These are the Chocolate Chip Cookies of my dreams! It only took 48 attempts. 😅 Superior crispy outsides, soft-baked insides, excellent chewiness, intensely buttery with butterscotch tones, exceptional shelf life. A copycat of Australia’s famous Butter Boy cookies – but better!

On a personal note, thank you to everyone who left such kind, supporting messages on my burn out post a couple of months ago. I am back! Well rested, I have a new assistant, much has happened – catch up post here! I will do a catch up post next week!

The Chocolate Chip Cookies of my dreams

These started out as a simple copycat of the milk choc cookies from Butter Boy, a popular cookie shop here in Sydney. I feel like I’ve tried my fair share of internet-famous cookies, and these are the first that have lived up to the hype.

But at $8.50 each, deciding to make a homemade version was a no brainer! Plus, I was able to tweak them to my own taste – such as making them a bit less sweet (the Butter Boy ones are insanely sweet!), more buttery flavour – and most importantly, a version that can be made in regular home kitchens.

It took 48 attempts, creating it then retesting and stress testing iterations. But it was worth it. I’m thrilled with the final result, my ultimate chocolate chip cookies that are everything I dream a cookie to be!

These chocolate chip cookies are….

….the Rolls Royce of cookies in my cookie collection!

1. They boast a rich, buttery flavor with deep butterscotch undertones, thanks to browned butter (which is literally just simmered melted butter). This simple magic ingredient ensures incredible taste, whether you use budget-friendly or premium butter.

2. Superior texture – thick crisp, golden crust with soft, chewy insides. Their generous size allows for a long enough bake to create an excellent crispy surface while keeping the centre irresistibly gooey which is ultra soft and moist but not blatantly raw cookie dough (not a fan of raw flour taste);

3. Every aspect of these cookies is elevated by an overnight dough chill – flavour, crispiness, chew, colour, and even shelf life. I’ve tested so many with and without chilling, and shorter fridge times to compare side by side. I’m now a believer – there’s simply no way to cheat time!

4. They cost 70% less than the Butter Boy cookies. And in my humble opinion, they taste better. I would be delighted to hear thoughts from Butter Boy die-hard fans who try this recipe!

PS These cookies are BIG. Intentional, so they can be baked long enough to develop a great crispy crust while keeping the inside soft-baked.

Also – proof of crispy base and soft baked insides (I pressed with my finger so you can see it’s not cakey, dry or crumbly):

Ingredients in The Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here’s what you need to make these. No unusual ingredients, achieving the perfect outcome came down to a very exact amount of each ingredient. See FAQ for more information – like can you reduce sugar (no!), can these be made gluten free (sadly not!).

For the cookie dough

• Plain flour / all purpose flour – Please do not substitute with self raising flour. This recipe calls for a much lessor amount of baking powder than what is built into self raising flour.

• Brown and white sugar – Each of these bring different qualities to cookies. The brown sugar adds colour, chew and caramely flavour, while the white sugar makes the cookies crispy. I use caster sugar (superfine sugar) as it dissolves more easily in baked goods as the grains are finer so it is my default sugar for baked goods. However, regular white sugar (granulated sugar) also works fine.

• Unsalted butter – Chopped into pieces so it melts more evenly as we are browning the butter. I prefer to use unsalted butter so I can control the amount of salt added into the recipe.

• Cooking salt – I use 1/2 teaspoon of salt in these cookies which may sound like a lot but it really works here to offset the sweetness and enhance all the incredible flavours in this cookie. Trust the process! See recipe notes for using table salt and salt flakes.

• Egg + egg yolk – Using an egg yolk in place of a second whole egg adds richness, plus to be honest, I didn’t need a whole second egg and it’s easier to measure out a yolk than 1/2 an egg. 🙂 Make sure you use large eggs which are 50-55g / 2oz each in the shell, sold in cartons labelled “large eggs”. If you only have jumbo or XL eggs, see this post for how to measure out the correct amount.

• Baking powder and baking soda (bi-carbonate) – In cookies, baking powder makes them rise, while baking soda makes them spread, so don’t swap them! After much testing, I found 1/4 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp baking soda created the perfect shape and texture.

• Cornflour / cornstarch – A baking trick I picked up in my time, a little cornflour softens the inside of cookies without affecting the crispy exterior. Plus, adjusting the amount controls their shape – just 1 tablespoon extra turns it into a big dome shape!

• Vanilla – For flavour. Vanilla extract please, not imitation essence.

The choc chips

Chocolate chips are key in chocolate chip cookies! 😂 So unsurprisingly, I have thoughts. I tried chopped chocolate but preferred chips for these big cookies – they disperse better throughout rather than having larger chunks which harden when they cool.

I mix dark and milk chocolate for balanced sweetness – 250g dark (semi-sweet) and 150g milk chocolate chips (which are much sweeter than dark chocolate). Since standard Aussie choc chip packs are 200g, feel free to just use one pack of each or use chopped chocolate instead!

The chocolate I use – For everyday purposes, I use Cadbury and Nestle, I stock up when they are on sale at grocery stores. I also get larger bags of Kirkland semi-sweet chips from Costco (semi-sweet = dark chocolate). For a premium option I will splurge on Callebaut chocolate chips which is a Belgium chocolate from speciality stores that is used by professionals (it costs 2-3x as much depending on how much you buy).

These cookies must be refrigerated for 12 hours. Sorry!

Once I landed on my “perfect” cookie recipe that required an overnight chill, I was sure I could tweak it to be just as good (or 98% as good) with only an hour or so in the fridge.

I really tried. (48 versions, remember!). But I was wrong. 😅 Once you’ve had the overnight chilled version, there’s no going back. The best I got was 90% as good – turns out, you can’t cheat time!

what does refrigerating cookie dough do?

You know how sourdough and pizza dough proofed overnight tastes better? This is because the time allows science to work its magic to develop flavour. And that’s what’s happening here. The refrigeration time improves virtually every aspect of this cookie:

• the cookie has more flavour, in a way you can’t shortcut with ingredients

• outside bakes up crisper, sturdier and longer lasting (days!)

• inside is chewier (the difference is stark comparing 1 hour v 12 hour chilled cookies)

• colour is a richer golden colour

• cookie surface bakes up nicer

• shelf life is superior. Excellent 3 days, still great 5 days. The shelf life quality reduces for shorter fridge times less than 12 hours. Regular choc chip cookie recipes are noticeably stale on day 3, I find.

• flour is hydrated and butter solidifies so the cookies bake thick with soft baked centre rather than spreading thin and crispy

How to make The Chocolate Chip Cookies

Are you ready to see how straightforward it is to make the Chocolate Chip Cookie of your dreams??

1. BROWN THE BUTTER

Browning butter is as simple as melting butter then letting it simmer until it changes from yellow to golden brown which only takes a few minutes. This intensifies the buttery flavour and makes the cookies taste buterscotchy. For this recipe, it’s important because it levels the playing field whether making this cookie with economical or premium butter.

1. Melt butter in a silver or other non-black saucepan or small pan. Simmer the melted butter on medium to medium high for 3 to 5 minutes or until you see little golden bits (which are the dairy bits that go toasty) and you can smell the nuttiness. The butter will also change from yellow to golden brown in colour.

   ❓Why does the colour of the cooking vessel matter? It’s easier to see when the butter changes from yellow to golden. If using a black pan, you need to rely on your smell or using a spoon to scoop the butter up to check the colour.

2. Remove from the stove and immediately pour it into a large mixing bowl (including all the little brown bits – extra flavour!). Work quickly as it will continue browning. Then let it cool for 45 minutes+ to room temperature.

   ⚠️ Cooling – The browned butter should still be liquid (ie not solidified bits, not even around the edges) but cool enough so it will not melt the sugar or the choc chips. If it solidifies, then re-melt in the microwave and cool again.

2. The dough is so easy!

You just need a wooden spoon, no stand mixer!

1. Whisk Dry ingredients in a bowl.

2. Wet ingredients – To the cooled brown butter, mix in both sugars using a wooden spoon. It will look like wet sand. Then add the egg, yolk and vanilla and mix. It will look like a a thick caramel (but with visible fine sugar grains).

3. Make dough – Add the flour into the butter bowl and mix. When the flour is mostly incorporated, add the choc chips then mix well until all the flour is fully incorporated.

4. FAT DISCS not balls (and they’re BIG!) – Divide the mixture into 8 equal mounds. They will be 1/2 cup slightly heaped / 155g each (5.3 oz). Roll into balls to properly seal all cracks (they burst into unsightly crevices during baking) then shape into a fat disc 3.75cm/1.5″ thick. See FAQ for chatter about this shape and why shape before chilling.

5. Fridge 12 – 24 hours – Put the discs in an airtight container and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. See section above for why refrigerating is necessary and how hard I tried to avoid it!

   Chill time variations (see above for more information):
   – 1 hour is the bare minimum (personally I’d make Browned Butter Choc Oatmeal Cookies instead)
   – 5 hours is my recommended minimum but I aim for 8 hours for “company worthy proud”
   – 12 – 24 hours is optimal, up to 48 hours
   – Beyond 48 hours: diminishing returns plus dough starts to dry out, better to freeze after 12 hours.

   ⚠️ Freezing – You cannot shortcut by freezing as the dough as all the good things that happen to the dough in the fridge can’t happen once frozen rock solid. To freeze, you must do the fridge time first then freeze! See FAQ and recipe notes for directions.

6. Bake 17 minutes – Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (170°C fan-forced)*. Once the oven is hot, place the fridge cold cookies on a paper lined tray 7.5 cm / 3″ apart (to allow for spread).

   Bake for 17 minutes, checking first at 16 minutes**, until the outside edges are golden and the surface is pale golden but has a thin baked skin on it rather than just being shiny melty raw dough. They will look underdone (you will spy wet batter through cracks) which is what you want to allow for carry over cooking as they cool down, by which time they are perfect – soft baked inside, ultra crispy outsides!

7. Decorate – Working quickly, press extra chocolate chips on the surface. I like to press them in slightly, some straight, some wonky. But even if you just place them on top, the heat will melt the chocolate so they bond.

   💡TIP: While still hot, you can also use a spatular to reshape wonky ones into neat circles.

8. Cool the cookies on the tray for 20 minutes. During this time, they will deflate a bit, the inside will finish cooking so it’s not just floury raw dough, the surface becomes more golden, and the outside and base becomes super crispy.

   ATTACK! The 20 minutes mark straight out of the oven is the prime moment of perfection to devour these cookies, when the inside is still warm and the chocolate is molten and gooey, but the outside has set enough so it’s gorgeously crispy. Grab one right now!!!

Phew! So that’s it. The Chocolate Chip Cookies of my dreams. 3 months and 48 versions later. That’s:

• 19 kg / 38 lb choc chips (!)

• 10.8 kg / 22 lb butter

• 41 kg / 28 lb flour

• 384 cookies

Make these once, and I wager they will invade your dreams every night too! – Nagi x

PS I moved the FAQ and Troubleshooting accordions to beneath the recipe card as they started getting lengthy.

Watch how to make it

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The Chocolate Chip Cookies of my dreams!

Recipe video. These are my idea of the perfect chocolate chip cookie – superior crispy outsides, soft baked inside with excellent chew, buttery with butterscotch tones and a milk-dark chocolate combo that's just right. And they're BIG (2.5cm/1" thick, 11cm/4.5" wide) – intended for high impact!

Inspired by Australia's famous Butter Boy milk choc cookies, it took 48 attempts to perfect these. For best results, use scales and do not skip the 12 hour dough chill (see note 5). Also see Troubleshooting and FAQ below recipe card for extra tips.

IMPORTANT: If you don't have a sweet tooth, these are not for you! Sugar cannot be decreased without compromising results (I really tried). These are unapologetically outrageous in every way!

Course Cookies, Sweet Baking

Cuisine Western

Keyword choc chip cookie, Chocolate chip cookie recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Butter cooling + dough chilling 12 hours hours 45 minutes minutes

Servings 8 big cookies (11 cm/4.5″ wide, 2.5cm/1″ thick, 150g/5oz each!)

Author Nagi

Ingredients

• 225g / 2 US sticks unsalted butter , cut into 1cm / 1/2″ cubes

Dry ingredients:

• 2 cups (300g) plain flour / all-purpose flour , spooned and levelled (IMPORTANT – Note 1)
• 3 tsp cornflour/cornstarch , tightly pack and level the spoon measure
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda / bi-carb , sifted if lumpy (don't sub more baking powder, Note 2)
• 1/2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (halve for table salt, +50% for flakes)

Wet ingredients:

• 1 tightly packed cup (200g) brown sugar (light brown sugar)
• 1/2 cup (100g) caster sugar / superfine super (sub regular/granulated)
• 1 large egg (55g / 2 oz in shell), at room temp
• 1 yolk from a large egg , at room temp
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Choc chips (Note 3):

• 1 1/2 cups (250g) dark chocolate chips / semi-sweet choc chips, plus extra for decorating
• 3/4 cup (150g) milk chocolate chips

Cups – Metric

Instructions

ABBREVIATED RECIPE:

• Brown butter, cool, hand mix in sugar, then egg + vanilla. Mix in whisked Dry, adding choc towards end. Form 8 x 155g (1/2 cup) discs 3.75cm/1.5" thick. Fridge 12 -24 hrs. Bake from fridge cold 4 at a time, 180°C/350°F (170°C fan) 17 min, top with more choc while hot if desired. Cool 20 min on tray, attack!

FULL RECIPE:

Browned butter:

• Simmer to brown – Put the butter in a silver saucepan or small pan over medium high heat. Once melted, let it simmer (as in, bubbling) for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring every now and then, until it gets real foamy, you see little golden specks (wade through foam to see) and it smells nutty & extra buttery.
• Cool – Immediately pour into a heatproof bowl, including all those golden specks. Cool to room temperature (~45 minutes), cool enough so it won't melt the choc chips (Note 4)

Dough:

• Whisk Dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
• Mix Wet – To the browned butter, add both sugars and mix with a wooden spoon. Add the egg, yolk and vanilla. Mix until smooth – it will look caramel.
• Finish dough – Add the Dry ingredients and mix until the flour is mostly incorporated. Add the choc chips and stir until the flour is fully incorporated.
• Make dough discs – Measure out 8 x 155g (5.3 oz/ 1/2 cup) portions of dough, roll into a ball then shape into a 3.75cm/1.5" thick round disc. Place in a very airtight container. (Note 5 for smaller cookies)

CHILLING:

• Fridge 12 hours – Refrigerate for 12 hours, up to 48 hours (Note 6 for different chill times).

BAKING:

• Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (170°C fan-forced). (Note 7)
• Place 4 fridge-cold cookies 7.5 cm/3" apart on a tray lined with baking paper/parchment paper. (Note 8 baking tips)
• Bake for 17 minutes or until the edges are golden and the surface is just set (ie not melty raw dough) but still pale.
• Decorate and cool – Working quickly, press extra choc chips on the surface (Note 9), then cool on the tray for 20 minutes – finishes baking, edges crisp more and they get more golden all over.

  Tip: While hot, you can also reshape with a rubber spatula or similar into a tidy round shape.
• Grab now – peak eating moment! Or, transfer to a rack to cool fully before storing in an airtight container.

Notes

* Recipe can be scaled up as desired. If doubling, you can use 3 whole eggs instead of 2 whole eggs + 2 yolks. Suggest using stand mixer as dough gets quite thick towards end!* 

1. Measuring 225g butter without scales – don’t guesstimate using packet markings!! Melt butter and measure 235ml using a jug (or 1 cup then remove 1 tablespoon), THEN brown the butter (once browned, butter is 180 – 190g). And yes, it’s 235ml, not 225ml (1g butter = 1.043173 ml).

US readers – not applicable to you, just use 2 sticks!

2. Measuring flour (important!) – Scales best (and efficient). If using cups, spoon flour into cups then level surface. Do not dunk cup measure into flour tub or bag (flour settles = 2 cups will be more than 300g = your cookies will puff more). *I am not usually this pedantic, only when a recipe is more sensitive than usual*

2. Baking soda (bi-carb) – don’t substitute with more baking powder if you don’t have baking soda, it will make the cookies puff up into rock-cake form. You need baking soda!

3. Choc chips – Milk choc chips are considerably sweeter so I like a combination of dark and milk so it’s not overwhelmingly sweet. Feel free to use more or less of either (I realise 400g is a neat 2 x standard Australian 200g packs!) or cut your own chocolate, for larger melty pools of chocolate (I prefer the littering of smaller chips all throughout, plus it’s more convenient – and I plan to make these cookies a lot, forever!)

4. Cooled browned butter – Cool enough so it won’t melt the sugar or melt the choc chips, but not so cold the edges solidify (if it does, re-melt and cool again).

5. Smaller cookies – This recipe works great for smaller cookies too but roll them into balls instead of forming fat discs. Here are the bake times:

• 1 tbsp (#20 cookie scoop) – 12 to 13 minutes
• 2 tbsp (#40 cookie scoop) – 13 to 14 minutes
• 3 tbsp (~60g/2oz/#20 cookie scoop) – 14 minutes

6. Fridge chilling enhances every aspect of this cookie, flavour, colour, texture and shelf life in a way you can’t cheat with any ingredient or shortcut. Read in post for more information.

• 12 – 24 hrs – Recommended, for pure cookie nirvana.
• 24 – 48 hours – As above, pure perfection
• 3 – 5 days – Diminishing returns, better to freeze at 12 hours, then thaw on demand.
• 5 hrs – My absolute minimum. If I can’t do this, I make Oatmeal Browned Butter Cookies
• 8 hrs – My target minimum, deemed “company worthy”

Cookie emergencies:

• No chilli time – Doesn’t work, cookie spreads way too much
• 1 hr minimum chill time – increase cornflour by 2 teaspoons, follow recipe. It’s not as perfect as a 12 hr chill but it’s still much better than your average cookie!
• Emergency choc chip cookies, regular size, easier, faster, no chill time here.

7. Oven temp is only 10°C different here for fan v conventional. See FAQ.

8. Bake one tray at a time for standard Australian ovens (60cm) though if you have a large one (90cm) you can bake 2 trays at the same time. 

9. Decorate choc chips – lightly press in to the surface or just rest on surface (chocolate will melt and adhere).

10. Different cup measures in different countries – Recipe works fine as written with no alterations needed except Japan, please use the weights. See FAQ for more information.

11. Storage – exceptional shelf life. Excellent for 2 days, still near excellent on day 3, still great days 4 and 5. Store in an airtight container in the pantry.

Freezing – Uncooked dough discs can be frozen after the 12 hour fridge time. Bake from frozen per recipe (cookies are a bit thicker), or I prefer to thaw overnight in the fridge than bake per recipe. See FAQ for more details.

Nutrition – Let’s just say it’s more than water, less than a Big Mac Meal (I hope!😂). Will update shortly, when I’m ready to face reality.

Troubleshooting

I will continue to add more to this Troubleshooting section as I start seeing questions coming through from people who have made the recipe.

Life of Dozer

The photo I chose to show you:

Though every other shot was more like this:

Because he wasn’t interested in attention. THIS is what he was after!

(And plenty of it, he got, unsurprisingly!)

PS It’s yakitori, we like doing yakitori nights for get togethers! The recipe is here on my mother’s website, RecipeTin Japan.

The post The Chocolate Chip Cookies of my dreams appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Summery Mango Bars! A jammy layer of fresh mango sandwiched between a coconut biscuit base and crumbly topping, finished with a lime glaze. Stellar flavour combination that screams of summer! That mango layer is everything – juicy and generous.

The annual mango recipe!

I intended to kick off this post by cheerfully introducing it as part of my yearly tradition of sharing a mango recipe each summer.

However, a quick look through my past creations made me realize that calling it an “annual tradition” might be a stretch. There were the 2023 Mango Muffins and the 2022 Yum Cha Mango Pancakes, but the one before that was all the way back in 2019—a Prawn, Avocado, and Mango Salad.

Let’s chalk up the three-year gap to the pandemic and officially get back on track.

Presenting the summer of 2025 mango recipe: MANGO BARS!!! ☀️☀️

Ingredients for Mango Bars

Here’s what you need to make the mango bars.

Mango filling

You will need two, big, ripe mangoes for this recipe. And yes, it can be made with canned mango!

• Mangoes – Use any variety you like. And it goes without saying the sweeter and riper they are, the better!

  Canned mango – Use mangoes in unsweetened juice if you can, so it’s less sweet. Drain well in a colander then use per the recipe, cutting if needed to make the slices thinner. I do prefer the texture of the filling made with slices rather than diced, but dicing does work too. Cut them into ~6mm / 1/4″ cubes.

• Cornflour / cornstarch – This helps the juices thicken a touch into a syrup, rather than the watery juices running into and soaking the base. We only use 1 1/2 teaspoons (don’t go overboard else it makes the mango layer unpleasantly gluey).

• Sugar – I know it sounds insane to add sugar into sweet ripe mangoes, but hear me out! Just 2 tablespoons helps the juices become syrupy (combined with the cornflour) which suspends in the mango layer, rather than watery juices running into the base. Discovered after multiple attempts of making a sugar-free filling and not being thrilled with the mango layer!

Coconut base and crumb

This is based on the lovely crumb and base in my Raspberry Bars, with the addition of coconut which I really wanted because – coconut! Mango! Fab! I originally omitted the oats but then put it back in because I think it adds good texture to the base rather than just being a thick plain shortbread-style slab. It was still nice, but I thought was just a little too sandy for the thick layer of juicy mango. So, yes to the oats!

• Flour – Just regular plain / all-purpose flour. Self raising flour is not recommended here, it has too much baking powder in it for this recipe, the base and crumb will puff up too much.

• Desiccated coconut – Or finely shredded coconut. Just not coconut flakes, they are too large. Also, please use unsweetened.

• Oats – Regular plain rolled oats aka traditional oats. Not steel cut, not quick cooking, and not flavoured ones.

• Unsalted butter – Melted. If using salted, just skip the salt.

• Sugar – Just half a cup (100g) of white sugar. Not too sweet! I use white sugar so the base is whiter – fresh summery colours against the orange mango – but brown sugar works too. The crust will just be a pale brown and the surface gets a little more colour.

• Egg – Makes the mixture bind together. No need to bring to room temperature in this recipe. Use a large egg (50-55g/2oz), sold in cartons labelled as “large eggs” or 600-660g for a dozen. More on eggs for baking here.

• Salt – Standard baking ingredient these days, to bring out the flavours in the other ingredients.

How to make my Mango Bars

In all honesty, cutting the mangoes takes the most time here. But that’s a pleasurable task because you get to snack on all the offcuts as you go, and the chef gets to suck the seed!

1. HOW I CUT MANGO

I found the mango layer texture is nicer using slices rather than dicing (turned into mush). So use the cheeks first then the offcuts from around the seed only if needed to make up the full 2 1/2 cups we need.

1. Cheeks first – Stand the mango upright on the wider side (ie the side that was attached to the tree). Cut the cheek of the mango off each side of the seed, aiming to leave as little flesh as possible on the seed.

2. Scoop out – Then using a large spoon or scooper (the sharper the edge, the easier it is), scoop the flesh out of the skin in one large piece.

3. Slicing – slice the cheeks into 3 – 4 mm / just shy of o.2″ thick slices. Too thin = breakage when tossed, too thick = slippery and harder to cut/eat. (Speaking from experience here).

   (If short of the amount required, cut the flesh around the seed and use that too). 
   

4. Measure – Measure out 2 1/2 cups (400g) mango slices into a bowl. The slices will flop and fold into a measuring cup so it’s pretty accurate. Don’t fret about some breakage. Then set aside. Do not toss with sugar yet. The mango will sweat and get too watery.

2. Base & crumb (same mixture)

We are using the same mixture for the base and crumbly topping. The mixture is a little wetter when it’s first mixed and pressed into the base. By the time you get to sprinkling it over the mango, it has dried out a bit to make it easier to crumble across the surface.

1. Mix – Melt the butter in a heatproof bowl in the microwave. Mix the sugar in first, then the egg. Then add everything else in one go (flour, baking powder, oats, coconut, salt) and mix until you can no longer see flour.

2. Mixed and ready to use!

3. Press – Measure out 1 3/4 cups of the mixture into measuring cups. (The remaining mixture is used for the topping). Press into the base using your hands, level it as best you can. Press firmly to level the surface but no need to press super firmly (ie not like your favourite torture-but-highly-effective Chinese masseuse working on your back).

4. Mango tossing – Now we can prepare the mango layer! Sprinkle the sugar and cornflour across the surface of the mango and use your hands to gently toss to disperse.

5. Mangoes layer – Pour all the mangoes onto the base and spread out evenly.

6. Crumbly topping – Crumble the remaining topping across the surface. Larger crumbles = more high impact crunchy patches on surface and more mango exposure but slightly harder to cut neatly (I go for this, pictured). Smaller crumbles = easier to cut (more practical, better for impressing).

7. Bake for 30 minutes in a 180°C/350°F oven (160°C fan forced) until the surface is light golden.

8. Cool for 2 hours on the counter before drizzling with glaze, if using. (Speed things up – 30 minutes on counter, 30 minutes in fridge).

3. lime drizzle glaze

The trick with glazes is to make them just thin enough so they can be drizzled across the surface and they spread slightly, but thick enough to set so you can still see it. If the glaze is too thin, it spreads and sinks into the cake/bars etc and disappears = disappointing. 😭

1. Mixing – Put the icing sugar, lime zest, juice and vanilla in a bowl. Then mix with a small whisk until throughly combined.

2. Consistency – Goal: honey consistency, not maple syrup which is too thin. Glazes can go from too thick to too thin with just the tiniest amount of extra liquid. So if your glaze needs thinning, only use 1/4 teaspoon at a time and mix it in thoroughly before adding more.

3. Drizzle randomly across the surface of the mango bars in any pattern you want.

4. Set and cut – Leave for 10 minutes to let the surface of the glaze set before cutting into 12 squares (normal, pictured) or 9 squares (greedy, always encouraged).

I take it back – Lime Glaze is not optional

I think I have written in a few places that the lime glaze is optional.

I’d like to retract that / caveat it. It is optional – no I can’t force you to make it – but it’s highly, highly recommended. Not only does it add a finishing pizzaz to these Mango Bars, as all glazes do to all deserts, but the little pop of lime flavour plays so nicely with the mango and coconut. I tried putting the lime flavour into the mango filling but it just got lost.

Embrace the mess

And lastly – be forewarned – it might get a little messy to eat if you take small nibbles. Crumble bars always are, but this one a little more than usual because of that generously juicy mango layer.

Solution is to either eat it in one or two big bites (my new taste testing team, my builders, opted for this) or embrace the mess (I opted for this).

Either way, it’s so enjoyable! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Coconut mango bars with lime glaze

Recipe video above. I adore the combination of mangoes, coconut and lime is a no-fail combination, and here it is in handheld bar form. The contrast of the crispy base and crumbly coconutty topping sandwiching the juicy mango layer is so good! I also like the texture the oats add, that it's not too sweet, and straightforward to make. Honestly, cutting the mangoes takes the most time!

TOP TIP: Mango slices = terrific thick layer of juicy mango. Diced mango mostly turns into mush. Slicing wins!

Course Bars, Dessert, Slice, Sweet Baking

Cuisine Western

Keyword mango bars, mango dessert, mango recipe, mango slice

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Cooling 2 hours hours

Servings 12 squares (or 9 larger ones)

Calories 291cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Coconut crumble base & topping:

• 125g/ 1 stick unsalted butter (Note 1 US conversion note)
• 1/2 cup caster/superfine white sugar (regular/granulated also ok)
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups flour , plain / all-purpose
• 1 cup oats (Note 2)
• 3/4 cup desiccated or finely shredded coconut , unsweetened (not flakes, too big)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (or 1/8 tsp table salt)

Mango filling:

• 2 1/2 cups (400 g) mango slices , 5mm/0.2″ thin, 2 large-ish mangoes (Note 3)
• 1 1/2 tsp cornflour / cornstarch
• 2 tbsp white sugar (don’t skip this even if mangoes are sweet, Note 4)

Lime glaze (optional – but not really!)

• 3/4 cup soft icing sugar / powdered sugar (Note 5)
• 1 tsp lime zest
• 3 tsp lime juice , plus more as needed (1/4 tsp at a time)
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Summary:

• Melt butter, mix in sugar, then egg, then everything else. Press 1 3/4 cups into 20cm/8″ lined pan. Toss mango filling ingredients, spread on base, crumble over remaining mixture. Bake 30 min. Cool, drizzle with glaze.

Full directions:

• Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan-forced). Grease then line a 20cm/8" panwith baking paper (parchment), ensuring you have overhang so you can lift it out at the end.

Base & crumbs mixture:

• Melt butter – Cut the butter into ~1.25cm/1/2" chunks and melt in a microwave-proof bowl, or use a saucepan and stove. (Note 6)
• Mix – Add the sugar to the butter and mix with a wooden spoon. Add egg and mix until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and mix until you no longer see flour.

Assembling:

• Base – Measure out 1 3/4 cups (packed) of the mixture (the rest gets used for the topping). Spread into the pan and use your hands to evenly press it into the base.
• Mango filling (do this just before use) – Put the mango in a bowl. Sprinkle over the sugar and cornflour. Use your hands to gently toss until evenly coated.
• Assemble – Spread the mango evenly across the base. Crumble the remaining mixture across the surface, leaving spots of mango exposed.
• Bake for 30 minutes until the surface is light golden.
• Cool – Remove from the oven and fully cool in the pan (~ 2 hours) before lifting out using the excess paper onto a cutting board. (Speed things up: 30 min counter, 30 minute fridge).
• Lime glaze – Mix the ingredients in a medium bowl, using extra lime juice 1/4 tsp at a time if needed until it's a honey consistency. Drizzle randomly across the surface. Leave for 10 minutes to let the glaze surface crust.
• Serve – Cut into 12 squares (sensible) or 9 (greedy). Devour!

Notes

1. Butter conversion (US bakers) – Astute bakers will notice that 125g butter does not equal 1 stick of butter, it is 113g. However, US cup sizes are also marginally smaller – 236ml v 250ml in most of the rest of the world. So the the lessor amount of butter is correct of the amount of flour, oats etc you use measured in US cups.

2. Oats – regular rolled oats / traditional coats. Not steel cut or quick cook.

3. Mangos:

• Measuring – The slippery slices will flop into the measuring cup quite easily. Don’t worry if some break. Be sure to use offcuts from around the seed!
• Variety – Use any you like, my favourites are (in order): Honey Gold, R2E2, Kensington Prides, Keitt. Calypso brings up the rear – common, pretty, cheap, least mangoey.
• Don’t toss mango with sugar until just before using else it will draw excess juice out of the mango. Follow recipe steps in the order they are written.

4. Sugar note – A bit of sugar with the cornflour in the mango layer makes it bake up a little “jammy” rather than turning into watery mush which was a problem in early versions I tried.

5. 🇦🇺 Icing sugar for Australians – Be sure to get SOFT icing sugar (packet will say as such) not pure icing sugar which is used for icing that sets hard like royal icing.

6. Butter melting – I cover the bowl with a couple of paper towels, do 30s on high, then 10 sec increments until mostly melted. Then finish melting by mixing. My days of cleaning microwave butter explosions are over!

Store in the fridge for 5 days though from day 2 and beyond, though base is pretty good for 2 days then does lose crispness. Still darn delish though! Not suitable for freezing.

Nutrition per bar, assuming 12 bars and the glaze is used.

Nutrition

Calories: 291cal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 36mg | Sodium: 58mg | Potassium: 155mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin A: 641IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 1mg

Mango madness!

Let’s make the most of them while we’ve got ’em!

No Bake Mango Cheesecake

Mango muffins

Mango pancakes

Prawn Mango Avocado Summer Salad

Homemade Mango Ice Cream Recipe (No Ice Cream Maker!)

Mango Daiquiri & Tales from a MANGO FARM!!

Thai Prawn, Mango and Avocado Noodle Salad

Life of Dozer

True love is giving up the mango seed:

Also – too much? Or – art? 🤔😂

The post Mango bars with lime glaze appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Nutella Stuffed Cookies. Yes, they are as naughty and indulgent as they look. But so much easier to make than you think! No electric beater, just a wooden spoon. That moment when the melty Nutella floods in your mouth…. send help!

Nutella Stuffed Cookies

This is no ordinary cookie.

This is a cookie that is sinfully decadent, and makes no apology for it.

I feel like the photos tell you everything you need to know to do a run to the grocery shop so you can make these immediately…

But just in case you’re one of those sensible people who thinks before they act (what is life like that, I wonder? 🤔), this is what you’re in for: a soft baked, buttery chocolate chip cookie with beautiful caramel undertones that’s chewy on the inside and just the right amount of crispiness on the edges.

Oh, and it’s stuffed with Nutella. In case you missed that part!! 😂

I love how it looks so innocent when you pull it out of the oven. Just another chocolate chip cookie…

…then you break it open and BOOM! In-your-face-melty decadence!

Are you ready to be shocked how straightforward this is to make? Let’s do this!

SPOILER: It involves frozen discs of Nutella that are buried inside cookie dough.

Ingredients

Here’s what you need to make these Nutella Stuffed Cookies.

1. Nutella

Shocking. I know. 😂

In theory, this recipe will work with any spread that you want to see oozing out of a chocolate chip cookie as long as it will freeze so it can be wrapped with the cookie dough. Immediate thoughts that come to mind:

• Nut-free and other chocolate spreads

• Non Nutella-brand hazelnut spread

• Peanut butter

• Biscoff spread (I know Biscoff is having a moment!)

2. EVERYTHING ELSE

The ingredients are simple. But there’s some chatter below for fellow baking nerds, interested in things like why are you using baking soda instead of baking powder? What’s with that smidge of honey? There is logic behind everything!

• Flour – Just regular plain / all-purpose flour. Don’t use self-raising flour for this cookie, the amount of built in baking powder is too much.

• Brown sugar rather than white sugar, for better flavour and colour.

• Unsalted butter, melted – This is the fat in this recipe, to give these cookies a lovely buttery flavour. If you only have salted, leave out the salt.

• Baking soda (bi-carbonate soda) – This is the leavening agent that makes the cookies rise a bit so they aren’t dense and hard. I use baking soda rather than baking powder for these cookies because baking soda makes things brown faster in the oven which we need for these cookies to have an appealing golden colour and lovely crisp edges in the short 12 minute baking time.

  Baking powder will work, if that’s all you’ve got, and they will still be delicious (I mean, Nutella! Choc chips! Butter!). But expect your cookies to be paler and a little less chewy, and they lose the chewy texture over the next few days. You’ll need to use 1 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder.

• Honey – Baking science at work here! Just 1 teaspoon of honey keeps these cookies moist and chewy inside rather than becoming “cakey” or dry. The honey also makes the cookies colour faster so they aren’t pale (same point above for baking soda).

  Because we only need so little, you can’t taste it at all. Substitute with corn syrup (it serves the same purpose). Maple syrup and other sweet liquids won’t work. It’s fine to leave it out (it’s not a big deal), just expect the cookies to be a little paler and they will lose freshness faster in the days to come.

• Large egg at room temperature – An egg around 55 grams / 2 ounces that has been out of the fridge for around 30 minutes so it is not fridge cold.

  If your egg is a bit larger than 60g / 2.1 oz in the shell, I would feel better if you cracked, whisked, then measured out 2 1/2 tablespoons of egg. Note: Normally I am not so pedantic, even in most cake recipes. But cookies can be a little temperamental and these ones spread a fair bit (you’ll see below), and I worry if your egg is too big then your cookies might spread too much. See here for more information about why the size and temperature of eggs for baking matters.

• Chocolate chips – Because it didn’t feel right not having choc chips as well as Nutella. 😂 I would’ve used Nutella chips if such a thing existed!

• Vanilla extract – For flavour. Vanilla extract is better than vanilla essence which is imitation.

• Salt – To bring out the flavours. Standard baking practice these days, to add a bit of salt. It doesn’t taste salty at all, we only use a very small amount.

How to make Nutella Stuffed Cookies

1. Cookie dough

The cookie dough takes about 1 1/2 hours to firm up in the fridge while the Nutella discs take 1 hour. So we’ll make the cookie dough first.

1. Mix dry – Put the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and mix to combine. Set aside.

2. Barely melted butter – Microwave the butter in a heatproof bowl for 30 seconds on high or until it is not quite melted. Then mix with a rubber spatula to finish melting the butter. It will be “milky” / cloudy rather than clear yellow oil (ie when butter is fully melted) which is what we want. It makes the cookies taste a little more buttery.

   Don’t fret if you don’t quite hit the mark here, it is not the end of the world, it’s just one of those extra little touches the slightly improves a recipe. 🙂

3. Cookie dough – Add the sugar, vanilla and honey, and mix to combine. Then mix the egg in. It should look like a thick caramel! Lastly, add the flour and mix it in.

4. Chill to firm – The cookie dough will be quite loose at this stage, too sticky to roll into balls. And probably a bit warm. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours until it is firm enough to roll into a log.

2. frozen nutella discs

While the cookie dough is chilling, move onto the frozen Nutella discs.

1. Dollop 1 slightly heaped tablespoon of Nutella on a paper lined tray. Spread into ~8mm/ 1/3″thick rounds. Don’t make it too thin, else it seems to disappear when it melts inside the cookie! 

2. Freeze for 1 hour or until they are firm enough to pick up.

3. cut

1. Log – Once chilled, the cookie dough should be firm enough to roll in your hands. Roll it out into a 18cm / 7″ log.

2. Then cut into 10 equal pieces.

   Why a log? Because I find it faster to cut into equal pieces, plus once cut the pieces are ready-made for wrapping around the Nutella discs. Not need to fiddle with scooping and rolling balls, and pinching a bit of dough from here and there to make them all the same size!

4. stuff

1. Flatten the dough until it is about 5mm / 0.2″ thin (I do this on the lined tray).

2. Press a frozen Nutella disc in upside down (upside down = flat side ends up down when we flip the cookie).

3. Bundle and seal – Gather the cookie dough around the Nutella disc, then seal to enclose the Nutella.

4. Flip and shape – Turn the cookie upside down (so the gathered side is down and smooth side now faces up). Then shape the cookie into 1.5cm/ 3/5″ thick rounds.

   Nutella sealing – It’s ok for Nutella to poke out on the surface but make sure the underside and sides are sealed else the Nutella will run out when baking.

5. Top with chocolate chips and lightly press them in. Do the sides as well, else you’ll end up with a naked ring around the border of the cookie!

   PS Mixing chocolate into the dough makes it more difficult to enclose the Nutella disc with dough as the choc chips get in the way.

6. Ready for baking! Make sure the cookies are 8cm / 3″ apart, to allow sufficient room for spreading and air flow circulation.

5. BAKE & COOL

1. Bake both the trays at the same time for 12 minutes in a 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) oven. The cookies are done when the edges are golden and the surface is pale golden. The middle might look a little undercooked which is ok because they will finish cooking in the next step.

2. Cool the cookies for 10 minutes on the tray. They will finish cooking with the residual heat. Then transfer onto a cooling rack (so the underside doesn’t steam and go soggy) and let them cool for at least 5 minutes before you grab one!

15 Minute Molten Moment

I’ll let you in on a little secret. There is a small window at which these cookies are at their absolute peak.

The moment in question is the 15 minute mark out of the oven. This is the split second when the cookies have had just enough time for the edges to set so you can pick it up without collapsing into a warm gooey-mess (albeit a delicious one), the Nutella has cooled enough so you won’t get third degree burns on your chin but it’s still at melty perfection.

If you can sink your teeth into one of these cookies at that moment, it is an unmatched cookie experience.

Enjoy without guilt. Diet starts Monday! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Nutella Stuffed Cookies

Recipe video above. These have a chewy/soft centre, crispy edge and melty Nutella in the middle that floods in your mouth. It is as good and as naughty as it sounds, and dangerously simple to make!

Try to eat it exactly 15 minutes out of the oven. It's still warm but the edges have crisped up just enough so you can hold the cookie without sagging, and the Nutella is still molten inside. That is an unmatched cookie eating experience!

Course Baking, Cookies

Cuisine Western

Keyword nutella cookie, nutella stuffed cookies, stuffed cookie

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes minutes

Chilling / freezing 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 7 minutes minutes

Servings 10 cookies

Calories 361cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

• 10 tbsp (slightly heaped) Nutella or other chocolate-nut spread
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (or chopped 70% dark chocolate)

Cookie dough:

• 1 1/3 cups plain flour / all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda (bi-carbonate soda, Note 1)
• 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
• 120g/ 8 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into 1 cm / 1/2″ cubes (fridge cold is fine)
• 2/3 cup (tightly packed) brown sugar (Note 2)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp honey or corn syrup (Note 3)
• 1 large egg (55g / 2 oz), at room temperature (Note 4)

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Abbreviated recipe (hand-mixed):

• Mix flour, baking soda and salt. In separate bowl, barely melt butter, mix to finish melting. Mix in vanilla, honey and sugar, then egg. Mix in flour, fridge 1.5 hrs. Freeze Nutella discs 1 hr. Enclose Nutella with dough, press in choc chips, bake 12 -13 min at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan). Cool 10 min on tray, then at least 5 min on rack. Attack!

Cookie dough:

• Mix dry – Mix the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl, set aside.
• Barely melt butter – Using a heatproof bowl, microwave the butter for 30 seconds on high until mostly but not fully melted, then stir with a rubber spatula to finish melting it so it's "milky" rather than clear yellow oil (Note 5).
• Wet mixture – Add the sugar, vanilla and honey, stir until combined. Add the egg and stir until combined, it should look like caramel.
• Chill dough 1 1/2 hours – Add the flour mixture and stir until combined. The mixture should be slightly warm and too soft to roll into balls. Cover and refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours to cool and firm up enough to roll into a log.

Frozen Nutella mounds:

• Line a small tray with baking paper / parchment paper. Dollop Nutella on tray and spread to ~8mm/ 1/3"thick rounds. Freeze for 1 hour until firm enough to pick up.

Stuffing and baking:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan-forced). Lightly grease 2 trays then line with paper.
• Cut dough – Scrape dough out and shape/roll into a ~18cm / 7" log. Cut into 10 equal pieces.
• Stuff – Flatten cookie dough, press in frozen Nutella, bundle dough up around it to enclose and seal. Flip upside down so the smooth side is facing up. Shape into ~1.5cm/ 3/5" thick rounds, press choc chips into the surface and sides. Repeat to make 10 cookies, 5 on each tray, 8cm/3" apart to allow for spreading (Note 6 working tips).
• Bake both trays at the same time for 12 – 13 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are golden, the centre is pale golden and just set (ie not raw melty dough).
• Cool & swoon – Remove from the oven and leave on the tray for 10 minutes (finish cooking / set). Transfer to a rack, cool for at least another 5 minutes. Grab, bite, swoon. That moment when the melty Nutella floods into your mouth…..

Notes

Makes 10 generous cookies about 10cm / 4″ wide.

1. Baking soda substitute – 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, though cookie will be paler and not quite as chewy. See FAQ to geek out on this.

2. Measuring sugar – If using cup measuring, be sure to pack the sugar in fairly tightly and level the surface (if you don’t pack it in, you will be short and cookie texture + flavour will be altered).

3. Smidge of honey = baking trick! Helps the cookie brown faster so it’s a lovely caramel colour, and makes the cookie more moist inside. Corn syrup works the same. Don’t have either? Leave out, cookie will be a bit paler. See FAQ for more information.

4. Egg from a carton labelled “large eggs” which are 600-660g for a dozen, so each egg is around 50 – 55g / 2 oz. Jumbo eggs (800g a dozen) or larger may make the cookie spread too much so crack, whisk, measure out and use 2 1/2 tablespoons (see Ingredients section in post for more information).

5. Barely melted butter has a pale yellow “milky” colour yields more buttery tasting cookies than butter that is fully melted and more glassy clear yellow on top (dairy “milky” part settles on the bottom). But recipe works fine with fully melted butter so don’t stress!

6. Forming cookies – Keep unused Nutella in the freezer and dough in fridge as required, so they don’t melt/get sticky. Or, work fast! 🙂 My method: think, money bags! I gather then flip upside down so the smooth side is up. Some Nutella poking out the top is ok, but ensure it’s fully sealed on the sides and base (else it will leak everywhere).

7. Different measures between countries – There are slight differences in cup and measuring spoon sizes between countries. For most recipes, the difference is not enough to affect the outcome. For baking recipes, it can be the difference between success and failure. This is recipe is fine as written wherever you are except Japan, please use weights only, not cups. See FAQ.

Storage – Still excellent 3 days later, crispy edges and chewy/soft middle. Store in airtight container in the pantry once fully cool.

Nutrition per cookie. I’m shocked. I thought it would be much higher! *Reaches into the cookie jar for another….*

Nutrition

Calories: 361cal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 41mg | Sodium: 143mg | Potassium: 185mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 28g | Vitamin A: 309IU | Vitamin C: 0.05mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 2mg

Life of Dozer

Coming to you live from Canberra with Dozer! Canberra is a 3 hour drive from where I live and I’m here for a book signing event. I’m staying in a dog friendly hotel – here we are, making ourselves at ohm in the hotel lounge!

And here is Dozer getting chauffeured to Canberra. To make the trip as comfortable as possible for him, I hauled his bed into the car which is so big, it almost takes up the entire boot with the rear seas folded down. I mean, I don’t need room for a bag. Who needs a change of clothes?! 😂

And the hotel breakfast situation. No dogs allowed!!

More next week! Time to make myself respectable for the book signing today! (Westfield Belconnen, 12-2pm. If you miss out because the line gets cut, don’t worry! Come back at 2pm for a quick photo and a signed book plate to stick in your book! – N x ❤️)

The post Nutella Stuffed Cookies appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

These traditional Greek Cretan biscuits are here courtesy of Irene, the very Greek mother of my very Greek hairdresser. Does it surprise anybody that I spend most of the time at the salon discussing food with everybody and anybody? 😂

Meet Irene, beloved local Greek grandmother and baker

If you love buttery shortbread biscuits and almond cookies, you will adore today’s Greek Cretan Biscuits. But first, I want you to meet Irene!

My hairdresser Deange Hair is run by two Greek sisters, Angela and Diane, in a small shop attached to their parents’ house. On any given day, the salon buzzes with customers getting their hair done as they nibble homemade cookies while young children dart around the shop. Irene, the family matriarch, holds court with clients as she interjects with “advice” for her daughters as they work with delicious aromas wafting in from her kitchen.

You might even catch her doing a weekly audit of her biscuit sales to ensure her daughters aren’t shortchanging her. “Make sure this money goes to your mum!” I sternly remind Angela and Diane every time I buy some. 😂

It’s a wonderfully familiar scene that provides much amusement to regulars.

Of all the homemade cookies I’ve tried (and I’m pretty sure I’ve tried them all!), the Greek Cretan biscuits have been my favourite. Thank you Irene for sharing your recipe!

Ingredients in Irene’s Cretan Biscuits

Here’s what you need to make Irene’s Cretan Biscuits.

biscuit dough

• Blanched almonds – These are skinless almonds that have been blanched (did the name give it away?? 😂) meaning they have been briefly boiled in water so the skin comes off easily. These almonds are softer and have a more subtle almond flavour than regular roasted almonds. They are also chosen for aesthetic reasons when you don’t want the dark brown almond skin in foods, like in these Cretan Cookies.

  Can you use regular almonds with skins? Yep, you sure can and the flavour will be similar. But prepare yourself for little dark brown bits inside your cookies!

• Butter – Gives these cookies the divine buttery flavour reminiscent of shortbread cookies. I prefer to use unsalted then add my own amount of salt. But if you only have salted that’s fine, just skip the salt in the recipe.

• Flour – Just plain / all-purpose flour. Note: Irene’s original recipe called for self raising flour. See FAQ for what and why I deviated from her original recipe!

• Baking powder – This is what makes the cookies rise into those wonderful little mounds! ⚠️ Don’t substitute with baking soda (bi-carbonate soda), the cookies will taste metallic. Also, if your baking powder has been lying dormant for months in your pantry, check it’s still alive before starting the recipe (instructions here, it’s dead easy).

• Egg – Use a “large egg” which is sold in cartons labelled as “large eggs”. They are ~50g/2 oz each in shells. Eggs in a carton are not all the same weight because those darn hens, they’re so selfish, how dare they not lay eggs exactly the same weight every time! The point of providing a size guide is so you don’t use a gigantic ostrich egg or tiny quail egg….the recipe will not work! 🙂

  Got jumbo eggs? Crack, whisk, measure out 45g / 2 1/2 tbsp. (More information here).

  Make sure your egg is at room temperature, not fridge cold. else you will struggle to get it mixed into the butter properly.

• Vanilla extract – For flavour. Vanilla extract trumps vanilla essence (imitation). I wouldn’t use pricey vanilla beans in a recipe like this!

Decorating

• Egg white – Used to brush the top of the biscuits to make the almond flakes stick. Use the yolk plus leftover egg whites for your morning scrambled eggs or omelette!

• Almond flakes – For decorating the surface. Not critical, but a nice to have for both extra almond flavour plus visual. I would plough ahead with this recipe if I was out!

How to make Irene’s Cretan Cookies

This is a straightforward cookie recipe. However, this section has a fair amount of descriptions so even novice bakers can have confidence making this recipe. For pro bakers, head straight to the abbreviated directions on the recipe card below!

1. crushed ALMOND BITs

1. Roast almonds – Pop the almonds in the oven for 7 minutes to toast them lightly. This will intensity the almond flavour but won’t make the almonds too brown (we want them to stay white so it’s invisible in the cookies).

   Roasting is not an essential step because the cookies are lovely as is. But it does bring out the almond flavour. It’s especially good to do this if you are using almonds a little on the old side. 🙂

2. Bash or blitz – Use a food processor or a ziplock bag and rolling pin to bash the almonds into little crumbs. We’re not going for finely ground almonds here. If we were, the recipe would use almond meal instead! I describe the pieces as “coarse sand plus some larger bits” because whichever method you use, it’s hard to get the almonds all uniform in size. And that’s what we want, because it’s actually really nice to have little bits of almonds in the cookies!

2. BISCUIT MIXTURE

1. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together then put them aside.

2. Cream the butter and sugar until it’s light and fluffy, like soft spreadable butter. It takes about 1 1/2 minutes on medium high.

   Tool – I prefer to use a handheld beater because you can move it around the bowl so you don’t really need to scrape the sides down. If you want to use a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment and scrape down the sides of the bowl at least twice.

3. Egg and vanilla – Then beat the egg and vanilla into the butter mixture. It might look a little curdled but don’t worry, it will come together once we add the flour.

   ⚠️ Important to ensure the egg is at room temperature as it will incorporate into the butter mixture more easily. Fridge cold egg will not mix in properly.

4. Flour mixture in 3 lots – Beat in the flour mixture in 3 lots. By this, I mean add 1/3 of the flour and beat on medium speed until the flour is just about mixed in ie some specks of white is fine, about 5 seconds with the beater. Start on low then increase the speed to medium (if you start on high there will be a flour storm!). Then repeat this twice more until all the flour is used up.

5. Crushed almonds – Then lastly, add the bashed almonds and beat until the flour is fully mixed in.

6. Finished dough – This is what it looks like. Shaggy but soft, rollable into a smooth ball.

3. MAKING THE COOKIES

Use whatever method you find easiest to roll 30 x 2 tablespoon balls (30 ml). The steps below depict the method I find to be the fastest to make even size cookies.

1. Trays – You will need 2 large baking trays. Lightly grease with butter or spray with oil then cover with baking paper (parchment paper).

2. Scoop first – Use a #40 (2 tbsp) cookie scoop to scoop and dollop the cookie dough into mounds on baking trays. You should just about get 30 cookies if you fill the scoop without air bubbles and “smear” it up the side of the bowl to level the surface.

3. Roll and flatten – Working one cookie at a time, I roll the dough into a smooth ball then slightly flatten to about 2 cm / 0.8″ thick.

   Then place the cookies 4 cm / 1.6″ apart on the trays. I do 15, being 3 rows of 5 cookies on each tray They don’t expand outwards that much but we want sufficient heat circulating around each cookie so they cook properly.

4. Almond topping – Brush the top with the egg white them place a pinch of almond flakes on top (no need to press in, egg glues them on).

5. Bake both trays together for 20 minutes or until the cookies in the middle are light golden and the ones of the edge of the tray are slightly more golden.

6. Cool 5 minutes on the tray then transfer onto a rack to cool for at least a further 10 minutes before attacking! (Hot cookies = fragile / mouth burns. Either situation is not ideal). While typically eaten at room temperature once cooled, they really are extra special when warm and fresh out of the oven.

Matters of storage – and the most important thing

Once fully cool, store in an airtight container in the pantry, not the fridge. They stay fresh for 5 days and still very, very good at 7 days, making them excellent for…..oh, I don’t know. Selling at the counter of your hair salon? 😂

While shelf life information is useful, I know what you’re all waiting for – Irene’s review of my Cretan Biscuits! Very happy to report that she gave them a big thumbs up. 👍🏻 PHEW!!! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Greek Cretan Biscuits (almond cookies)

Recipe video above. A recipe for traditional Greek almond cookies, given to me by Irene, the proudly Greek mother of my Greek hairdresser! Tastes like almond shortbread cookies. Love the mound-like shape, feels substantial biting into it.

See FAQ about difference in measures between countries, no need to tweak this recipe, works as written.

Servings 30 cookies

Calories 144cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup (100g) blanched almonds (Note 1)
• 2 1/2 cups plain flour (all-purpose flour)
• 4 tsp baking powder
• One pinch cooking salt / kosher salt
• 250g/ 2 sticks unsalted butter , softened (Note 2)
• 3/4 cups white sugar (or caster sugar)
• 1 large egg , at room temperature (~50g / 2oz in shell)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Almond decoration:

• 1 egg white , lightly whisked (use leftover for breakfast scrambled eggs!)
• 1/4 cup almond flakes

Cups – Metric

Instructions

ABBREVIATED RECIPE:

• Toast almonds 7 min at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan), cool bash or blitz. Cream butter and sugar, beat in egg and vanilla. Add dry ingredients in 3 lots, then beat in almond. Roll 30 x 2 tbsp balls (#40 scoop). Slightly flatten, brush with egg white, top with flakes. Bake 20 min until light golden.

FULL RECIPE:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan-forced). Lightly grease (or spray with oil) 2 large trays and line with baking paper (parchment paper).

Almond bits:

• Roasting (optional, Note 1) – Roast the almonds for 7 minutes on a small tray, shaking once halfway. Cool almonds on the tray.
• Bash/blitz the almonds using a food food processor or ziplock bag with a rolling pin until they resemble coarse sand with some small lumps (little almonds bits in the cookies are nice). (Note 3)

Cookie dough:

• Dry ingredients – Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Cream butter and sugar – In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar using a handheld beater until it is soft and fluffy, scraping down the sides as needed, ~1 1/2 minutes on medium high. (Note 2 stand mixer) Add the egg and vanilla, then beat until mixed in. (Note 4)
• Add the flour mixture in 3 lots, beating in between until the flour is mostly mixed in (some visible white flour is ok). Start the beater on low and increase to medium, about 7 sec each go.
• Add the crushed almonds then beat on medium until you can no longer see flour.
• Form cookies – Roll 30 x 2 tablespoon balls (#40 cookie scoop) then slightly flatten to about 2 cm / 0.8" thick. (Note 5 for my method). Place the cookies 4 cm / 1.6" apart on the trays. Brush the top with egg white them place a pinch of almond flakes on top (no need to press in, egg glues them on).
• Bake both trays together for 20 minutes or until the cookies in the middle are light golden and the ones of the edge of the tray are slightly more golden.
• Cool 5 minutes on the tray then transfer onto a rack to fully cool. Attack!

Notes

1. Blanched almonds are the skinless almonds sold in packets labelled “blanched almonds” (I know, shocking! 😉 ) Almonds with skins on works but you’ll get little brown bits in the cookies. Roasting intensifies the almond flavour but it’s not recipe critical.

Using almond meal instead – It’s finer and more absorbent so I’d use less, around 75g,  say 1/2 cup. It won’t be quite the same though as you won’t get little almond bits in the cookies, but I’m sure it will still be tasty.

2. If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment and scrape down sides as needed. For this recipe, I find a handheld beater easier because you can move it around so probably don’t need to scrape down the sides.

3. Almond bashing – We’re not aiming for fine almond meal / almond flour here, we want lots of tiny little bits!

4. If the mixture looks a little split when you add the egg that’s ok, it will come together when you add the flour.

5. My cookie forming method: scoop and dollop all the dough onto trays, then roll and flatten. I find this the fastest way to make even sized cookies. (I also do this with meatballs!)

Store cookies in an airtight container for 5 days (once fully cool). Do not refrigerate. 

Nutrition per cookie.

Nutrition

Calories: 144cal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 5mg | Potassium: 97mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 216IU | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 1mg

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Life of Dozer

Dozer’s raincoat. Cute and practical! From Surf dog Australia. No that is not an affiliate link. 🙂

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