Gina’s Italian Butter Cookies

Description

Traditional Italian-American bakery-style butter cookies that will make you feel like you bought them from your favorite local bakery in New York! Fill them with raspberry or apricot preserves, or chocolate, or dip one side in chocolate and cover with sprinkles–or do both! Whatever you choose, these are sure to be your new favorite recipe for every holiday and celebration to come!

Ingredients

  • 2 ¼ cups cake flour
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • ½ cup vegetable shortening
  • 4 ounces almond paste
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • ¼ teaspoon almond extract

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
  2. Combine cake flour
  3. all-purpose flour
  4. baking powder
  5. and salt in a medium bowl.
  6. Combine butter
  7. sugar
  8. and shortening in a large bowl; cream with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Mix in almond paste until thoroughly combined. Add eggs
  9. vanilla extract
  10. lemon juice
  11. and almond extract. Reduce the mixing speed to low and slowly add flour mixture. Scrape down the bowl
  12. then mix on medium speed until evenly combined
  13. about 30 seconds.
  14. Fit a large pastry bag with a French star tip (#864) or an open star tip (4S); fill the pastry bag with batter. Pipe evenly sized cookies onto an ungreased cookie sheet 1 1/2 to 2 inches apart
  15. giving cookies space to puff slightly during baking.
  16. Bake in the preheated oven
  17. in batches if necessary
  18. until bottom edges are slightly browned
  19. 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 20 mins

Total Time: 45 mins

Servings: 48

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