Coffee cake cookies

My family has all the holidays divvied up quite nicely and evenly.  Since as far back as I can remember, since my grandmother vacated her role of preparer of break fast (the meal after the fast of Yom Kippur, when I eat almost 300 times more calories in one meal than I typically eat in a day), my aunt has held the title.  And although the meal is chock full of delicious food (appetizing and bagels and cream cheese, oh my!) we feel the need for dessert.  Even though a typical breakfast doesn't have dessert, our break fast always does.

My grandmother still usually makes the coffee cake -- handed down to her from her mother, my great grandmother, and possibly (and likely) from generations before her -- but since she did some sort of acrobatics last month and ended up with a fractured shoulder (she's healing quite nicely and is quite the champ!), I graciously usurped the cake-baking responsibilities for her.  Here's the problem.  This recipe I talk of?  This heavenly coffee cake?  Well it's a family secret.  It's always referred to as "Nanny Rose's Coffee Cake," and even if you promised to call it "Julie's Great Grandmother Rose's Coffee Cake," I don't think my family would ever forgive me for sharing it with you.  I did bake it and talk about it on the blog almost 3 years ago (see here for that post and a fabulous picture of four generations of women on my mom's side -- me, my mother, my grandmother, and my two great grandmothers), but I figured it wasn't fair to have another post about the cake and leave you drooling with no recipe, so I decided it was only fair to also make some coffee cake cookies.  Because that recipe I can share with you!

My Great Grandmother's Coffee Cake

I saw this recipe for coffee cake cookies over 6 months ago and I emailed it to myself.  "I must make these," I thought to myself, but then I never did.  See, just about anything that is advertised as coffee cake gets my attention.  And if you say coffee crumb cake, well then I'm 1000% sold!  So imagine a coffee cake cookie topped with loads of crumb topping, in a portable snackable delicious cookie that's been dusted in a faint snowfall of powdered sugar?!  I can't believe it's taken me this long to make them!

Coffee Cake Cookies
From Cookies & Cups

Ingredients:

For the crumb topping:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 2/3 cup flour

For the cookie:

10 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1.5 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 1/3 cup flour

Optional:

powdered sugar, for dusting

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicon liner.
Set aside.

Make the crumb topping.
Mix all the crumb ingredients together in a medium bowl.
Cut together with a pastry cutter or a fork until evenly mixed.
Refrigerate while making the dough.

Make the cookies.
Mix together the butter, shortening, and both sugars for 1-2 minutes on medium speed, until combined and smooth.
Add in cinnamon, eggs, and vanilla.
Continue mixing until evenly combined.
Turn mixer to low and mix in baking powder, salt, and flour.
Mix until dough comes together evenly.

Scoop cookies out using a cookie scoop or spoon (about 3 Tbsp) and place on lined cookie sheets.  If using a spoon, roll dough into balls.
Make an indentation in the center of the cookie dough.
Scoop at least 1 Tbsp of the crumb topping into the center of the dough, pressing lightly to stick.  Don't be afraid to cram it in!
Bake cookies for 9-10 minutes, or until edges start to get golden.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for 3 minutes on cookie sheet.
Transfer cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Dust cooled cookies with powdered sugar, if you'd like.