Continuing on with my Yorkshire Sea Salt series, I’m going for another biscuit-based recipe today. This another really fun bake that would make an amazing alternative for afternoon tea or a sweet platter!
Today’s recipe is for sea salted millionaire’s cookie cups – a perfect mix of sweet and salty. They’re perfect if you like salted caramel, but like a little bit of balance of sugary and slightly savoury flavours. I used my cookie cup base from my Halloween cookie cup recipe, plus homemade caramel for a totally winning combination.
Don’t forget to check out my other baking recipes too.
As with my sea salted caramel and dark chocolate thumbprint cookies, I used Yorkshire Sea Salt to add an edge to the caramel. And why is that so special? Well, the pure sea salt flakes are hand harvested from the North Yorkshire coast, and small batch processed using innovative, modern methods to create the purest, nutrient rich sea salt. The mineral structure of the salt is completely unique to the coastline, thanks to the nutrient rich sea grass meadows and ancient kelp forests, giving it a real edge. It’s definitely something worth having in your pantry, whether you love salted caramel or want to try taking your savoury dishes to the next level.
And you’ll be pleased to know that the caramel is really simple to make. You won’t need to use a sugar thermometer, just your eyes and patience. It’s pretty quick to pull together, but you will need to stay with the pan to make sure it doesn’t burn. It’s just a simple sugar, butter, cream, salt and water recipe, but the results are fantastic. Think a slightly runny caramel sauce that sets firm, but soft to the bite.
For this recipe, I wanted to go super sweet with a little bite. So I decided to draw inspiration from classic millionaire’s shortbread to pair up the sea salted caramel with milk chocolate and a cookie cup base. A chocolate chip cookie cup provides a great, sturdy base that holds the caramel in place. Then the melted milk chocolate on top adds a lovely snap in every bite.
These cups are ideal for eating alongside a cuppa, but are also equally incredible slightly warm. Whack one in the microwave for about 20 seconds to soften it up and enjoy it with a splash of leftover double cream. It’s a total treat!
Sea Salted Millionaire’s Cookie Cups
Course: DessertDifficulty: Medium12
servings1
hour14
minutesCombine sweet and salty with this delicious recipe for sea salted millionaire’s cookie cups. They’re a scrumptious mixture of chocolate chip cookie, homemade salted caramel and milk chocolate. Eating one just isn’t enough!
Ingredients
- For the cookie cups
275g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp cornflour
Half tsp salt
115g unsalted butter
135g light brown soft sugar
55g granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
200g milk chocolate chips
- For the caramel
60g unsalted butter
140g granulated sugar
80ml double cream
3 tbsp water
2 tsp Yorkshire Sea Salt
- For the topping
130g milk chocolate
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 180C/160C fan, and grease and lightly flour 12 holes on a cupcake/muffin tin.
- Mix the plain flour, bicarbonate of soda, cornflour and salt in a medium bowl, and set to one side.
- In a large mixing bowl, melt the butter, then whisk in the sugars for around 2 minutes until dissolved.
- Add in the egg and vanilla, and whisk until smooth.
- Add in the dry ingredients and chocolate chips, and mix together to form a dough.
- Split your dough into 12 balls and smooth them in your hands. Press each one down between your palms to form round discs, then place the discs into the greased cavities on your cupcake tin. Gently push the discs down into the cavities to form a cup shape, then smooth the top edges to perfect the shape. Once each cavity is filled, place the tin in the fridge for around 20 minutes.
- Once your dough has chilled, bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown. If the cookie cups have puffed up, use something small with a cylindrical bottom to press them back down (I used a shot glass). Leave the cookie cups in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove them to cool fully on a wire rack.
- While your cups are cooling, make your salted caramel. Heat the granulated sugar in a saucepan over a medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Take care not to burn the sugar, but allow it to melt to an amber-coloured liquid.
- Once the sugar has melted, stir in the butter until melted and combined. The caramel will bubble rapidly when the butter is added, so take care not to burn yourself. If the butter starts to separate or clump, remove the pan from the heat and whisk to combine it again.
- Stir constantly whilst you slowly pour in the double cream. The mixture may bubble up once again, but stir to combine. After it has all been stirred together, allow the pan to sit and boil for 1 minute, then remove from the heat, and add 2 teaspoons of Yorkshire Sea Salt and 3 tablespoons of water. Be sure to stir it well to make sure everything is combined.
- Let your caramel cool slightly, then use a tablespoon to carefully pour it into the wells of the cooled cookie cups. The caramel should still be slightly runny at this point, but as it cools fully in the cups, it will set to be firm, but soft to the bite. Allow the caramel to cool fully.
- Melt the milk chocolate in 20 second increments in the microwave or in a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Once melted, use a spoon to add a puddle of chocolate over the top of each caramel pool.
- (Optional) Crush some of the Yorkshire Sea Salt in a small bowl to make little flakes, then sprinkle them on top of each biscuit for the final decoration.
Notes
- The sea salted caramel can be made ahead, frozen and stored for up to 3 months. Alternatively, it can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 month. Be sure to warm it up for a few seconds before using.
- These cookie cups will last up to 3 days in an airtight container.
If you give these cookie cups a go, make sure you let me know in the comments below or tag me on Instagram with @thenorthernist. They’re definitely worth a try! Or make yourself some of the Yorkshire Sea Salt caramel to use in future recipes.
The Yorkshire Sea Salt was gifted to me in return for a recipe. All opinions are my own.
Leave a Reply