Okay. Guys. I don't know if you remember back in 2014 (I think?) when Taylor Swift shared a cookie recipe that she had been making for her 1989 Secret Sessions, but I do.
Since it's September — even though it's still hot — I have decided to self-induce fall and just go ahead and start making cozy recipes (with the A/C blasting, of course). SO, I decided to make Taylor Swift's cookie recipe, with a little twist of my own. And OMG — they are AMAZING, you guys!
According to her Tumblr post, Taylor herself got her original recipe from here; but I ended up using that same website's later recipe based off of Taylor's recipe, and then I had the idea to add this pumpkin cream cheese frosting. Here's how that went:
(Ok, before doing anything, preheat your oven to 350º. Always important.)
1. Alright, now we can get started: Let's get your ingredients out. FOR THE COOKIES:
— 2 sticks of butter, room temp. The original recipe has you split 1 stick of butter with 1/2 c of vegetable oil; I did not do that, and I was fine.
— 1/2 c granulated sugar
— 1/2 c powdered sugar
— 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger (I didn't have that, so I grated just a little fresh ginger in)
— 1 tsp ground cinnamon
— 1/2 tsp ground allspice
— 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
— 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
— 1/8 tsp ground cloves
— pinch of black pepper
— 1 egg
— 2 tsp vanilla extract
— 2 c flour
— 3/4 tsp baking soda
— 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Pro tip: If you don't have all those spices, you can sub pumpkin pie spice, and you can always do what Taylor did and add a chai tea bag!
Taylor originally said, "After you add the egg and vanilla, cut one chai tea packet open and empty the crushed up tea leaves into the batter," and her word is law.
2. Grab your BUTTER, POWDERED SUGAR, and NORMAL SUGAR! Let your butter sit out so it's room temp. I didn't do that, and I accidentally melted it to liquid in the microwave. Oops!
3. Beat the butter for one minute, then beat in the sugar for another minute, then add every single one of your spices. It should look like this:
4. Add the egg and vanilla and beat, then add your 2 cups of flour. It should now look like this:
5. THEN, get a little plate of cinnamon and sugar. Roll your dough into balls, and roll in the cinnamon and sugar. You're doing a marvelous job.
6. Flatten them out (I have never been good at making them pretty, but I'm sure you are) and put them on a baking sheet. Bake at 350º for 10 minutes (8, if your cookies are small).
7. WHILE THEY'RE BAKING: We can get out the ingredients FOR THE FROSTING! You will need:
— 1/2 c unsalted butter, room temp
— 8 oz cream cheese, room temp
— 3 cups of confectioner's sugar
— 1/3 c pumpkin purée
— 1 tsp ground cinnamon (I used pumpkin pie spice, for a more complex flavor.)
***I should note: These are the ingredients for the full recipe, but I only made half a recipe because I only baked half the cookies and put the other half in the freezer. If you don't need two dozen cookies, I highly recommend doing that, and cutting this recipe in half.***
8. FIRST THING'S FIRST: Sift your powdered sugar. I don't have a pic of that, because I forgot to do it. Thus, all my frosting pics will appear lumpy. Don't do what I did. Sift your powdered sugar.
9. THEN! Mix together your butter, sugar, and cream cheese, and WHIP, BABY, WHIP.
10. Add the pumpkin and spices, and WHIP SOME MORE! (Remember what I said about sifting your powdered sugar? Heed my warning.)
11. Take your cookies out of the oven, let 'em cool, and frost 'em up.
12. If you ignored me and didn't sift your sugar, you can cover that up (and make your pumpkin cookies appear more pumpkin-y) by adding some orange sprinkles. :)
13. ET VOILÀ! Your cookies are finished.
I have made these three times, and each time, people tell me, "Oh my God; these are so good!" Sooo, whether it's for girls' movie night (Practical Magic, anyone?), your kid's Halloween party, or just for your own personal happiness, I'm telling you, you need to make these cookies. Thank you, Taylor Swift.
