Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies
Hi friends! Apologies for the unplanned hiatus on my part! I was doing loads of travel, connecting on a few exciting side projects, and taking some time to sort out this blog space. But I’ve got some exciting things for the blog! Including photos of MOROCCO (!) that I was fortunate enough to visit last month and a fun cocktail for margarita week – stay tuned for that. Just in time to get us all excited for those sunny warm days that will soon be coaxing us out of our winter parkas.In the meantime, I’ve got a nutty, chewy variation on a basic chocolate chip cookie right here for you. One thing I like to do in the doldrums of winter is bake. It’s a soothing activity that brings me copious amounts of joy. There’s something about that comfort that is specifically destined for blustery, wet days on the outside while you warm from the butter, sugar, and flour on the inside in your kitchen. Especially considering I hesitate to turn on my oven during the summer months.
Malted milk powder is a dried powder made from malted barley, wheat flour, sugar, and milk. The components are mixed followed by an evaporation process turning the liquid to a powder. This powder was commonly used as a nutritious treat when dissolved in milk for picky eaters as it is high in caloric content as well as vitamins and minerals. In the 20s malted milk powder became a pop culture phenomenon creating the malted milk shake and subsequently malt shops with the invention of the electric blender.
In baked goods, malted milk powder adds an incredible deep flavor to the overall profile. The malt flavor from the barley blends incredibly well with the flavors created during the baking process from the browning of the sugars. The milk sugars in the butter, the added brown sugar, and the sugar in the malted milk powder (both added sugar and milk sugars from the evaporated milk) create a large amount of Maillard browning and caramelization in addition to the malt flavor contributed by the milk powder. See what I mean with the layers? That is why products with malted milk powder taste so scrumptious! They’ve got a lot of good stuff going on. In addition to the flavor that malted milk powder imparts, the extra flour thickens baked goods further and creates a chewier product.