Italian Shortcrust Dough for Cookies and Pies
Last week, before leaving for Berlin, the first leg of my vacation, I invited some friends and colleagues to dinner; not being completely satisfied with having prepared numerous typical dishes of Jewish cuisine, I also thought of making some shortcrust cookies, like mini party favors, or end-of-the-party gifts.
These cookies allowed me not only to show even more love (I hope!) for my friends, but also to tell you about an amazing recipe that I have not yet shared, the recipe for shortcrust cookies and pies.
This is the “definitive” shortcrust recipe, perfect for everything; the shortcrust recipe is from my talented friend, Sara Maternini, a name that guarantees exceptional results.
I always use Sara’s recipe, with the only difference that I usually add a little milk, not found in the original.
Shortcrust for Cookies and Pies
Ingredients
- 200 g of 00 flour
- 100 g white granulated sugar
- 100 g of butter at room temperature
- 2 egg yolks
- a couple of teaspoons of milk
Instructions
- In a large bowl pour the flour and sugar into a well, then cut the butter into cubes, and place it in the center of the well.
- Add the egg yolks over the butter, then knead all the ingredients as quickly as possible, by hand or with the kneading attachment of the KitchenAid , pouring the milk little by little until it forms a compact, smooth and homogeneous ball.
- Wrap the shortcrust dough in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before using. With this amount, you can make about 50 cookies or one big pie.
We make all kinds of sweets with shortcrust dough, including Christmas cookies, to decorate with icing, or to nibble with a nice glass of milk, while wrapping presents.
You can also change the basic recipe:
- for a cocoa shortcrust dough, substitute 30 gr of flour with the same amount of cocoa powder
- for a shortcrust dough with cinnamon or ginger, add 2 tablespoons of spices to the original mixture
- for a finer shortcrust dough, substitute the white granulated sugar with confectioner’s sugar
These cookies are one of the most successful recipes on Labna, so I’ve decided to translate the instructions in English, in order to make them available to a wider audience.
I love my cookies: they keep their shape perfectly while baking, so they are very good for decorating, and of course they are also delish. I really hope you’ll like ’em!
Easy cookie dough
Ingredients
- 200 g white flour
- 100 g sugar
- 100 g butter room temperature
- 2 egg yolks
- few tbsp milk
- few drops of vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large bowl, sift together flour and sugar then, using a fork, make a well in the center and add all the other ingredients, blending everything with your hands to form a thick dough.
- Gather the dough into a ball, wrap the ball in cling film and refrigerate until firm, at least 30 mins; in the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Roll out the dough on a floured surface or between two sheets of wax paper and cut out the cookies with the cookie cutters of your choice.
- Nicely arrange the cookies on a baking pan lined with wax paper then transfer the pan inside the oven.
- Bake the cookies for 10/15 mins, until golden and easily removed from the wax paper surface.
- Eat the cookies straight away or store them in a tin box.
