bourbon, brown butter, caramel & choc chip cookies
photo: bourbon, brown butter, caramel & choc chip cookies
a long title, i know, but for me the bourbon, brown butter, caramel and chocolate chips all have equal importance in this decadent cookie.
the recipe is one i discovered during a youtube binge of rick martinez videos when he was filming for the bon appetit youtube channel. immediately i knew i had to give the recipe a go, but when looking through the ingredients i realised that some of the ingredients were hard to find here in the uk. it was also at the time of the first lockdown and whilst i was unable to get to the supermarket, so in a cookie-driven haze i made some last minute substitutions that ended up working pretty well, and are now my staple approach to this recipe.
one of my favourite substitutions is the use of bourbon instead of vanilla extract. when i made these cookies for the first time i was not able to get my hands on any vanilla extract, and after some quick googling for substitutes a few sites mentioned using some dark liquors instead. the bourbon helps to cut through the sweetness of some of the other fillings, and adds a nice warm depth to the cookies alongside the brown butter.
the original recipe also calls for skor chocolate toffee bars, which again i have been unable to source in the uk. i believe daim bars are the closest equivalent, so ideally these could be used, but they are not readily available in supermarkets and i have only been able to find them reliably in ikea. my regular substitute is werther’s originals, although today i used cadbury’s caramel buttons, which did work well, but just leave a slightly sweeter taste and could do with some extra salt flakes to balance out the sweetness.
recipe guidance
photo: browning the butter on the hob.
the first step in the recipe is to brown the butter. i’ve found that you have to be really careful with browning the butter, as it seems to take ages to move beyond the foaming stage, then as soon as the colour starts to turn a golden yellow it can be very quick to burn, as it will continue to cook even after transferring to the second container from the leftover heat. i would also recommend using a light coloured pan as this allows you to see the colour change much clearer - i’ve tried this in black pans before and it can be hard to keep track of the colour change
photo: adding sugar to cooled brown butter
once the butter has cooled, you can add the soft dark brown sugar & granulated sugar, and mix to incorporate. the mixing steps in this recipe are definitely easier in a stand mixer if you have one, but sadly mine is stuck at my family home from christmas due to lockdown. with a stand mixer, you want to mix for around 1 minute on medium speed, or if whisking by hand you should mix until the sugars and butter are evenly combined. at this point, add the bourbon and eggs, beating until the mixture thickens and lightens. my favourite bourbon for this recipe is woodford reserve, but feel free to mix this up to suit your tastes - you could try a spiced rum or whisky if preferred.
photo: finished cookie dough
finally, add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix slowly until just combined. add the dark chocolate buttons and chopped werther’s/caramel buttons, stirring in gently until evenly distributed throughout the dough. leave at room temperature for half an hour to allow the flour to hydrate. preheat oven to 190 degrees celsius/395 degrees fahrenheit. after 30 mins, scoop balls of dough onto parchment lined baking trays, and bake for 9-11 mins. the original recipe suggests a 1 oz ice cream scoop to help portion the cookies, but we do not have an ice cream scoop, so i usually just opt for a heaped tablespoon.
photo: cookies baking in the oven
recipe
ingredients:
227g unsalted butter
250g plain flour
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
3/4tsp table salt
215g dark brown sugar
73g granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2tsp dark liquor - bourbon, whisky, spiced rum…
80g werther’s originals, halved
216g dark chocolate buttons (e.g. bournville)
method
step 1 - brown butter over medium heat, stirring until it turns a deep golden brown. pour into your main mixing bowl (make sure this is heatproof!) and set aside to let cool slightly, ideally reaching around 50 degrees celsius
step 2 - whilst your butter is cooling, mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt in a separate bowl.
step 3 - when cooled, add brown & granulated sugars to brown butter. mix until incorporated, around 1 minute with a stand mixer at medium speed. then, add eggs and liquor, beating until the mixture lightens and thickens, again around 1 minute with a stand mixer, this time at a medium-high speed. next, mix in the dry ingredients and beat to combine, before stirring in the werther’s originals and dark chocolate buttons by hand. allow dough to sit for 30 minutes.
step 4 - preheat oven to 190 degrees celsius. once rested, portion dough onto a parchment-lined baking tray. leave the dough in mounds on the tray without flattening, as they will spread whilst they are in the oven. if you have any maldon salt this would be the perfect time to sprinkle a few flakes on top!
step 5 - bake until the cookies are brown and firm at the edges, but still soft in the middle. this will take around 10 mins. leave cookies on the baking trays for 10 minutes after they have been taken out of the oven, before transferring to a wire rack.
photo: cookies cooling after baking