Carrot Cake Cookies

Source: Lauren Strand via Pinterest

"I'm sorry, it's just one of those days." I think I said that four different times today. Once when I stared blankly at the woman at the sheriff's office while being fingerprinted (no worries, this is routine!), once after driving past our babysitter's house three times before realizing I didn't remember what it looked like AND I didn't have my phone to call my husband so he could tell me, again after saying something REALLY stupid to another couple at our training tonight, and again when it took me about 20 minutes to understand The Geologist's "Twilight" reference (our sitter's name is Bella...) There were probably more. We all have them, those days when our brain just completely deserts us. It's different than the moments when it just checks out; after a whole day you just want to wear a sign: "Please ignore me, it's one of those days!"

Regardless, you WILL get a recipe today! Because these cookies are just too darn yummy not to share, no matter how little brain I have! I wish I could eat about a half-dozen of them right now, I would feel much better... until I realized that I had eaten half a dozen cookies and then I would feel awful... so it's probably a good thing there are no cookies. Anymore. I already ate them all. It is officially time for bed. Tomorrow I get my wisdom teeth out, maybe if you're reeeeeally lucky I'll still be loopy while writing tomorrow's post! I'm pretty entertaining post-anesthesia while on pain meds. We can only hope, right? Okay April, stop talking. (typing...)

Carrot Cake Cookies (adapted slightly from Baker's Royale)
Printable Recipe

½ cup unsalted butter, browned and cooled
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
½ cup dark brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup (2 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 Tb molasses
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
2 ¼ cups shredded carrots
2 ¼ cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 cups chopped pecans, toasted

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
4 oz cream cheese, softened
2 Tb butter, melted and cooled
2-3 Tb milk

Heat and melt butter on medium heat in a small saucepan until it is brown and nutty smelling. Set aside to cool slightly. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil, spread nuts on baking sheet in a single layer, and let toast in the oven while it is preheating. Remove when browned and toasty-smelling.

Beat egg, yolk, and sugars together on medium speed until light and glossy. (about 1-2 minutes) Add cream cheese, vanilla, spices, baking powder and soda, salt and molasses and mix to combine. Add shredded carrots to mixture and mix to combine. Add in browned butter and mix to combine. Turn off mixture.
Using a wooden spoon or a sturdy spatula, fold flour and nuts into wet mixture. Place on lined/greased baking sheet by heaped tablespoonfuls, about a dozen per sheet. Bake cookies, one pan at a time, for 10-15 minutes. (mine turned out kinda big, so they took 15 minutes) Cool cookies on a wire rack before glazing.

For the Glaze:
Place sifted sugar, softened cream cheese and melted butter in a bowl and whisk to combine. Pour in 2 tablespoons of milk and mix to combine; add more milk as needed. Dip tops of cookies in glaze or drizzle over the top.

First of all, you've got to check out Baker's Royale, her recipes and her pictures are just fantastic. Her photos of food are art. I wish I could make food look that good!! I've learned a lot, but I'm pretty sure I don't have her eye for this stuff. I'll show you!

Her Carrot Cake Cookies:

My Carrot Cake Cookies:

Was I trying to imitate her?? Heck yeah I was!! See, here's my problem. Drizzling is much more photogenic, obviously, but I don't think of that. I think, "Cream cheese frosting?? Um, we're going to need as much of that as possible!" and then realize "Oops. Those are kinda funny-looking..."

Enough about the pictures. I'm just whining because I took pictures of my cookies during a snowstorm and due to terrible light have very few that are usable. I love my funny-looking cookies, they're scrumptious!! Especially with all that cream cheese frosting! :) If you, like me, have ever thought, "Man, carrot cake sounds so good right now! But it would be silly to make a whole cake..." here is your answer!! These are soooo good. I don't know if it's the browned butter, the toasted nuts (you must toast your nuts!), the perfectly chewy, fluffy-but-not-too-light texture, the toothsome bits of carrots or the yummy spices, but they are cookies of genius and I adore them. You should make them, and I should go to bed. Hee hee, this was fun... :)

Shared at On the Menu Monday