Description
Sand tarts from Pennsylvania Dutch country offer a delicate, buttery cookie experience with a nutty cinnamon-sugar coating. Crisp edges and melt-in-mouth texture make you crave these classic holiday treats that connect generations of bakers.
Ingredients
Scale
- 4 cups (480 g) flour
- ½ lb (226 g) butter, 2 sticks, softened
- 4 eggs
- 1 box (3 ¾ cups or 450 g) 10x sugar (confectioner’s sugar)
- 1 egg for egg wash
Instructions
- Butter Blending: Whip softened butter and granulated sugar in a mixing bowl until achieving a cloud-like, airy texture, ensuring complete incorporation and smoothness.
- Dough Formation: Gradually fold all-purpose flour and eggs into the butter mixture, gently kneading until a uniform, silky dough emerges with no visible streaks or lumps.
- Dough Resting: Encase the prepared dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of one hour, allowing the ingredients to harmonize and the texture to solidify.
- Dough Rolling: Extract a softball-sized portion of chilled dough and place on a generously floured surface. Use a rolling pin to transform the dough into an ultra-thin sheet, almost translucent and delicate.
- Cookie Shaping: Employ cookie cutters to precisely extract intricate shapes from the rolled dough, ensuring crisp, well-defined edges and minimal waste.
- Decoration and Preparation: Arrange cut-out shapes on an ungreased baking sheet, leaving slight intervals between each cookie. Delicately brush with egg wash, then embellish with sparkling sugar crystals or cinnamon-sugar blend for enhanced flavor and visual appeal.
- Baking Process: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Bake cookies for 6-8 minutes, vigilantly monitoring until edges transform into a soft, golden hue, indicating perfect doneness.
Notes
- Chill for Success: Refrigerate dough for at least an hour to enhance flavor development and make rolling easier.
- Rolling Technique: Roll dough paper-thin for authentic, crisp sand tart texture; use minimal flour to prevent toughness.
- Egg Wash Magic: Brush cookies gently with egg wash to create a stunning golden sheen and professional bakery-like finish.
- Sugar Coating Pro Tip: Sprinkle sugar crystals or cinnamon sugar before baking for extra crunch and flavor complexity.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 24
- Calories: 180
- Sugar: 30 g
- Sodium: 15 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 25 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 50 mg