You awaken from a magnificent dream. It would be bliss if you could roll over and go back to sleep. The demands of the day drag you out of bed. You shuffle weary-eyed into the kitchen where a brewing process begins. There is the flip of a switch, a familiar sound of the coffeemaker, and soon the air is filled with a delightful aroma. You pour a cup of the magical elixir that wakes you up and gets you going. One sip and all is much better. And when you need a pick-me-up later, grab a couple of coffee crisps to get a little boost in your day.
Cookies are a quintessential afternoon snack. They are often enjoyed with coffee. You get the best of both worlds in these crisps. What is interesting is the coffee flavor seems to not stand out as much when they are eaten with coffee. How do I know this? Fortunately I had a whole team of taste testers to try the cookies. I took them to the WordCamp Atlanta conference. It seemed appropriate to have caffeine packed cookies at a techy event. They gave me rave reviews including the conference center inquiring if they could buy them from me so they could offer them as a menu item at future events.
Coffee crisps are easy to make. They are basic slice and bake cookies. Two tablespoons of instant coffee granules are in the dough. I recommend using the finest ground or powder version you can find. Rum is the hint of flavoring instead of the usual vanilla. Be sure to watch the cookies when baking. They are so thin and bake at a high temperature that they can easily be over-baked. Take them out as soon as the edges turn light brown. Remove them immediately from the baking sheets too.
Are you a coffee drinker? Or is it tea for you? Do you enjoy those flavors in treats? If so, there are some delightful cookie recipes featuring one or the other below. Scroll down to find details, recipes, and links to each one. For another tea treat, take a look at Thai Iced Tea for a creamy beverage to cool you down.
Coffee Crisps
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons instant coffee powder/granules
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup shortening
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon rum
- Pecan halves
Instructions
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Whisk together flour, coffee, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
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Cream shortening and butter in a large mixing bowl. Add sugar and brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
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Add egg and rum and beat until combined.
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Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. The dough will appear crumbly.
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Divide dough in half. Push together each half and roll into logs 2 inches in diameter. Wrap each log in wax or parchment paper and chill overnight.
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment or non-stick liner.
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Remove paper from dough logs and cut dough into ⅛ inch slices.
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Place slices 1 inch apart on baking sheets. Gently press a pecan half into the center of each slice.
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Bake for 7 to 9 minutes, until the edges are light brown.
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Watch the cookies beginning at the 6 minute mark and be careful not to over-bake. They will brown very quickly.
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Immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack and cool completely.
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Cool cookie sheets completely between batches.
Recipe Notes
Time stated above does not include chilling dough overnight.
Recipe adapted from Southern Living Christmas Cookies cookbook published in 1986 (no longer in print).
The Creative Cooke Exchange theme this month is Wake from Winter with Coffee and Tea. Unlike last month, now our Spring Fever has some basis in reality! If you are a blogger and want to join in the fun, contact Laura via email (thespicedlife AT gmail DOT com) and she will get you added to our Facebook group where we coordinate events.
You can also use us as a great resource for cookie recipes. Be sure to check out our Facebook page, our Pinterest Board, and our monthly posts. You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! Also, if you are looking for inspiration to get in the kitchen and start baking, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made:
- Vanilla Rooibos Tea Cookies from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
- Matcha Green Tea Cream Filled Sugar Cookies from NinjaBaking.com
- Orange Spiced Tea Cookies from A Baker's House
- Chocolate Espresso White Chocolate Chunk Cookies from Karen's Kitchen Stories
- Mocha Viennese Swirl Cookies from Baking Yummies
- Hazelnut Espresso Cookies from Basic N Delicious
- Café au Lait Bars from The Spiced Life
- Piped Coffee Butter Cookies from Made with Love
- Chai Chocolate Chip Cookies from Noshing with the Nolands
- Coffee Crisps from Magnolia Days
- Matcha White Chocolate Cookies from It's Yummi!
- Jasmine Lychee Green Tea Shortbread from Food Lust People Love
- Mocha Meringue Cookies from Cookie Dough & Oven Mitt
- Earl Grey French Macarons with Honey Rose Water Buttercream from Sweet Cinnamon and Honey
I really like the sound of you cookies, they would be nice with a cup of coffee just about now.
Thank you very much. They do go nicely with coffee.
How great that the conference center wants to serve your cookies! Hope you made a deal, Renee. Your coffee crisps sound perfectly delightful!
I couldn't make a deal because I don't have a commercial kitchen. Darn food laws.
These cookies look fantastic! I am hoping they show up at my door.
Thanks Isabel, unfortunately they are all gone. Maybe I'll send some of the next batch to you.
Wow! That is the ultimate compliment, Renee. How great that restauranteurs wanted to buy your cookies...You can bet this recipe is going in my keepers file =)
Thanks Kim and it really was an ultimate compliment.
Your cookies are beautiful, girlyfriend!
Thanks girlyfriend!
You must be so pleased to receive positive reviews about these cookies. They look very pretty!
Oh yes, I am very pleased. Thanks Deepti.
These look fantastic! Plus, not many people here like coffee so I wouldn't have to share very much. Win-win! 🙂
A very nice win-win for you Marye. Thanks so much.
Gosh you know your cookies must taste good when people not only ask for seconds but want to buy them from you for future events-- fantastic! Glad you had a good time at WordCamp and I am sure you made many people happy there with this cookie.
Oh yes, I had lots of happy WordCampers around me those days. The cookies disappeared quickly.
Your pictures are stunning and your cookies are perfection!!
Thank you Tara and you made me smile with your kind words.
Mmmm, I know I would love these. Crispy with a touch of coffee flavor sounds wonderful.
Thanks Norma.
Reading this made me smile. A lot. These cookies are so perfect and your photos are beautiful. I love the tea cup too!
Thanks Karen. The cup is part of my German Sammeltassen collection (cups and plates used for afternoon coffee time).
I love coffee and tea. These cookies and pictures look fabulous! What a great compliment! Sell those babies! lol
I wish I could sell the cookies, however it would only be for a bake sale (no commercial kitchen).
I love both tea and coffee (but I will admit, I am a true tea fanatic...4 cups a day average haha). I love how thin and light these look! And the pecan on top is the perfect touch! Definitely will be saving this recipe to try! 🙂
Thanks Sophia. I don't drink tea nearly as often as I do coffee. I do enjoy tea though.
I love that the conference center wants to buy your cookies, Renee! What a wonderful compliment to your baking skills. I'm not surprised at all - these cookies look and sound delicious! Anything filled with coffee is good in my books. Wish I had a plateful of these right now with a cuppa joe!
Unfortunately I don't have a commercial kitchen so I can't sell the cookies to them. Until then I can make more and share them with my friends and family.
These look superb Renee!
Thank you so much Laureen
These cookies sound delicious, and were obviously a big hit at the conference. Love the photos too!
Thanks Felice and I really appreciate the compliment of my photos.
I love this. Just the idea of it is making me look forward to breakfast tomorrow morning. Lovely photography too.
I was wondering is there any place for crushed hazelnuts or almonds in there. Or maybe ground nuts? Or maybe not at all - these are best left as they are. Let me know what you think!
Adding the crushed nuts may throw off the texture. You could experiment or possibly reduce the flour a little. I'm just not sure so I'd keep them they way they are for the first batch.
My mom is looking over my shoulder at these cookies - she loves coffee and pecans!
Then you need to bake some for her (hint hint).
I desperately wish A that I liked plain coffee or B that I could handle any kind of coffee in the morning. Alas I cannot, but I absolutely adore sweet coffee flavors so I have to get my kicks from afternoon Starbucks and treats like these. Those are gorgeous--love them!
Thanks Laura. They really are a nice afternoon kick of a treat.
These are lovely! I am a tea drinking--no coffee for me, but these would go splendidly with tea!
I think they would go nicely with tea too.
These sound and look amazing! Excited to try them out for a picnic snack 😀
How many cookies does this recipe yield?
Hi Laura! This recipe makes 3 1/2 dozen cookies. I've updated the recipe to reflect the yield.