Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Lime Sugar Cookies

Another one of my promised Christmas cookie recipes, much after Christmas, but luckily it's not really a holiday cookie anyway, just a regular ol' delicious anytime one!

These were different than cookies I've made before. I don't really like sugar cookies (not a fan of sweets that just taste like sugar) but I thought this one would be interesting with the lime flavor. Also, since I made them so tiny, they are a bit crispier than the typical soft sugar cookie. I'm not sure that they would become more like a typical cookie if you made them bigger, but that's what I would think.

My family & friends will tell you that they tasted yummy, actually I think they were one of the most talked about recipes. Since I don't really like sugar cookies, they weren't my favorite. The lime flavor wasn't pronounced enough for me to change my opinion of sugar cookies, although I think it was the right amount for this recipe. I kept thinking about adding more lime, but I think that would have been too much. I was definitely glad I made them. I don't think I really made any modifications (or if I did, I certainly can't remember now!).

The recipe came from here: Technicolor Kitchen

(It seems I need some baking/cooking books, since all of recipes are from the internet.)

Lime Sugar Cookies

2 cups (400g) sugar, divided
zest of 2 large limes
1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 ¾ cups (385g) flour
¼ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda

Prepare cookie dough: In a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt, cream of tartar and baking soda. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and remaining 1 ½ cups (300g) sugar. Blend in eggs, one at a time then add vanilla, lime juice, and remaining lime zest. Add flour mixture, one cup at a time, blending well after each addition, until all flour is incorporated.

Refrigerate dough for one hour.

Prepare lime sugar (should be done when you are getting ready to bake cookies): In a mini food processor, blend ½ cup (100g) sugar with 1 teaspoon lime zest. Pulse several times until the zest is incorporated into the sugar. Put sugar mixture in a shallow bowl and stir lightly with a fork to break up any clumps. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 175ºC/350ºF and line 2 baking sheets with waxed or baking paper.

Shape the cookies: Shape one tablespoonful* of dough into a ball and roll in lime sugar. Place ball of dough on cookie sheet and press down lightly with the bottom of a glass until cookie is about 1.25cm (½ in) thick (mine were thinner) – it might help to press the glass first in the sugar then onto the dough, then it won’t stick. Repeat.

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes at 175ºC/350ºF.

Makes: 55 large cookies

The recipe is pretty easy, aside from the time consuming sugar coating. I actually accidentally made the lime sugar days before I baked the cookies (on second thought maybe that's why the flavor wasn't as pronounced!), so the mixture was a bit clumpy when I got to coating the cookies, but it still worked out ok.

Enjoy!


2 comments:

Patricia Scarpin said...

Sarah, your cookies look fabulous! I'm so glad to know your family liked them. They were a hit over here, too. :)
Your blog is lovely, I will come back here to read more of your posts!
And the caipirinha truffles will come very soon, don't worry. :)

Oh, one more thing: there are so many wonderful recipes on the Internet, go for them! I like buying books and magazines, but many of my recipes were found on sites and blogs - not to mention the huge pile of "to try" I have at home ... :)

Sarah said...

Thanks Patricia! Sometimes I worry that people will mind that I use their recipes. I get that it's done a lot but I still don't want to step on anyone's toes!

Btw I love that you're in Brasil & sometimes I try to read your portuguese version although I don't understand it very well! Though I've never been to São Paulo (except on a layover), I spent about a month in Rio & Bahia a few years ago & loved it. The only sad part was I don't eat meat, so I missed out on so much good cuisine!