We’ve made MANY A COOKIE here on Joy the Baker over the years and the problem is, each cookie I make is my new pride and joy. But you’re the real decider around here. Well… you and the search engine god Google. While my latest Moon Pie Bars (and all their gooey marshmallow) might be my favorite, y’all decided last fall that your favorite are Taylor Swift’s Chai Sugar Cookies. I get it – you love a classic, scoopable sugar cookie recipe loaded with cozy chai spice and dotted with nutmeg glaze. And probably more than the cookie, you love our girl Taylor and again… I get it.
A few weeks back I was at my favorite fancy cocktail bar here in New Orleans and ordered a Strawberry Chai Negroni. I narrowed my eyes in suspicion but was totally blown away by the playful combination of strawberry and chai. I thought surely I can bring this cheeky flavor combination to your favorite cookie. Today let’s bring a spring twist to Taylor Swift’s sweet little chai buddies with strawberries and white chocolate! They’re a dang delight.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this Strawberry White Chocolate Chai Sugar Cookie recipe:
• unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• neutral oil like sunflower, canola, or vegetable oil
• granulated sugar and powdered sugar
• salt and baking soda
• vanilla extract
• a large egg
• chai spices: cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and a grind of cracked black pepper
• dehydrated strawberries, crushed and crumbled
• white chocolate coarsely chopped
• cinnamon and sugar for rolling
We’ll start this jazzed-up chewy sugar cookie recipe by creaming together the butter, oil, granulated and powdered sugar. A little wonky, I know but the mixture will cream together to smooth after 2 to 3 minutes with electric hand beaters or in a stand mixer.
You might wonder, WHY OIL!? Oil will help with the texture of the cookie. Because oil is 100% fat, it creates a hint of a cake-like crumb to the texture of the cookie.
You might also wonder, WHY POWDERED SUGAR!? Powdered sugar absorbs more moisture than granulated sugar and will create a chewy texture in our sugar cookies.
And the biggest question:
Can you use a chai tea bag instead of all of these spices?
Not really. Chai tea bags are made of black tea and spices. A chai tea bag is, in fact, mostly black tea. For this spiced sugar cookie recipe we want all of the warming spices but not the black tea. Black tea gets bitter in the cookie dough.
I understand that you might not have a spice rack full of spices so this Chai Masala blend is a great substitute. Use 2 teaspoons in place of all of the spices below.
In a pinch you could use Pumpkin Pie Spice that might be leftover from Thanksgiving. Use 1 1/2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice with a grind of cracked black pepper and an additional 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger if you have it on hand.
Beat in a large egg and a few teaspoons of pure vanilla extract.
Stir flour, baking soda, and salt into a thick batter. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl very well, making sure there are no dry patches of the flour mixture hidden at the bottom of the bowl.
Because we are our most extra selves, add coarsely chopped white chocolate and finely chopped dehydrated strawberries!
Dehydrated strawberries are preferred over fresh strawberry bits. Dehydrated strawberries pack lots of strawberry flavor without making for soggy cookies. White chocolate is a sweet and creamy compliment. Add finely chopped chocolate or white chocolate chips.
Allow the cookie dough to rest and chill. You can leave the cookie dough in the bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator, OR you can scoop the cookie dough onto a large piece of waxed paper or plastic wrap and shape into a disk to chill.
Scoop generous 2 tablespoon balls, roll between your hands to round and coat in cinnamon sugar. Place cookie dough balls 2-inches apart on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
Bake cookies until they’ve spread just slightly and are just golden around the edges. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet until set enough to transfer with a spatula, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack.
The original Taylor Swift Chai Cookies are topped with a nutmeg glaze. No need to fuss with glaze here. We’ve added all the goodness of spice, strawberries, and chocolate to the inside of the cookie.
This is my perfect sugar cookie recipe. A cookie that sits up tall and tender. No rolling pin no frosting, no royal icing. Just sugar and spice, strawberries are nice.
