Mollie Bakes: Holiday Crinkle Cookies
As someone who doesn’t automatically gravitate toward chocolate-based sweets (the horror!), it was only a matter of time before I landed on the joy of these decidedly non-chocolate cookies.
Yes, I love chocolate and adore a classic chocolate chip cookie like everyone else (I’m human), but I do really enjoy the somewhat sophisticated (maybe?) flavors of a non-chocolate sweet treat. Does that make me more of a grownup? Possibly.
My adventure into making these joyful holiday cookies began when I bought my copy of Martha Stewart’s Cookie Perfection and realized I wanted to bake the entire book.
Clearly, baking it all wasn’t an option (yet) so I flipped through and stumbled on these beauties. A perfect first recipe given the holiday season was about to begin and that crinkle design had “festive fun” written all over it. I was sold. And now it was time to bake!
Recipe: Brown Butter Crinkle Cookies from Martha Stewart’s Cookie Perfection. An excellent holiday gift. 😉
Note: the only ingredient necessary to change is the flour to make these cookies gluten free. Be sure to use your favorite GF flour. I have used Cup4cup Gluten Free Flour for one batch and Josie’s Best GF for a second. I recommend either one!
Baking Notes:
I suggest a mise en place for this recipe. Having everything already out and measured allows for very quick dough creation.
Brown Butter is not hard to make (smells amazing), but be sure to watch it carefully so it doesn’t get too dark. Also let it cool off before adding the sugars, eggs, and vanilla. Important!
The beauty of creating this dough is that you don’t need an electric mixer! It’s all done by hand. I love it.
Adding the dry ingredients (including the holiday “magic” AKA cinnamon) to the wet ingredients and stirring creates the cookie dough fairly quickly. Perfect for this busy season!
The dough needs to chill in the fridge for a couple hours which also helps a busy day. Make the dough quickly in the morning, then do errands while it chills. Then it will be ready to bake when you get back! Convenient.
Each cookie is to be around a tablespoon of dough, which I didn’t measure exactly, but did use that size measuring spoon so all of the cookies would be close to the same in size.
Each dough ball gets rolled in granulated sugar, then confectioner sugar before baking. Don’t shake off excess sugar! That’s what helps make the crinkles.
For timing, I baked each sheet for seven minutes, turned the sheet around, then baked for another eight-nine minutes. Just watch them closely after the 15-minute mark. They won’t change drastically, but no one wants an overcooked cookie.
Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for several minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Patience!
The recipe states that about three dozen cookies will be made. After making these cookies twice, I have gotten 35 cookies each time. Not bad! However, how am I ending up one cookie short? Hmm..
Flavor and Fans: This cookie tastes like Christmas! And by that I mean, it tastes warm and cozy and encourages gathering around a fireplace eating these cookies and sipping on a hot drink.
How does it taste like Christmas? Well, we can thank the cinnamon, browned butter, and vanilla for that one. Those ingredients, plus the plentiful exterior sugars (granulated and confectioner) create a flavor blast that’s ripe for the season. December, I’ve got your cookie. And it’s so, so delicious.
My family and co-workers loved these cookies too and deemed them perfect with a morning cup of coffee (I did not disagree). The small-ish size also made them great for a mid-afternoon cookie snack or a post-dinner treat that’s not too sweet. The perfect dessert!
Conclusion: The world of holiday cookies is vast and while I won’t be able to make all of the ones on my list this year (time management), I know I’ve got a surefire winner with this crinkle cookie ready to go.
The easy baking process, minimal ingredients, and the final, beautiful cookie (that tastes so festive) all together make this one a hit for the holidays. ❤️
Enjoy!
Mollie
