Cinnamon roll cookies

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/12/2012 (4678 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Sara Gunhus-Hanley, a former Winnipegger now living in Thunder Bay, knows cookies. She bakes between 20 and 30 types every Christmas. And these heavenly cinnamon cookies, drizzled with white chocolate and honey icing, are the ones that always disappear first.

Cinnamon roll cookies

228 g (1 cup) butter, softened
425 ml (1 3/4 cups) granulated sugar, divided
3 egg yolks
20 ml (1 tbsp plus 1 tsp) honey, divided
5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla
625 ml (2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
5 ml (1 tsp) baking powder
2 ml (1/2 tsp) salt
2 ml (1/2 tsp) cream of tartar
15 ml (1 tbsp) cinnamon
250 ml (1 cup) white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 175C (350F). Line cookies sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, cream butter and 310 ml (1 1/4 cup) sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks, 15 ml (1 tbsp) honey and vanilla. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and cream of tartar; gradually add to creamed mixture. Scrape down sides of bowl and mix well. On a large plate, mix remaining 125 ml (1/2 cup) sugar with cinnamon. Shape a heaping 15 ml (1 tbsp) of dough into a 15 cm (6 in) log and roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Loosely coil log into a spiral and place on prepared cookie sheets 2.5 cm (1 in) apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool completely. In a small bowl in microwave on low temperature, melt chocolate with 5 ml (1 tsp) honey, stirring until smooth. Drizzle icing over cooled cookies and let icing set.

Tester’s notes: I can see why this cinnamon roll-inspired cookie is a standout. Sara says that the white chocolate icing isn’t necessary with a cookie this rich, but it looks good — and continues the cinnamon roll motif.