Holiday Cookies, SoCal Style

(Ube, pandan, and churros, oh my!)

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The Month Ahead

What can you look forward to in the newsletter this month? Holiday cookies, a festive brunch menu, dinner, cocktails, and appetizers. So pretty much a little of everything.

Just a heads up that next week’s post is just for paid subscribers and it’s a beautiful West Coast brunch menu that includes recipes for sundried tomato egg bites, an avocado toast station, homemade figgy pop-tarts, and a mid-morning cocktail.

Today, we’re talking about cookies. As much as I love a traditional chocolate chip cookie or snickerdoodle, holidays are a celebration so I feel like holiday cookies should be celebratory, a little more special than usual. Something different and fun.

The cookies this week are influenced by Southern California and it’s cuisine. And they are definitely different and fun! California is the most ethnically diverse state in the nation. While people move here from all over the world, the majority of them come from Asia and Latin America. Read more about California Cuisine in the article I wrote for FoodStack Library.

Some flavor profiles included in these cookies are:

• Churros. These sweet treats are sticks of fried pastry dough dusted with cinnamon and sugar. They are popular in Spain and former Spanish colonies like Mexico. And of course, because Mexico is right across the border from us, churros are sold everywhere here in Southern California. Even our local Costco sells churros in their Food Court.

• Pandan. A tropical plant that grows in Southeast Asia, pandan is used in many Thai and Vietnamese baked goods and savory dishes. Vibrant green, pandan has a grassy, vanilla-ish flavor with delicate floral notes. Fresh pandan leaves have the most flavor and can sometimes be found in Asian grocery stores. I find it easiest to use pandan paste or liquid extract to deliver that floral Southeast Asian flavor.

• Ube. This purple yam is used in Filipino cooking to make breads, cakes, flan, ice creams, and puddings. It has a unique flavor that is hard to describe. It’s kind of earthy, slightly dusky, and mildly vanilla-ish. The flesh of cooked ube is bright purple! That’s not an Instagram filter, folks, it really is that purple-y. Ube jam, paste, and liquid extract are popular ways to include the flavor.

I was reminded about one of the cookie recipes featured today when I met up with some high school friends.

Part of my childhood was spent living on Guam. It is a tiny island in the Western Pacific, a U.S. Territory, and the most southerly of the Marianas Islands. How tiny? It is just 30 miles long and nine miles wide.

Island-style dinner!

There are a good number of Guamanians, as well as other Pacific Islanders, that live in Southern California. And thanks to the magic of social media, I’ve reconnected with many friends from the island in recent years. Of those living in SoCal, we’ve gotten together for Friendsgivings, birthdays, and a mini high school reunion.

At this reunion, I was reacquainted with rosketti, a popular sweet treat on Guam. It is a shortbread-like cookie with cornstarch as the main ingredient.

Recipes

Ube Rosketti

Yields 36-ish cookies

Time: 45 minutes

Light, puffy, and melt-in-your-mouth! Traditional rosketti is fairly plain with a subtle vanilla flavor. I added ube extract for some fun color and flavor. Thanks to Guam Pay-Less Market for the rosketti recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 3 eggs

• 1 to 2 tsp ube liquid extract

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 4 cups (16 oz pkg) cornstarch

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 1 Tbsp baking powder

• 1 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl. It is easiest to do with a hand mixer or stand mixer, but it can also be done by hand. Add the eggs and extracts and mix to combine.

2. Tip in the cornstarch, flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix on low speed until combined, then mix until color is uniform and dough comes together. It will be a slightly sticky dough.

3. At this point, you can cover and refrigerate until ready to bake (up to 3 or 4 days). If baking the same day, cover and refrigerate for 20-ish minutes to chill the dough for easier scooping and rolling.

4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 F/190 C. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

5. Portion and roll the dough into one-inch balls. I use a 1 1/2-Tablespoon cookie scoop and get around 36 cookies that are 2 1/4-inches across once baked. Place 12 to 15 of the dough balls on the prepared cookie sheet.

6. Bake for 15 minutes or until puffed and dry-looking. Move cookies to a wire rack and allow to cool. Repeat with remaining dough.

Pandan Crinkles

Yields 26-ish cookies

Time: 45 minutes

Bright in color and taste, this one features pandan plus lime and coconut. Doesn’t that sound like a vacation in a cookie? These are soft and pillowy with that signature crinkly top. Thanks to Dessert Now Dinner Later for the coconut lime crinkle cookie recipe inspiration.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup butter, softened at room temperature

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 2 large eggs

• ¼ cup lime juice

• 1 tsp lime zest

• ½ cup unsweetened dried coconut flakes

• 1 tsp pandan flavoring

• ½ tsp coconut extract

• ½ tsp vanilla extract

• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp baking powder

• ½ tsp salt

• ½ cup powdered sugar for dredging

Directions:

1. Beat the butter and sugar together in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment until combined and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat until combined.

2. Tip in the lime juice, lime zest, coconut flakes, pandan flavoring, coconut extract, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined.

3. Stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture by the cupful into the butter mixture and beat together on low speed. Once you have added all the flour, mix until everything is incorporated. The dough will be thick and sticky. Place the mixing bowl in the fridge and let it chill for 15 to 20 minutes.

4. Turn on the oven to 350 F/176 C. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Pour the powdered sugar into a shallow bowl and set aside.

5. Using a small cookie scoop or ⅛ cup measuring cup (equals around 2 tablespoon of dough), drop a lump of dough into the powdered sugar. Using both hands, lightly roll the dough into the sugar until it is coated and gently roll it into a ball. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Dough balls should be 2 inches apart.

6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the outer edges of the cookie are set. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and allow them to cool completely. Makes around 26 cookies.

Churro Saltine Toffee

Yields 48-ish pieces

Time: 35 minutes

Toffee-like goodness with a crisp bottom and cinnamon sugar top! Word to the wise, this one is very addicting. My friend Sue makes a similar cookie called Matzah Crack. It’s made with matzah and I think you could absolutely use those here in place of the saltines. Thanks to Cinnamon and Coconut for the churro saltine toffee recipe inspo.

Ingredients:

• 48 saltine crackers (about 1 1/2 sleeves)

• 1 cup butter

• 1 cup brown sugar

• 2 cups (1 pkg) white chocolate chips

• 1/3 cup granulated sugar

• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F/200 C. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, then place a sheet of parchment paper on top. Lay out the saltines in a single layer to cover the pan.

2. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and stir to dissolve. Increase the heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully pour the bubbling toffee mixture evenly over the saltines. Use a silicone spatula to level out the toffee mixture so it covers the crackers.

3. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 3 to 4 minutes. It should be dark brown and bubbly. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle on the white chocolate chips. Allow the pan to sit for 4 to 5 minutes or until the white chocolate is soft enough to spread with a spatula. Spread so that the white chocolate completely covers the toffee.

4. In a small bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon together, then sprinkle it evenly over the white chocolate. It should completely cover everything.

5. Allow to cool completely. To speed things up, place the pan, uncovered, in the fridge for 15 minutes or until the chocolate is firmed up. Once cool, break into pieces. To store, keep in an airtight container.

Looking for more cookie recipes? I got you! You will find Gingerbread Cookies with Rum-Butter Glaze, Gluten-free Shortbread with Tahini, and Iced Chai Oatmeal Cookies on my website, where the recipes are always free.

Tell Me

What is your favorite holiday cookie? It seems everybody has one that is special to them and I’d love to hear about yours!

Next week’s post is just for paid subscribers and is a special West Coast brunch menu with recipes. And a morning cocktail is involved. See you next Friday!