By Renton’s own Kat Lieu

A recipe from “Modern Asian Baking at Home: Essential Sweet and Savory Recipes for Milk Bread, Mochi, Mooncakes, and More; Inspired by the Subtle Asian Baking Community”

“If you love cakey cookies as much as I do, then you’ll love these extra-thicc cakey black sesame and miso crinkle cookies. Their snowy exterior reminds me of winter holidays, and their surprise interior is chock full of color, green from pistachios and red from cranberries. These cookies will make perfect gifts, in a curated cookie box or tin, or as a holiday treat for yourself. Not too sweet, nutty, and comforting thanks to black sesame, these cookies will surely bring a smile to you and your loved ones’ faces this winter.”

Ingredients

Cookie Dough:

1/4 cup (55 g) butter, softened

1/3 cup (67 g) brown sugar, packed

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1/2 to 1 tablespoon miso

1 teaspoon lemon zest, optional

A generous handful of dried cranberries, chopped

A generous handful of deshelled pistachios, chopped

1 large egg, about 50 g

3 to 4 tablespoons black sesame paste

170 g all-purpose flour, sifted

1 teaspoon baking powder

Dough Balls Coating

1/2 cup (60 g) confectioners’ sugar, in a bowl

1/4 cup granulated sugar, in a bowl

Yield: about 12-16 cookies

Directions

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugars, miso, and optional lemon zest until paler in color and fluffy, a few minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.

Add the egg and black sesame paste. Mix until incorporated.

Tip in flour and baking powder and mix until just combined.

Fold in the chopped pistachios and cranberries.

Optionally, cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight. I’ve made these cookies without chilling the dough and they turned out fine!

Preheat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the center. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

To assemble cookies, scoop 1 1/2 tbsp (~30 g) of cookie dough. Shape the dough into a smooth, firm ball. Toss into the bowl of granulated sugar, coating with a thin layer of sugar before tossing into the bowl of confectioners’ sugar to coat thoroughly.

Transfer to a prepared baking sheet. Leave space between each dough ball. Repeat until you have 12 to 16 cookie balls.

Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges have set and browned slightly. The cookie centers should be soft but not runny.

Cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before cooling completely on a wire rack.