Author Notes: These snappy, crisp, shortbread-like cookies are full of coffee flavor with a sweet, condensed milk icing to finish them off. I adapted the recipe from this one at I’m Not the Nanny. —Posie (Harwood) Brien
Makes: 1 batch
Prep time: 2 hrs 30 min
Cook time: 16 min
Ingredients
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1
tablespoon very strong brewed coffee, with extra to use
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1
cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
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1 1/4
cups (5 ounces) confectioners’ sugar, divided
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1
teaspoon vanilla extract
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1/4
teaspoon salt
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2
cups (8 1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour
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2
tablespoons coarsely ground coffee (I use a dark roast)
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3
tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
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1/2
teaspoon vanilla bean paste
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1
tablespoon whole milk
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1
pinch espresso powder
Directions
- Cream together the butter and 3/4 cup of the confectioners’ sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla and brewed coffee and beat to mix well.
- Add the flour, salt, and ground coffee and beat until the dough is smooth and sticky and not sandy-looking. If it is still sandy looking after you’ve beaten it for more than five minutes, add more coffee in increments until the dough seems more cohesive.
- Roll the dough into a log (or two) about 2″ wide, wrap in parchment or plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours until very firm and chilled.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325° F. Slice the dough into thin circles, place them on a parchment-lined sheet (or in the wells of a muffin tin), and bake for 14-16 minutes or until just barely golden brown on the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- While the cookies cool, make the frosting. Beat together the remaining 1/2 cup sugar with the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla bean paste (if using), milk, and espresso powder. It should be thin enough to drizzle easily: Add more milk if not. Once the cookies are cool, drizzle the icing over them or, if you like, spread the surface of each cookie with a thin layer of icing.
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Photo by James Ransom
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Photo by Posie Harwood