Makes about 2 dozen
There are many problems with this cookie, the first being that it may not actually be a cookie. This was my first attempt at a no-bake and I am not sure how I feel about it. The technique is intriguing as it's basically low-key candy-making, which means no oven required (+++). But, to me, the result does not feel like a true cookie, no matter how perfectly they are shaped.
Most of the no-bake recipes I found were heavy on rolled oats. I did use a substantial amount of oats for these, but I ground them down to act more as a moisture-absorbing glue than as a textural element. My thought was that if I was going to use oats, I would just make a normal oatmeal cookie, and I did not want a normal oatmeal cookie.
Then I stumbled across a Christina Tosi bake club recipe which incorporated carrot and orange. "What brilliance!" I thought. I shredded and chopped carrots to add back some of the texture rolled oats would have provided, and orange zest and a little ginger to tone down the vegetable-ness of the carrot.
Changes I would make to this next time:
Try browning the butter first
Do a better job of pressing out excess moisture from the carrots
Replace the all-purpose flour with almond flour
Experiment with boiling time and temperature and how that impacts structure
Add MORE texture. Maybe add toasted chopped walnuts or pistachios to the "dough," or use them for rolling the "cookies" in instead of sprinkles
You may not like these, and that's okay, but they were definitely fun to make and are certainly worth more experimentation.
Enjoy!
INGREDIENTS
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 c milk
2/3 c granulated sugar
2 tsp molasses
3/4 c all-purpose flour (or sub almond flour)
1/8 tsp salt
Zest of 2 large navel oranges
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 medium-large carrots, peeled
1/4 tsp ground ginger
2 c rolled oats
A lot of sprinkles
DIRECTIONS
Shred and finely chop the carrots, then spread out on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb some of the excess moisture. Set aside.
Use a food processor to pulse the rolled oats until semi-finely ground. There should still be some textured pieces visible. Set aside.
Combine the butter, milk, sugar, molasses, flour, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the mixture comes to a boil. You may need to use a whisk to keep the flour from clumping.
Continue to boil the mixture for 1-2 minutes, stirring infrequently.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the orange zest, vanilla, carrots and ginger, stirring until evenly combined.
Stir in the oats and then let the mixture rest at least 10 minutes until thickened and cool enough to handle. You may need to add more oats if it seems too loose.
Use a 1 Tbsp measure to scoop and roll balls of the mixture. Roll each in sprinkles and place on a wax paper-lined baking sheet. Use a flat-bottomed glass to press each into a disk about 1/4" thick.
Cookies may be stored at room temperature or in the fridge.
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