PARTNER POST: Discover new ways to incorporate seasonal teas into your holiday cooking and desserts with Celestial Seasonings.
Cool afternoons taste better with spiced shortbread cookies and a mug of caramel apple dream tea. Stay warm and cozy with the best flavors of the season.
Fall is the time of year where it’s definitely getting colder, but it isn’t yet cold enough to turn on the heat. If you are anything like me, that leaves you reaching for mugs filled with hot liquids to thaw out your hands and keep you going all afternoon long.
While coffee is my preferred morning beverage, in the afternoon I love drinking herbal teas. I like that they are caffeine free and don’t keep me awake all night long. With 6 seasonal varieties (4 of them without caffeine) Celestial Seasonings holiday teas are quickly becoming my favorite way to enjoy the magic of tea.
Upon tasting their Caramel Apple Dream tea, I instantly thought of my spiced shortbread cookies. They are rich and buttery, with a subtle spice and a melt in your mouth crumb that keeps me coming back for more. Seriously. I ate the whole batch and had to re-bake them for the photoshoot. They are super simple to make and a delicious pairing for afternoon tea.
They contain no eggs or no leaveners like baking soda or baking powder, getting their name from the fact that they do not rise when baked.
To bring the essence of fall to these cookies I’ve swapped some of the white sugar for brown and added equal parts ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. In a pinch you could sub a pumpkin spice blend, but most of those blends are mainly cinnamon with a little bit of the other spices. I found these cookies had the best flavor with equal parts of each spice.
Allow the spiced shortbread cookies to cool on the baking pan for about 2 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely. Once transferred, put the water on for tea because it’s time for a cookie break and you’ve earned it!
In my experience there is no wrong way to serve this caramel apple dream tea. It works with a spot of milk and sugar, it works with a bit of honey, and it works with nothing added at all. I let mine steep for about 5 minutes then sip it slowly with 2 or 3 (or 5) of these delectable spiced shortbread cookies.
Want to try another seasonal recipe perfect for the holidays? Check out these Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride Scones! Recipe here.
Print
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 1 dozen cookies 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup plus 2 TBSP all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- dash of salt (less than 1/8 tsp)
- 1/2 cup of butter – softened at room temperature
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 TBSP brown sugar
- 2 TBSP heavy cream or half & half
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 250 degrees and prep an 11″ x 17″ baking sheet with parchment paper, butter, or baking spray.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl combine together your flour, spices, and salt. Stir or whisk to combine, ensuring there are no clumps of spices in the flour.
- Place the butter in the bowl of your mixer and cream on low with your paddle attachment. Add both the white and brown sugar to the butter, then cream together.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then add the flour mixture. The dough will take on crumbly texture that won’t hold together well.
- Scrape the sides again, add in the cream and mix just enough to incorporate. The results should be a heavy dough that is holds it’s shape and is easy to work with.
- *Roll the dough out onto your work space and shape into a square or rectangle. Set the dough onto a lightly floured work surface, then dust the top of the dough with extra flour. **Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out until it’s about 1/4″ thick.
- Cut your cookies into shapes using a chef’s knife, cookie cutter, or glass.
- Place all the cookies onto your prepared cookie sheet and use a fork to poke holes in the top of each cookie to allow for venting.
- Place them on the middle rack of a preheated oven for 14 – 16 minutes. They are done when the bottoms and sides start to turn golden brown.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking pan for about 2 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Serve with a hot cup of Celestial Seasonings Caramel Apple Dream tea and enjoy.
Notes
The cookies have the best texture when the dough isn’t overworked, so I prefer to only roll them out once. The misshapen cookies taste just as good as the perfectly shaped ones. **If you don’t have a rolling pin a sturdy glass or clean wine bottle works great as a substitute.**
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Baking, Cookies
