Vanilla Wafers

Vanilla Wafers

I was on a quest to recreate the classic Nilla Wafer (which is one of my favorites).  While I can't say these cookies taste anything like the original I do dare to say they are BETTER.  This is the kind of cookie you start eating and don't stop until you are left with nothing but crumbs.  They are seriously DELICIOUS.  Not only are they fabulous they are super easy to make.  The only downside to this recipe is the use of real vanilla which most people don't have on hand and it's also pretty expensive.  I was lucky enough to get some free vanilla beans from school last semester and have been saving them for the right occasion and boy I am glad I did!  This cookie comes together just like any other cookie and then piped onto the cookie sheet for uniformity. 

After getting all of your batter piped onto the cookie sheets they bake for about 15-20 minutes.  Make sure to watch them closely and its always a good idea to rotate your trays during the baking process.  I got lazy with the rotating and burned one of my trays (I ate them anyway haha)

As you can see what you end up with is a thin, crunchy (the good kind of crunchy) cookie marked with the little black flecks that take this cookie from just OK to extra special. 

I brought a gallon sized Ziploc bag filled with these cookies to my office and they were gone within an hour.  These will definitely be placed in my regular cookie rotation, they are seriously THAT GOOD.

Vanilla Wafers

• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds only
• 1 large egg white
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 1/3 cups AP flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1. With an electric mixer, cream butter, salt, sugar and vanilla seeds until light.
2. Beat in egg white until well incorporated, scraping sides and bottom of mixing bowl to insure that all white has been incorporated.
3. Beat in extract and milk until well incorporated.
4. Whisk together flour and baking powder and add to butter mixture. Mix just to incorporate, scraping down sides and bottom of mixing bowl to insure that all flour has been incorporated.
5. Fit a piping bag with a large, plain pastry tip.  Fill bag with about 1/3 of the batter. Holding the filled bag perpendicular to a parchment-lined baking sheet, pipe batter into nickel-sized mounds, about 1 inch apart. To make neat, well-shaped cookies, as you finish piping each round, sweep the pastry tip horizontally off to the side with a slight curving motion. (The cookies should cover 2 to 3 standard baking sheets. Batter will hold for a while after it is piped, so trays can be baked one or two at a time, as your oven allows.)
6. Bake at 350°F for about 15-20 minutes, until cookies are lightly browned, rotating trays every 5 minutes or so for even coloring. Cool completely before storing. Cookies will keep in an airtight container for at least a week.

  ENJOY!!