Earl Grey tea cookies and a sojourn to the land of tea
“Like the pastries themselves, each day is different from the last. As I look around at all of the handsome shapes of crescents, twists, and coils and the delightful assortment of cookies, scones, tarts, savories, and confections, I am excited and amazed. But it’s that final glance, that close-up view, that reveals their truth. Simple, humble, and beautiful, this is the stuff I love.” — Nancy Silverton.
I’m not sure if this is true or not, but someone once told me there are many Inuit words to describe snow. Likewise, us bakers have many words to describe baking.
It is a tool for procrastination, a gesture of love, a moment of greed or joy, and for some lucky people, a means to make a living. It’s an act whose meaning changes with every day that I bake. Yesterday we had chocolate sables because I didn’t really want to do my long overdue taxes. Today, I made these Earl Grey tea cookies because I enjoy the quietly therapeutic process of mixing and rolling soft, buttery dough. (Update : taxes still not done) Also, there was the matter of some frosting to use up before we went away.
Next week I’m heading to Shanghai for a few days and it’s my first ever trip to China so if anyone has any great tips or suggestions, please let me know!
A few people requested this recipe when I posted a picture of it a few months ago. Apologies for the delay, but here it finally is. The version here is tea inspired, but you can make it whatever flavour you wish : vanilla, chocolate, marbled.. it’s pretty versatile and very delicious. The cookies are an adaptation of a classic shortbread treat called Melting Moments and this particular recipe (original author unknown) comes from an old work notebook of mine. Sandwiched between ‘Madelines, citrus’ and ‘Messine sauce, for marron’, it reads as follows..
Earl Grey Cookies :
(makes 30 sandwiched cookies or thereabouts)
180g butter, at room temperature
60g icing sugar
180g flour
5g earl grey tea powder
60g cornflour
pinch of salt
In a food processor (or Thermomix), cream the butter and icing sugar. Add the flour, tea, cornflour and salt. Pulse/process until the dough comes together, stopping occasionally to scrape the mixture down. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill for 15 minutes.
To bake, preheat the oven to 175’C. Line two or three baking sheets with greaseproof paper. Roll heaped teaspoonfuls of dough into balls and arrange them on the baking sheets, leaving about 1.5 inches of space between each ball to allow for spreading. Indent the tops with a fork. Bake the cookies for 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Allow to cool completely before sandwiching them with frosting (I used lemon buttercream here).
Tags: cookies, lemon, petit fours, tea
Sneh | Cook Republic said,
October 18, 2012 @ 11:46 am
These are lovely Yuie! Baking is definitely more rewarding than filing for taxes although I hope you manage to do it before your trip. Enjoy your time in China!
Kim @ Just Baked said,
October 18, 2012 @ 2:57 pm
Beautiful picture. These look delicious. Quick question, I have been looking for a cooling rack like this one and I can’t find it anywhere. Can I ask where you bought yours? Thanks!
Anna said,
October 19, 2012 @ 3:08 am
Those are really cute! Mmmm buttery Earl Greyness. Have a great time in China!
Y said,
October 19, 2012 @ 6:56 am
Kim @ Just Baked : Hi, I got the rack from the Donna Hay store. They also sell it online. http://donnahay.com/
gummi baby said,
October 20, 2012 @ 9:22 am
He he, as a procrastinator of tax myself and having only just lodged 2 years of back taxes, I can tell you that it is the biggest feeling of relief once you’ve done it. You can then enjoy your lovely Earl Grey Tea cookies guilt-free. : D
lw said,
October 21, 2012 @ 10:50 pm
I like how earl grey tea is incorporated into desserts, but never thought of adding them to melting moments! I might try it next time with earl grey cream instead!
e / dig in hobart said,
October 22, 2012 @ 3:23 pm
how lovely! i’ve collected lots of recipes for early grey cupcakes but not seen a biscuit (maybe i haven’t tried hard enough). can you explain the EG powder? can i just crush up the contents of a T2 EG tea bag??
ps i love that cake stand too.
sarah@strawberryplum said,
October 27, 2012 @ 12:35 am
Beautiful. I’ve been thinking about trying to make Earl Grey infused creme brulee but maybe I’ll try these instead…
Gluten Free Biscuits said,
October 27, 2012 @ 6:50 am
Most people loves cookies specially the kids. I am one of the collector of cookies recipes because this is really enjoy to make, fast and easy. This will be our great bonding moments with my kids.
The Hungry Mum said,
October 28, 2012 @ 8:03 pm
I *love* Earl Grey tea in baked goods – may have to try these.
The Food Sage said,
November 4, 2012 @ 2:19 pm
I love nothing better than a cup of earl grey tea, but have never thought of using it to flavour cookies. These look divine. Must give them a whirl. Thanks for sharing.
InTolerantChef said,
November 7, 2012 @ 10:43 pm
Earl Grey is my favourite tipple in the world! These look so lovely indeed. I hope you have a wonderful trip 🙂
Jessica said,
June 15, 2013 @ 7:40 pm
Where can I find earl grey tea powder? I love earl grey!!
Y said,
June 15, 2013 @ 7:50 pm
Jessica : I made it by taking earl grey tea leaves and blitzing them to a fine powder in a spice grinder.
sri mawanti said,
November 10, 2015 @ 9:37 pm
hi, can i get the lemon buttercream recipe please?
thank you 🙂
Y said,
November 11, 2015 @ 7:30 pm
sri mawanti : Hi! It was a really simple buttercream, made with butter, icing sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest. No recipe required ! 🙂
sri mawanti said,
November 24, 2015 @ 5:33 pm
hi! thanks for the reply 🙂
however, can this cookies made to be stored for a long time? or just for a direct eating?
Y said,
November 24, 2015 @ 7:36 pm
sri mawanti : Depends on how long you intend to store them for. They keep well if they haven’t yet been sandwiched with the filling.