Slightly sweet with the perfect crumb, Italian Butter Cookies were a staple of holiday parties throughout my childhood. Recreate these bakery classics using very good butter and my grandmother's simple, no-fail recipe.
1Plugrá Block Unsalted Butter1 cup, room temperature
1cconfectioners sugarsifted
2large egg yolksroom temperature
1teaspoonvanilla extract
2call purpose floursifted
1teaspoonbaking powder
¼teaspoonfine sea salt
2cmelted chocolatewafers or chips
1-2teaspooncoconut oil or shortening
sprinkles
Instructions
Position a rack in the center of the oven, then heat to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place butter into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat the butter on high until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides once, about 2 minutes.
Add the sifted powdered sugar. Start the mixer on low, and then increase the speed to high. Beat until the mixture is very smooth and soft peaks form, scraping down the sides of the bowl once halfway through.
Add the egg yolk one at a time, and blend completely after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and blend completely once more.
Sift the flour with baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture one-quarter cup at a time, mixing on low speed until just combined. Don’t overmix.
Fit a piping bag with a large open star piping tip. Pipe 2” long sections of filling onto a baking sheet, leaving 1-2” between each cookie.
Bake 13-15 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown. Cool on the pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Melt the chocolate in the microwave in 20 second intervals, stirring thoroughly between each, until the chocolate has melted. Melt the coconut oil or shortening, then add, 1 teaspoon at a time, to the melted chocolate. Whisk until the chocolate mixture is very smooth and slightly thinned out. Dip each cookie into the melted chocolate, coating halfway, then place onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Sprinkle the chocolate with sprinkles.
Allow the chocolate to harden completely. For best results, let cookies sit at room temperature for 24 hours to properly crisp and for the chocolate to fully cure.