OK, we got a bit carried away with the baking in Maine but the weather and the landscape lent itself to the process. Buttery, sugary and pretty - these cookies prove harder to hold onto than legal tender.
Sand Dollar Sables
Makes about 5 dozen
- 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups sugar, plus more for sprinkling
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Sift flour, baking powder and salt together in a mixing bowl. Set aside. In another bowl cream butter. Add sugar and beat until light. Whisk eggs and add to sugar. Beat to combine. Stir in vanilla. Combine wet and dry ingredients. The dough will be quite stiff - use hands to knead. Wrap dough in plastic and chill 8 hours or overnight.
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Roll dough into smallish ping pong sized balls. Work in batches of 12 cookies at a time. Flatten dough using a small off-set spatula or palette knife to create a slightly mounded center. Place cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet. Use edge of off-set spatula or palette knife to score cookies with sand dollar markings. Transfer cookies (on baking sheet) to freezer for 30 minutes. Brush cookies with cold water and sprinkle with sugar, using a toothpick to reinforce design if necessary. Bake until just set and slightly golden, about 8 minutes. Set on wire wrack to cool.