Cookies&Beer, Christmas&Family, Red Hook&AGoodCause

I should write Crate&Barrel copy.

Instead I’m going to advertise something way cooler and better designed than trendy housewares.  Hurricane Sandy did a number on businesses in Red Hook and some very cool people got together to produce a downloadable cookbook to raise money to ReStore Red Hook.  Check it out here: allhandsondeckredhook.org

Donate&Download.  100% of your donation goes to support 100% awesome small businesses.

In it, you can get your hands on Baked‘s delightful Cowboy Cookie recipe.  Which got me thinking.  (Uh oh.)

See, around the holidays in my house, my mom makes elebentyhundred different types of Christmas cookies and my dad and I crack a beer and sit around and eat said Christmas cookies.  Then my mother mocks us for eating Cookies&Beer.   Whatever.  Woman doesn’t know what she’s missing.

cookies at high noon

But do you know what is better than Cookies&Beer?

Oh God the beer is coming from inside the cookies!!!

Yup, Cowbeer Cookies.

Yup, I’ll have to rethink that name.

Cowbeer Cookies

You may want to give yourself extra time for these – while not labor intensive, the dough needs to chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before you even think of putting them on a cookie sheet.

makes 2 dozen

Ingredients

• 1 bottle of strong flavored beer, like stout
• 8 Tbs (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbs granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teas vanilla
• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 teas salt
• 1/2 teas baking powder
• 1/2 teas baking soda
• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 teas espresso powder
• 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup pretzel sticks, broken into pieces but not crushed to a powder.

Pour bottle of beer into a medium sauce pan and set over low heat.  Simmer until beer reduces to approx 1/8 cup liquid.  It will want to boil over so keep an eye on it.

Meanwhile, cream butter and both sugars together in the bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg until combined.  Add vanilla.

Dissolve espresso powder in the reduced beer. Add to mixer and beat until combined.  Mix flour, oats, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a medium bowl.  Add half the dry ingredients to the mixer and beat for about 10-15 seconds.  Add the remaining dry ingredient and mix until just combined.  Fold in chocolate chips and half of the pretzels.  Let dough chill in the fridge for 30 minutes in the bowl or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours.  Preheat over to 350 degrees.  Scoop dough onto parchment or silpat lined cookie sheets forming 24 even balls.  Leave space as they will spread.  Sprinkle with remaining pretzels and press just slightly to make them stick to the top of the cookies.  Place in freezer for 10 minutes.  Bake for 11-15 minutes, rotating halfway through.  Let cool on cookie sheet for a minut or two before removing with a spatula to cooling racks.  Store in airtight container for up to one week, if they manage to last that long.