A trip up to attic this past weekend to search for Halloween decorations was akin to a trick or treating experience. Some of the containers hadn't been opened in years. So going through all of the Halloween treasures collected over the years (decades actually) was simultaneously a feast for the eyes and a little bit frightening. Rediscovering some vintage and hand painted folk art Halloween decorations was like discovering your trick-or-treat bag contained the large size of your favorite candy bar. Definitely a heart-racing moment. And then there were some things in the boxes generating the same kind of reaction those black and orange wrapped peanut butter candy kisses used to give me as kid. Yikes, yuck! Apparently some of my tastes in Halloween decorations had periods of borderline questionableness. After working through the 'what was I thinking?' moment, I sorted everything into two piles. Similar to those 'you can have those' and the 'I'm not sharing' candy piles we made after emptying our hours and hours of trick-or-treating bags. As I have yet to buy this year's Halloween candy, I wished I now lived in a neighborhood where homemade cookies brought as much excitement as a super-sized candy bar. Having lived in two different places where that really was the case put me in a cookie making mood this week.
After making a surprise delivery of a box of chocolate chip cookies, I made these buttery Vanilla Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies. Honestly, I think they rival those irresistibly delicious Walker Shortbread Cookies.
Maybe replacing the granulated sugar with brown sugar, maybe using a high-quality Irish Butter, or maybe using two Tablespoons (yes, two tablespoons of vanilla) was responsible for creating these beautiful, melt in your mouth cookies. Whatever it was, these shortbread cookies are insane!
It's hard to believe that five simple ingredients are responsible for creating shortbread cookie greatness. For optimal cookie flavor splurge on a European butter and good quality vanilla.
Until now all of the shortbread cookies on the blog are either rolled and cut out or made in a pan and then cut. These start as a golf ball sized mound of dough and end as a stamped bakery finished look cookie. If you ever needed a reason to buy cookie stamps, here it is. I mean, seriously, look at these Vanilla Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies. They are almost too pretty to eat.
Baked for 20-25 minutes in a preheated 325 degree (F) oven, these Vanilla Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies have a lightly golden, crisp, slightly decadent finish.
Many of the recipes I post on the blog make me giddy, but my level of giddiness over these stunning cookies is off the charts! I am not exaggerating when I tell you these are absolutely amazing. Creating this new recipe brought me as much excitement as unearthing those Halloween treasures lovingly stored in the attic did. If you don't live in a neighborhood where your baked cookies are as coveted as store-bought candy, bake these Vanilla Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies for the adult friends in your life who would love to get a surprise homemade Halloween treat!
I promise once you taste these scrumptious, divine, buttery, sinfully delicious shortbread cookies, they will instantly become one of your most beloved favorites.
Vanilla Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies
Makes 32-36 3" cookies
Ingredients
1 pound (545 g) unsalted butter, room temperature (see Notes)
1 cup (220 g) light brown sugar, firmly packed
2 Tablespoons vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
4 cups (520 g) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F). Line two baking pans with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the butter and brown sugar until well combined (approximately 2-3 minutes).
3. Add in vanilla. Mix to blend.
4. Add in the flour and salt. Mix on low speed just until thorough combined. Be careful not to overmix or your cookies will be tough.
5. Using a 1 1/4" ice cream scoop, scoop balls of dough onto the baking sheets (spacing at least 2 inches apart).
6. Dip cookie stamp in flour and press down onto each dough ball to about a 1/4" thickness.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are lightly browned and/or the bottom of the cookie is golden brown. Note: Bake one cookie sheet at a time.
8. Let cookies rest on cookie sheet for approximately 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
9. Serve with coffee or tea. Store cookies in a tightly sealed container. Cookies will be at their best for 3-5 days.
Notes: (1) You can easily cut this recipe in half! (2) Highly recommend using a European or European quality butter. These cookies were made with Kerrygold butter. (3) I used Nordicware's Cookie Stamps but you can use any cookie stamp. Or if you don't have a cookie stamp, press down on the dough balls with a flat bottomed glass. For best results when using a glass, cut a small piece of wax paper, place wax paper on top of the dough, then press down with the glass.
