Vanilla Rooibos Tea Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Spring must be right around the corner, right? Most people I know are ready for days to start getting warmer and the flowers to start blooming. Spring here usually means rain, which is always very welcome, as it makes the islands beautiful and green.  On these rainy days I love to sit down with a cup of coffee and some biscuits and watch the rainbows appear.

This month's theme for the #CreativeCookieExchange is Wake from Winter with Coffee and Tea. There are just so many great ideas for cookies that fit this theme, but in the end I settled on one from Food52. The fact that I chose this recipe really surprised me as I am all about coffee, but ended up choosing a cookie that is made from tea. 

Have you ever heard of rooibos tea? I had heard the name but really didn't know much about it. For starters I found out that I had been pronouncing it incorrectly - it is pronounced roy-boss, and means red bush in Afrikaans.  It is a dark red color, and has a slightly nutty/herbal smell.  As I was toasting the tea, it also had a slight tobacco smell. Rooibos tea also has many health benefits, including the fact that it is grows naturally caffeine free so there is no processing required, it contains many antioxidants, and it can help with stomach complaints and skin conditions.

These cookies are easy to put together, but do need to be fully chilled before they are sliced and baked. They don't spread on the baking trays, however the chilling really helps with slicing the cookies.  Once they had come out of the oven I grabbed one to try.  At first I wasn't sure I was going to like them, so I let them cool on the tray for a short time and then moved them to a cooling rack.  Once they were cooled I tried them again and I loved the shortbread crunch and the slightly nutty taste of the cookies.

For more information regarding the #CreativeCookieExchange, and to see what the rest of our members baked (and believe me you will want to see this list of amazing cookies), please see below the recipe.

Vanilla Rooibos Tea Cookies

(Printer Friendly Recipe)

Ingredients

• ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons rooibos tea leaves (about 5 tea bags)
• 1 vanilla bean, whole, ends trimmed, cut into segments
• 1¼ cups flour
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 teaspoons milk
• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 1½ tablespoon turbinado sugar

Preparation

1. Heat a small stainless steel pan over medium heat until hot.
2. Add rooibos leaves, and shake pan to distribute tea into a single layer, toasting for about 2 minutes, until tea is fragrant but not darkened (depending on your leaves, this may happen much more quickly so watch it carefully), then transfer them to a bowl and let cool for a couple minutes.
3. Combine the sugar, vanilla bean, and rooibos in the bowl of a food processor and pulse for about 2 minutes, until there are no chunks of bean left in the bowl. 
4. Add the powdered sugar, flour, and salt to the bowl and pulse a few times to combine. 
5. Then add the milk, vanilla, and butter and pulse several times, until a dough forms.
6. Turn dough onto a very lightly floured surface, gather it together, and roll it gently into a log 1.5-inches in diameter.
7. Sprinkle turbinado sugar on a plate or work surface, and roll cookie dough log in the sugar, making sure to cover the entire surface of the log with sugar. 
8. Wrap log in plastic or wax paper and transfer to the fridge or freezer for at least 30 minutes to chill.
9. When ready to bake, turn on the oven to 375℉ and line a baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat.
10. Remove log from fridge or freezer, and cut ⅓-inch slices off the log, rotating the log as you go to ensure that cookie slices stay round. 
11. Place cookies on the prepared baking sheet, leaving ½ inch between each (they don't really spread, but they need breathing room to crisp up). 
12. Bake for 12 minutes, until cookies are just starting to brown. Leave on the cookie sheet to cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool.
13. Cookies will keep in an airtight container for several days.

Recipe by Food52

The theme this month is Wake from Winter with Coffee and Tea ~ because unlike last month, now our Spring Fever has some basis in reality! Creative Cookie Exchange has decided to stop using the linky. What this means is that the only way to join in the fun is to become a host. Just contact Laura at thespicedlife AT gmail DOT com and she will get you added to our Facebook group, where we discuss our cookies and share links.

You can also just use us as a great resource for cookie recipes--be sure to check out our Facebook page, our Pinterest Board, and our monthly posts. You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! Also, if you are looking for inspiration to get in the kitchen and start baking, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made ~

• Vanilla Rooibos Tea Cookies from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Matcha Green Tea Cream Filled Sugar Cookies from NinjaBaking.com
• Orange Spiced Tea Cookies from A Baker's House
• Chocolate Espresso White Chocolate Chunk Cookies from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Mocha Viennese Swirl Cookies from Baking Yummies
• Hazelnut Espresso Cookies from Basic N Delicious
• Café au Lait Bars from The Spiced Life
• Piped Coffee Butter Cookies from Made with Love
• Chai Chocolate Chip Cookies from Noshing with the Nolands
• Coffee Crisps from Magnolia Days
• Matcha White Chocolate Cookies from It’s Yummi!
• Jasmine Lychee Green Tea Shortbread from Food Lust People Love
• Mocha Meringue Cookies from Cookie Dough & Oven Mitt
• Earl Grey French Macarons with Honey Rose Water Buttercream from Sweet Cinnamon and Honey