Brown Sugar Cookies with Rosemary Butter Glaze

These easy, shortbread-like cookies are soft and chewy thanks to the addition of brown sugar. They are stamped and dipped in a rosemary butter glaze.

This may be an unpopular opinion, but sugar cookies hang out near the bottom of my “favorite Christmas cookie” list. They’re often a bit fussy, not holding the cute little Christmas tree and snowflake shapes that you painstakingly cut out of them. They usually taste solely of sugar, butter, and royal icing, which isn’t bad but I think we can do better. They are fine cookies, just not anything special, but they are a holiday classic so I set out to gussy them up a bit.

how to make the best brown sugar cookies

First off, get rid of the ‘sugar’ part and sub it with brown sugar. I did this for a few reasons. 1) FLAVOR. Brown sugar is just granulated sugar with a little molasses added to it, so it gives a deeper, more spiced flavor to an otherwise semi-bland cookie. (And if you are interested in all things sugar, you can read my ingredient deep dive here.) 2) TEXTURE. Brown sugar has extra moisture (from that added molasses), which means it creates a slightly fluffier, chewier cookie—a texture I am very much into.

Next, stamp these babies! My cookie cutters have been gathering dust since I got myself some cookie stamps. They are much easier, read: no gingerbread men with lost limbs, and they have a more mature, antique-y vibe in my opinion. Very fun and very fancy. **And if you don’t have cookie stamps, find a fun textured glass or vase and roll that on the dough before cutting out circles.

Last, scratch the royal icing and replace it with a rosemary butter glaze that can be eaten straight from the spoon. Simply melt butter with a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, let it steep, and then whisk in powdered sugar and a splash of heavy cream before brushing onto the warm cookies. It’s a perfect ending to a sweet little cookie.

Yield: makes 18-20 cookies

Author: Anna Ramiz

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Brown Sugar Cookies with Rosemary Butter Glaze

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 10 MinInactive time: 12 HourTotal time: 12 H & 25 M

These easy, shortbread-like cookies are soft and chewy thanks to the addition of brown sugar. They are stamped and dipped in a rosemary butter glaze.

Ingredients

for the cookie dough

• 8 tbsp (113 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

for the glaze

• 2/3 cup (80 g) powdered sugar, sifted
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 6 tsp heavy cream

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter and brown sugar. Beat for 1-2 minutes, until throughly combined. Add the egg yolk and beat again for one minute, until homogenized. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients. When everything is added, increase the mixer speed to medium. The mixture will look crumbly, but that is okay. Continue mixing until the a dough begins to form a cohesive mass.
4. Transfer the dough to a work surface and pat into a disc. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour, and up to 12 hours.
5. When you are ready to bake, remove the dough from the refrigerator and let rest at room temperature for 20-30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
6. Place the disc of dough between two sheets of parchment paper and roll out until 1/4” in thickness. Dip cookie stamps or a round cutter in a bowl of flour and cut out or stamp cookies into the dough. (If using a cookie stamp, be sure to press firmly or the shape will bake out in the oven.)
7. Transfer cookies to your prepared baking sheet and let chill in the freezer for 5-10 minutes before baking. Bake cookies for 8-9 minutes, until just beginning to turn golden around the edges.
8. While the cookies are baking, make your glaze. Place butter and rosemary in a small saucepan and set over medium heat. Cook until butter is melted and rosemary is fragrant. Remove rosemary and pour melted butter into a small mixing bowl. Whisk in powdered sugar and 4 tsp heavy cream and mix until smooth. Add more heavy cream if needed to reach your desired consistency. Brush cookies with glaze while they are still warm and let cool until glaze sets.

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Basil Olive Oil Ice Cream

It’s Day 8 of our little 12 Days of Christmas Project and I’m turning tradition on its head and giving you an ice cream recipe. I know that ice cream may not be the most tradition of holiday desserts, but we eat snow so why not ice cream? Like all of the ice cream recipes I have here on the blog, this ice cream base can made without an ice cream maker or with the assistance of one so there are no real excuses for not making ice cream.

I created this recipe a few months ago as a part of a Thanksgiving campaign featuring Monini’s Basil Olive Oil and it was a hit. A simple vanilla ice cream custard base is steeped with basil leaves and basil olive oil is added after whipping the cold custard (or drizzled in during the churning process if you are using an ice cream maker). Once the base has frozen overnight, more olive oil is drizzled on the ice cream before serving. It’s bright and floral and interesting and makes a really lovely dessert when served after a rich, heavy meal.

If you don’t have access to Monini’s Basil Olive Oil, this recipe can easily be made using high-quality, extra virgin olive oil. And if you are looking to go the extra mile, scrape out a few vanilla beans and place the seeds and pods in a jar with some olive oil and let it infuse. Store it in your pantry and have it on hand to drizzle over any ice cream or fruit anytime.

Basil Olive Oil Ice Cream

makes 1 quart of ice cream

Ingredients

2 cups (460 g) heavy cream

6-8 fresh basil leaves

3 strips of lemon zest (from about 1/2 of a lemon)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

4 egg yolks

pinch of salt

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup Monini Basil Olive Oil or extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling

Procedure

1. In a medium saucepan, heat cream, basil leaves, and lemon zest over medium-low heat until it is beginning to bubble around the edges of the pan and is hot to the touch. When hot and bubbly, remove from the heat and cover. Let steep for 30 minutes, then strain out basil and lemon zest.

2. Return the steeped cream to the medium saucepan and set it back over the heat. Bring the cream back to a simmer.

3. While the cream is heating, whisk together sugar, egg yolks, salt, and vanilla extract until a thick paste forms. When the cream is hot, slowly stream it into the egg mixture, whisking continually the whole time. Transfer the entire mixture back into the saucepan and return to heat.

4. Cook, stirring continually with a wooden spoon, over low-medium heat until the sauce is thickened, but do not bring to a boil. You can test if the sauce is ready by wiping your finger through the sauce along the back of the wooden spoon. If the line your finger creates holds, the sauce is ready. If it drips, continue cooking.

5. When the sauce is sufficiently thickened, remove from heat and immediately strain into a large mixing bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly over the top of the custard, cover and refrigerate, until completely cold (preferably overnight).

6. When the ice cream base is cold, transfer it to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip on medium-high speed until soft peaks form and then, with the mixer running, stream in the 1/4 cup of olive oil

7. Spread the whipped cream mixture into a 8x8” loaf pan, press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface, wrap tightly, and freeze for at least 12 hours.

8. To serve, scoop ice cream and drizzle with more olive oil.

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Cafe Con Leche Cheesecake

Inspired by my favorite Latin drink, cafe con leche, this fluffy, layered cheesecake recipe is spiked with strong espresso and kahlua. A decadent, coffee cheesecake topped with a tart sour cream whipped cream.

I didn’t know what home tasted like until I went away to college. There are so many flavors and smells that we associate with different people and places in our life. The smell of Boursin cheese makes me think of my Aunt’s house in North Carolina and her many many area rugs (which are beautiful and I would love for my house now). The smell of bread and sausage reminds me of my grandmother cooking in her kitchen in Pensacola, making big batches of briolata. But home, with all of it’s flavors and smells, alluded me until fall of my freshman year of college.

I grew up in South Florida and moved a few hours north to Orlando to attend UCF many (but not too many) years ago. The first few months, my roommate and I were pretty homesick and utterly baffled at the lack of Latin pastries available to us. In South Florida, there are Latin bakeries on every corner. There is a Colombian bakery, a Venezuelan Bakery, at least two Cuban bakeries, and one catch-all Hispanic food spot within a five minute drive of my parent’s house. You can even. get empanadas and croquettes at your local Publix, so imagine our surprise when we discovered that not even Publix in this new, empanada-free land of Orlando was able to come to our rescue.

That winter, when I came home for Christmas break, empanadas and cafe con leches were number one on my list. The first morning home, my sister and I got up early and drove (across the street) to Panna, our favorite local gas station/car wash/Latin-pastry heaven. We loaded up with brown paper bags full of basically everything on the shelf and 4 giant cafe con leches balanced precariously in a flimsy beverage carrier. It was Christmas, I was home, and everything was right with the world. Even now, Panna is the first stop when we exit I-75 for my little taste of home.

About the recipe:

Cafe con Leche is coffee from the gods. It is strong espresso with lots of milk and usually a little sweetened condensed milk. This cheesecake is a super-fun two-tone guy, with an espresso paste stirred into a third of the batter and spooned on top. The cheesecake base itself uses whipped egg whites to make it extra light and creamy and the whole thing is topped with a sweetened whipped cream/sour cream mixture. The crust is made from Maria cookies, a very Hispanic treat similar to a graham cracker. If you can’t find Maria cookies, you can definitely sub in graham crackers or gingersnaps or any other cookie you love. It’s a beautiful cheesecake and has cemented itself as a favorite in our family.

Yield

8-10

Author

Anna Ramiz

Prep time

30 Min

Cook time

1 Hour

Inactive time

5 Hour

Total time

6 H & 30 M

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Cafe Con Leche Cheesecake

Inspired by my favorite Latin drink, cafe con leche, this fluffy, layered cheesecake recipe is spiked with strong espresso and kahlua. A decadent, coffee cheesecake topped with a tart sour cream whipped cream.

Ingredients

for the crust

• 7 oz Maria Cookies *
• 1 tsp instant espresso
• 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter, melted

for the cheesecake

• 2 lb cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/2 cups (150 g) granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 4 eggs, separated
• 1/4 cup (57 g) heavy cream
• 2 tbsp instant espresso
• 2 tbsp Kahlua

for the topping

• 3/4 cup (170 g) sour cream
• 1/4 cup (57 g) heavy cream
• 3 tbsp powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

to make the crust

1. Preheat oven to 325° F and line the bottom of a 9” springform pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the cookies until finely ground. Add the espresso, sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt. Pulse a few more times, just to combine. Transfer the cookie mixture to a medium bowl and add the melted butter. Stir everything together until the mixture is moistened and no dry spots remain. Press the cookie crumbs into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan.

to make the cheesecake

1. In the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the whisk, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Transfer the whipped whites to another bowl and set aside.
2. Dissolve the instant espresso in heavy cream and set aside.
3. Return the mixing bowl to the stand mixer and switch to the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese until very smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together sugar and cornstarch until there are no clumps. Add the sugar and cornstarch to the mixer with the cream cheese and mix for 1-2 minutes until combined.
5. With the mixer on low speed, add the egg yolks one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again and continue to mix until the batter is smooth and homogenous.
6. Remove In two additions, fold whipped egg whites into cheesecake batter until no streaks remain.
7. Pour two-thirds of the batter into the prepared pan. Add the espresso/heavy cream mixture to the remaining third of the batter, along with the Kahlua. Mix well to combine, and then pour in a layer on top of the cheesecake.
8. Place cheesecake in a water bath and bake for one hour. After an hour, turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake in with the oven door closed for another hour. After two hours, remove the cheesecake from the oven, wrap in plastic wrap, and transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

to make the topping

1. In the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the whisk, whip sour cream and heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add powdered sugar and vanilla and continue whipping until thick. Spoon whipped cream over the top of your chilled cheesecake and serve immediately.

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