Scarlett Spice Cookies

Scarlett asked for the recipe for these cookies, and because it didn't have a name yet, I decided to named it after her. Everyone should have at least one good recipe named after them, don't you think?

I love it when someone asks me for a recipe. Especially when it's baking. It's taken me a while to get confident with baking, but this cookie recipe has survived my experimenting ways, and I really think it's the cookie bomb. (Thanks to Allison Gofton's brown butter biscuits for the starting point.)

These cookies are crisp, crunchy and sweetly spiced (perfect with chai). The recipe is versatile -- you can use gluten free bread flour if you like, or just ordinary flour. You can use any spice combination you like. And you can even substitute half a cup of flour for half a cup of cocoa powder and switch the spices for a good pinch of chilli powder for an earthy-sweet-hot chocolate chilli cookie. Yum.

Even better, you don't need a cake mixer, and you make the whole recipe in one pot, so there are hardly any dishes to clean up.

YOU'LL NEED

Equipment

• a medium sized pot
• wooden spoon
• cutting board and knife
• cookie baking sheet (plus baking paper if it's not a flash non-stick kind)

Ingredients:

• 200 gm butter
• 3/4 cup sugar (I use golden castor sugar, but regular sugar works fine)
• 1 egg
• 2 1/2 cups flour (wheat or substitute gluten free bread flour)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• Spices: I use  2 tsp cardamon; 1 tsp ginger powder; 1 tsp cinnamon;1/4 ground cloves. But feel free to experiment.
• a tiny pinch of salt -- tiny.

HOW TO

Brown the butter

I have made these cookies without going to the trouble of browning the butter, and they are good, but they are so much better with browned butter. So do it. Here's how you know your butter is good and browned:

Melt the butter over a low/medium heat until it starts bubbling. Wear an apron, and keep watching the pot. It's going to be a bit splattery. Listen to the butter -- it's quite noisy at this stage because the water in it is evaporating and exploding in big steamy puffs--a bit like a boiling mud pool. Stir it every now and then, and be patient.

After about 8 minutes, the bubbles will become much smaller, and quieter.

And then after a few more minutes, they will turn into foam and be almost silent. That's when you take the pot off the heat.

Leave the butter in the pot, but put it somewhere to cool down. Swirl it around and see the lovely brown colour. The bits on the bottom of the pot are all good. They add heaps of flavour.

Set a timer for 30 minutes, and leave the butter to cool down. You really need to do this. If you add an egg to hot butter, the egg will scramble and it will be disgusting.

Turn the oven on: 160 degrees

Add the sugar and egg

When the butter has cooled down, pour in 3/4 cup sugar.

Then break in one egg.

Then stir it as fast as you can with a wooden spoon, until it's well mixed, and you can't see the butter separating out. The colour will get lighter the more you mix.

Add the flour, baking powder, spices and salt

Just throw them into the pot. No need to sieve or fuss. If you're using salt, just put in a really tiny pinch. Then mix again with the wooden spoon.

When it looks like this, it's time to get your hands in there.

Roll it into a ball. If the mixture is really too sticky to do this, you can add a bit more flour. But it should be soft and slightly buttery.

Shape and cut the cookies

Divide the dough in half, and use your hands to shape them into logs. Use baking paper if you've got it. I like making the logs quite flat, because I like small cookies, but you can make them any shape you like.

Use a sharp knife to slice cookies off the loaf, and gently put them on the baking sheet. I love using baking paper because it's so easy and it never sticks.

Ready for the oven. They will expand a bit, but not much.

Bake for 20 minutes (and while they are baking, cut up your second log)

Oops, I forgot to take photos of this stage. Just put the cookie sheet on a rack close to the middle of the oven, and set your timer for 20 minutes. Keep your nose on the job. If the kitchen starts smelling like a gorgeous cookie factory after 15 minutes, check the oven. They might be ready. You can tell by the smell, and if they are just starting to look a tiny bit browner on the bottom than on the top.

When they are baked, take the baking tray our of the oven, and very carefully slide the baking paper with all the cookies on it, onto a wire cooling rack.

Put the second batch in the oven.

Fill up the cookie jar

I wouldn't say you absolutely must have a typewriter in the kitchen, but I'd highly recommend it.