Dorie Greenspan's Sweet and Savory Cookies

Cookbook author Dorie Greenspan explores sweet-savory flavors with salty, spicy or cheesy cookies to eat with wine.

When guests arrive at Dorie Greenspan's house, she might hand them a glass of Champagne and then, without explanation, a tray of small cookies. As her friends take a bite, the cookbook author enjoys watching their reaction. "First they taste the sweetness, and then, 'Bing!' the salinity," she says. "I love that element of surprise." Adding a noticeable amount of salt to pastries is an idea she got from working with Paris pastry genius Pierre Hermé, whose recipe for olive sablés (shortbreads) she included in her 2010 book, Around My French Table. Greenspan is "pushing that sweet-savory continuum," she says, with cookies like chocolate-cayenne and tarragon-apricot. She sells her creations through CookieBar, a business she started with her son Josh. Launched as a pop-up shop in Manhattan, CookieBar now offers delivery nationwide, in time for the holiday party season. "It's traditional to have something salty with an aperitif, but sweet-and-salty pastry feels new to me," Greenspan says. "I'm obsessed with these cookies. I think they're already a classic."

© Quentin Bacon

Dorie Greenspan's Cookie Tip

"You could do these cookies as a slice-and-bake, but I love a perfect little circle. At CookieBar, we stamp out cookies in rings we had custom-made, so they're all the same size. It's part of our look."—Dorie Greenspan

Addictive Salty, Sweet and Savory Party Recipes:

Salt-Enhanced Recipes

Sweet and Savory Bacon Dishes

Tasty Party Snacks

Published November 2011