Monday, 26 November 2012

• Compost Cookies

  

  
  What do you do with leftover junk food? 
  
  Yeah, you can obviously eat it.  But if you're looking for a creative way of utilizing extra chips, pretzels, even old coffee grounds, you can make a compost cookie!  Another recipe of Momofuku fame, the compost cookie is a treat that's fun to experiment with.
  
  An economic cookie, the compost cookie is made out of almost anything and everything you deign to mix into it, which is part of the fun.  I'd suggest sticking to saltier snacks, though, just in order to end up with a mix of salty and sweet that's truly mouthwatering.
  
  

  

  
  I've use this recipe for these particular cookies:
  
  

  Compost Cookies

  Makes 15-20 large cookies

  Note: Any kind of fresh coffee grounds will work in this recipe. Do not use instant coffee or wet grounds that already have brewed a pot of coffee.

  16 tablespoons butter, room temperature

  1 cup sugar

  2/3 cup light brown sugar, tightly packed

  2 tablespoons glucose (or 1 tablespoon corn syrup)

  1 egg

  1/2 teaspoon vanilla

  1 1/3 cups flour

  1/2 teaspoon baking powder

  1/4 teaspoon baking soda

  1 teaspoon kosher salt

  3/4 cup mini-chocolate chips

  1/2 cup mini-butterscotch chips

  1/2 cup Graham Crust (see below)

  1/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

  2 1/2 teaspoons ground coffee

  2 cups potato chips, such as Cape Cod

  1 cup mini pretzels

  1. Combine the butter, sugars and glucose in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together on medium-high for 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla, and beat for 7-8 minutes. (Yes, that long.)

  2. Reduce mixer speed to low; add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix just until dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

  3. Still on low, add the chocolate chips, butterscotch, graham crust, oats and coffee; mix until just blended, about 30 seconds. Add the potato chips and pretzels and paddle, stillon low speed, until just incorporated. Be careful not to overmix or break too many pretzels or potato chips.

  4. Using a 2¾-ounce ice cream scoop (or a 1/3-cup measure), portion out the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat. Wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 1 week. Do not bake your cookies from room temperature -- or skimp on the chilling time -- or they will not bake properly.

  5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 4 inches apart on parchment- or Silpat-lined sheet pans. Bake for 18 minutes. The cookies will puff, crackle and spread. After 18 minutes, they should be very faintly browned on the edges, yet still bright yellow in the center. Give them an extra minute if that's not the case.

  6. Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate (or an airtight container for storage). At room temperature, cookies will keep fresh for 5 days. In the freezer, they will keep 1 month.

  Graham Crust

  Makes about 2 cups

  1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

  1/4 cup milk powder

  2 tablespoons sugar

  3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

  4 tablespoons butter, melted

  1/4 cup heavy cream

  1. Toss the graham cracker crumbs, milk powder, sugar and salt with your hands in a medium bowl to evenly distribute the dry ingredients.

  2. Whisk the butter and cream together. Add to the dry ingredients and toss again to evenly distribute. The butter will act as a glue, adhering to the dry ingredients and turning the mixture into a bunch of small clusters. The mixture should hold its shape if squeezed tightly in the palm of your hand. If it is not moist enough to do so, melt an additional 1 to 1½ tablespoons butter and mix it in.

  3. Eat immediately or deploy as directed in the recipe. If using as a pie crust, the crust is easiest to mold just after mixing. Stored in an airtight container, graham crust will keep fresh for 1 week at room temperature, or 1 month in the fridge or freezer.

  -- Christina Tosi, "Momofuku Milk Bar" (Clarkson Potter, 256 pages, $35)

  

  
  
  What's your favorite creative cookie?

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