I always say that I am more of a baker than a cook, yet I am so fussy with just eating anything anywhere. I am the main cook in our home and when it comes to baking, I refuse to let anyone help as all the times I have asked for assistance I end up with burned cookies. My memory of baking is from when I was 14. My mom decided to buy all baking ingredients and told me how to mix and the following day she took the cookies to work and came back with money from selling the cookies. From then on I would bake and she would sell the cookies for me.
When I left home for varsity in Johannesburg, baking would only happen when I went on school holidays to Limpopo. Mainly because when we are in student accommodation, we do not have an oven. In addition, this was a great snack to bring back sponsored by the parents.
Cookies and baked goods are eaten all over the world and they differ with each culture and country. Cookies or biscuits are sweet biscuit having a fairly soft, chewy texture and typically containing pieces of chocolate or fruit. The Six Major Kinds of Cookies are molded Cookies. Molded cookies are usually round in shape and are formed by rolling the dough with your hands. Dropped Cookies. Dropped cookies are usually the easiest kind of cookie to make, rolled cookies, pressed cookies, refrigerator cookies, bar cookies and no Bake cookies.
For me I refer to cookies as biscuits. In addition, when you speak with an American, biscuits are actually scone that part of the world. Most of our food influences in South Africa come mainly from the Netherlands and United Kingdom. South Africa was a colony of both and hence our dialect and food terms are aligned to those countries. The thing is I do have traditional recipes, but in recent years I have been looking at exploring new recipes combined with my favorite foods.
The key difference lies in the ingredients. The ingredients in cookies are more on the decadent side as compared to biscuits which are essentially just made using flour, sugar and butter as main ingredients. Cookies are a lot more loaded in terms of ingredients and flavors as compared to biscuits. In my history of baking, I also noted that the ingredients used also contribute to the taste. Though I was taught to bake by my mom, I had to now source and find ingredients that would bring out a great taste in my cookies and biscuits.
In South Africa, we use a lot of margarine in place of butter. Butter is a dairy product, made from milk or cream. When the liquid is churned, the butterfat separates from the buttermilk, making a solid yet spreadable light yellow substance. But butter isn't purely fat; it is about 20 percent water and also contains milk proteins (solids). "Light" butter contains more water, for less fat and calories.
Margarine is an oil-based product. It is typically made of 80 percent vegetable oil and water and flavored to taste like butter. (Most margarines contain trace amounts of dairy. If you're looking for a completely non-dairy product, choose "vegan margarine".) You can buy margarine in sticks or tubs. Butter-flavored spreads are sold in tubs and usually contain less oil and more water, for a softer consistency.
The way we prepare foods as well as the ingredients used is also affected by the economic state. t Southern Living, we're clearly in the "butter is better" camp. Butter is what we reach for when we're making pie crusts and biscuits, it's what we use to top mashed potatoes and cornbread, and it is, by far, the best thing to use when making frosting, pound cake, or cookies. (Here's the brand our test kitchen prefers.) But even we will admit that margarine has its place.
Health-wise, many nutrition experts say that plant-based margarine is better for you because it does not contain the cholesterol and saturated fats found in butter. For heart health, the Mayo Clinic recommends "a spread that doesn't have trans fats and has the least amount of saturated fat."
Some cooks prefer baked goods made with margarine because they have a softer texture. But flavor-wise, nothing can compete with butter—especially when it comes to cookies. As the dough bakes, the butter melts and browns, making the cookies taste nutty, rich, and caramelized. For flavor, nothing beats butter. (https://www.southernliving.com/fats/butter/difference-between-butter-margarine).
Growing up I have always used margarine. In recent years, I have introduced butter to part of my baked goods. The price difference also plays a role in why most people in this part of the world we prefer margarine. As I do not only bake for my consumption but to sell, I have to ensure that, the margarine that I use is of good quality and does not have an after taste. Many cheap margarines have an after taste. Even some of the big brands margarines are not suitable according to my taste.
When making biscuits, I ensure that I source the best margarine and butter. And also I cannot afford to be stingy as great products means I sustain my space in the market. And something I love when making cookies is using brown butter. Once you go brown you are hooked.
I will share ways to brown and store browned butter in the coming weeks as well as a few recipes using browned butter.
Ingredients
100g butter, softened to room temperature
½ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup Molases
2 large egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoons vanilla essence
2 cups self raising flour (spoon & leveled)
½ cup crushed oat
Creme Filling
¼ cup mascarpone at room temperature
1 ½ cup icing sugar
½ tsp vanilla essence
Instructions
Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a large baking sheet with baking paper. Set aside.
Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars together on medium-high speed until light and creamy, about 1 minute. Beat in the eggs one at a time, vanilla, and molasses, scraping down the sides as needed. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour and oats.
With the mixer running on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to wet ingredients. The dough will be quite thick and you may have to mix it all by hand after a few seconds in the mixer. Use a medium ice cream scoop to make equal size balls or make sure each ball of dough is 2 Tablespoons. These cookies will not spread that much, I used the flat glass to flatten the cookies. Ensure that there is enough space between the cookies to avoid cookies sticking together when you bake.
Bake until cookies are lightly golden around the edges. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the filling: Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat mascarpone on high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the icing sugar and beat on medium speed for 1-2 minutes. Pour vanilla extract. Beat on high for 2-3 minutes until fluffy. If filling is excessively thick, add a couple more teaspoons of mascarpone. Pour the icing sugar in moderation to avoid a thick cream. Spread 1.5 Tablespoons of cream filling on the bottom side of half of the cookies; top with remaining cookies, right side up.
Cookies stay fresh and soft (with creme filling) at room temperature for 2 days in an airtight container. After that, store in the refrigerator to keep the creamy filling fresh.
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