This cookie dough is amazing. I love the sly way that the recipe (found here) has been toyed with to change a brand’s classic packet recipe into something with real character. The browned butter flavour is so good, the chocolate almost gets in the way. Almost. These cookies take a little longer to make than usual. The browning of the butter, cooling it, chilling the dough, rolling the balls and chilling again, before baking…but as you don’t actually have to do any work during these little interludes, it is less of a marathon and more of a gradual process that you can do when you don’t know if you’ll have time to finish the biscuits, but you still want to make them anyway. As it gets later in the evening, and I only have my dough in the fridge, I figure that I may just leave the baking until tomorrow afternoon.

The good thing is, it is really quite easy. The great thing is, I discovered that cake flour, which the original recipe uses, is the one kind of wheat flour with the least amount of gluten. Thus, I am reassured that this will work well as a totally gluten free recipe.

250g butter

1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 cup white sugar

3 tsp vanilla essence

2 eggs

2 1/4 cups gluten free plain flour mix

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp sea salt flakes

250g chocolate chips (I used a block and chopped it up, because it’s better quality chocolate, and I threw in a bit of white chocolate, too, just for fun)

Add up to 1 cup of nuts, if so desired.

Melt the butter very slowly over low heat. As you keep heating, it will go through stages, first bubbling, then foaming. Finally, under the foam the butter will start browning, and a lovely, nutty aroma will come with that. I had a fair bit of brown sludge in the bottom of mine (I think it was the salt from the butter), but threw it in, it’s all part of the flavour). Allow the butter to cool. 

Place the sugars and vanilla in a mixer. Combine the flour, baking powder, soda and salt in a separate bowl.

Add the butter to the mixer, and mix on a medium speed for 2 minutes.

Add the eggs, one at a time.

Mix in flour, gradually. 

Add chocolate and stir to combine.

Chill mixture for 30 minutes or so in the fridge.

Roll into small balls and chill again, for a couple of hours. I wouldn’t be too afraid of even freezing these to bake at a later date. 

When ready, space out the balls of dough to allow for spreading, sprinkle with sea salt flakes and bake for 11-12 minutes. Cool on the trays for a couple of minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

Mung in. 

But do the finished biscuits taste as good as the dough? I just ate a hot one out of the oven. By which I mean, I ate it straight off the tray before it had even a moment to cool. Not the best idea. Breathe. Wait. Oh, shoot. I forgot to sprinkle them with salt.

Ok, better. Mmm. Chocolatey, crisp crunch, the salt…Mm, that browned butter nuttiness deepens the flavour and oh, they are still a bit chewy, but that crackling crunch practically sizzles. I overcooked my first tray just a little, and the flavour is richer when they’re more undercooked, so be sure not to go past 12 minutes, when they come out they should still be very soft. Delicious. Husband approval.

They look lovely, too. That rich, golden brown colour hints at the secret ingredient, and the sprinkle of salt looks pretty, too.

Photos are pending, hopefully, but our camera was borrowed for our friends’ wedding (they just got friends to take their photos, and as we were in the bridal party, we couldn’t take them ourselves). Hopefully we get it back before we eat all of the biscuits.