ROOIBOS AND WHITE CHOCOLATE COOKIES

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INGREDIENTS

Cake flour 149 g
Baking soda 3 g
Rooibos tea leaves, divided 45 ml
Butter 200 g
Dark brown sugar 108 g
White sugar 100 g
Salt 7 g
Vanilla essence 10 g
Egg 1 unit
Egg yolk 1 unit
White chocolate, chopped 160 g

METHOD

  1. Preheat the oven to 190°C. Line a baking sheet with baking paper.
  2. Mix the flour, baking soda and 30 ml of the rooibostea leaves. Set aside.
  3. In a small saucepan, melt 150 g of the butter over medium-high heat. Add the remaining tea leaves and continue to cook, constantly stirring, for 3 to 5 minutes until the butter is golden brown and has a nutty aroma.
  4. Transfer the melted butter to a large bowl and whiskin the remaining butter until melted.
  5. Add the brown sugar, white sugar, salt and vanillato the butter and whisk until incorporated.
  6. Add the egg and egg yolks and whisk until smooth, about 30 seconds. Allow the mixture to rest for a few minutes, then whisk again. Repeat twice more until the mixture is thick and smooth.
  7. Fold in the flour mixture until just combined, then stir in the white chocolate.
  8. Scoop the dough into 30 ml balls and place them on the lined baking sheets, allowing enough room between each cookie to rise and expand.
  9. Bake for 10 to 14 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through the baking time.
  10. Serve warm or allow to cool completely on a cooling rack before storing in an airtight container at room temperature for up to seven days.

YIELD 24 COOKIES
PREPARATION TIME 1 HOUR
TOTAL TIME 1 HOUR

HISTORY OF MY DISH

Rooibos tea is a popular South African tea made from the leaves of the Aspalathus linearis plant. This plant cannot be grown anywhere else in the world other than the South African Cederberg, making it a commodity unique to South Africa. Rooibos tea was consumed by early Cape-Dutch settlers because of the high cost of importing black tea and has since become a staple in the Afrikaans culture.
My grandmother, who loves herbal remedies, warm drinks and hoarding, discovered a brand of loose-leaf rooibos tea that she declared ‘superior to any other’ and naturally bought more than she could drink in the remainder of her lifetime. She decided to share her found treasure with all the grandchildren as Christmas presents. Since rooibos tea is not my warm drink of choice on most occasions, I started looking for a different way to use my gift from my grandmother.
These cookies have a strong rooibos flavour, which brings back several childhood memories and an accompanying sense of nostalgia. The white chocolate provides the perfect creamy sweetness to offset the herbal bite of the tea. I prefer them warm and straight from the oven, but they are just as good a few days later

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