Ube Lofthouse Cookies

A detail of a purple loft house cookie with a bite out of it

These super-soft, cakey, melt-in-your-mouth Ube Lofthouse cookies taste exactly like the grocery store cookies but with an Asian twist! Bring on all the nostalgia right at home with this Ube Lofthouse cookies recipe.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Asian Fusion

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 11

Total Time 2 26

Servings cookies

Calories 252kcal

Author Megan

Ingredients

Lofthouse Cookie

1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter room temperature
1 ¼ cup (170 g) powdered sugar
1 large egg room temperature
1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon (5 g) teaspoon almond extract
2 cup (368 g) bleached cake flour
½ teaspoon (3 g) baking powder
1 teaspoon (5 g) baking soda
1 teaspoon (5 g) cream of tartar
2 teaspoons (10 g) cornstarch
¼ teaspoon (2 g) salt

Frosting

1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter room temperature
½ (4 g) teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Ube Extract
3 ½ cup (453 g) powdered sugar
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Instructions

Cookie

Prepare the oven. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350°F (176°C).
Cream the butter and sugar. Using the bowl of your stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until pale, ivory, and fluffy for about 5 minutes.
Add the egg, vanilla, almond extract. While the mixer is mixing, add the egg, vanilla, and almond extract until combined. Scrape down the edges of the bowl to evenly mix.
Whisk the remaining dry ingredients and add to butter. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, and salt until combined. Lower the mixer speed to low and slowly add in the dry ingredients until just combined. Do not over mix. Finish mixing the dough with a rubber spatula to make sure all the flour is thoroughly combined.
Scoop onto a lined sheet pan. Using a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop the dough into 24 balls onto a slipmat or double parchment-lined half sheet pan. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
Bake at 350°F (176°C). Roll out the balls and slightly flatten with your palm into 1/2 inch thick cookies (this will allow the cookies to cook evenly without a hump in the center). Place them on the lined sheet pan about 2 inches away from each other. Bake for about 10-11 minutes or until puffed and pale. The cookies may look slightly underdone in the center. Leave the cookies to cool on sheet pans until completely cooled, about an additional 15 minutes.

Make the Frosting

While the cookies cool, make the frosting. Add the butter, salt, and ube extract to a stand mixer fit with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until whipped and airy about 3 minutes. Then on low speed, sift in the sugar in 3 separate batches. Lastly, add the heavy cream and continue beating until creamy and slightly fluffy.
Use an offset spatula/palette knife to frost the cookies into an even layer. Top with sprinkles and enjoy!

Notes

Use a scale! For foolproof results in your bakes, always use a kitchen scale for exact measurements. Since baking is a science, using measuring cups may yield slightly different textures/flavors because the measurements will not be exact.

Do not substitute cake flour with any other flour. Cake flour has a low protein content and mild flavor, a low pH that inhibits browning, and a super soft crumb due to its starch content. Any other substitute will cause the dough to spread, rise, and brown differently, with a chewy texture.
Use room-temperature butter. This allows the butter to be easily creamed by the stand mixer and evenly incorporate all the powdered sugar. If you do not want to wait 30 min-1 hours to get the butter to room temperature, quickly zap the butter in the microwave for about 5 seconds.
Use room temperature egg. You do not want to shock the batter by incorporating a cold egg. Make sure the egg is at room temperature before adding it to your batter. To quickly do this, place the egg in a cup or bowl with warmed (not boiling) water for about 5 minutes.
You must chill the batter in the refrigerator! This is a must. I tried multiple recipes that claimed that there's "no chill time required." But all my cookies turned out super flat and not raised at all. The chilling gives the baking powder/soda/cream of tartar time to absorb into the batter and activate. If you want that fluffy soft cookie texture, you have to wait for the results.
Storage Instructions: You can store these soft Ube Lofthouse Cookies in an airtight container on your counter for up to 3-5 days. You can also freeze the cookies individually wrapped in plastic for up to 2-3 months. Alternatively, you can freeze the batter in an airtight container for up to 3 months and bring it to room temperature before baking.

Nutrition