Mini Crunchy Matcha White Chocolate Chip Cookies
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Enjoy your afternoon tea with these buttery Mini Crunchy White Chocolate Chip Cookies. The unique flavor of matcha in the cookies is surprisingly delightful!
I just could not get enough of the previous Famous Amos Style Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies. Crackly and buttery, you will love the satisfying crunch you get in every bite. I also loved the cute size. I could literally eat 10 of these and not feel guilty about it! Each and every cookie is made with less than 1 teaspoon worth of dough.
I decided to add a little twist to these cookies. When comes to flavoring, my absolute favorite is matcha. I added matcha powder into the cookie dough. Then, I substituted the dark chocolate chips with white chocolate chips to balance out the bitterness of the matcha. If you are a matcha lover, you should try this recipe. They are so irresistible that it is almost impossible to eat just one.
Choosing the Right Matcha
Some of you may get confused about the difference between green tea and matcha. Don’t confuse matcha with the same green tea that you drink at home or Japanese restaurants. The names are slightly deceptive because green tea and matcha are used interchangeably, but they are actually slightly different. Matcha and green tea both come from the same plant, camellia sinensis, but they are grown and processed differently.
Matcha is made from whole green tea leaves that have been pulverized into a super fine powder. Because the whole leaf is powdered and ingested, instead of just water infused through the tea leaves, matcha has significantly greater substances and deeper flavor than green tea. Moreover, you cannot grind the regular green tea to make matcha, considering matcha is made from shade-grown tea leaves. Processing regular green tea involves the leaves being left in the sun. Comparatively, matcha bushes are specifically kept undercover to increase the chlorophyll and amino acid level in the leaves. That is why matcha has a much richer flavor than green tea.
Please note that matcha comes in both ceremonial-grade and culinary-grade. Ceremonial-grade matcha is considered higher quality and should be used for drinking. Meanwhile, the culinary-grade powder is intended for baking and cooking purposes.
This Recipe Makes a Lot of Cookies
These cookies are so tiny that they make hundreds of cookies. I like to make a full batch and keep some portioned, unbaked cookie dough in the freezer for those times you need a little something sweet to share to enjoy yourself.
You will want to use mini chocolate chips here for the full mini effect. Regular chocolate chips would overwhelm these little cookies. If you only have regular chocolate chips or even chocolate discs or bars, try chopping them into smaller pieces to simulate the size of mini chips.
Portion these cookies into third-quarter teaspoon balls. I use a teaspoon scoop to portion the dough for these cookies. I always recommend using the measuring spoon to get consistent sizing to help make sure that they all bake evenly.
Don’t Skip: Chill the Dough!
Chilling the dough intensifies the flavor of the dough and retains its shape in the oven. The flavor in the chilled cookies was noticeably richer because as the dough chills, it dries out slightly concentrating the flavor, and giving you crispier, chewier edges. Also chilling the dough gives the gluten in the dough a chance to relax, again, adding to the crispier texture of the edges. And the color deepens as well, so you have a beautiful deep-colored cookie, as opposed to a pale one.
The different chilling times also alter the taste, texture, and color of these cookies. The 24-hour cookies taste delicious, but I prefer the 48 and 72-hour cookies because they are much more flavorful. The chilling plays a crucial part here so do not skip it. If you don’t have too much time, chill the dough for just 2 hours is enough to make sure the cookies retain their shape in the oven.
More Matcha Recipes
- Matcha White Chocolate Brownies
- Zebra-Striped Matcha Shortbread Cookies
- Matcha Panna Cotta
- Eggless Matcha Tiramisu Cake
- Matcha Brownie Cookies
- Matcha Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup (150 gr) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150 gr) light brown sugar
- 6 tbsp (75 gr) granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tbsp malted milk powder
- 2 1/4 cups (270 gr) all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp matcha powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup (180 gr) mini white chocolate chips
Instructions
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy. Scrape the side with a spatula.
- Add egg, vanilla extract, and malted milk powder. Beat until well combined.
- Sift in all-purpose flour, matcha powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat on the lowest speed until just combined. Stir in white chocolate chips with a spatula.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. The longer the dough is refrigerated, the better the flavor is.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 320F/160°C. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats.
- Scoop 3/4 tsp of dough and roll it into tall mounds. Place them on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake until golden brown for 11- 13 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.
