Pear Filled Chai Cookies

I'm ready for fall.... desserts! Chai tea, pears and oats make for one fantastically fallish cookie. I cooked down diced pears in a mixture of chai tea concentrate and brown sugar. On it's own, the reduction would be a great ice cream topping, but I had other plans, stuff it in a cookie!  The cookies are light and cakey, but the oats ground them and give them a chewy texture. I added about a half teaspoonful of the filling and it got a bit lost in the cookie. I was hoping for a juicer pear punch in the middle. I recommend adding more pear filling than what is called for in the original recipe.  The batter is quite sticky, it should be refrigerated before baking or the cookies will spread out.

 I loved the subtle spice and depth the chai concentrate imparted. The cookie pairs perfectly with a cup of tea and a fluffy blanket on a windy fall day.

Pear­-Chai Filled Cookies

Recipe for Pear-Chai Filled Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup Cored, diced, unpared Bosc pears

1 1/3 cup Brown sugar

2 tbsp. Honey

2/4 cup Chai Tea Latte Concentrate

1 cup Butter

2 Eggs

2 cups Flour

2 tsp. Baking powder

1/2 tsp. Salt

2 cups Rolled oats

Cookie dough:

Cream butter and 1­cup brown sugar. Beat in eggs. 

. 

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. 

Add to creamed mixture alternately with ½ cup Chai concentrate. Stir in oats. Refrigerate dough for about one hour.

While dough is chilling, begin making pear filling.

Pear filling: 

In a saucepan, combine pears, 1/3 cup brown sugar, honey and ¼ cup Original Chai concentrate. Cook over medium heat until pear is soft and liquid is nearly gone. 

Cover, Set aside. Remove cookie dough from the fridge.  Drop spoonfuls of cookie dough on greased cookie sheet. 

Make a small depression in the center of the dough and add chai/pear filling. Top with another dollop of dough. Continue until cookie sheet is full. Bake 10­-12 minutes at 375*

Cuddle up and Enjoy!