Traditional German cutout butter cookies brushed with egg yolk for a golden shine.
Ingredients
3 large eggs
1-1/8 cup butter, softened
1-1/8 cup sugar
2-1/2 tablespoons vanilla sugar
2-1/4 cups flour
2 tablespoons condensed milk
1 egg yolk (raw)
colored sugars and sprinkles (optional)
Directions
- Hard boil the 3 eggs in boiling water (about 10 minutes) and let cool. Peel the eggs and reserve the yolks. Discard egg whites. Pass the egg yolks through a chinoise or strainer to break up into very fine particles. (See note *, below, explaining the use of hard boiled egg yolks).
- Beat the hard boiled yolks with the butter , sugar, and vanilla sugar until creamy. Sift the flour and add to the butter mixture. Mix well.
- Wrap in plastic wrap and let chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a cookie sheet.
- Roll out dough on a floured board to 1/8″ thick. Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters and place cookies on cookie sheet.
- Mix the raw egg yolk with the condensed milk and brush the top of each cookie with this mixture. If desired, sprinkle with colored sugars or sprinkles.
- Bake for about 18 minutes or until lightly golden. Yield depends on size of cookie cutters used.
Notes
- * Confused by the hard-boiled egg yolk? This is fairly common in recipes from northern Europe. Read this excellent explanation from Bon Appétit magazine.
- Additional image courtesy of Melissa Cuppett.