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Sunday, April 19, 2015

Bay Leaf Snickerdoodles

Aromas and complimentary flavors are ties to comfort. Cinnamon has a way but the wonder is long gone. Vanilla is ubiquitous. No need to rest on those laurels any longer.

Broken Bay Leaf Snickerdoodle

The scent of bay leaves cooked with rice is quite nice. It adds a depth of flavor to savory dishes that we all have tasted but can't quite describe. Always a supporting cast member that allows the whole company to shine. What happens when it becomes the star in a cookie?

Pulverized Bay Leaf

Snickerdoodles are simple. Aside from butter and sugar, the driving flavors are cinnamon in the coating and vanilla extract in the base dough. Grinding dry bay leaves into a powder to do a swap was the easy part.

Bay Leaf Rum Extract

The bay extract required a little patience. 125ml of white rum and 12 dried bay leaves got a pressure infusion treatment in a cream whipper then sat for 2 months. The final flavor was quite medicinal, bay leaf bitters.

Ground Bay Leaf Sugar Coating

With the flavor agents sorted, one for one swaps were all that was necessary to execute the recipe.

Bay Leaf Snickerdoodle

The aroma immediately after baking was buttery with a clear floral note. The flavor of the cookie was well... indescribably good.

Sumac Snickerdoodle

Next time you bake think twice about reaching for cinnamon or vanilla. Use a spice that you enjoy in a completely different context. There's a whole world of flavors out there waiting to be rediscovered in your favorite comfort food. 

As always, please share your investigations to keep the ideas bouncing.

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