This past week, a friend of ours had her senior degree recital at school (she’s a wonderful singer) and for the after party, I wanted to make some cookies. So I went to the store and bought some ingredients, but it turns out I didn’t buy enough of what I needed (2 oz. of bittersweet chocolate when I really needed 5… oops). So then I searched my favorite food blog of all time, Smitten Kitchen, for a recipe involving ingredients I already had in my kitchen. I found these brownie cookies that looked like a perfect combination of a brownie and a cookie, and also they didn’t look too hard.
When the cookies came out of the oven, they were delicious, but a little bit dry in my opinion. I think they would have been greatly enjoyed by themselves, but I decided to whip up some buttercream frosting to put on them to add a little moisture. (My friend Carmelle, who is also a baker extraordinaire, and I decided later to add a little peppermint to the icing to make it a little more festive.)
3 cups all-purpose flour 1 stick of butter, softened Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, mix flour, salt and baking powder and set aside. In a mixer (or large bowl) combine butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and cocoa. Slowly add flour mixture, and mix until smooth. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least one hour. Roll out cookie dough on floured surface until it’s about 1/4 inch thick (I used my counter because I don’t have a super large cutting board and, hey, it’s kinda fun to just roll dough out on the counter). Cut into desired shapes, place on a buttered baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 11 minutes until the edges are firm and the centers are slightly soft and puffed. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Beat the butter for a couple minutes in the mixture to get it nice and creamy. Add 1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar and mix on low speed until the sugar has been incorporated with the butter. Add vanilla, salt, 1 tablespoon of milk, and peppermint and mix for a couple minutes. If the frosting is too thin, add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar a little bit at a time to make sure you don’t overdo it. If your frosting is too thick, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of milk. These cookies were a huge hit! And the recipe made plenty of them too. They were easy and you can easily add spices or other fun things to them to suit them to your tastebuds. I’m thinking a little cinnamon and chili powder to make them Mexican hot chocolate cookies, or some smashed candy canes for the holidays, or chocolate chips… So many possibilities!Brownie Cookies with Peppermint Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter, softened (she uses one stick of unsalted, one stick of salted, but I used both unsalted)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 – 2 cups confectioners sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon vanilla
up to 2 tablespoons of milk or cream
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extractInstructions