Yakuza Like A Dragon: Grandma’s Cookies

I can’t believe it has been a whole year since Yakuza: Like a Dragon was released. I love this game and have watched many of my friends play through it. I’ve rewatched the ending sequence of this game so many times, I’ve lost count. After replaying through the series this past year, I can confidently say this one is my favorite. I adore the characters, I enjoyed the turn based combat (I can’t wait to see the next one and the improvements it will have), and the story is just *chef kiss*. If you haven’t played a Yakuza game yet, Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a great place to start. You do not need prior knowledge of the previous games to enjoy this one. It is the perfect way to decide if you want to jump into the series, but all of the games are great in their own way. I can’t wait to see where the next game takes Ichiban and his friends.

One of the many activities you can do in the game is watch a movie to gain personality stats and to build up Ichiban’s friendship with the other party members. In the lobby of the movie theatre, there is a Loving Grandmother that will share a homemade cookie with you. She gives a little bit of detail about these cookies. First, her secret ingredients are salt and earl grey tea. This immediately gave me a direction to run with these. The other note she mentions is that they are soft and gooey on the inside. I’ll be honest with you, I’m not a huge fan of super gooey cookies. Sugar cookies can fill that role of soft and gooey if you cook them a bit less. The recipe below is my preferred doneness, more on the crunchy side. You can pull them out a little earlier if you would like your cookies to be less crunchy, but make sure they are cooked through.

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp earl grey tea leaves
1 tsp cardamom
1 ½ tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp orange extract

Combine the flour, earl grey tea, cardamom, and salt in a medium bowl. Cream the butter in a large bowl. Mix in the sugar until combined and slightly fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and orange extract.

Add the flour mixture and mix together until it is just combined. Split the dough in half.

Take one of the halves and transfer onto a sheet of parchment paper. Lightly flour the portion and then cover with another sheet of parchment paper. Roll the dough out to ¼ to ½ inch thickness. Cover and place in the refrigerator to rest for at least one hour. Repeat this step with the other half of the dough.

Preheat an oven to 350°F (177°C.). After the dough has rested, take one of the doughs out and place it on a very floured surface. Carefully use a cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Place the cut out cookies on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper. Reshape the remaining dough and roll it out once again. Cut out more cookies. Repeat this until you have used up all the dough. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Grandma’s Cookies

Ingredients

• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp earl grey tea leaves
• 1 tsp cardamom
• 1 ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ tsp orange extract

Instructions

• Combine the flour, earl grey tea, cardamom, and salt in a medium bowl. Cream the butter in a large bowl. Add the sugar and mix until combined and slightly fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and orange extract.
• Add the flour mixture and mix together until it is just combined. Split the dough in half.
• Take one of the halves and transfer onto a sheet of parchment paper. Lightly flour the portion and then cover with another sheet of parchment paper. Roll the dough out to ¼ to ½ inch thickness. Cover and place in the refrigerator to rest for at least one hour. Repeat this step with the other half of the dough.
• Preheat an oven to 350°F (177°C.). After the dough has rested, take one of the doughs out and place it on a very floured surface. Carefully use a cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Place the cut out cookies on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper. Reshape the remaining dough and roll it out once again. Cut out more cookies. Repeat this until you have used up all the dough. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes.