Sparkling in the Sun

The way that a handful of plain old sugar can catch the light and glitter like diamonds is just remarkable. Such tiny crystals seem incapable of such beauty, and yet somehow they can shimmer and shine right alongside the finest jewels when the sun hits those sweet granules.

All that glitters,” the latest theme for Sugar High Friday, is a particularly creative idea, forcing participants to really open their eyes and seek out those lovely highlights that might otherwise be overlooked.

The sparkled ginger cookies from VwaV immediately came to mind after reading the title, but of course I put my own little spin on them. Switching them to sparkled chai cookies, I simply substituted agave for the molasses, added in some cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, and a pinch of black pepper, and these cookies possessing some sweet heat were born.

Easily catching my eye from across the room, there’s no way a pile of these gems will go unnoticed, or uneaten, for long.

33 thoughts on “Sparkling in the Sun

  1. I made mine with half oil and half applesauce–I forgot to squish them and they came out as adorable (and delicious) round puffs, chewy on the outside, light and fluffy in the center.

    I just started reading the blog about a month ago–I *always* enjoy the photos and have already made several of your fantastic recipes. The cookie monsters at my house aren’t all crochet…

  2. I think this is my new favorite cookie… I went too scant on the cardamom and pepper on the first batch, added 3/4 tsp cardamom and a whole 1/2 tsp of pepper (both spices fresh-ground) on the second try, and they came out nice and spicy. Definitely inspired to try out black pepper in other baked goods!

  3. Lovely. These cookies not only sparkle but look so crispy that they would shatter into a million stars in your mouth. Thank you for sharing them for SHF.

  4. I love Chai tea so I’ll definitely have to try these! I made chocolate truffles last year and flavored them with Chai tea and they were so delicious. The tea gave them a slight, almost liqueur taste.

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