Saturday, January 22, 2011

OATMEAL SCOTCHIES - With a Chipotle Pepper Spice Kick!


I seem to do this post once a year... for good reason...


It's just a tiny bit, but OMG, what an addition.  Here's what I did...


Really, it's all there in the title, but I have photo proof just in case you don't believe me... AND IT WORKED!

I got this idea from a grilling class I took ages ago, where the instructor suggested that a 1/4 teaspoon of Chipotle Pepper added to a "sweet" recipe is too small an amount to overpower the sweet, but it will add an indefinable taste to the recipe that will set your dish apart from the masses.
So, armed with the plan to make a common recipe special, here's what I did...

The recipe I used is on the back of every bag of Nestle's butterscotch chips. I was planning to see if that small amount would make a difference, so I went with a classic.
I made the recipe exactly as printed, I just added ONLY 1/4 teaspoon of the chipotle spice.
The recipe made 4 dozen cookies. I passed some around the neighborhood. NO ONE noticed the pepper taste, but several people without prompting noticed that there was "something extra". I pressed, no one said it was unpleasant, everyone agreed that it added to the cookie. ME, I loved em. There are different types of taste buds in your mouth. The front of the tongue tastes sweet better than the back, and the back tastes spicy better. By adding such a small amount, you get the entire tongue having a little kick.

It takes a little bit of nerve to tamper with a classic. But I really do believe the combination of a tiny amount of spice (chipotle) added to a sweet dessert (in this case, the classic Scotchie) Made a subtle but BIG difference... It worked! I am now very excited to give this theory a try next time I make a chocolate cookie..
.

Even my wife's lazy good for nothing cat, Chang was excited to give em a try.


4 comments:

  1. I love putting chillies in sweet foods. Really interesting theory too.

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  2. I love the combo of sweet and spicy in my food. I think that your neighbors are very lucky to have such a nice neighbor. Blessings, Catherine

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  3. I feel like adding a hint of spice to just about anything elevates it to a whole new level. Delicious.

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  4. I like adding hints of chile with chocolate, just like a mole'. Don't turn your back on Chang, his intentions don't look honorable!

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