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brown family butter cookies

(2 ratings)
algonacchick avatar
Blue Ribbon Recipe by
Patti Brown
@algonacchick
Algonac, MI

My mother-in-law used to make these cookies every Christmas. She gave me her recipe back in 1988. Sadly, she passed away in 1993. I waited until last year to try them myself. Not sure why. They are very tasty and fun to make. I've used this recipe on Halloween as well. I'm sure any holiday or even just because would work, too. There was no yield on this recipe, but my guess is between 4-6 dozen, depending on the size of your cookie cutters.

Blue Ribbon Recipe

Buttery and lightly sweet, these butter cookies have a crisp and crumbly shortbread texture. One cut out and baked, they're ready to decorate with royal icing. The Brown's royal icing is the perfect consistency for piping. It can easily be colored or thinned to flood for decorating. Have fun making these using different cookie cutters and colors of royal icing.

— The Test Kitchen @kitchencrew
►
(2 ratings)
yield 4 -6 dozen
prep time 3 Hr 30 Min
cook time 10 Min
method Bake

Ingredients For brown family butter cookies

  • FOR COOKIES
  • 1 lb
    butter, softened
  • 1 c
    granulated sugar
  • 4 lg
    eggs
  • 1 tsp
    vanilla extract
  • 4 c
    all-purpose flour
  • FOR DECORATOR'S ICING
  • 1 lb
    powdered sugar
  • 3
    pasteurized egg whites (from a carton)
  • 1/2 tsp
    cream of tartar

How To Make brown family butter cookies

Test Kitchen Tips
There is no leavening agent in these cookies so, they will not rise. The thickness they are rolled out to will be the same when baked.
  • Ready to mix butter and sugar.
    1
    FOR COOKIES: Beat butter and sugar until fluffy.
  • Separating 3 eggs.
    2
    Separate 3 of the eggs.
  • Egg yolks added to butter and sugar.
    3
    Add the three egg yolks and the other whole egg to the butter/sugar mixture. Refrigerate egg whites.
  • Vanilla extract added to the bowl.
    4
    Add vanilla. Beat until well mixed.
  • Slowly adding flour.
    5
    Gradually stir in flour until well mixed.
  • Dough wrapped in plastic wrap to chill.
    6
    Shape the dough into a round disk. Wrap in waxed paper or plastic wrap. Chill for 3 hours.
  • Preparing a baking sheet.
    7
    Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease cookie sheets.
  • Dough divided into 4 parts.
    8
    Divide dough into 4 equal parts.
  • One piece of dough rolled thin.
    9
    Roll dough out 1/4 at a time on a lightly floured surface to 3/8 inch thickness.
  • Cutting cookies with a cookie cutter.
    10
    Cut with floured cookie cutters. Space on cookie sheet 2" apart.
  • Frothing egg whites.
    11
    Lightly beat the three egg whites.
  • Brushing egg whites onto cookies.
    12
    Brush on cookies.
  • Baking the cookies.
    13
    Bake at 350 F for 10-12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.
  • Cooling the baked cookies.
    14
    Cool on a wire rack.
  • Mixing sugar, egg whites, and cream of tartar.
    15
    FOR DECORATOR'S ICING: Beat sugar, egg whites, and cream of tartar in a bowl on low speed. Note: Follow the directions on the carton of egg whites to determine how much equals 3 egg whites. Pasteurized egg whites are safer to use for icing.
  • Egg whites beaten until stiff peak form.
    16
    Beat until a knife drawn through icing leaves a clear path; about 7 minutes.
  • Icing tinted with gel food coloring.
    17
    Tint this icing with gel food coloring. Cover unused icing with a damp cloth to prevent the icing from drying out.
  • Outlining the cookie with the icing.
    18
    Put some of the colored icing in a pastry bag with a small tip. Outline your cookie design first using the pastry bag.
  • Slowly adding water to the icing.
    19
    Add water, a little at a time, to the leftover colored icing. Add just enough water to make a smooth and somewhat thin consistency.
  • Thinned out icing in piping bags.
    20
    Put the icing for flooding into additional piping bags (or plastic bottles) with small tips. Put a toothpick in the tip so the icing doesn't run out.
  • Flooding the cookie.
    21
    Flood a little icing into the cookie's outline.
  • Using a toothpick to spread the icing.
    22
    Take a toothpick and gently spread out the icing.
  • Decorating the cookies.
    23
    Let the icing dry. Once dried, add additional embellishments with the remaining icing.
  • Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!

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