I love all things Earl Grey. Technically the flavor is Bergamot, but the former label is more commonly understood. Tea in general is a wonderful addition to baked goods - it adds unique, subtle flavor, and makes for some fun experimentation. So, obviously I had to cookie-ify my favorite tea!
Happy Baking!
Adapted from seriouseats.com
MAKES ~22 Cookies
INGREDIENTS/SUPPLIES
1.5 cups sugar (300g)
6 single-serving bags of Earl Grey tea, cut open
2 sticks butter; firm but pliable, about 60°F (16°C)
1/2 Tablespoon light corn syrup
2.5 teaspoons baking powder
1.25 teaspoons kosher salt (for table salt, use half as much)
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
2 large egg whites, cold
1 Tablespoon vanilla
2.5 cups AP flour (300g)
1 cup raw or turbinado sugar (or sanding sugar, but large crystals please!)
stand mixer
2-3 large cookie sheets & parchment
food scale or cookie scoop (optional)
DIRECTIONS
In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix 300g sugar and the earl grey tea from 6 bags on low until fully combined.
Add 2 sticks of butter and 1/2 TB corn syrup and cream on medium-high until fully combined, about 1 minute.
Add 2.5tsp baking powder, 1.25tsp kosher salt, a pinch of nutmeg, and 1 TB vanilla and beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the 2 egg whites and mix on medium-high 1-2 minutes.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add 300g AP flour and mix on low to start, then medium until there are no traces of flour left and a thick dough is formed.
In order to make the cookies look uniform, you need to scoop the batter either with a cookie scoop or by weight - I use a 2” cookie scoop. Scoop the dough balls onto a wax paper or parchment lined cookie sheet - it’s okay if they’re close together; you’re not going to bake them yet.
If you want to bake them soon, wrap the sheet in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour, preferably two, up to overnight. If you want to save the dough to bake another day, put the cookie sheet in the freezer (you don’t need to cover it) and 1 hour later transfer the dough balls to a freezer ziplock bag. The dough will keep for up to 6 months, possibly longer. DO NOT BAKE THE COOKIES AT ROOM TEMPERATURE. Chilling is a must. When you’re ready to bake, heat your oven to 350F.
Take out one tray’s worth of cookies to roll in your raw/turbinado sugar, then arrange the cookies a minimum of 3” apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
Bake for ~15 minutes if the dough has been refrigerated or brought to room temperature, or 16-18 minutes if you’re baking them from frozen. Don’t overbake! You want the cookies to be nicely crispy on the outside/edges, but still chewy in the middle. Or…at least, I do.
Repeat steps 9 & 10 for one sheet of cookies at a time (i.e. don’t take cookie dough balls out of the fridge/freezer until you’re ready to roll them in the sugar/spice and put them on the tray and into the oven.
Cool the cookies 10 minutes on their baking sheets, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool the rest of the way.
