If I had one word to describe these little cookies I'd use Delightful! The other night Aaron and I had nothing planned for dinner and were due for a visit to the grocery store. But before possibly ordering something in we took a look around the kitchen, pantry, and cabinets. And before we knew it we ended up with a Vegetable Curry with carrots and broccoli and cauliflower and shredded coconut over Jasmine Rice. No recipe...just one of those spur of the moment dash of this and dash of that things. We didn't have coconut milk just shredded coconut, but I figured 'heck why not use some light sour cream to bring it all together.' Well I can honestly say that it was super deelish! But it was one of those meals that you'll never be able to exactly reproduce again. So, no recipe for that...it was a once-off flash in the pan. (ha! literally!)
Anyways...after having a dish with great spices and flavor we really wanted something sweet. Since we just used some limes in our dinner I figured I could carry that flavor through to dessert. So within minutes we were adding butter and sugar to the bowl of our mixer and gettin' all sweet and floury! These cookies are light, tender, sweet, and irresistible. They would be perfect as gifts...tucked into an Easter basket...served at an afternoon tea. They come together very quickly and keep on the counter for up to 2 weeks. (Not that they'd ever last that long) You could even keep some of the dough in the fridge to bake at a later date!
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup confectioners sugar
zest of 2 limes
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (or bottled if in a pinch)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
First, mix the butter and 1/3 cup confectioners sugar (the remaining sugar will be used later) in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Add lime zest and juice and vanilla, and mix until fluffy.
Next, whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt in a separate bowl. Add to butter mixture, and mix on low speed until just combined.
Divide your dough in half. Place each half on an 8-by-12-inch sheet of parchment paper. Roll in parchment to form a log 1 1/4 inches in diameter. Refrigerate logs until cold and firm, at least 1 hour. Or if in a hurry, place in the freezer for 30 mins.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove parchment from logs; cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Space rounds 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake cookies until barely golden, about 13 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool slightly. While still warm, toss cookies with remaining 2/3 cup confectioners sugar in a resealable plastic bag or in a bowl.
Cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 2 weeks.
Happy Baking! xo, Jenny