Christmas Cookies 2007: Chai Shortbread

With these cookies, I've done something I don't normally do - I've chosen to make a cookie from Cooking Light. I don't normally do low-fat cookies. However, with 51% of the calories coming from fat, this one isn't so low-fat.

Chai Shortbread

I love chai and I love shortbread and the combination of the two sounded like heaven. While these cookies are quite good, they didn't quite measure up to what I think these could be. First of all, I think it's unrealistic to expect a lower fat shortbread cookie to measure up - after all, shortbread is ALL about the butter. Secondly, the chai flavoring just didn't shine through enough for my tastes - the flavoring was nice, it just didn't seem "chai" enough. My favorite chai tea is Celestial Seasonings India Spice Chai - one of the most flavorful chais I've tasted.

I'm not giving up on this idea though - I still believe it's a match made in heaven, we just need to do a little experimenting. The shortbread part would be easy - I can just go back to a full-fat version - I've tried a very good one from Martha Stewart in the past. As for the chai spices - that will take some experimenting to find just the right blend. I'm also interested in finding a nice chai blend to augment some teas I've bought that haven't been up to snuff - if I can add my own chai spice mix to them, maybe they won't go to waste. I will post if I come up with a good one.....

I've been cooking, baking and taking pictures and it's starting to really pile up. Hopefully I'll have time over the holidays to get things caught up here on the blog. Maybe I'll even have time this week - the Christmas shopping is done with just a little wrapping to do..........