Embossed Shortbread Cookies
I always make cookies for Christmas. I'm not really much of a sweets person. If I'm going to do something decadent culinary-wise, I'm really more of a cheese person. Hence the Quiche w/ Spinach, Ricotta, Pecans & White Wine and Macaroni & Cheese w/ Gruyère & White Wine that I also made for Christmas this year. Every year I even think about maybe not making cookies and just going for a Cheesecake, which I ordinarily make in addition to cookies and then regret living alone and eating the vast majority of both by myself! Alas, I found an embossed rolling pin this year, though. And I absolutely couldn't resist the urge to make cookies with little sprigs of holly rolled into the dough. We also had a cookie exchange at work, so this resolved the problem of overeating sweets every holiday season.
Gallery
Note that some of the cookies in the tin are mixed in with Scottish Lemon Shortbread Cookies. I made them using the same embossed rolling pin and cookie cutters, so they will look quite similar! Although there are two distinct recipes there. The Scottish Lemon Shortbread are a little bit lighter and crumblier. The embossing also didn't come out quite as clear on them because of this. So, if you look really closely, you can kind of tell the difference! Both are absolutely delicious, though, and I highly recommend.
Variations of Embossed Shortbread
Alongside the Embossed Shortbread Cookies, I also made Scottish Lemon Shortbread, Mexican Wedding Cookies, and Peppermint Peanut Butter Blossoms. You can find all of these recipes, as well as what I ended up making for Christmas dinner, in the Independent Christmas 2021 link below.
Embossed Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Plastic Wrap
- Refrigerator
- Baking Sheet
- Oven
- Rolling Pin
- Embossed Rolling Pin
- Cookie Cutters
Ingredients
- 14 tbsp. butter 200 g. preferably unsalted, softened
- 1 ⅓ c. confectioner's sugar 150 g.
- 1 egg room temperature
- dash salt
- 1 tbsp. Spekulatius spice blend (cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, white pepper, cardamum, cloves, aniseed, & mace)
- 2 ½ c. all-purpose flour 400 g.
Instructions
Dough
- Add softened butter and confectioner's sugar to a large bowl. Whisk until light and fluffy.There is also no over beating at this point! This is when you want to really go for it. Whisk until as light as possible. You won't be able to get them as fluffy as you would with cookie recipes that don't have peanut butter in them. But airiness during this step is absolutely essential. When you think that you've whisked them enough, whisk a little bit longer!
- Add the egg and mix until just barely incorporated.Do not over beat! It's better to have the egg not incorporated enough than too much. You just don't want the egg to be liquid on top.
- Whisk in the salt, Spekulatius spice blend, and flour until barely incorporated.This is the exact opposite of the butter mixing process! When you add flour, over mixing will make thee cookies dense and texturally unpleasant. In order to keep the airiness, mix as little as possible to stop seeing white pockets of flour.
Chill
- Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
Cook
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until 1/4 inch thick.It can help to do this on top of waxed or parchment paper as well. This can help keep it from sticking to the countertop or to use less flour.
- Roll over once more with the embossed rolling pin to imprint the pattern.
- Cut out with cookie cutters and place 2 inches apart on a baking sheet.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes, or until just barely golden brown.
- Move cookies from the baking sheet and place on a cooling rack or in the refrigerator to set completely.
Tips, Tricks, & Notes
- For more information on the Fundamentals of Baking Cookies, check out my article on the matter. For instance, I recommend making cookies by hand with a fork and adding slightly less flour than called for.
This recipe is adapted from Chalking Up Success' Embossed Rolling Pin Cookie Recipe.
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