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Whichever name you choose for these fabulous little biscuits, they will certainly encourage repeat visits to the biscuit plate. They are both high fat and sugar, but this batch will make anywhere between 80 and 100, so you can afford to indulge just a little - and share the love.
I have a cookie press, that has been gathering dust at the back of a cupboard for years, but I usually just pipe this dough, which is easy enough if it's not too cold. Warmth is your enemy here, as is the lack of it - cheaper presses and/or piping bags can't cope with a very cold dough, but if it's not cold enough then you will lose the definition in your biscuits... pitfalls everywhere!
You Will Need:
230g Butter, unsalted*
85g Soft Cheese (I used a non-branded one)*
1tsp (-ish) Vanilla Extract**
230g Caster Sugar***
1 Egg
310g Plain Flour****
1/2 tsp Cinnamon (Optional)
*Butter and soft cheese should be as soft as possible, so leave them out at room temperature for at least a couple of hours.
**You can flavour these with almond or lemon zest and extract if you like, but be sure to use the good stuff, there is nothing worse than a nasty chemical aftertaste.
***Caster or Icing Sugars both work well... if you have some vanilla-infused sugar you can use that and reduce the extract.
****I have seen some recipes with self raising flour or with added baking powder, but I am not a fan. If you're trying to keep a pretty piped shape then any raising agent is just going to distort things.
You Will Also Need:
2 Baking Trays, buttered and chilled*
Cookie Press and/or piping Bags
Method:
- Beat the butter, cheese and vanilla* together until very light and fluffy.
- Add the sugar gradually, and beat until dissolved**. Scrape down the bowl and beat for 2 minutes.
- Add the egg and beat slowly to incorporate - it will look curdled - then add the flour and cinnamon and beat well until smooth and combined, scraping down at least once.
- Transfer some into a cookie press, or piping bag, and chill for at least 15 minutes***.
- Pipe or press cookies onto your buttered trays, leaving around 1" space between them - if well-chilled these don't spread much.
- Chill piped cookies for 15 minutes or so - pressed ones should only need 5.
- [Preheat Oven GM4/180C]
- Bake for between 12 and 18 minutes, depending on your oven, turning the tray after 6, until very slightly golden around the edges.
- Leave the cookies on the tray to cool and set for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely. [Once the tray is cool, return it to the fridge for 10 minutes before piping or pressing another batch, you shouldn't need to re-butter it]
**Obviously, this will happen faster with fine icing sugar, but I think that it benefits from a longer beating.
***Depending on how soft your dough is, how warm the kitchen is and/or how hot your hands are. If you're pressing you can chill for up to 1 hour, piping I would recommend no more than 30 mins.
Freezing
These can be frozen, uncooked, if you don't need them all at once - and they become a handy treat to dig out when surprise visitors appear. Line a tray with parchment paper and pipe or press closely together, then freeze on the tray until hard. Transfer frozen cookies to an appropriate container once solid. To cook, Preheat your oven as above, arrange the cookie-cicles on a buttered tray and bake for 15-20 minutes, turning half way. Cool on the tray for 5-10 minutes and serve the cookies warm for an added treat.
Flavour Variations
Traditionally these are made with vanilla, almond or lemon, but orange or lime work well as long as you can find good flavour extracts. You can replace up to 60g of flour with cocoa powder, but you may need to add a drop of milk as cocoa has a tendency to dry out a mix - you will also have difficulty knowing when cocoa cookies are cooked, so I would suggest making blonde ones first so that you have a better idea of the best cooking time.
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