Hot Buttered Rum Cookies

Hot Buttered Rum is a favorite at the holidays. It can very a lot, so when you find a version you like it is a good idea to stick with it. One restaurant near us made a great version, but then one year my husband and I noticed that it was no longer on the menu. Figuring that perhaps they had not added specialty drinks yet, we asked. The server and they checked, but they came back and said that it contained an ingredient with trans-fat, and would no longer serve it. While I guess I am happy that they take this approach, there is nothing healthy about Hot Buttered Rum.

When I found this recipe for Hot Buttered Rum cookies, I figured they would be great. The original recipe called for one roll of refrigerated cookie dough. I think sugar cookie dough is so easy to make that I simply make my own, and that is reflected here. The scratch recipe makes more than the needed 16 ounces, so I did not use all of the dough I made. I did refrigerate my sugar cookie dough as I figured that the recipe expected that the dough would be cold and firm, so I figured an hour in the refrigerator would help.

I will say that mixing extra ingredients into sugar cookie dough was challenging! It certainly was quite the workout for my mixer, but it did well in the end. Rolling cookies in brown sugar is different, but you want to make sure to remove any extra brown sugar on the baking sheet, as that will burn. I used rum extract instead of rum in these cookies, but I think rum would have been better. I think the extract has a slight medicinal flavor, but it is subtle. The cookies are flavorful and the brown sugar coating provides a different texture for these cookies.

Hot Buttered Rum Cookies
1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
1 cup crushed gingersnap cookies
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoons cinnamon
Zest of one orange
Additional brown sugar

1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon rum or rum extract

Make the sugar cookie dough: in a large mixer bowl, combine the powdered sugar, butter, egg, and vanilla on medium, beating until combined. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour, baking soda, and Cream of Tartar, mixing until a dough forms. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Break up the chilled cookie dough into a large mixer bowl. Add the gingersnap crumbs, ginger, cinnamon, and orange zest to the bowl and mix until the ingredients are incorporated.

Shape the dough into balls and roll in the brown sugar, evenly coating the dough and making sure there is no excess brown sugar on the baking sheets.

Bake for 12-14 minutes, until golden. Allow to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
    
Once the cookies are cool, make the glaze: in a medium bowl whisk together the powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons milk and rum/rum extract. Whisk until smooth, adding additional milk if the glaze is too thick. Drizzle the glaze over the cookies and allow the glaze to set before serving.

Recipe from Pillsbury. Sugar Cookie recipe from The Betty Crocker Cookbook.