Brown Butter Babies

It’s difficult to keep everyone out of the kitchen while these cookies are baking in the oven. Cookie is derived from the Dutch word koekje, meaning “small or little cake”.  According to culinary historians, cookies were born as test cakes. A small amount of cake batter was baked to test the oven temperature. The earliest cookie-style cakes are thought to date back to 7th century Persia A.D. (now Iran), one of the first countries to cultivate sugar.

Makes 30 cookies
recipe adapted from Canadian Living
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175ml (3/4 cup) unsalted butter
375ml (1 1/2 cups) packed dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
500ml (2 cups) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon each baking soda and salt
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
30 walnut halves or pecans

Preheat oven to 180c (350f). In a small saucepan, cook butter over medium heat until brown and nutty, about 5 minutes. Let cool.

In a large bowl, beat brown sugar with cooled butter until fluffy. Beat in egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salts; stir into butter mixture in 2 additions. Roll by rounded 1 tablespoon into balls; roll in granulated sugar. Place, about 8cm (3 inches) apart, on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. With the bottom of a glass or measuring cup, press to scant 1cm (1/2 inch) thickness. Press walnut half into center of each. Bake until golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool on pans on racks for 3 minutes; transfer to racks and let cool completely.

The Culinary Chase’s Note: Delicious butterscotch flavor coming from these cookies. I used brown sugar instead of dark brown only because that’s what I had in my pantry and couldn’t be bothered to go to the store. In any case, these turned out quite well and I have to say are very addictive.

By The Glass Tasting Note: Brown sugar always brings my mind back to the wines of Madeira and Portugal. A sweet Malmsey Madeira with some time spent in the cellar would be a sublime choice but for those looking for a more affordable and easy to find alternative try a Tawny Port – a 20 year old works best but for a 10 Year Old version such as Dow’s or Taylor’s – just be sure to stick away from the more feminine styles such as Warre’s Otima which are fantastic in their own right but better served on their own.