My friend Camille has been living in Belgium since the new year.  We made plans to catch up with a phone call in the evening, so I baked a batch of these Speculoos Chocolate Chip Cookies in the afternoon to fit the occasion.  Speculoos, also known as Biscoff or Cookie Butter, is a caramelised spiced cookie and spread from Belgium.  This creamy deliciousness is a spread like Nutella.  Just replace the hazelnut chocolatiness with a caramel gingerbread taste.

Cam just moved again, this time to Portugal, but the love of Speculoos knows no boundaries.  She spreads it on her toast for breakfast, whereas I skip the toast all together and dip my spoon straight in the jar when I get a craving.  I wanted to experiment with Speculoos in baked goods, so I borrowed a cookbook from the library that is entirely dedicated to this ingredient.

These sweet cookies are thick and chewy and golden.  The distinctive flavour is more subtle once baked into a dessert.  I’m sure these cookies would get my two year-old nephew’s ”mmm delicious!” seal of approval.

 

Bon appétit!

Recipe Source: The Biscoff Cookie & Spread Cookbook

Yields 30 cookies (I only made 24)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup Speculoos spread

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1 egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

 

Instructions:

1. Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together in a bowl.  Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, Speculoos spread and both sugars until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated.
4. Pour the dry ingredients into the mixing bowl and beat until combined.
5. Stir in the chocolate chips.
6. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
7. Preheat the oven to 350F.
8. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
9. Scoop the dough into balls and set them on the prepared sheet.
10. Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes, until golden along the edges.
11. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack.  Let the cookies cool for 4 minutes on the baking sheet.
12. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely.