As promised earlier this week, here is the recipe for the green tea cookies I made last weekend. And whaddya know, it's perfect timing for St. Patty's day next week!
I've made green tea cookies before, but these are souped-up with dried figs and sunflower seeds for added texture and flavor. I love dried figs because they're so chewy and yet the seeds are crunchy and 'poppy'. :) The ones I got are the small, really dry Korean kind so I had to soak them for a few minutes in hot water which softened them up and made them easier to chop. But depending on the kind of dry figs you have, you can skip that step.
Also, I've found that the quality of green tea matcha powder you get makes so much difference. You gotta use the good stuff, or the color and flavor will not be as intense. Mine are so green, they kind of remind me of Shrek.
Green Tea Cookies
makes 12 cookies
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp baking powder
2 tsp matcha green tea powder
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 Tbp molasses (or agave syrup)
1/2 tsp tapioca starch
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
3Tbs soy milk (I used the thick, unsweetened Korean soy milk)
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup chopped dry figs
1/8 cup sunflower seeds
1. Preheat oven to 350F or 175C. Prepare cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, sift and mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and green tea powder.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the sugar, oil, molasses, tapioca starch, extracts, soymilk, and salt. Whisk well, for about a minute.
4. Add the wet to the dry and mix until just combined. Add chopped figs and sunflower seeds and mix again. I like to save some of the figs to place on top of the cookies too, so they don't get hidden in the dough.
5. Take spoonfuls of dough and gently shape into a ball and place evenly on baking sheet. Flatten slightly with fingers. Top with more figs and sunflower seeds (optional). You can also roll the balls around in a plate of sunflower seeds first to get a pretty effect (see picture below).
6. Bake for 9-11 minutes, rotating the pan about halfway through. The cookies will look soft as they come out of the oven, but they will firm up more after cooling.
I've never been too enthusiastic about drinking green tea as a plain watery hot drink, but I'm all for it in a thick frothy latte or a pound cake, and in this case, cookies. :) So for this year's St. Patty's day, dress up like a leprechaun and bake these cookies.
Also available for order on the bake shop (shipping within S.Korea only).