Green Tea Shortbread Cookies

Posted by Margalit

We have an elderly family friend who is an admitted cookie-holic. A cookie-holic that hates chocolate. Finding new and different cookie recipes for her is often difficult. A while back I found this recipe on SmittenKitten, and finally made the cookies for our friend this evening. She's entertaining friends from elementary school... that she has known for 80 years. Yeah. So the cookies had to be special. I'm her personal baker. I've found many special recipes for her to enjoy, and I try to keep her supplied with enough cookies so that she doesn't have to resort to store bought.

These cookies are crisp and delicate, good with or without filling. The recipe below will make a mildly sweet cookie, but you can increase the sugar by one to two tablespoons, if desired. If you have any fancy butter in the fridge, this is a great time to use it as the flavor will really come through.

It took some hunting around to find matcha — green tea powder. Several tea shops carried it, but required a quarter-pound purchase. We finally lucked out at Whole Foods, which carries the Rishi brand in small quantities. The Super88 chain also carries it, but again, in large quantities.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened green tea powder (matcha)
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
½ teaspoon almond extract
Superfine sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Whisk dry ingredients in a small bowl.
In a larger one, beat the softened butter with an electric mixer until just smooth.
Add the almond extract, then all of the dry ingredients.
Divide the dough in half and shape into two discs, wrapped in plastic.
Chill the discs for an hour or two in the refrigerator, or until completely firm.
Roll the dough to your desired thickness on a floured board. You will probably want to lightly flour the top of the dough, too, before rolling.
Cut with cookie cutters into your desired shape arranging them on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. They barely expand, so there is no need to leave an abundance of space between cookies.
Sprinkle a thin coat of superfine sugar over the cookies (optional).
Bake them in a preheated 325 degree oven until lightly golden at the edges.
For thin, small cookies this took 15 minutes. The darker the edges, the more intense the flavor and, some say, the longer the cookies will keep.