Vanilla Dreams
The ultra-tender, extra-crunchy texture of these cookies is unlike anything you can get using baking powder or baking soda. The secret? Baker's ammonia, a.k.a. ammonium carbonate; possibly available at your local pharmacy, and certainly available here at King Arthur Flour. Can these cookies be made without baker's ammonia? Sure; just substitute baking powder. Just be aware their texture won't reflect what we've just described.
Read our blog about these cookies, with additional photos, at Bakers' Banter.
Cookies
- 2 to 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon baker's ammonia or 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- coarse or granulated sugar for topping, optional
Chocolate dip
- 1 cup diced pecans or walnuts, crushed
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
Directions
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Preheat the oven to 300°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets. |
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1) Combine the vanilla, baker's ammonia, and salt in a very small bowl. Stir to dissolve the ammonia; the salt won't fully dissolve. Combine the vanilla mixture with the butter and sugar, and beat till smooth. |
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4) Break off pieces of dough about the size of a shelled chestnut (about 3/4 ounce). Roll the pieces into balls. Space them no the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2" between them. |
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5) For somewhat sweeter cookies with the added crunch of sugar topping, roll them in coarse or granulated sugar before placing them on the baking sheets. |
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8) Remove them from the oven, and transfer them to a rack to cool. |
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Recipe summary
- Hands-on time:
- 15 mins. to 40 mins.
- Baking time:
- 25 mins. to 30 mins.
- Total time:
- 40 mins. to 1 hrs 10 mins.
- Yield:
- 44 cookies
- Recipe comments (20) »
Tips from our bakers
- Want to substitute salted butter for unsalted? Reduce the salt in the recipe to 1/2 teaspoon.
Reviews
11/20/2009
Wow! I really love these cookies. Used baking powder but they still are light and crisp. Also used the Sonoma Syrup Vanilla Bean Crush (which is my "desert island can't live without it secret weapon in baking") and they are just irresistable.
07/11/2009
we loved these. i made them for my daughter and family house warming party. i did not use the chocolate and nut suggestion. i really can't imagine covering this wonderful, delicate cookie in somthing as overpowering as chocolate. different tastes! i have made all of the baker's ammonia cookie recipe's i think there are on this site. i have the kaf cookie cookbook but i have not found any in it. my family loves the texture made with the ammonia. i would love to have more pointed out to me. thank you for another great recipe.
Terri - Thank you for trying this recipe. I found 2 other recipes on our website. One is a sandwich cookie called Fudgies. The other is a cracker called VT Cheese Cracker. A blog was written on each of these so you could also check out comments from our visiting bloggers. Elisabeth @ KAF
06/22/2009
just amazeing
06/15/2009
This is a very good recipe. It truly is a sugar cookie. I have not heard anyone else mention an aftertaste. I did not taste anything odd as I was eating the cookie, but within a minute of finishing there was a metalic taste that lingered on my tongue. I don't know what in the recipe except the ammonia could account for that. I did dissolve as directed. I measured accurately. What might I have done wrong? Can the amount of ammonia be reduced?
Generally ammonium is not going to contribute a mettalic undertone. You might want to try the baking powder option. If you are using the chocolate dip with crushed nuts; I think the more likely culprit is the nuts. Please call us to discuss this: 800-827-6836 Frank @ KAF.
06/14/2009
This is a great recipe. The texture was very crisp, but still of the melt in your mouth variety.
I have not seen anyone else mention an aftertaste. While I am eating a cookie it is wonderful. It is everything I hoped it would be. But within a minute of finishing, I get an aftertaste that lingers for a long time on my tongue.
I did measure accurately. I did dissolve it with the vanilla and salt. I mixed it up very well. I don't know what other than the ammonia could account for the metalic aftertaste.
Could I try this recipe cutting the ammonia in half? (I put no other flavor on the cookie, such as chocolate or nuts.)
There are some folks, and I am one of them, who do have more of a sensitivity to the ammonia in the recipe, so it may be the same for you. Try cutting the ammonia by about 1/4, and see if that helps. MJR @ KAF
03/10/2009
Delicious! This was my first experience with baker's ammonia. I can't wait to make these again (a little smaller) and add the fiori di scilia. My sister likened them to the Girl Scout Trefoil cookies - yummy!
02/15/2009
Wonderful! I used baking powder. I can see that the texture would have been better with baker's ammonia, but these won't be wasted!
12/30/2008
I went to the local pharmacy and bought a small jar of baker's ammonia and when I went to bake the cookies that evening I opened the jar and found it was empty!! The stuff must evaporate over time and the jar definitely looked like it had been hanging around for a while. That said, I substituted the baking powder, per the recipe directions. This is a real keeper. I decided to paint half of the top of the cookie with the chocolate mixture and then sprinkled on finely chopped and toasted pecans. The tip about the food processor plunger was great and gave the cookies a professional finish that I would never have come up with on my own. They were absolutely beautiful, perfect cookies and some of the men in my family who do not usually care for sweets went after them with a vengeance. This will definitely become part of my annual holiday repertoire--to my family's delight. Thank you for sharing this great recipe.
12/29/2008
These cookies are super easy to make and they are so delicious. I spent Christmas at my boyfriend's house and met his family for the first time so I wanted to bring some delicious cookies. I purchased the baker's ammonia and the vanilla crush to make these because I needed them to come out perfect, and they did! The BF's family was very impressed. Thanks KAF for the great products and the delicious (and super easy!) receipes that help a beginner baker such as myself look good.
12/28/2008
Didn't have the baker's ammonia so tried with baking powder. Didn't take into account the sodium in baking powder so the cookies ended up extra salty even using unsalted butter. Made them a second time, reducing the salt by 1/2 teaspoon, and they were great. The chocolate and nut dip combined with the delicious buttery cookie crunch made these cookies new holiday favorites for my family. And they were surprisingly easy to make!
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