Thought that I would try something a little different today and decided to make cookies using hot honey. What is “hot honey”, you ask? Well, apparently it is becoming all the rage to serve with such things as cheese and on charcuterie boards. It’s chili-infused honey. I’ve seen a number of brands, and the one that I have comes from Italy. It is quite spicy when served with cheese and such, but the cookies just taste more like “cinnamon with a kick”. Still delicious though.
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 tablespoons oil
2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup hot honey (“chili-infused honey”)
2 large eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cinnamon
Directions
In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, oil, light brown sugar, and honeys. Use a paddle attachment on medium speed and mix until the mixture is smooth and consistent, about 1 minute. Incorporate the egg and vanilla extract, stirring on low speed to combine well.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure even mixing. Add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to the bowl. Stir the dough on low speed just until the ingredients are fully combined. Scrape the bowl again and gently fold in any remaining dry ingredients for an evenly mixed dough.
Line a baking sheet with wax paper (this is not the sheet that you will be baking on, just chilling). Using a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop or large spoon, portion out rounds of dough onto the prepared sheet. Once all dough balls are formed, cover the sheet pan and refrigerate for about 2 hours until firm. This step is very important; do not skip it!
When ready to bake, heat your oven to 350F. Line baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper. Arrange 9-12 chilled cookie dough balls spaced evenly on the prepared sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are set and just beginning to brown.
Allow cookies to cool slightly on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack. For best texture and flavor, let the cookies set up a bit before enjoying. Repeat the baking and finishing process with the remaining dough balls.
