Apologies for the two week break in between posts - I've been working quite a bit recently (I'm employable! who would've thought?????) and I was also going into uni for Orientation which was fun and crazy and overwhelming. I don't think being a first year is even a case of being little fish in a big pond - it seems to be much more like a fish out of water situation. I say this because everything seems to be magnified tenfold. Each time I visit the campus, I find new theatres, halls and auditoriums I didn't know existed; there are more people than I could imagine and there are way more stairs than I can handle climbing on a daily basis. I am looking forward to studying courses that I've picked and that I'll most likely enjoy and starting fresh and making the most out of the social/volunteering opportunities, but there's also the prospect of having to meet new people and make new friends, and feeling like you have to present the best and most polished version of yourself all the time which isn't a bad thing but it is very, very tiring.
the little flecks of tea in the dough are my favourite
Having said that, I'm still excited to start this higher education business tomorrow. Maybe I'll bring these along to make the whole meeting people thing a bit easier. They say you don't make friends with salad (probably untrue, salad would win me over) but this isn't salad so you know, it's very possible that it will work out.
This is a super simple recipe, where most of the time is actually spent waiting for the dough to chill down. The actual making of the dough couldn't be easier. The earl grey flavour is dominant without being overbearing, and the cookies are sweet without being sickeningly so.
Icing sugar is used instead of granulated to make the cookie more crisp and short. It also gets incorporated into the butter much quicker as an added bonus! The rest of the ingredients are usual suspects- egg, flour, vanilla. The floral vanilla extract complements the delicate tea flavour like a dream. The texture of the dough is significantly softer than that of say, a chocolate chip cookie, which is why it is chilled and then frozen so that the cookies retain their shape when baked.
I haven't met anybody who didn't enjoy these so definitely give them a go- not so that you can prove me wrong and tell me that you're the first. but because they really are delicious and I'm willing to bet that they're a crowd pleaser. And probably a friend-maker.
that dappled sunlight tho
Earl Grey Tea Cookies
Prep: 15 mins Total: 4 hours (incl. chilling and baking)
300g plain flour
4g earl grey tea leaves (2 tea bags worth, if using loose leaf, make sure to blitz them in a food processor until they are relatively fine)
180g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
120g icing sugar, sifted
1 egg, whisked
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1. In a medium bowl, briefly mix the flour and the tea leaves together.
2. Using a stand mixer or hand-held electric whisk, on medium speed, cream the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.
3. Add the egg, vanilla and 2 tablespoons of the flour mixture, and mix on low speed until combined. The mixture may take on a curdled appearance- this is fine.
4. Add half of the flour, and mix on low speed until just incorporated, before adding the rest of the flour. It may seem crumbly and dry at first but will come together into a soft dough.
5. Scrape the mixture onto a sheet of cling film, wrap up the dough and refrigerate for at least an hour.
6. When the dough has chilled, remove it from the fridge and divide into two. Dust your hands with flour and roll each half into a log, about 3-4 cm in diameter. Wrap both logs in cling film and place in the freezer for at least 2 hours or overnight. It needs to be solid before we bake them off.
7. Preheat oven to 180°C.
8. Slice the logs into 0.5cm medallions and place on a parchment-lined baking tray.
9. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden, and middles slightly soft. They will firm up upon cooling.
10. Allow to cool completely.
Nothing wins over hearts like peanut butter. It's Valentine's Day and if these cookies don't scream 'i love you' then I'm not sure what does. I'm spending my 14th of February having a girl's night in with junk food and the film Valentine's Day, just so the six of us will be even more aware of the affection we're not getting. I'll be bringing these along, but I think they also make a quick but meaningful gift for a loved one.
I've had my eye on Deb's salted chocolate chunk cookie recipe for a bit. My sister had made them for some colleagues and came back with rave reviews, which definitely pushed them up my 'to make' list, and when a friend from New Zealand brought us some Whittaker's peanut butter chocolate as a souvenir, I knew it was going to happen. There's just something exquisite about PB and salted cookie, isn't there? Deb's recipe calls for dark chocolate, so I reduced the quantity of brown sugar a little to compensate for my use of milk chocolate. Three types of sugar might seem excessive, and feel free to swap out the raw or white for additional brown sugar but I think it's the combination of them that really contributes the overall taste. And they taste incredible.
Happy Valentine's Day, friends! I hope your day is spent with your loved ones whether it be your friends, family or special person. Make sure to tell somebody that they tickle your pickle ╰(◡‿◡✿╰)
SALTED PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE COOKIES
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen's Salted Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Prep: 15 min Cooking: 30min (in batches) Total: 45 min Makes: ~ 13 large cookies
Ingredients
115g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
25g white sugar
25g raw sugar
150 brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 tsp baking soda
A heaping 1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cornflour
220g plain flour
170g peanut butter chocolate (e.g. Whittaker's, Reese's pieces, or alternatively, dark chocolate of your choice), chopped into 1/2 cm-1cm chunks
Sea salt, to finish
1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
2. Using an electric mixer, cream butter and sugars together for 5 minutes until light and creamy.
3. Add in the egg and vanilla, and beat until combined.
4. Beat in the baking soda, sea salt and cornflour.
5. Add in the flour, and beat on a low speed until just combined. It will look crumbly as first but should come together.
6. Stir in the chocolate with a spatula.
7. Take 1-1.5 tbsp mounds of the mixture, roll into balls and place them on the baking tray, allowing room for them to spread (about 6 per tray). Top each one with a touch of sea salt.
8. Bake for 12-15 minutes until edges are lightly golden and the centres are still soft.
9. Allow to cool (but they taste incredible warm).
