Freezer Butter Cookies with Hot beverages Flavorings

Butter cookies are always a favorite, and it’s always good to have a few prepared dough logs in the freezer, ready to be cut and baked.

To make things more interesting, I divide the basic dough into three portions and add different flavorings to each. Once the dough logs are prepared, I wrap tightly and place them in the freezer. Now all that is required is to slice and bake as many cookies as needed, and have freshly baked cookies with different flavors, filling the air with their wonderful aroma.

This time, as the weather is getting a bit colder, I chose to use three hot beverages as the flavorings for the cookies: coffee with cardamom, tea with Chai Masala spice mix, and cocoa a crispy pearl sugar coating,

The cookies make a wonderful teat when served with the same hot beverage of their flavoring, or with any other hot beverage, any time of the day. Try them and enjoy.

 

Notes

* The prepared dough logs can be kept in the freezer (well wrapped) for up to two months.
* The cookies are baked from frozen, so the baking time is a bit longer than most.

* Espresso powder is an intense, highly concentrated granulated coffee. If you can’t find it, double the amount with regular granulated coffee.
* Chai Masala spice mix is used for preparing fragrant Indian tea. The spices in the mix I’ve used here are: ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, black pepper, nutmeg and cloves. It can be found in many stores, or online.

* Pearl sugar is a special sugar that keeps its white color and shape while baking. It can be found in specialty stores or online.

* Check THIS and THIS posts, for more flavoring options.

 

Makes: 80-90 cookies
Prep time: 30 minutes
Freezing time: 4 hours minimum
Baking time: 15-17 minutes

Ingredients:
1 stick (115 grams) butter, soft
1 cup white sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 L egg
2 ½ cups flour
1 tsp vanilla paste
For the different flavors:
Cocoa: 2 tsp dark cocoa powder, mixed with 1 Tbs boiling water + ¼ cup pearl sugar (see notes) for rolling
Chai Masala Tea: 1 black tea bag + 1 tsp Chai Masala powder (see notes) steeped in 2 Tbs boiling water, and strained + 1 tsp Chai Masala powder for rolling
Coffee-Cardamom: 2 tsp espresso powder (see notes) + ½ tsp cardamom powder, mixed with 1 Tbs boiling water

 

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the butter, sugar and salt. Add the egg and whisk to incorporate. Add the flour and vanilla, and knead to form a ball of dough. Divide the dough into 3 portions.
2. Prepare the different flavorings, and bring to room temperature. Add to each dough portion one of the flavorings. Knead lightly to incorporate, and roll each into a log about 1.6” (4 cm) thick, and about 11” (28cm) long. Roll the cocoa log in pearl sugar, and scatter the extra 1 tsp Chai Masala powder over the tea log.
3. Wrap each log in wax paper and place on a tray. Place in the freezer for at least 4 hours. To freeze the cookies for a longer period of time, place the logs in a freezer bag, and squeeze out the air.
4. To bake: preheat the oven to 355F (180C). Line a baking tray with baking paper. Place the dough logs on a cutting board and cut with a sharp, heavy knife, into slices, about 0.2” (0.5 cm).
5. Bake, from frozen, for about 15-17 minutes, until the cookies are lightly golden at the bottom and sides. Let cool in the pan for 2-3 minutes, before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

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