Today we had some friends over or dinner so I created a savvy, fun cocktail hour pairing.
The cookies are lemon thyme and I paired them with a strawberry balsamic shrub – the base for making signature cocktails.
For the Lemon Thyme Cookies
2 cups all purpose flour
½ cup almonds
4 ½ teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
1 ½ tablespoons grated lemon peel
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Yield sixty - 2” cookies that can be made ahead and frozen before baking
Preheat oven to 350. The cookies begin with grinding the flour, lemon zest, salt, thyme, and almonds in the food processor for 1 minute.
Beat the butter and both sugars in a stand mixer for 3 minutes. Add in the flour mixture and mix on low just to blend. Add in the flavorings just to blend. Divide the dough mixture into two large flat discs and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Roll the cookie dough onto a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle a little flour on the dough and roll out to ¼ “ thick.
Use any shape cookie cutter – I like to do flower petals, circles, or for Valentines Day hearts. Line the sheet pan with parchment paper.
Bake for 8 minutes until golden brown.
The shrub recipe was from Michael Dietsch’s book called SHRUBS. I tested about 6 of his recipes and all were well worth the effort. Last week for a tasting we made lemon ginger, blackberry mint and apple cinnamon shrubs and added club soda and ginger ale for a sophisticated non-alcoholic cocktail.
Tonight we added Pinot Noir to our strawberry balsamic shrub to create rich fruity Sangria.
Served over ice with a sprig of rosemary and lime slice – let’s get the party started!
That's very kind of you!
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