Baking Martha's Cookies: White Chocolate-Butterscotch

The first time I baked these cookies was back in late July when the friend that picked the recipe off facebook was coming over for a playdate. Perfect timing to check another recipe from my quest to bake all the recipes in Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook off the list AND send cookies home with my friend and her kids so I wouldn't eat them all. At 5 Weight Watchers points per cookie, I did not need multiple temptations on my counter.


White Chocolate-Butterscotch Cookies
page 76 from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
Ingredients

• 1 3/4 C all-purpose flour
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1/2 t salt
• 2 T unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 C vegetable shortening, room temperature
• 1 1/4 C packed dark-brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 T pure vanilla extract
• 8 oz quality white chocolate, chopped into 1/4" pieces

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°, with racks in the upper and lower thirds. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, shortening and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping bowl as needed. Beat in the egg and the vanilla until combined. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in two batches, beating just until combined. Stir in the white chocolate.
3. Drop 2 tablespoons of dough at a time about 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until lightly golden brown around the edges, about 15 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheets for 2 minutes, the transfer to wire rack to cool completely. Cookies can be kept in an airtight container at room temp for up to four days. *They will not last that long!

I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've ever made cookie dough in a mixer.

Mixing in the dry ingredients.

Stirring in the white chocolate chips.

Using a 2 Tablespoon scoop yielded an even two dozen large cookies.

Cooling.

The cookie has a crisp exterior but a soft, chewy inside. Simply a perfect cookie ready for your own mix ins.

Based on the name of the recipe I was expecting butterscotch chips in the ingredient list. Turns out butterscotch is made from brown sugar and butter so the flavor is created by the cookie. Ingenius! My grocery only had light brown sugar and did not have a white chocolate bar, only white chocolate chips. I went full steam with these changes and the resulting cookie was still AMAZING. A month later I made these again with dark brown sugar, a chopped white chocolate bar and the addition of chopped macadamia nuts. Phenomenal! I do believe this is my new go to cookie recipe.