This Is the Most Joyful Dessert—Make It on Repeat for the Holidays
Abi Balingit's skillet cookie is the most joyful and delicious dessert you'll want to make on repeat for your favorite people.
In my first apartment in Crown Heights, I used it to bake ube crinkle cookies for my roommates and me. I wanted to make a version of the moist, powdered sugar–topped ube crinkle cookies from Kape Republik, a Filipino coffee shop and bakery in Cerritos, California. My family in Southern California shared some with me back in 2016, and I was itching to have a taste of them on the East Coast.
For this recipe, I also wanted to re-create the Pizookie from BJ’s, one of my favorite comfort chain restaurants. There are BJ’s locations nationwide, and the closest one to me in Stockton was on Pacific Avenue. After tennis practice in high school, my friend and teammate Chelsea would drive us to BJ’s just for dessert. Without fail, we would get the signature Pizookie, usually the chocolate chip flavor with vanilla ice cream. My eyes would pop out of my skull every time I saw the giant cookies served in hot cast iron skillets and topped with scoops of melty ice cream.
Baked ube crinkle dough makes for an ideal skillet cookie with its chewy center and crisp edges. I also like doubling up on the ube flavor by piling ube ice cream on top of the cookie.
I prefer the store-bought ube halaya for this recipe in particular to achieve a chewy crinkle cookie.
Preheat the oven:
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Grease a 7 1/2-inch cast iron skillet with nonstick spray and set aside.
Combine the wet ingredients:
Place the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Mix in the egg, ube halaya, and ube extract until the mixture is well combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
Add the dry ingredients:
In a separate small bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt until the baking powder is evenly distributed. Adjust the mixer to the lowest speed and gradually stir in the flour mixture until it forms a dough and there are little to no flour streaks.
Add the cookie dough to the skillet:
Using the rubber spatula, transfer the sticky dough to the greased skillet until it’s a smooth layer that reaches the edges of the pan. With a small sieve, dust the entire surface of the cookie with the powdered sugar.
Bake and serve:
Bake for 32 to 35 minutes, or until the cookie has puffed up and set. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes and serve warm with scoops of ube ice cream. It’s best eaten straightaway.
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