#TheresaCooking

Toffee Cookies….the first time I read about this I can totally imagine it would taste delicious!

I had been reading up on the Swedish tradition – Fika – and everything that goes with it. I started with Kanelbullar, of course, as cinnamon rolls are a favorite in our home.

Next up are these cookies. I love chocolate chip cookies but am always up to try something new, specially when it is traditionally eaten with COFFEE!

This cookie did call for an unusual pair of ingredients, vanilla sugar and Tumma Siirappi, a dark syrup used in Swedish baking. Off to the internet I went searching for a local source of these items. Of course, I can’t find it. I then tried searching for a seller that would ship it to me. And I found one, luckily!

It took a few weeks after receiving the syrups and sugar before I found time to try making the cookies. They were absolutely worth the wait!

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Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1 tablespoon of vanilla sugar
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons Dan Sukker “Tumma Siirappi”dark syrup
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt

Homemade Vanilla Sugar: You can use a new vanilla pod or one that you’ve already scraped off the seeds from. Just place the pod into a container of granulated sugar and let it sit for a week or so. Stir occasionally. And there you have homemade vanilla sugar!

*I ordered the dark syrup – Dan Sukker Tumma Siirappi – and vanilla sugar, from Al Johnsons Swedish Restaurant and Butik (https://aljohnsonsshop.com). It tastes mildly of molasses and honey but not quite the same. I highly recommend trying the real syrup before substituting something else. My son said the cookies remind him of really good cookie dough, while my coworker insists on tasting ginger in the cookie….and I really think the syrup played a part in those flavor profiles.

1. Line 2 large baking sheets with silpat or parchment paper.

2. In large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat together butter,

3. And granulated sugar.

4. Beat in vanilla,

5. egg yolk,

6. and dark syrup until blended.

7. Add in the flour,

8. baking soda,

9. and salt and beat until well mixed.

10. Cover the bowl and refrigerate about 30 minutes or until firm enough to divide into 6 equal parts to roll into logs.

11. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375F.

12. Roll each part into a log about 9 – 10 inches long on the prepared baking sheets, 3 per sheet.

13. Leave at least a 2 – 3 inch space between the logs as they will spread quite a bit.

14. Bake logs for about 12 – 15 minutes or until they are golden brown.

15. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack. If the logs have touched each other during baking, take a long sharp knife and gently push them back, keeping them oval.

16. While still warm, and using a long sharp knife, cut the logs into diagonal slices about an inch apart. After cutting, remove cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Sesame Seed Burger Buns

I recently checked out a cookbook by Paul Hollywood titled A Baker’s Life from the local library. The first recipe I made was the Sesame burger buns. They were so easy to make yet so delicious! I made the buns using the Thermomix as I find that it makes it so easy to prepare dough i can mix it up even if I’m short on time.

Ingredients you’ll need:

500 grams white bread flour, plus extra for dusting

7 grams fine salt

7 grams instant dried yeast

40 grams unsalted butter, cut into pieces

2 teaspoon sugar

225 ml milk

100 ml water

50 grams sesame seeds, for sprinkling

oil, for oiling

Procedure:

Place the flour in the thermomix bowl. Add the salt on one side of the bowl on top of the flour and add the yeast on the opposite side. Add the butter, sugar, milk, and water. Cover with the lid, and measuring cup. Use the kneading function, setting the timer at 3 minutes. Leave the dough in the bowl to rise until doubled, about an hour.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead to remove large air bubbles. divide dough into 8 equal pieces (about 40 grams each). Shape each into a smooth ball and place on prepared trays, allowing room to spread. Place trays in a large, clean plastic bag and leave rolls to prove until double in size, about an hour or longer.

Heat oven to 200 C.

Just before baking, remove trays from the plastic bag. brush tops of the rolls with water and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake for 15 minutes then lower the oven setting to 160C and bake for a further 5-10 minutes, until risen and golden brown.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Makes 8 buns.