Sugared Danish Butter Cookies with Pecan Halves

One batch of butter cookie dough makes 2 kinds of tender, elegant cookies, one decorated with coarse sugar crystals and the other with pecans. Dough is refrigerated overnight, and can be frozen for decorating and baking later.

• Preparation Time: 60 mins
• Cooking Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 25 mins
• Calories: 38 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 88 pecan halves, toasted
• 1.5 cups white sugar
• 1.5 cups cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
• 3 tablespoons coarse sugar crystals
• 1 tablespoon coarse sugar crystals for sprinkling

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Sift the flour and white sugar together in a mixing bowl, and stir in 1 egg and the vanilla extract until well combined. Using a pastry cutter, cut the cold butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse cornmeal. Shape the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Step 2

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 3

Cut the unsugared log of dough into round slices about 1/8-inch thick, and place the rounds onto the prepared baking sheets, about 1/2-inch apart. Top each round with a pecan half. Cut the sugared log of dough into 1/8-inch thick slices, and place them onto prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle each sugared cookie with more coarse sugar crystals, if desired.

Step 4

Place one baking sheet of cookies at a time into the preheated oven, and bake until the edges barely turn golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the cookies to wire racks to cool.

Step 5

Divide the dough in half, and roll into two 11-inch-long logs. Wrap one of the logs in waxed paper and then plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight. Place 3 tablespoons of coarse sugar crystals on a flat plate. Brush the second log with beaten egg, and roll it in the sugar crystals, coating it thickly. Carefully wrap the sugared log in plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight. (See Cook's Note.)