The Crabby Cook - by Jessica Harper

I’m kind of obsessed with this cookbook my sister-in-law gave me, which is all about baking with less sugar.

I thought I’d try the White chocolate-Cherry-Almond Cookies because, like, why wouldn’t you, plus It’s nice to have a cookie in the house in case someone drops by unexpectedly. Although I’m not sure who actually does that, except that dude who rang my doorbell the other day, wanting to sell me some steaks. Or that lady who said she was a makeup artist and she was at my house for the porn shoot. (She was confused on so many levels.)

Anyway, so I made these cookies and the thing is that while the sugar is indeed minimal, or at least not terrible at six tablespoons, the recipe also calls for two eggs and three yolks and a cup of butter, among other things. So while you are patting yourself on the back for reducing your sugar intake, you will likely keel over from cardiac arrest.

Still, if you’re willing to take your chances, these are delicious. And the book has other intriguing recipes that involve dates but no granulated sugar. I’m sure I will be trying those, if I can just get those ne’er-do-wells to stop ringing my doorbell.

P.S. The recipe says to bake for 14-18 minutes. In my oven, 12 was plenty. So keep an eye on them.

White Chocolate-Cherry-Almond Cookies

(adapted from Baking With Less Sugar by Joanne Chang)

1 cup slivered almonds

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

6 Tbls. of sugar

2 large eggs plus 3 egg yolks

2 Tbls. vanilla extract

2 teaspoons almond extract

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup almond flour

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon kosher salt

12 oz. white chocolate chopped into small chunks

1 ¼ cups dried cherries, about half of them coarsely chopped

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees

1. Place the almonds on a baking sheet and toast for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Set aside to cool.
2. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with an electric hand mixer or mixing by hand with a wooden spoon), beat the butter and sugar on medium speed for 5-6 minutes (10 minutes if mixing by hand), or until the mixture is well combined, light, and fluffy. Stop the mixer and, using a rubber spatula, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and the paddle itself a few times; the sugar and the butter love to collect here and stay unmixed. Beat in the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and almond extract on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, or until thoroughly combined. Again, scrape the bowl and the paddle to make sure the eggs are thoroughly incorporated.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the almonds, white chocolate, and dried cherries to the flour mixture and toss to combine. Turn the mixer on low speed (or continue to use a wooden spoon if mixing by hand) and slowly blend the flour mixture into the butter mixture.   Mix until the flour is totally incorporated and the dough is completely mixed.
4. For best results, scrape the dough into an airtight container and let it rest in the refrigerator overnight (or at least 3 to 4 hours) before baking. The next day or when ready to bake, place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
5. Using a small ice cream scoop or rounded spoon, drop the dough on the prepared baking sheet about 2 in. apart. Press the dough balls down flat with the palm of your hand. Bake 14 to 18 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown on the edges and slightly soft in the center. Be careful not to overbake! Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the the sheet for 5 to 10 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. The unbaked dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Tags: alternative sweeteners, baking with less sugar, cooking with dates, Joanne Chang, low sugar baking, tea party recipe, white chocolate recipes

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 11th, 2016 at 12:30 pm and is filed under Cool Products, Just Desserts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.