Cream Cheese Cookies

Cream Cheese Cookies - made dough December 27, 2021 from Preppy Kitchen

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg, room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I used 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)

1 3/4 cups (210 grams) all-purpose flour (my measurement weighed 234 grams)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and cream cheese together until combined and smooth. Add granulated sugar and beat until combined. Add egg and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Add to butter-cream cheese mixture on low speed in two separate additions, mixing just until combined. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl to keep dough even-textured.
3. Cover and chill for 30 minutes. Portion into golf-ball-size dough balls, cover and chill or freeze another 2 hours or overnight.
4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and evenly space dough balls. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until edges are set and middles no longer look raw. Let rest on baking sheets for several minutes then transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely.

Whenever you see me using the same ingredient in a fairly short amount of time, you know I went to Costco and am trying to use it up before it expires. I did the Cream Cheese Brownies from Maida Heatter and now I bring you Cream Cheese Cookies from Preppy Kitchen.

The hardest part (and it's not hard at all) is making sure you bring your butter and cream cheese to room temperature then beat them together well enough for them to combine without lumps. It's "hard" in my kitchen, mostly because it's winter, it's snowing outside and I like to keep my house on the cool side. So "room temperature" may not be all that warm in my house.

So, yes, I noticed a few small-ish cream cheese lumps in the cookie dough as I portioned it out. It wasn't the end of the world though as, unlike butter, cream cheese doesn't leak out and spread when it's baked. And once these cookies baked, I couldn't find the cream cheese lumps anymore. 

These have a great, chewy-dense-cakey texture. I tried to zero in on the inside so you can see what it's like. Even if you're not a fan of cream cheese, these aren't cheesecake-level cream cheese-y. Instead they have a very slight tang but the butter flavor still comes through. Overall, a nice, simple but good cookie.