December 13, 2016

Salted Bourbon Chocolate Chunk Cookies (+ VIDEO!)

Let me convince you to make some boozy Christmas cookies.

It shouldn’t take more than two minutes.

Ever since I made my bourbon bacon monkey bread — Christmas morning, anyone? — I’ve been obsessed with baking with bourbon. When incorporated into baked goods bourbon adds a complex flavor that’s simultaneously sweet, smokey, and vaguely nutty. It’s a delicious enhancer, basically, and an easy one at that. Plus, bourbon is a naturally cozy liquor! A simple glass of it conjures images of toasty fireplaces, snuggling under blankets, and trees dusted with snow. So when you’ve got something that tastes so good and FEELS so damn right, shouldn’t you bake it into a cookie?

That’s my solution, anyway.

Through much drunken trial-and-error I’ve found that the secret to successful bourbon baking is the proper ratio of brown sugar to butter to bourbon. A simple sliding scale of 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup butter, and 1/4 cup bourbon is the magic potion, and let me tell you — This combo sings. A cappella, from the rooftops, standing ovation guaranteed. The resulting taste is vaguely butterscotch-y, with a texture that’s crispy on the outside and soft, chewy, goodness on the inside.

Plus — The chunks!!

SO many luscious, melted chocolate chunks.

When choosing a bourbon make sure it’s a quality brand — Bulleit, Knob Creek, and Maker’s Mark are all great choices — and that the butter is definitely salted. To really highlight the desired sweet/salty contrast I use both salted butter + a sprinkling of sea salt before baking, so don’t be shy!

This is one instance in life where the saltier your attitude, the better.

And as you’ve probably noticed at this point, I’ve got no prep shots for ya. But I do have… VIDEO!

It makes everything easier, just like booze.

Salted Bourbon Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Yield: 25 - 30 cookies

Prep Time: 15 mins (+ chilling the dough)

Cook Time: 10 mins

Total Time: 25 mins

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups all purpose flour, sifted
  • 2 tsps baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt + more for topping
  • 1 cup dark brown sugar, tightly packed
  • 1/2 cup salted butter (melted)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup quality bourbon (Knob Creek is my favorite brand)
  • 1 1/2 tsps vanilla
  • 7 oz milk chocolate, chopped (should yield 2 cups)
  • crisco to grease

Directions:

  1. In one large mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, whisking well. In another mixing bowl combine the brown sugar, butter, egg, bourbon, and vanilla, stirring vigorously until smooth. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, then stir again until well combined. Lastly fold in chocolate chunks, then cover bowl and place in refrigerator to chill for one hour.
  2. Pre-heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease two baking sheets with Crisco.
  3. Using your hands roll dough into golf ball size rounds, then transfer to baking sheet, pressing down the tops slightly as you. Sprinkle each round with salt, then bake for 8-10 minutes until the cookies are set at the edges but still un-done in the center. Cool slightly, then eat!

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in December 2014. It has been updated with new photos and a slightly modified recipe.

posted by Christine in: Sweets, Thanksgiving & Christmas
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