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October 10, 2010

Cashew White Chocolate Cookies




The other day I went grocery shopping and I bought cashews. Dangerous. Very dangerous!

Before moving to the US, I lived in India for a year. I was working in the United Nations and I had a really cool job because I got to do a lot of fieldwork in the country side (remember? I came here for my PhD in Agricultural Economics.) I was a rural development specialist and that brought me to marvelous places all over India. Those who have been to India know that traveling around the country is not always the easiest thing. At least, it wasn’t in my case because I was not going to touristy places. I was not (always) traveling by plane and staying in 5 stars air-conditioned hotels. And I was not going out for a few hours with the option of going back to the hotel during the hot hours. Fieldwork meant 12-14 hours in the fields, sometimes with 110 degrees and 95% humidity. But, boy, it was a very rewarding job!



During those long hours my favorite snack was cashews! Bags and bags of cashews sold at every corner or little stand on the road. I never ate more delicious cashews in my life!



Now, I’m totally addicted to them. That’s why they are dangerous! Finishing one big back of cashew in 1 hour is sure less bad than eating 20 cookies in the same amount of time…but the calorie count is still high.

I usually try to refrain myself from buying them too often but yesterday I could not resist. And when I opened a kitchen cabinet and saw white chocolate chips I already knew that cookies would have sealed them in a perfect union. I put a few more ingredients together and in no time we had a wonderful Sunday breakfast.

The picture on the left is technically not right. I messed up (on purpose, for once) with the white balance and I actually like it much more than the one on the right, with the right white balance!

Now, I just have to try to forget I still have cashew in my kitchen.

Cashew White Chocolate Chips Cookies
Ingredients*:
Yields 15-20 cookies depending on the size

130 gr (4.5 oz or 1 cup) all purpose flour
30 gr (1 tbsp) cornstarch
2 gr (1/2 tsp) salt
5 gr (1 tsp) baking powder
100 gr (3.55 oz or 1/2 cup) sugar
113 gr (1 stick or 1/2 cup) butter
1 egg
5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla extract
60 gr (1/2 cup) chopped cashews

75 gr (1/2 cup) white chocolate chips

*You can actually use any type of chocolate chips that you like and different types of nuts.

Preheat the oven at 375F for about 10mins and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl mix together the flour, the cornstarch, the baking powder and the salt.

In a separate bowl, beat together the sugar and the butter till they are well mixed. Add the egg and the vanilla extract and mix until well incorporated.

Cookies approaching milk...


Stir in the flour mixture and whisk until you obtain a homogeneous mixture.

Finally, add the chopped cashew and the white chocolate chips.

Spoon the batter on the baking sheet leaving enough space between each of them because they almost double in volume when done.

Wait...No! Don't jump! Wait for me!


Bake for about 15 minutes. When done let them cool on a cooling rack.

Have a sweet day!

15 comments:

  1. Mmm...if these taste anything like white chocolate macadamia cookies, I'm in! I like the picture on the left too..very warm. White balance is still a struggle for me. :-\

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  2. White chocolate and cashews seem like such a perfect pairing--delicate looking but with a lot of flavor. Happy to see that you're back to baking! These are great. :-)

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  3. I love cashews, too! They're right up there with almonds and macadamia nuts are far as the addicting factor goes. Needless to say, these cookies look incredible. I love the mixture of cashews and white chocolate!

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  4. Completely fabulous cookies featuring a much under utilized ingredient. Cashews. GREG

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  5. I agree with you that buying cashews is dangerous. ;) I usually cant stop eating them! Kudos to you for saving some to make these cookies, they sound delicious!

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  6. Cashews are dangerous but so delicious! These cookies look amazing! Nice job!!!

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  7. It's hard to stop eating cashews once you've started. :) The cookies look yummy!

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  8. What a great experience! I'm with you, cashews are extremely dangerous--you just can't stop eating them! Great looking cookies!

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  9. I love cashews too!! Never thought of mizing them with chocolate. They look delicious. You're right, the pic on the left has a kind of ethereal touch to it!

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  10. I feel bad for the poor cashew! When baking with white chocolate, they are always forgot for macadamia nuts. I wanted to redeem them :)
    Yes, the cookies are as good (I think even more) than the ones with nuts
    No, I did not resist the temptation and I finished all the cashew in the bag :(

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  11. I love the combo of white chocolate and cashews.

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  12. cashews chocolate combination delicious

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  13. Oh, I am so glad you're not doing the 4th challenge and were able to make these up for me instead! I love cashew with white chocolate. Hundreds of kisses in your direction for this milk chocolateless cookie!

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  14. You know I love me some white chocolate:) These cookies sound great, thanks for sharing!

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