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Multiple differently shaped browned butter-earl grey cookies in a single layer.
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Browned Butter-Earl Grey Cookies

Made with simple ingredients, these Browned Butter-Earl Grey Cookies are so buttery, tender, and fragrant! Topped with a sweet glaze, these cookies are perfect for any occasion.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 15 minutes
Chill Time 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours 15 minutes
Servings 24 cookies
Calories 143kcal
Author John Kanell

Equipment

  • Small saucepan
  • Mixing Bowls
  • Electric or stand mixer
  • Parchment paper
  • Cookie cutter (optional)
  • Baking Sheets

Ingredients

For the Shortbread Cookies:

  • 1 tablespoon loose leaf earl grey tea
  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened and divided (227g)
  • ½ vanilla bean seeds scraped or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
  • ½ cup powdered sugar (60g)
  • 1 egg yolk
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1¾ cups all-purpose flour (210g)
  • ¼ cup cornstarch (40g)

For the Glaze:

  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • zest of 1 orange
  • 1 tablespoon warm milk
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
  • 1 pinch ground cardamom

Instructions

For the Shortbread Cookies:

  • In a small spice grinder, blitz the tea leaves until finely chopped. Set aside.
  • In a small saucepan, melt ½ cup of butter over medium-high heat. Continue cooking until the butter foams and the milk solids turn deep golden brown in color, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl. Stir in the vanilla, cardamom, and tea leaves.
  • Place the butter mixture in the fridge, stirring every 15 minutes, until smooth and spreadable, about 45 minutes. (You can also do this ahead of time and leave it covered at room temperature overnight.)
  • In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the cooled browned butter mixture, remaining ½ cup softened butter, sugar, egg yolk, and salt. Beat on medium speed just until creamy and combined, about 1 minute. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add in the flour and cornstarch, mixing just until combined. Stop and scrape down the bowl occasionally during mixing. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and shape into a disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
  • Lightly flour the chilled dough and roll between two sheets of parchment paper to ¼-thickness. Chill for another hour or until firm.
  • Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Cut into desired 2-inch shape and place on the baking sheet 1-inch apart.
  • Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the bottoms start to brown. Let the cookies cool completely on the pan.

For the Glaze:

  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, orange zest, milk, butter, and cardamom until smooth. Dip half of each cookie in the glaze place on parchment paper or drizzle the glaze over the cookies and set aside to dry. Let the glaze fully dry before serving. Cookies can be stored in single layers with parchment between them in an airtight container for up to a week.

Video

Notes

  • Adding too much flour will lead to the cookies being dense. A kitchen scale is the most accurate and easiest way to measure flour. If you don’t have one, then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it.
  • It’s important to blitz the earl grey tea before using it so it blends well into the cookie dough. You can cut open a tea bag if you do not have loose leaf tea. Tea in tea bags tends to be finer.
  • Do not skip chilling the cookie dough! Chilling the dough helps prevent the earl grey with brown butter cookies from spreading in the oven, as it helps solidify the butter in the dough.
  • You cannot bake these cookies directly on a greased baking sheet. The parchment paper will help prevent the cookies from spreading as well.
  • Make sure you do not overmix the dough, as it can result in a tough cookie.
  • I recommend using a light-colored pan when you brown the butter, so you can see when the butter is ready. You do not want to burn the butter! The butter should be golden brown and smell buttery, nutty, and rich.
  • The cookies need to cool completely before you dip them in the glaze. If the cookies are hot, the glaze will melt off.
  • If you do not have an orange to zest, swap it for a lemon.

Nutrition

Calories: 143kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 51mg | Potassium: 16mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 265IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 0.5mg