This week, I’ve been a bit tight for time so I wanted a recipe that was quick yet different. I hadn’t actually tried anything with browned butter before so I was quite excited to try it – it’s very easy to do and so effective! It gives the cookies a really distinctive deep flavour and these are definitely going on my list of favourite easy bakes. The most time-consuming aspect of this recipe is leaving the butter and then the dough to cool. I was a bit apprehensive about putting salt on these when I first saw these – I was scared of ruining them, but I think they give them that extra little lift and make them taste that much better.
This recipe is from the blog Bake or Break and gave me about 20 cookies.
Ingredients
-
210g unsalted butter
- 290g plain flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 160g light brown sugar
- 115g caster sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- coarse salt
Method
Preheat oven to 170°C and line two baking sheets with greaseproof paper.
Heat the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, making sure to stir frequently so as to prevent the butter from burning. The butter will melt and begin to foam; heat until you see brown specks forming underneath the foamy layer and you can smell a nutty aroma from the pan. Err on the side of caution the first time you try this – the butter can burn very quickly and you’ll end up with blackened butter cookies and a nightmare of a saucepan to scrape clean. Remove from the heat and leave to the side to cool.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together while you wait for the butter to cool.
Beat the two kinds of sugar into the butter until combined. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix well. Add the flour mixture in three parts, mixing until all the ingredients are just incorporated.
Leave the dough to rest in the fridge or a cool place for 30 minutes.
Roll small pieces of dough into balls approximately 3-4cm wide and press gently on the tops to flatten slightly. Sprinkle coarse salt on the top of each ball. Again, err on the side of caution when you try this the first time – I used about six to eight grains on each cookie and this was perfect for me.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the edges begin to brown and the middles are set. Leave to cool for a few minutes before transferring onto wire racks to cool completely.
Bake Me Happy 