Eggnog Stamped Shortbread
Festive nutmeg-scented buttery brown sugar shortbread, stamped out and finished with a shiny eggnog glaze.
Love it or hate it, eggnog is a holiday classic! I personally love the taste of eggnog (although I am more of an almond nog drinker now). These Eggnog Stamped Shortbread cookies have a wonderful hint of caramel from the brown sugar and are flecked with nutmeg. The eggnog glaze makes them extra festive and flavorful. I like to really glam these up with a little edible gold decorating spray, some luster dust and shimmery sprinkles.
The Process:
Cookie stamps make this shortbread appealing both visually and texturally. I love this set of Geo Cast stamps from Nordic Ware.
After mixing and chilling the shortbread dough, prepare baking sheets by lining with parchment. Form the dough into walnut or golf ball-sized balls and place on prepared pans, evenly spaced. Dip the cookie stamps in flour and tap off the excess. Press each ball of dough until flat.
The dough discs should have heavy design indentations from the stamps. If your dough is sticking or hard to handle, use a bit more flour and try chilling the dough if it has become warm.
Bake the cookies until they are a delicate golden brown. Keep an eye on them in the oven as you do not want them to get over baked.
All ingredients for the Eggnog Glaze are whisked together until very smooth. The consistency may be adjusted by adding a tiny bit more eggnog.
I like to dip just the tops, or decorative sides, of the cookies in the glaze and carefully wipe off the excess on the side of the bowl. Sprinkles and shiny accents like edible metalic decorating spray or luster dust mixed with a tiny amount of vodka may be added to the cookies. Luster dust is an edible decorating powder that comes in different shades of metallic or matte colors. Just a tiny bit can really add a lot of sparkle! Mixing the luster dust powder with vodka or an alcohol-based flavored extract is best. The alcohol will evaporate and leave no taste. Mixing luster dust with water creates more of a clumpy consistency. I use a tiny paint brush to paint the luster dust liquid on.
The cookies remind me of glittery ornaments!
The cookies should be stored in an airtight container and will also freeze well. You can glaze them before freezing or just freeze au natural and glaze once defrosted. The cookies make a spectacular gift!
Eggnog Stamped Shortbread
Equipment
- Cookie stamps
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon rum extract
- 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions
- In a mixer bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg and extracts.
- In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture and mix thoroughly to make a smooth dough.
- Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight. Allow to soften at room temperature for 1 hour before shaping.
- Preheat oven to 350°. About 3 dozen cookies.
- Roll dough into golf ball-sized balls and press with floured cookie stamps on parchment-lined baking sheets.
- Bake for about 10 minutes until barely golden brown. Cool slightly and finish with Eggnog Glaze (see notes below).
Notes
Eggnog Glaze:
2 cups confectioner’s sugar¼ cup eggnog
1 teaspoon rum extract
¼ teaspoon salt Mix all ingredients with a whisk until smooth, adding a little more eggnog if needed for glaze consistency.
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