Butter Cookies
Buttery, tender and unbelievably light these homemade Danish butter cookies are so much better than the tinned version. Loaded with flavour,they’ll literally melt in your mouth and are so easy to make.
Servings: 25 cookies
Equipment
- medium piping bag
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 egg yolk room temperature
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 2 cups + 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- ¾ cup semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- sprinkles if desired
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking trays with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl beat together the butter, sugar, egg yolk, vanilla, almond extract, and milk together for a few minutes until combined and creamy.
- Add in the flour and beat until well incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and beat again briefly until incorporated.
- Fit a sturdy medium-sized piping bag with a large open star piping tip (I used a Wilton 1M) and fill about halfway full with dough. Less is easier to pip with, so don't overfill the bag. Press a tiny amount of dough under each corner of the parchment paper on the baking sheet to help it stay in place.
- With the piping bag perpendicular to the baking sheet, pipe rosettes of dough about 2 inches wide, leaving 2 inches of space between each so they have room to spread.
- Chill the pan of piped dough in the freezer for 25-30 minutes before baking. This helps the cookies maintain their shape while they bake.
- After the dough finished chilling, bake for 10 minutes, just until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool.
- Once the cookies have cooled completely, prepare the chocolate by melting the chocolate chips with the vegetable oil in the microwave in 30-second intervals. Stir after each interval until the chocolate is smooth.
- Dip half of each cooled cookie in chocolate, scraping the base on the edge of the bowl, then place on the tray and add sprinkles if you like. Let them set in the fridge for 1/2 an hour.
Notes
- There's no need to beat the butter mixture too long as it may soften your piped design on baking.
- I find a stand mixer best for this thick dough but a handheld electric beater and some elbow grease at the end will work too.
- Different brands of flours will absorb different amounts of moisture which matters in this dough. Only add enough milk that, while still requiring pressure to pipe, you can pipe it smoothly. Too soft and you won't get the defined design on top.
- Decorating: You can add a variety of sprinkles to suit the season. You could even sprinkle over granulated or turbinado sugar before baking.
- Piping: You don't have to pipe these cookies. You could just scoop like regular cookies, or use a cookie press. You can also roll the dough into logs and place in the freezer for 1 hour. Later, slice and bake.
Nutrition
Serving: 31g | Calories: 154kcal