I think I messed up the baking powder & baking soda, and that’s why these cookies are so crunchy, but it’s okay, it’s like eating a really big piece of candy, with tasty crumbs. And the kids like them.
The first thing I had to do was brown the butter, which I’ve never done before. The recipe just said “heat until brown”, so I found a few photo tutorials and then gave it a shot. If I can make caramel sauce, I can definitely brown butter.
You start by just melting the butter, on the stove. I used a deep saucepan so I’d be able to whisk without worrying about splatter.
At that point I started whisking and didn’t stop, except for the few seconds it took to snap photos. When it started frothing, I knew things were headed in the right direction.
And then the bubbles got more enthusiastic, also a good sign.
And finally, it started to turn brown.
Once it was all a nice brown color, I removed it from the heat, and added the rest of the butter, which I’d chopped into small pieces.
The cold butter melted, and it all looked just like it was supposed to.
Since I already had a big bowl of butter, it seemed only right to add a pile of sugar to it. Dark brown only. Glad I bought some because the sugar I had been saving in a supposedly airtight jar had turned hard as a rock and had to be pitched.
In went the sugar, along with some salt.
It looked a little odd while it was mixing, not the usual texture when you’re creaming butter & sugar together.
Juliet came by to add an egg. She had an odd expression on her face, and I couldn’t get her to change it for the photo. She did let me hug her about 20 times, though, so no complaints.
And then I added in a yolk, separately.
With the egg plus yolk plus some vanilla, the texture started to change a little.
And then I screwed up.
The recipe called for half a teaspoon of baking soda and a quarter teaspoon of baking powder. I put in half a teaspoon of something, then I couldn’t remember what it was. Then I was sure it was baking powder, so I started trying to take it out before it got too mixed in. Then I decided I was right in the first place, and tried to estimate how much I’d removed and reinstate it. And then I put in a quarter teaspoon of baking powder. So really, I have no idea what I did or how precise the measurement was. But I wasn’t going to waste all that butter & sugar, so I just kept going.
I added the flour.
Once that was beaten together, I prepared the sugar mixture for rolling, because 1 3/4 cups of sugar clearly wasn’t enough. I used cane sugar instead of white, and mixed it with more of the dark brown. I scooped out dough, rolled it into balls, then rolled each one in the sugar mixture.
They baked for 14 minutes, which may have been why they’re too crispy, but they just didn’t seem done at 12. I don’t know. I was a bit stumbly on this one.
But you know, the kids like them, Dave likes them, they’re pretty crunchy, but they’re interesting. Simple, sweet, crunchy, unassuming. I think it’s okay.
Most likely they got a little overbaked. Cookies are tricky that way, especially when they are brown, it’s hard to tell when they are done because you have to remove them before they are completely done. They finish cooking as they cool. I love this cookie, it’s one of my favorites! Thanks for linking to me!
Good point! I do find it hard to know exactly when to get them out of the oven, but we all liked these anyway. Thanks for the great recipe.