free will baking: tahini walnut cookies & matcha swirl cookies

how to start customizing your favorite recipes: an intro to the art of adapting a recipe to better suit what you want to eat

If you’ve read the instructions on some of my recipes you probably think I’m a stickler for following a recipe to the T. Which is only a half truth. I fully believe and commit to the belief that you should follow any recipe as written at least once, especially if you’re a beginner baker/cook. Since the skill level of bakers following along here varies from first time baker to seasoned professional- I just want to be as clear as possible, that to get the results you see in a video or IG post, *this* is the method I used to make that happen. I know results may vary due to things like differences in ovens etc. I just want to put you in the best position to succeed ♡ But, I also want you to be creative. I want you to experiment with new flavors. I want you to make what you want to make!!

You don’t have to be a recipe developer to start. I think it’s safe to say that a lot of your favorite recipe developers started out by adapting their favorite recipes. Making tiny tweaks until the recipe is better suited to what we like in a baked good. From trying a recipe and thinking “This is really good but I prefer a brownie but I prefer one with more chocolate- how can I improve on this?” Because nothing is ever the best, I think there is alway room for some improvements. Even with my own recipes, I’m constantly tweaking them every few months striving to make them better than they already are. To adapt to the ways my tastes change too.

*Before we get too far into this, I want to say though- adapting a recipe slightly doesn’t make it yours. It’s always so important to give credit to the person who did most of the leg work for you. There’s a ton of grey area around what makes a recipe yours. Most people say if you change 3 things about a recipe it’s yours. I really don’t agree with that at all. If you make significant changes, sure. If you make so many changes your cookie has now become an english muffin? Sure, I’ll give you that. But if the change is, “I added 5 grams of flour, a sprinkle of poppy seeds and rolled the dough in sugar before baking.” Well then, you better give credit to the person you adapted the recipe from!! The person who did all the testing to get ratios, bake times and vessels right!! Recipes are all derivative but we all deserve credit for the original work we put in. Starting a recipe with “adapted from/inspired by so and so” doesn’t diminish your own creativity and work. OK. This is for anyone who is or wants to share recipes in an online pace!! (Do what you want for personal use.)*

I know that can be such a daunting place to start. We’ve been told our whole lives that baking is a science and any deviation from the recipe will be catastrophic. Which is once again- a half truth. Baking is 100% a scientific balance of ingredients but there is still so much wiggle room to make slight changes to alter flavor without completely altering the chemistry.

In my opinion, the best way to start experimenting with baking and getting a better understanding your ingredients, is to take one of your favorite recipes that you make all the time and start making changes every time you bake them. Now, don’t go and overhaul the entire recipe. But, do start small. I want you start with something you know because then you’ll better recognize what’s going on with each change. You’ll know if the change results in something similar, worse-off or maybe even better?

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Let’s take chocolate chip cookies for example:

Butter - 115 grams

Brown sugar - 115 grams

Granulated sugar- 115 grams

Egg- 50 grams (1 large egg)

AP flour- 227 grams

Baking Soda- 6 grams

Salt- 2 grams

Choc Chips- 175 grams

Alright, what happens if instead of brown sugar and granulated you did all brown? All granulated? What happens if you use half the amount of sugar? Instead of whole eggs, use all egg yolks. How does the cookie change now. It’s probably a little cakier, do you like it? Do you hate it? AP flour- the seeming standard in baker’s recipes. Swap it out for the same amount of cake flour. Sub some out for whole wheat flour. Drop the amount of flour down to 200 grams. Up it to 250. The chocolate chips, opt for dark chocolate instead of semi-sweet. Use a mix of milk and white. 50/50 chocolate with chopped nuts. Use cut up candy bars like butterfingers in place of the choc chips. Use oreos. Then once you’ve made every swap you can think of- add something. Add a tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice, add tahini, add a teaspoon of miso, add whatever you want. Make one change at a time, make note of what happens. The best way to learn, is simply by doing and seeing; by feeding your curiosity.

But, Kassie, How will I know what changes I can make? I get it, you want to make more educated swaps- set yourself up for success baby. Everyone hates to hear it but Google is a great place to start. “Can I swap All-pupose flour for masa harina (corn flour)?” Google: Yes, but use half the amount of masa to ap flour the recipe calls for. Google is great because it’s free.99. Another great place to do a little research before jumping off the deep end swapping eggs out for yolks, is in books. There are tons of great books that delve into the science behind baking and how what different ingredients bring to a recipe. “Baking Science by Dikla Levy Frances”- is a book I’ve read through a number of times and each time I feel like I learn a little something new. 10/10 would recommend. So whether you want to conduct in depth research or proceed with reckless abandon- you’ve got options.

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Now, let’s take the recipe and change it up:

Tahini Brown Butter Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies

• Browning the butter- not uncommon. But something to consider if you plan on browning the butter in your recipe. While browning you’re loosing moisture that boils off during the process. When I brown the original 115 grams of butter I’m usually left with 85-90 grams of butter. You’ll need to offset the moisture loss by either- adding some liquid back to the recipe- milk and water both worth great or you can add more “regular” butter to reach the original weight. Browning more butter than the recipe calls for so you’re left with the original amount the recipe calls for. Or by lowering the amount of flour in the recipe- since the starches are absorbing liquid. Play around with it.

• Higher ratio of brown sugar to granulated sugar. This is gonna give the dough more depth of flavor, a little less spread and more heft to the cookie. Plus some added moisture from the molasses in the brown sugar for a real gooey center and softer bite to the final cookie.

• The addition of tahini- all fat. Fat is FLAVOR. Fat also lends itself to the final texture of the cookie- more chew, more spread. Though the amount I added was purely for flavor and didn’t contribute to much to changes in texture.

• Dropped the flour amount a little to offset the loss of moisture from the browning of the butter.

• Lowered the baking soda ever so slightly to mitigate the amount of spread.

• Half choc chips half walnuts. Well- just because.

Ingredients:

• 145 grams butter

• 150 grams brown sugar

• 75 grams granulated sugar

• 50 grams egg, approx one large egg

• 45 grams tahini

• 205 grams all purpose flour

• 4 grams baking soda, (1/2 teaspoon)

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 100 grams dark chocolate chunks

• 75 grams chopped walnuts, toasted

Directions:

1. Brown the butter in a pot over medium heat. Take the butter to a deep amber color for maximum flavor.

2. Set the butter aside to cool for 30 minutes at room temp or for 10-15 in the freezer.

3. To the browned butter add the tahini, brown and granulated sugars. Whisking to combine.

4. Whisk in the egg- until homogenous.

5. Add in the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix until a dough forms with a few pockets of dries through out.

6. Add in the chocolate chips and walnuts. Mix until everything is evenly dispersed being careful not to over mix.

7. Using a 2 oz scoop (or whatever size cookie you want to make) portion your cookies on to a sheet tray and place the dough balls in the fridge for at least an hour- preferably overnight.

8. Preheat the oven to 355F.

9. Place your dough balls on the tray with 2 inches between each ball. If you made bigger cookies you’ll want to leave more space between the dough.

10. Bake for 12 minutes before rotating the tray in the oven to promote even baking. Bake from an additional 3-5 minutes depending on your oven. You’ll know the cookies are dome when the edges are golden brown and set!

11. Allow to cool at least 5 minutes before going to town on them.

choco tahini walnut gooooodness

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Matcha Brown Butter Choc Chip Cookies

Made these for my sister- she’s a fiend for choc chip cookies and has found herself with a matcha hyper fixation. Thought it would be nice to fuse her two faves together as a congrats on her new pharmacy rotation (-:

• Browning the butter- same as before. Except I’m doing the original 115 grams and adding some milk to the recipe to reach the original weight.

• Splitting the dough and adding matcha to half. I’ve found when adding matcha or even cocoa powder to half of a cookie recipe- you can add about 2 tablespoons and get the flavor coming through without altering the texture of the cookie.

• Half white choc to the matcha dough and half dark choc to the “plain” dough. Just for some interest in flavor.

  Ingredients:

• 115 grams butter

• 1 tablespoon milk

• 75 grams granulated sugar

• 150 grams brown sugar

• 50 grams egg, approx one large egg

• 227 grams all purpose flour

• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 2 tablespoons matcha powder (I used the Rishi Everyday Matcha from Sprouts!!)

• 90 grams white chocolate chips

• 90 grams dark chocolate chips

  Directions:

  1. Brown the butter in a pot over medium heat. Take the butter to a deep amber color for maximum flavor.

  2. Set the butter aside to cool for 30 minutes at room temp or for 10-15 in the freezer.

  3. To the browned butter add the milk, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Whisking to combine.

  4. Whisk in the egg- until homogenous.

  5. Add in the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix until a dough forms with a few pockets of dries through out.

  6. Split the dough in half. Add matcha powder and white chocolate chips to half. Mix until the matcha is evenly distributed. To the plain dough- add the dark chocolate chips.

  7. Scoop 1 ounce balls of each dough. Take one ball of each flavor dough and smush them together. Roll the dough slightly before ripping it in half and smushing the outer dough together. Rolling again to create the marbled effect. (This video better demonstrates what I’m trying to say lol)

  8. Place your cookies on to a sheet tray and pop the dough balls in the fridge for at least an hour- preferably overnight.

  9. Preheat the oven to 355F.

  10. Place your dough balls on the tray with 2 inches between each ball.

  11. Bake for 12 minutes before rotating the tray in the oven to promote even baking. Bake from an additional 3-5 minutes depending on your oven. You’ll know the cookies are dome when the edges are golden brown and set!

  12. Allow to cool at least 5 minutes before going to town on them.

  

  matcha marble babies

  Similar(ish) ingredients in similar ratios, two very different flavor profiles built off one original recipe.One with a nutty rich flavor- the other earthy and sweet. That’s it, what I think is the best way to start dipping your toes into having more interesting and flavorful bakes. Just have fun and be creative ♡

  xoxo, kassie ♡