Thursday, September 24, 2009

Delicate Lemon Tea Cookies

These cookies are small, but oh, so delicious. They are truly addicting. Make sure you have plenty of people around to help you eat them; or you will certainly be tempted to eat them all yourself.

Cookies
2 cups butter, room temperature
2/3 cup powdered sugar
Zest from 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 cups cornstarch (this is NOT a typo)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter until creamy. (Use a mixer.) Add powdered sugar and mix until light and fluffy. Add lemon zest and vanilla. Beat well. (Do not under beat.) In a separate bowl mix flour and cornstarch; then add to butter mixture and beat until well combined. Do NOT refrigerate.
Roll by hand into 1-inch balls or use a well-packed scoop, placing cookies about 1 1/2 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Pack well to prevent cookies from being too crumbly.
Bake 14 minutes until bottom edges are light brown. Cool completely on wire racks before frosting with lemon glaze.
Makes about 5 dozen small delicate cookies.

Lemon Glaze
4 Tablespoons butter, room temperature
Zest from 1 lemon
Juice from 2 lemons, about 1/3 cup
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

In a medium bowl combine butter, zest, juice, and sugar. Stir until well mixed. Add a bit more sugar or a bit of water if necessary for proper consistency.
Place a piece of wax paper beneath the wire racks where the cookies have been cooling. Drizzle glaze over cookies.

No comments: