Shelly's Recipe

SABLES WITH LEMON ZEST

Category: Cookies

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Scant 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
2 egg yolks, room temperature (place whites in the fridge)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup coarse sugar or sanding sugar, for decorating

Beat butter until smooth and creamy. Add sugar, salt and lemon zest and mix for another minute, until thoroughly combined. Mix in the egg yolks. Gradually add flour and beat until the dough looks moist. Divide the dough in half and roll each half into an 8-inch log. Wrap logs in parchment paper and refrigerate overnight.

When you're ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a few cookie sheets or line them with parchment paper. Pull the dough from the fridge and brush the egg white all over the logs. Sprinkle the sanding sugar all over the log, rolling it around a bit to be sure the sugar sticks (this helps the crystals of sanding sugar stick onto the dough).

Using a sharp knife, cut the log into 1/4-inch thick slices then place on cookie sheets about 1 inch apart. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until the cookies are browned around the edges. Place on cooling racks.

Makes about 21/2 dozen cookies.

Hints from the cookbook
For perfectly light and crumbly sables, chill logs of dough overnight or up to 3 days before baking. Save the whites in the fridge if baking the same day. Brushed onto cookies before baking, they help crystals of sanding sugar stick onto the dough.