookies

Estimated Cost: $5.00

Makes Four Dozen

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 eggs

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups flour, plus 1/2 cup flour, divided use

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 (14 ounce) package M and Ms (divide use)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugars in large bowl. Add vanilla and eggs and mix well. Add soda, powder, and salt. Mix in 2 cups flour. Divide dough into two somewhat equal portions and place in separate bowls(just eyeball it). Stir cocoa powder into one bowl; add remaining 1/2 cup flour into other bowl. Dough should only be slightly sticky, like play-dough, so add more flour by the tablespoon full if needed. Stir in 1 cup of M and MsTake 1/2 inch dough balls of each type and roll them into one cookie dough ball. Repeat process with all cookies. Bake cookies on cookie sheets for about 9-11 minutes. (I like them slightly underbaked.) Poke additional M and Ms into cookies immediately.

And just to show you how it's done, take two balls of dough.... roll them into one..and bake away. You can also bake a couple batches of each separate dough.

Coming Tomorrow:

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