Sunday afternoons at my house smell like M&M cookies.
It’s what I do. There is something soothing in the familiar task and comforting in the smell of fresh baked cookies.
The first batch
As a young bride, I hoped to impress my husband with the family’s southern recipes. Well, that was short lived, and fortunately, What-a-Burger was close. So after the incident with the “dumpster” casserole (a story for later), I decided to move from cooking to baking. Hence, the M&M cookie tradition began. We lived in a small house just off the Baylor campus, and if you stopped by Sunday after church, the inviting smell would tempt you to come in and stay awhile. I made these simple cookies every Sunday afternoon. It gave my husband something to snack on during his midnight shift at the freight docks. Then, on the way to Monday morning classes, he finished off his cookie stash. Basically, they served as breakfast, lunch, and dinner most weekends. Maybe it was dinner, breakfast, lunch, but it was in those first years of marriage that the baking began.
Every Sunday afternoon.
2000 batches later
During the 37 years between those college days and our empty nest, I made M&M cookies for all occasions. From birthday parties to soccer tournaments, the M&M cookies were a staple. We had kids in and out of the house throughout the teenage years, and the cookies almost became famous. Many times a double batch was stuffed into a baggie for trips to the lake or travel across the country. I can’t remember a road trip that didn’t include M&M cookies and party mix. Then on Sunday afternoons, when the kids would head back to college, they left with a bag full of M&M cookies.
Comfort food, a reminder that you are loved.
Currently baking
Now it is the grandchildren who run in with a quick hello, unable to hide the glance toward the counter. I see their smile, the same Sunday afternoon smile I’ve seen for over 37 years.
Yes, you will still find a plate of M&M cookies on my counter.
Sunday afternoons at my house smell like M&M cookies. It is the welcome to my home and an invitation to stay awhile.
