Old Fashioned Tea Cakes cookingforbeginners

Old Fashioned Lemon Tea Cakes

3 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp salt Pinch freshly grated nutmeg 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter 1 cup granulated sugar 2 large eggs Zest of 2 lemons 1 tsp lemon extract 2 Tbsp buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift the flour, baking soda, salt and nutmeg into a medium bowl (sift twice), set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the lemon zest and lemon extract, mix to fully combine. Add the dry ingredients in 3 additions alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined, being sure not to overmix. Dump the dough on to a lightly floured surface and shape the dough into a large ball. Divide the ball in half. Place each half on top of a sheet of parchment paper. Place another sheet of parchment paper on top of each half. Using a rolling pin, roll each half out into a 1/4 inch layer. Place the rolled dough on a sheet pan. Repeat this process with the other half of dough. Place the sheet pan in the refrigerator and let dough chill at least 2 hours. Working with one rolled sheet of dough at a time, remove the top layer of parchment paper. Using a cookie cutter, cut out the dough and place on a parchment lined sheet pan, ~2 inches apart. Bake the cookies until they have puffed up and are lightly brown around the edges ~8-10 minutes. Place on a cooling rack to cool completely.

Lemon Glaze (optional)

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar Zest of 1 lemon 3-4 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

In a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients until smooth. You may need to add more lemon juice if the glaze is too thick (if needed, add more lemon juice 1 tsp at a time). Dip the cooled cookies directly into the glaze then place them on a cooling rack until the glaze is set. You can also spoon the glaze over the cookies, using the back of the spoon to spread the glaze into an even layer.

Enjoy!

Submitted January 15, 2018 at 04:17PM by KLWSlice http://ift.tt/2mGzSMZ cookingforbeginners