These fun and easy Smarties Cookies are so delicious and perfect for beginners. This recipe is a one-bowl recipe, which means less cleanup and easy preparation.
For our Smarties Cookies, we need browned butter, flour, baking soda, brown sugar, white sugar, salt, vanilla, one egg, and, of course, smarties.
Some cookie science before we start
I recently read "Baking Science" by Dikla Levy Frances and this book gave me a great insight into how baking works and which formulas you can apply to create your own recipes. Cookies are quite a complex thing to make, in my opinion, because the texture is affected by so many things.
I am using browned butter for my Smarties Cookies because it has a rich, nutty flavor and because melted butter leads to an even spread of the cookies.
Furthermore, using brown and white sugar has different purposes as well. Brown sugar is acidic, which means it reacts with the baking soda. It also leads to a chewy texture. White sugar, on the other hand, makes the cookies spread more.
The egg serves as a binding ingredient, and the flour obviously creates structure through gluten formation.
I am using salt and vanilla for extra flavor, too.
Why do I freeze my Smarties Cookies before baking
Placing your cookie dough in the freezer before baking can lead to enhanced flavors and it also makes the cookies spread less. Because the butter is colder, it takes longer to heat up in the oven. But I also do not want to wait overnight before eating my cookies, so chilling them for 30 minutes is the perfect time for me.
Let's start baking!
RECIPE:
Ingredients (for 17 cookies):
- 150g butter
- 250g all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 200g brown sugar
- 80g white sugar
- a pinch of salt and some vanilla extract
- 130g smarties
- 1 egg (M)
Instructions:
- For the browned butter, cut the cold butter into small cubes and place them in a pot. Then, on medium heat, let the butter melt completely and continue to heat it until it turns golden brown. Immediately take it off the stove and transfer it into your mixing bowl.
- Next, I mix in the brown and white sugar, followed by the egg. Just make sure your mixture is not too hot, before adding the egg.
- At this stage, I also add the vanilla extract.
- Mix in flour, baking soda and salt. Mix until almost incorporated, then add some chopped Smarties (I chop about 3/4 and leave the remaining 1/4 to put on top) and mix until everything is nice and combined.
- Using an ice cream scoop, form little balls out of the dough and top them with the remaining Smarties. Then place them in the freezer for about 30 minutes while preheating the oven to 180°C/ 365°F and lining a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Place 8-9 cookies on one baking tray and bake them for about 10-13 minutes until slightly golden.
- Let the cookies cool down and enjoy!
If you made this recipe, feel free to tag me on Instagram (@tamarasbakings) and check out my other sweet recipes here.