Every Quarter I bake a special batch of custom cookies for the winner of the 100 Women Who Care – Homer chapter (AKA Homer’s Fairy Godmothers) “I got my check in on time” drawing.
This quarter Tina provided the prompt “almonds” and I decided to combine that with bay leaves. Why bay leaves? you may wonder… I recently opened an order from Penzey’s Spices which included bay leaves. I love bay leaf – and add it often to savory dishes – but this pack had information on the back about adding bay leaf to desserts. Further research showed that often meant custards. And then I recalled I had used it as an ingredient in cookies before: Tingly Sichuan Pepper Adobo Chocolate Chip Cookies.
I imagine any bay leaf will work – but if you are putting this effort in I recommend you choose ones that are either fresh or high quality, recently dried such as the Turkish ones from Penzey’s.
I riffed off a blondie recipe with browned butter and ended up with an aromatic, rich, complex treat that hits somewhere between fudge and biscotti.
Here’s my recipe:
Bay Leaf Brown Butter & Almond Treats
- ¾ cup + 2 Tbs butter
- 4 dried bay leaves
- 1 ½ cups organic cane sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 Tbs vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup almond flour
- ½ cup almonds, coarsely hand-chopped
- Flaky salt
Preheat the oven to 350’F.
Grease and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, allowing an overhang on the sides.
Gently heat butter and bay leaves in a deep saucepan. Stir often, until the butter is melted.
Turn the heat to medium-high and continue to cook, swirling the pan often or stirring, until a dark-amber liquid has formed. It will foam, hiss, and crackle but should subside as it nears done.
Pour into a bowl, fishing out the leaves. Scrape in any burnt bits that have formed at the base of the pan. Let cool until you can hold the bowl.
Whisk in the sugar.
Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, until glossy.
Whisk in the vanilla and salt.
Fold in flours until just combined.
Fold in almonds.
Scrape into the prepared pan, using an offset palette knife or spatula to smooth it into an even layer.
Sprinkle with finishing salt.
Bake for ~40 minutes until golden, crackled, and shiny. The edges should be firm and the middle just set.
Cool in the pan completely before lifting out and cutting into small squares.
Quillpig 