If you read the recent Wall Street Journal article, you know that I’m not a big fan of following recipes. That’s not to say that I don’t look at them though. Recipes can be inspirational, and as long as you remember to ask “why”, they can be a great way to learn new techniques.
The other day, I saw Syrie’s post on Chocolate Melting Moments and was so enamored by the name and photo that I had to try this different approach to shortbread cookies for myself.
Baked goods are almost always some combination of fat, sugar, a binding agent (flour, eggs, etc) and a leavening agent (baking powder, eggs, yeast, etc). Different ratios and mixing techniques will turn these basic ingredients into everything from angel food cake to scones. Mess up the ratios, or mix it wrong though, and you could end up with a flat chewy ring of dough, or a rock hard puck that could send you to the dentist.
That’s why I love shortbreads as a platform for experimentation. Since there is no leavening, there’s one less variable to consider, and there’s little danger of over mixing it because there’s almost no liquid to aid in the formation of gluten. These melting moments use cornstarch in addition to flour which makes the cookies literally melt in your mouth.
Curious as to why this happens, I did a bit of research. As it turns out, cornstarch contains a compound called Amylose which is responsible for the thickening effect of starch. When heated with a liquid, the Amylose forms long chains that intertwine to restrict the movement of liquids, making them more viscous. In the absence of a liquid though, starch granules are just hard particles that physically interfere with the formation of gluten chains in the flour. With no protein web to bind things together, these cookies are only held together with fat and sugar. This explains why these dissolve so readily when they hit your warm mouth.
To heighten the effect, I like to keep the cookies in the refrigerator, which gives them an ephemeral snap, followed by a near instant liquification into a pool of sweet creamy strawberry flavour.
While Syrie’s Chocolate version looked delightful, I wanted to see what other flavours could be carried in this new vessel, so I turned to my stash of freeze dried fruit. The freeze drying process removes all moisture, so they can be powderized in a food processor to add the flavour of fresh fruit, without adding any liquid.
Freeze dried apricot and peach were both contenders, but I’ve always had a soft spot for strawberries and cream, which is where I decided to head with this batch of melting moments. If you close your eyes after taking a bite, you can almost imagine a big spoonful of summertime strawberry shortcake with a dollop of vanilla chantilly in your mouth.
Next up, I think I’ll do an apricot one filled with an apricot curd, and I’m also contemplating its use as a base for a savoury amuse-bouche. Parmesan melting moment with char grilled ramps and crème fraîche anyone?
Units
Ingredients
- 2 cultured unsalted butter sticks at room temperature
- ⅔ cups evaporated cane sugar powdered
- ¼ cups strawberries powderized freeze dried
- ⅓ cups cornstarch
- 1 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour
for filling
- 5 tablespoons cultured unsalted butter at room temperature
- ½ cups evaporated cane sugar powdered
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Move the oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 300 degrees.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together for a few minutes until it is white and fluffy. Add the powderized strawberry and beat to incorporate.
- Sift the cornstarch and 2/3 C flour into the mixing bowl and mix until combined. Sift the remaining 2/3 C flour into the dough and mix until just combined.
- Spoon small teaspoon sized balls of dough into the palm of your hand and roll into a sphere then place it on parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat, spacing the balls about 1 1/2" apart until there is no room left on the sheet. Pat the balls into 1/4" thick cookies with your fingers, or use a fork dipped in powdered sugar.
- Bake for about 15 minutes, but do not let them turn brown. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for a minute on the pan before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Whisk the filling ingredients until light and fluffy. When the cookies are completely cool, spread a dab of filling on one cookie and sandwich with another.
- Serve chilled for the most satisfying melting effect.
katiek says
ok. So. I have to make my sister’s wedding cake and she wants strawberry.
I am fighting the inner urge to go with jello pudding mix, but it is common in the strawberry cake world. freakishly so. The “from scratch” recipes, leav emuch to be desired due to the moisture of purreed berries trade off.
As I was eating special K with berries, I remembered this post and how you were able to work in pulverized flavor without any added liquid. I also was reminded of your beet cupcake post.
So here is my plan: Strawberry cake using freeze dried strawberry powder, coloured with beet juice. brilliant!
Do you have any recommendations on:
1. Should you substitute the volume of dry ingredients with the volume of strawberry “powder”? (ej, replace 1/2 c flour with 1/2 strawberry)
2. How much is too much? At what point is structure an issue?
3. Are there any other adjustments I should consider? Does the tartness of the strawberry throw off baking soda v powder equilibrium?
No pressure if these are unanswerable questions. I will be test-kitsching through and through.
katiek says
ok. So. I have to make my sister’s wedding cake and she wants strawberry.
I am fighting the inner urge to go with jello pudding mix, but it is common in the strawberry cake world. freakishly so. The “from scratch” recipes, leav emuch to be desired due to the moisture of purreed berries trade off.
As I was eating special K with berries, I remembered this post and how you were able to work in pulverized flavor without any added liquid. I also was reminded of your beet cupcake post.
So here is my plan: Strawberry cake using freeze dried strawberry powder, coloured with beet juice. brilliant!
Do you have any recommendations on:
1. Should you substitute the volume of dry ingredients with the volume of strawberry “powder”? (ej, replace 1/2 c flour with 1/2 strawberry)
2. How much is too much? At what point is structure an issue?
3. Are there any other adjustments I should consider? Does the tartness of the strawberry throw off baking soda v powder equilibrium?
No pressure if these are unanswerable questions. I will be test-kitsching through and through.
Megan says
These look wonderful. I can’t wait to try them myself!
I just found your site today using Stumble Upon and I really love it! I added you to the blogroll on my own blog, A Dash of Nutmeg.
Megan says
These look wonderful. I can’t wait to try them myself!
I just found your site today using Stumble Upon and I really love it! I added you to the blogroll on my own blog, A Dash of Nutmeg.
Kathy says
NutriFruit makes freeze dried fruit powders available for purchase in 4.7 ounce cans. Available in 9 flavors, strawberry, banana, mango, blueberry, cranberry, black raspberry, pomegranate, red raspberry , and marion blackberry. I was searching for recipes to use these and found your website. Thanks, I was just thinking smoothies until you came along. “Big Smile”
Kathy says
NutriFruit makes freeze dried fruit powders available for purchase in 4.7 ounce cans. Available in 9 flavors, strawberry, banana, mango, blueberry, cranberry, black raspberry, pomegranate, red raspberry , and marion blackberry. I was searching for recipes to use these and found your website. Thanks, I was just thinking smoothies until you came along. “Big Smile”
bethbara882 says
So cute and nice pictures! Thank you for sharing.the recipe.
Marilia says
Just made this and the cookies taste so lovely 😀 Absolutely love them!! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe!
Anne says
Hello Marc. I’ve stumbled upon your site unexpectedly. Want to know if there is another substitue for powderized freeze dried strawberries since can’t find any of it in my area or if its possible to substitute it with liquid strawberry flavor instead? Thanks
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Anne, if you live in the US, you can order freeze dried strawberry powder online, just do a search on Google, some of these vendors may ship internationally. As for using a liquid flavoring, I would not recommend it as it would add a liquid to dough