Expeditions in the Kitchen

A Perfect Fit: The Cookie to Fulfill My Cravings

I am so excited to share this recipe with you!! I think it is just perfect! (See title) They are so good, I think you're going to love them, but first, let me explain how the creation of this cookie came about so you understand what this cookie is about, and why it is the perfect fit.

You see, I've been wanting to bake for quite some time. It had been awhile, and with the bombardment of cake, cupcake, tart, scone, cookie, and muffin recipes I happened to encounter in the last few weeks, my itch to bake was only aggravated further. On Tuesday night I found myself with supper done and dishes washed and nothing I had to do before my bedtime, which was about an hour away. If I would have had more time I might have tried an elaborate cake from one of Epicurious's 30 top-rated cakes, but since I did not, I needed to find something quick that still satisfied the constant desire in me (for better or worse) to be somewhat creative and experimental when I'm in the kitchen. I craved something sweet, but with substance, something that had the texture of a cookie, but flavors that one might find in muffins or scones. I wanted something a little more complex in taste, but easy to make. Scanning through the cookie pages of a local cookbook I found only one recipe that piqued my interest, they were called Honey Bee Cookies, and they had potential. Using this recipe as a base, I modified it and added on by switching half of the flour called for to whole wheat flour, and adding mini cinnamon chips, pecans, and blueberries, and finishing the cookies with a lemon glaze. Sweet success! The wheat flour gives it the hardiness and depth I wanted, the honey, with its sweet nuance, paired with the cinnamon brought complexity, the pecans and cinnamon chips brought texture, as well as a muffin/scone flair (struesel topping anyone?) along with the blueberries, and the lemon glaze (sorry for the dramatics but seriously it's true) made the cookies sing--or at least me!!

My Honey Wheat Cookie Muffin Scones

*Additional thoughts:

• If you like tea, these cookies make an excellent accompaniment!


• If you desire something even more hardy, old fashioned oatmeal would be the way to go


• These cookies store quite well (I kept them in the fridge). Scott prefers them warmed in the microwave compared to room temp, I like them either way, but of course, fresh from the oven is always best.

1/2 cup (one stick) butter softened

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup honey (Make sure to scrape it all out of the measuring cup!  Or spray the cup with oil first.)

1 egg

3/4 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

3 Tbsp mini cinnamon chips (if you don't have mini, leave these out, or chop up regular size ones--do not leave them whole as the dough is crumbly and it would be difficult to keep it all together with the bulkier size. I also prefer the texture and the "doses" of cinnamon that you get with the mini)

3 Tbsp. chopped pecans (toast them for extra flavor)

1/3 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (I used frozen, do not thaw them)

Lemon glaze (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Mix butter, brown sugar, honey, and egg together.  Mix flours, baking soda, and cinnamon together and add to wet ingredients, mix until well combined.  Add the cinnamon chips and chopped pecans and mix in adding the frozen blueberries last and gently folding these into the batter.  Place dough onto a cookie sheet by the tablespoonful, pressing back in any blueberries that may fall out of the crumbly dough, and bake until light brown, about 7 to 9 minutes.  When done remove from cookie sheet and place on a rack to cool before topping with the lemon glaze.  Store cookies in the refrigerator.  Do not double recipe.

Lemon glaze

Lemon juice, powdered sugar, and milk were used to make the glaze.  I would estimate that I used 1 Tbsp. lemon juice, 1 Tsp. milk, 1/2 cup powdered sugar.  Play with these amounts to achieve a tart but sweet, slightly runny glaze that will harden on the cookies when they are cool.

Enjoy and happy baking!