INGREDIENTS
Cookies
24 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup dark muscovado sugar, packed or dark brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup bread flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon cardamom
Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon real maple syrup
½ teaspoon maple extract
4 tablespoons milk
Specialty tools
Cookie stamp
Fluted, round cutter
INSTRUCTIONS
Melt butter in a medium to large saucepan. Turn up the heat to medium–high, stirring constantly, until small golden bits start to settle on the bottom of the pan and there is a nutty aroma. This should take around 3 to 5 minutes. Pour into the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cool slightly. Add both sugars and mix until blended. It will be thick. Add the eggs, one at a time, blending each one completely before adding the next. Add vanilla and mix for one minute.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, ginger, sea salt and cardamom. Add to the butter/sugar and mix on low until it comes together and is no longer crumbs. Separate into two equal halves and pat each mound of dough into a disc. Press any cracks together.
Place each dough disc between two layers of parchment paper. Place a silicone mat underneath the parchment to keep it from sliding on the counter. Roll the dough to ½-inch thick. Put the dough with the parchment onto a baking sheet and chill in the freezer for five to ten minutes.
Cover several baking sheets with parchment paper. Flour the cookie stamp. Evenly and firmly press the cookie stamp onto the dough to get a defined impression, and then cut with a fluted, round cutter. Place on baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cookies. Re-roll scraps as needed.
Place cookies in the freezer for 30 minutes, or up to 24 hours.
Preheat the oven to 375°F—make sure the rack is in the top third of the oven at least 6 inches from the heat source. Take them directly from the freezer to the oven and bake for nine minutes. Careful not to overbake.
To make the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, maple syrup, maple extract and milk until you have a thin glaze. Place a baking sheet underneath the cooling rack. Brush the cooled cookies with the glaze—it should be a thin coating so the stamped design can be seen.
NOTE If your cookies are thinner than 1/2 inch, the cooking time will be less. If they bake too long, the stamped design becomes less pronounced. They might not look done when you remove them, but they continue to cook as they cool. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a rack to finish cooling.
Recipe courtesy of Alexandracooks.com
Alexandracooks.com credited Rebecca Firth’s The Cookie Book