Vintage Vanilla Butter Horns (Nut Free)


My friend's 95 year-old great aunt used to make cookies like these every year. They’d be buried under a mountain of powdered sugar that looked like snow. One bite of these and memories are made or recalled. These cookies are the perfect little treat for a cookie tray, gifting or to keep to yourself for breakfast or an afternoon snack with a cup of tea.


When Aunt Ester passed away the Tupperware was no longer on my friend’s countertop. I truly miss Ester because while I wasn't family, she always made me feel I was. In fact, her warmth made everyone feel loved and accepted. She also loved to laugh and had a witty, sarcastic sense of humor. There was a twinkle in her eye as she teased those she loved.

This Christmas season has been nostalgic for me. I'm hosting Christmas Eve for the first time and am also entertaining friends throughout the season. This felt like the perfect time for me to make a batch of these truly wonderful cookies. 

Gosh are they good! They’re buttery, tender, velvety and not too sweet. They’re also nut free. The classic recipe had nuts but since I gift a lot of cookies during the Christmas season I wanted an allergy friendly cookie that had the same texture and taste but without the nuts. 

These butter horns are very reminiscent of Christmases gone by. I hope you love them as much as I do!

This is an easy cookie recipe that has only 5 ingredients.

HOW TO SHAPE

  • Using a level tablespoon, roll into a 3 inch log on a lightly floured surface. If the dough is crumbly gently massage the ball in your hand so the dough comes together before rolling. It should be the texture of play dough. Then using a small glass, form the horn shape. The glass gives each horn uniformity. 

COOKIE BAKING TIPS:

  • Measuring flour: spoon flour into dry measuring cups and use a knife to level off the top. This will ensure that you don't use too much flour, which will result in a dry or tough cookie. 
  • Sifting: Typically I don't sift flour but when gifting cookies I always do. I measure the dry ingredients into a bowl, give it a good whisk and then sift the whole thing over the wet ingredients. 
  • Salt is the table salt variety. When baking, I like to the the smallest type of salt versus Kosher salt.
  • I like to allow my butter to sit on the counter overnight. That way it's pliable and ready for creaming.

STORAGE:

  • Sprinkle some powdered sugar in an air-tight plastic container and then gently lay these cookies down. Separate each layer of cookies with waxed paper. Stack only 3 layers to avoid breaking the cookies on the bottom. They should last about a week.


MAKE AHEAD:

  • Cookie dough is freezer friendly. Wrap in aluminum foil, place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to one month.
  • When baking off different types of cookies, group your cookies by oven temperature. Start with lowest oven temperature cookies first and proceed with higher temperature cookies next. This will avoid having to cool your oven down. Have wire cooling racks in place before you start baking and platters or storage containers ready so you can pack away cookies as you go. 

RECIPE
Makes 3 dozen cookies

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar, plus more for coating the cookies
1 1/2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Adjust oven rack to center. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, sift the powdered sugar over the butter and beat until pale white, approximately 5 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat in. 
  3. Meanwhile in a bowl combine the flour and salt. Then sift over the stand mixer bowl. Beat at low speed until just combined.
  4. On a lightly floured surface, I flour a silicon baking mat, roll level tablespoons into 3 inch ropes. Taper the ends slightly. Transfer the rope to the baking sheet and form into a horn shape (crescent). Space cookies 1/2 inch apart.
  5. Bake for 16-17 minutes or until the bottoms are golden, the tops should be pale blond. Transfer cookies to to a wire baking rack and cool 10 minutes.
  6. Fill a small bowl with powdered sugar and while the cookies are still warm, coat in the sugar and transfer to parchment to cool slightly. Once cooled down a bit more, roll a second time in the powdered sugar and then allow to cool completely. 
  7. When serving, dust with a little more powdered sugar.

Recipe from Food&Wine. 





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