Scotch Bonnet Cookies
The heat in this Scotch bonnet cookie recipe is unexpected and utterly welcome.
Candied crumbles of baked habaneros deliver playful shocks of heat as you chew on this buttery and sweet cookie. The batter, swirled with peppery syrup and Scotch bonnet powder, evenly distributes sweet heat to the taste buds.
The floral notes of these tropical chili peppers step forward without the clutter of chocolate (a spice commonly paired with chili peppers).
By design, the recipe showcases the personality of chili peppers, which are much more complex than the Scoville scale’s heat rating suggests. Peppers are not simply hot, hotter and hottest. Twenty-two heat compounds exist in the world of chili peppers – each compound creating different bodily sensations and activating different pain receptors.
This recipe plays with heat and makes it an experience that is as enjoyable with a glass of milk as it is with a pour of sauvignon blanc.
Scotch Bonnet Cookies
30 servings | Time: 25 minutes
Scotch bonnet cookies adorned with slivers of candied habanero blossoms and stems made of royal icing. PHOTOGRAPHY BY ISLAND AND SPICE MAGAZINE
Ingredients:
1 cup and 2 tbs flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ cup butter (softened)
¾ cup organic cane sugar, finely granulated
1 ½ tsp habanero syrup*
1 egg
½ tsp Scotch bonnet powder
¾ tsp crushed habanero candy*
Preparation:
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Sift the flour, baking soda and salt into a bowl and set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar until you get a creamy consistency. Add the habanero syrup,* making sure it is cool to the touch. After incorporating the syrup, add the egg and continue to mix on low to medium speed. Mix in the Scotch bonnet powder. (We used Shavuot’s Jamaican Scotch bonnet pepper powder, which is available on Amazon.) Slowly add the dry mixture and fully incorporate. Lastly, mix in the habanero candies.*
Place rounded teaspoons of cookie dough onto a baking sheet, leaving room for the cookies to expand. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown.
Allow the cookies to rest for an additional 2 minutes before placing them on wire racks to cool.
