Oatmeal Dried Strawberry Cookies with Cacao Nibs and a Chocolate Heart
These oatmeal dried strawberry cookies have cacao nibs and a chocolate heart nestled in the very center, creating a beautifully complex and sophisticated flavor that are easy to make! I used Dove chocolate hearts (they’re typically available in January and February up to Valentine’s day) but you can swap them with another chocolate heart, regular dove squares, Hershey’s kisses, chocolate fèves, or just a square piece of your favorite chocolate. Just pick a chocolate that you love to eat out of hand. And if you have a difficult time finding dried strawberries, feel free to swap out dried cherries, which will give you an equally amazing cookie. For more substitution and swap ideas, see my section above.
Refrigerating Time for Brown Butter 30 minutesminutes
Servings 16
Calories 193kcal
Author Irvin
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
1/2cupunsalted butter115 g or 1 stick
1/2cuppacked dark brown sugar110 g
1/2cupwhite sugar100 g
1teaspoonvanilla extract
1/2teaspoonbaking soda
1/4teaspoonkosher salt
1/2teaspooncinnamon
1/4teaspoonfresh ground black pepperoptional but recommended
1large egg
1 1/2cupsrolled oats, regular or thick-cut, not quick cook165 g
3/4cupall-purpose flour105 g
1/2cupdried strawberriesor dried cherries, 85 g
1/4cuproasted cacao nibs35 g (swap chopped nuts if you want)
To finish
Pinchof flaky saltlike Maldon or sea salt (optional but recommended)
16chocolate heartsor other 1-inch in diameter chocolate
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.Brown the butter by cutting the butter up and placing it in a medium-sized skillet or saute pan. Cook the butter on high heat until it melts, then reduce the heat to medium low. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the solid milk fats start to brown and smell fragrant. Immediately remove from heat and pour into a heatproof bowl or container, scraping out all the brown bits. See my section above on tips on browning butter. Refrigerate the bowl of browned butter for 30 minutes, or until it is solid.
Once the butter has cooled and solidified, scrape it into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the brown sugar, white sugar, vanilla extract, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and black pepper. Mix the ingredients on low speed, until the ingredients start to blend, and then increase the speed to medium. Mix together until all the ingredients are creamy and uniform in color, about 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the egg, and mix to incorporate, scraping down the sides halfway.
Add the rolled oats and flour to the bowl, and mix on slow speed, until the dry ingredients are incorporated.Add the dried strawberries and cacao nibs to the bowl. You can blend these ingredients in on low speed, but I like to hand mix them in, to prevent the strawberries from being smushed too much or the cacao nibs breaking up. Plus when I do it by hand, I have more control and can make sure all the ingredients are evenly distributed.
Once the dough is made, portion out golfball-sized balls of dough. If you have a scale, this is about 45 to 50 grams of dough per cookie. Roll up 8 cookies and place them staggered on the baking sheet. Sprinkle each cookie dough ball with a pinch of sea salt if you wish.Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the cookie is golden brown around the edges. While the first batch of cookies are baking, unwrap 8 chocolate hearts (I used Dove brand chocolate hearts). When the cookies are done baking, take them out of the oven and place each heart in the middle of the still warm cookie. The heat of the cookie will melt the chocolate slightly, adhering it to the cookie. Let the cookies cool for about 4 to 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then carefully move them to a wire cooling rack. Let cool completely before serving (the chocolate will turn shiny, then dull a bit after the cookies and chocolate have cooled completely).Repeat this process with the remaining cookie dough and chocolates.