Handle-With-Care Butter Cookies

The experts have said it frequent enough ~ Read the recipe carefully before cooking!
 

Butter Cookies with Pearl Sprinkles

I saw the photos..read some. Overconfidence did me in. I wasn't exactly petrified when I realised I threw in twice the butter required for this cookie recipe but my heart sure skipped a beat.

It was the first time I decided I didn't need to print the recipe for reference while I prepared the necessary. Five ingredients, basic cookie.. bah, I can handle this.

I was working my way through when my brain gave me a buzz.

"Hey, Sweetie..."  shows mental image of 'firm' round cookie dough that I had seen earlier.

"Uh-oh."

Too creamy to form!

I rushed to re-read the recipe. The first line made me laugh - 1 'stick' unsalted butter. NoOoOo...! There you go, my mind was wired to the 250g slab of butter I always have in stock.

Although I messed up, it turned out pretty yum after adding more flour and sugar to "fix it". I don't really know how it's supposed to be originally but mine turned out buttery soft and fortunately, not dry. 

The dough was easy enough on the plastic icing piper I used to shape the cookie. It was all good to go after only one test-bake. Lucky me.

The Pearl and The Pipe

Recipe adapted from here ~ Little Ms. Piggys.

I'm sharing exactly what I did the other day, errors included. Tried-and-tested-only-once recipe below. Makes 55.

Ingredients:
- 250g blended butter (room temp)
- ½ cup soft brown sugar
- 2.2 cups flour (sifted)
- 1 egg yolk
- ½ tsp vanilla
- 10g gold and white pearls

How-to:
1) Using an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar together.

2) Add egg yolk and vanilla extract. Mix to combine.

3) Add flour. Mix until everything is combined.

4) Wrap dough in plastic wrap. Chill overnight.
(It was supposed to be chilled for half an hour. I was sleepy!)

5) Take cookie dough out of fridge. Let it sit until it's soft enough to work with. Meantime, flour baking pan.

6) Fill cookie dough into icing piper. Use the large star tip. Pipe two straight lines (approx. 1.5inches long) next to each other onto baking pan.

7) Sprinkle gold and white pearls on top.

8) Bake in pre-heated oven at 175c for about 6-7 minutes. You know the cookies are done when the edges at the bottom start to brown a little.

Note: Keep a close watch. These cookies do not expand or brown much.

9) Wait for the cookies to cool a little before removing from baking pan. From here, handle with care.

Piped, sprinkled and ready to roll!
Added gold and white pearls for that Christmassy feel.

Butter CookieTexture

Buttery Soft Cookies

Not too shabby!

The good news? It was a hit with friends.

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Hope everyone had a great Christmas!