Red velvet cookies

Instructions

1. Step 1

   Beat 115 g softened unsalted butter with 100 g brown sugar and 50 g granulated sugar with a mixer on medium speed for about three minutes. Using two sugars gives you cookies that are chewy with lightly crisp edges. The mixture is ready when it is light and fluffy and the sugar has partly dissolved into the butter.

   Suggested time: about 3 minutes.

   Mark step 1 as done

2. Step 2

   Add 50 g eggs, 15 g whole milk, 5 g vanilla extract and 8 g red food coloring to the bowl and beat until evenly colored. Adding the color now spreads it evenly without overmixing the dough later. The mixture is ready when it is a uniform deep red with no yellow streaks.

   Mark step 2 as done

3. Step 3

   Sift 190 g all-purpose flour, 15 g cocoa powder, 3 g baking soda and 2 g salt into the bowl and mix on low speed just until combined. Cocoa clumps easily, and sifting keeps brown specks out of the red dough. The dough is ready when it is soft, evenly colored and free of dry flour.

   Mark step 3 as done

4. Step 4

   Chop 120 g white chocolate into small pieces, set a few aside for the tops, then stir the rest into the dough with a spatula. Those white flecks against the red are what make these cookies so pretty. This step is done when the chocolate is evenly spread through the dough.

   Mark step 4 as done

5. Step 5

   Wrap the dough well and chill it in the fridge for about 45 minutes. Chilled dough spreads less in the oven, so the cookies stay round and thick. It's ready when it feels firm and you can roll it into balls without much sticking.

   Suggested time: about 45 minutes.

   Mark step 5 as done

6. Step 6

   Preheat the oven to 175°C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper while the dough rests. A moderate temperature keeps the red bright instead of browning at the edges. The oven is ready once it has been heating for about fifteen minutes.

   Mark step 6 as done

7. Step 7

   Roll the dough into balls of about one heaping tablespoon each, space them five centimeters apart on the sheet, then press a few of the reserved white chocolate pieces onto each one. Chocolate pressed on top stays visible after baking and makes the cookies prettier. This step is done when the balls are evenly round with white dots on top.

   Mark step 7 as done

8. Step 8

   Bake at 175°C for about 10 to 12 minutes, and no longer, or the cookies will dry out and lose their color. Edges that set while the center stays soft give them their signature chewy texture. They're ready when the tops crack slightly, the edges are firm and the centers are still a little puffy and soft.

   Bake at 175°C for about 10 to 12 minutes.

   Mark step 8 as done

9. Step 9

   Leave the cookies on the sheet for about five minutes to firm up, then move them to a wire rack to cool for five minutes more. Fresh from the oven they are very soft and can snap in half if lifted too soon. They're finished when they have cooled, the tops are velvety red and the white chocolate has set slightly.

   Suggested time: about 10 minutes.

   Mark step 9 as done