As I mentioned in last week's (very brief) game recap, wide receiver Jerrico Cotchery's three-touchdown performance was a much needed bright spot. If nothing else, this deserves some cookies.
Cotchery was released in 2011 after playing seven seasons with the New York Jets. Since then, he has played for the Black and Gold. After doing a bit more research, I learned that he has experienced and accomplished some pretty remarkable things off the field. Ben Houser's 2008 article on ESPN.com takes a look at Cotchery's life not as a professional football player, but as a family man. He was the second youngest of 13 children and was born with six fingers on his left hand. At the age of 16, he survived a car wreck that claimed the life of his friend and teammate, Brian Talley, and that left shards of glass permanently embedded in his skin.
"'I was in reflection mode for probably a couple of months, just thinking about life and thinking about really having a relationship with God,' Cotchery said. 'After that accident, it was a turning point for me.'"
In 2007, Cotchery and his wife adopted a baby girl. Since then, he founded the Cotchery Foundation, which benefits underprivileged children through football camps for middle school and high school students, a partnership with Keys to Reading Success, and mentoring programs that promote achievement beyond high school graduation.
WHAT A GREAT GUY!
Let's bake.
The secret to these cookies is simple: instant butterscotch pudding mix. Toss a heaping helping of butterscotch chips in there, and you'll have a uniquely sweet cookie - arguably as sweet and unique as the namesake.
Jerricho ButtersCotchery Cookies
Recipe adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 (3.4 oz) package instant butterscotch pudding mix
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups butterscotch chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream butter and sugars together in a large mixing bowl with hand mixer on medium speed. Add vanilla extract and pudding mix, then mix to combine. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly and scraping down sides of bowl before adding the second.
Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet in three separate additions, mixing thoroughly. Stir in butterscotch chips.
Scoop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets about an inch apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool a few minutes before transferring to wire racks.
