Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies

I have decided where I want to go to college, and, though I won't tell you which one, the school's color is red. I decided to celebrate by making red velvet crinkle cookies, which are also perfect for Valentine's Day. You can make them for your significant other. You can whip up a batch for your potential valentine. You can make them for yourself, wrap yourself in a blanket, and watch a Netflix marathon while inhaling a few dozen. I won't judge.

To me, what makes red velvet desserts red velvet is a hint of cocoa, a splash of buttermilk, and a good dose of red dye. Red velvet cake (or cupcakes) is a classic, but the flavors translate easily to cookies. The texture is cakey but still crisp on the outside from the powdered sugar, which magically creates a thin shell that shatters when you bite into it. The powdered sugar also adds a hint of sweetness; the cookies themselves aren't particularly sweet, so the combination is delicious.

The trick to the crinkle part of crinkle cookies is the powdered sugar (it's  kind of the not-so-secret ingredient in the recipe). Everyone kept saying how fancy the cookies looked and asking how long it took me to make them. Honestly, you just roll the dough in powdered sugar and they bake like that without any extra effort on your part. As the cookies puff up and expand in the oven, the powdered sugar sticks to the original surface of the dough, resulting in crackly patches of sugar. Just make sure you coat the dough generously in the powdered sugar so that you get distinct white patches.

3 1/4 Cups Flour
1/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
3/4 tsp Salt
1 1/2 Sticks Butter, Softened
1 1/3 Cups Sugar
3 Eggs
2 T Buttermilk
1/2 T Vanilla
Red Food Coloring
3/4 Cup Powdered Sugar

Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then add the buttermilk, vanilla, and dye. Stir in the flour mixture.

Chill the dough for 1 hour or until firm.

Heat oven to 350F and line cookie trays with parchment.

Scoop the dough into balls. Roll in the powdered sugar, place on the prepared trays, and bake for 10 minutes.

Makes 40
Recipe Adapted from Prevention RD