Taylor Swift is not just known for her chart-topping music and global tours. When she’s not performing to packed stadiums worldwide, she’s making a name for herself in another area.
Fans of the ‘Tortured Poets Department’ singer will recall that Taylor once famously revealed her recipe for chai sugar cookies. A perfect autumnal treat, Taylor’s homemade delights tend to make their annual online appearance around this time of year.
In the UK, a sugar cookie is essentially a vanilla biscuit made from sugar, flour, butter, eggs, vanilla, and either baking powder or baking soda. But to give it an autumnal twist, Swift adds a generous helping of chai leaves, a black tea infused with spices like ginger, cloves, cardamom and black peppercorn, giving it a sweet and spicy kick, reports the Mirror.
Taylor suggests a festive eggnog-inspired glaze made with milk (or eggnog), nutmeg, and cinnamon, making it an ideal treat for the festive season – and it’s something that everyone can make. Her biscuit – or should we say, cookie – recipe is a straightforward one from Joy the Baker.
The best part? It doesn’t take long to make, so you won’t be stuck in the kitchen for hours. Here’s what you’ll need to recreate Taylor’s culinary masterpiece.
Taylor Swift’s Chai Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 113g unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 118ml vegetable oil
- 115g granulated sugar, plus additional for sugaring tops
- 56g icing sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsps vanilla extract, or the seeds of 1 vanilla bean
- 1 bag chai tea leaves
- 250g all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the glaze:
- 112g icing sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tbsp milk or eggnog
Method
- Using a stand mixer or electric mixer, beat the butter on medium speed for about a minute, until it’s light and fluffy. Add the oil in the mixture and beat again on medium speed until at least mostly incorporated. The butter and oil might not fully combine, but don’t worry.
- Add the granulated sugar, icing sugar, egg, and vanilla, and mix again. Then add one bag of chai tea leaves to the bowl and mix.
- Then add dry ingredients – the flour, baking soda, and salt – and mix on low until fully combined. The dough should come out very soft, so it’s best to chill the dough for at least an hour before baking.
- When the dough is ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F/180℃. Shape the cookies into balls of dough that are one to two tablespoons large, and sprinkle sugar on top of them. Bake for eight to 12 minutes, depending on size. For softer cookies, remove from the oven before the edges start to brown.
- Let the cookies cool, then combine the ingredients for the glaze, and top with glaze and a sprinkle of cinnamon.