Yesterday we broke out the cookie press. As fun as a cookie press is, there comes a limit to the number of Spritz cookies you will go through. Not all cookies can go into the cookie press. Sorry to burst your bubble, but your chocolate chip cookies will not come out of your cookie press. But there is at least another cookie type that works really well in the press, meltaways. Meltaways are simple cookies, all they are is butter, powdered sugar, flour, corn starch and flavorings. I love putting these cookies in the cookie press because the dough is a pain in the you-know-what to work with. It’s thin and sticky. Nearly impossible to get out of your scoop, without a press this dough will make you give up baking all together, and we don’t want that to happen.
For this particular recipe, I make a key lime glaze and add lime zest to the dough to get just a hint of lime flavor. Notice there is no lime juice in the dough, lime juice can and will become bitter when heated. I dye them green and use the Christmas tree mold just because they look cute. I have iced these cookies in the past, however the key lime is just too strong and overpowers the sweetness of the icing so all you really need is a simple glaze.
Meltaway Dough
- 1 cup butter (softened)
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 3/4 cup flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 Tablespoon lime zest
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3-5 drops green food coloring (optional)
Glaze
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons key lime juice
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy (big shock right?) and mix in the vanilla extract. In a separate container mix flour, lime zest, and corn starch. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter. Mix well until a dough forms. Dye if desired.
Load your cookie press according to manufacturer’s instructions. Pipe the dough onto an ungreased cookies sheet. Do not worry about spacing the cookies, they do not spread out much. Bake for 5-6 minutes rotating once. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the cookie sheet (we’re breaking the rules I know). Mix the key lime juice and powdered sugar to make the glasze. Brush the glaze on when your cookies have cooled.
