I have a lot of opinions on sprinkles— partly because I’m a baker and I think partly because my first job was at the local Dairy Queen. If we’re talking ice cream cakes, the sprinkles have to be the round, slightly crunchy pastel-colored ones. If we’re talking sprinkles on ice cream, they always have to be rainbow and always have to be the ones that are soft and not crunchy. When it comes to something like a cupcake, I love to create my own mix of sprinkles. It’s more personal that way.
Whether you call them sprinkles or jimmies, sprinkle lovers alike will love these chewy, sprinkle-filled sugar cookies. Heavily inspired by confetti cake (more popularly commercialized as funfetti cake), these cookies taste of vanilla and are packed with colorful rainbow sprinkles.
These cookies are chewy and delicious on their own, but even more fun sandwiched with ice cream and rolled in more sprinkles for good measure.
Follow along below for a breakdown on how to make these Chewy Confetti Cookies or scroll to the bottom for the recipe.
Begin by whisking together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
You’ll find that sugar cookies and snickerdoodles will often call for some combination of baking soda and cream of tartar. In short, the combination of the two keeps the cookie chewy rather than crispy. Unless you’re a serious baker or dessert maker, I can’t imagine that cream of tartar is on hand all the time. Lucky for you, baking powder (a way more common pantry staple) can create the same results. That’s why I opted to use baking powder in place of the baking soda/cream of tartar combination here.
Next, cream the softened butter, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar. I make my cookies in a stand mixer (Hi KitchenAid!), but an electric hand mixer works just as well. Be aware that creaming times may vary if you choose to go the hand mixer route. Cream the butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Scrape the bowl down as needed.
Add the egg and vanilla to your butter mixture and beat together until homogenous and lightened in color, about 20 seconds.
Add the dry ingredients and mix on low until just combined so as not to over mix.
Add the sprinkles to the dough and fold in by hand to prevent the sprinkles from breaking or being crushed. I use the softer textured sprinkles here, but the crunchy ones work too!
Chill the cookie dough for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight. Once chilled, scoop the dough using a 2-inch scoop (about 2 heaping tablespoons).
This next step is completely optional, but helps to regulate the spreading of the cookies. Roll each ball of dough in granulated sugar. It also gives the cookies a little extra texture once baked.
Place staggered between two parchment lined sheets. Bake the cookies on the top and bottom third of the oven at 350 degrees f for 10 to 13 minutes, rotating halfway, until the edges are firm and the center is just set. The cookies may look underdone, but they will continue to cook as they cool. Cookies not rolled in granulated sugar will likely bake closer to the 12 to 13-minute mark.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a minute before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
Enjoy these cookies as is or get extra crazy and turn them into a colorful ice cream sandwich.
Yield: 14 cookies
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus some for rolling (optional)
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup rainbow sprinkles
Method
Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Position the oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees f.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.
Add the butter, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar to the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Beat the butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Scrape the bowl down as needed. Add the egg and vanilla to the creamed butter and sugars and beat on medium speed until lightened in color and homogenous, about 20 seconds. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low until just combined. Add the sprinkles to the dough and gently mix by hand (so as not to break or crush the sprinkles) until dispersed throughout the dough. Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight.
Scoop the dough using a 2-inch scoop (about 2 heaping tablespoons). Roll each scoop of dough in granulated sugar (optional). Place each ball of dough staggered onto the parchment lined baking sheets.
Bake at 350 degrees f for 10 to 13 minutes on the top and bottom third of the oven, rotating halfway, until the edges are firm and they are just set in the center. The cookies will look underdone, but will continue to cook as they cool. Let the cookies sit on the tray for 1 minute and then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Enjoy!
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