Butterscotch Crinkles
MAKES
about 30 cookies
TAKES
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 12 minutes
Total: 27 minutes
✻ ABOUT THIS RECIPE
These chewy, crinkly cookies lie somewhere between caramel-y and buttery. In my mind, they are one of the most perfect cookies ever. A guaranteed crowd pleaser, they stay chewy as long as they’re stored in an airtight container, and they make a great addition to cookie boxes, or to share as gifts. Dark brown sugar is really important here - the recipe will still work with light brown, but that dark brown sugar is responsible for hugely boosting the flavor, so it’s the time to use it if you can. A touch of flaky salt when they’re fresh from the oven amps them up even more, if you like!
INGREDIENTS
Finishing Sugar
50 g / ¼ cup granulated sugar
40 g / 3 packed tablespoons dark brown sugar
Cookie Dough
300 g / 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
12 g / 2 teaspoons baking soda
6 g / 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
2 g / ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
226 g / 8 ounces (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
265 g / 1 ¼ packed cups dark brown sugar
150 g / ¾ cup granulated sugar
56 g / 1 large egg, at room temperature
5 g / 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or 7 g / 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
< 1 g / ⅛ teaspoon almond extract (optional - see Note)
flaky salt, for finishing (optional)
Bake This Recipe With Me:
METHOD
1. Mix the finishing sugar: in a small bowl, mix the sugar and brown sugar with your hands until the mixture is well combined. Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 325°F / 165°C with the oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. You’ll need 4 baking sheets to bake the full batch of cookies - but you can scoop the cookies, and work in batches if you only have one or two trays. Line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt together to combine. Set aside.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 4-5 minutes. Scrape the bowl well.
5. Add the egg and mix on medium speed to combine, 1-2 minutes. Add the vanilla and almond extract (if using), and mix well to combine.
6. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until the mixture forms a smooth dough forms. Scrape the bowl well and mix for 15-30 seconds more.
7. Scoop the dough into balls with a 2 tablespoon / #40 scoop. Use your hands to roll each pieces into balls, then toss them to coat fully in the finishing sugar. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets, placing no more than 8 cookies in staggered rows per tray to allow space for spreading.
8. Repeat with the remaining dough. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes - they will spread and puff up by the end of baking. I bake two trays at a time, and rotate the trays between oven racks halfway through baking. They should look lightly golden brown around the outer edges, and slightly crackly on the surface. As the cookies cool, they will flatten and form more cracks. It’s important to err on the side of under-baking these cookies, which helps to keep them chewier. If they’re too underbaked they’ll be flatter and less chewy - if they are over-baked, they’ll be crispier (good news: both are still delicious).
9. When you remove the cookies from the oven, garnish with flaky salt immediately, if desired. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet, then transfer to an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
NOTES
The almond extract is optional, but I think it boosts the butteriness.
Bake these cookies until they are just set around the outside. They will look puffed up when you remove them from the oven, but will collapse into a perfectly crackly, chewy cookie.
✻ HAVE YOU BAKED IT?
Tag @emcdowell on Instagram or use #happybaking. I’d love to see your bakes!
