Monday, June 23, 2014

Almond Espresso Cookies on a Stick

Sometimes my baking is inspired by ingredients. And sometimes it's inspired by gadgets. When I got an adorable pan for making molded flower-shaped cookies with space for adding a stick - well, it got me brainstorming.

M first thought was that they'd be really cute cookies for adorable children with big bows on their heads. But I don't have any children in stock here, with or without bows.

Then I thought they'd be really cute for a spring garden party with a bunch of ladies wearing big floppy garden hats or for a spring baby shower with the flowers decorated in baby pastel colors. But I had no plans for either of those.

Then I stopped thinking about the cute aspect and started thinking about the practical part. A cookie on a stick would be pretty darned good for dunking into hot beverages. Like coffee. So, forget the big bows, floppy hats, or pastels. I went straight for adult flavors - almond and coffee.

As far as the pan, I was really happy that the cookies popped out of the pan. Because that would have been no fun at all.

Almond Espresso Cookies on a Stick

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon espresso powder
1 teaspoon almond bakery emulsion
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

Spray the cookie wells with baking spray if you want a little extra insurance that the cookies will release.

In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using an electric and mixer, cream the butter and sugar.

Add the espresso powder, almond bakery emulsion, vanilla extract, and salt and beat until well combined.

Add the flour and mix in. If you're using an electric mixer, it might struggle, so you might want to finish mixing by hand.

Press the cookie dough into the wells of the cookie pan. Add the sticks - I used short wooden skewers - and make sure the sticks are covered by the cookie dough.

Bake at 300 degrees until the cookies are set and lightly browned.

Let the cookies cool before you pop the out of the pan - when they're warm they'll be soft, but they'll harden when they cool.

Decorate, if you like. Or serve as is.

I got the cookie pan from Good Cook in a box of assorted goodies, but I wasn't required to write about it.
Yum