The secret to icebox cookies is an old-fashioned one: Roll the dough into long cylinders, then slice and bake from frozen. You get fresh, warm cookies in 10 minutes! Italian preserved cherries are exquisite in this recipe. If you can’t find them, substitute glacé cherries.
Makes 100–120 cookies
INGREDIENTS:
1 1⁄2 cups butter, at room temperature
1 cup icing sugar
1 tsp almond extract (optional)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cornstarch
1⁄2 tsp salt
1 1⁄2 cups chopped preserved cherries
1⁄2 cup clear sanding sugar (optional)
DIRECTIONS:
- Combine the butter and icing sugar together (by hand or use an electric mixer) until smooth. Stir in the almond extract.
- Add the flour, cornstarch and salt and stir a bit, then add the cherries.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces and plop each one onto a piece of waxed paper. Form and roll into a log about 1 1⁄2 inches in diameter. At this point, you can roll each log in sanding sugar, pressing lightly so sugar sticks to the dough. Roll up the waxed paper and twist the ends. Pop into a zip-top bag and freeze for up to 6 weeks.
- To bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice each log into 1⁄4-inch cookies. Arrange on the prepared sheet (the cookies will spread as they bake, so leave space in between). Bake until lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Cool on a rack, then package in reusable bags or or small tins.
