Lime Meltaways

This recipe is a leftover from Christmas.  Oh how I wish that I still had some actual leftovers, because I am pretty sure that these would completely make up for having to hobble about on crutches, watching Larry turn the simplest household chore into a heroic feat, requiring accolades and the waving of olive branches in recognition of his sacrificial emptying of the dishwasher.  [“where does this go?  where does this go?  where does this go?”]  I’m exaggerating, of course.  Mostly.  He is performing his extra duties with pretty good grace, despite being married to a freak who thinks the kitchen table needs to be washed off after every single meal.  I’m such a prima donna, I tell you. 

These cookies, are, in a word, divine.  Dee-vine!  So filled with lime flavor and they truly do melt in your mouth.  This is a Martha Stewart recipe, and when Maria of  Two Peas and Their Pod tweeted back in December that she had made them, after taking a look at this easy recipe, I immediately added them to my holiday baking.  They are hardly limited to Christmas though – I think of them as more of a winter recipe.  The bright fresh flavor of lime is a welcome treat when it is cold and dreary outdoors, and the sugary outsides make me think of fresh crisp snow.  So – winter cookies, not holiday cookies.  These are “slice & bakes”, so you need to plan a little ahead, to give them time to chill before baking.

This is a pretty easy and straightforward dough, so I didn’t do step by step photos.
1 & 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature [I used salted because it was all I had]
1 cup confectioners’ sugar, divided
Grated zest of 2 limes
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups, plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and 1/3 cup of the sugar.
Add lime zest, lime juice, and vanilla and beat until fluffy.
In another, smaller bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt.
Add to butter mixture, and beat on low speed until combined.
Divide dough in half, and place each half on plastic wrap – form into log about 1 & 1/4 inch in diameter, and wrap tightly. Chill at least one hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two heavy baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove plastic wrap from logs and slice about 1/8 inch thick. Place cookies on baking sheets, leaving an inch between each one. Imade mine square rather than round, because I was making these for cookies plates and I wanted a contrast from all of the round cookies I already had.Bake cookies until just getting golden, about 15 minutes.
The recipe says to let the cookies cool a few minutes before dunking in the sugar to coat them but I like to do it right away, because I think the sugar sticks better. You can put the remaining 2/3 cup of confectioners’ sugar in a sealable plastic bag, and add the cookies in to coat them, or as I prefer, put the sugar in a pie plate and gently dunk the cookies in there. After they cool completely, I sift a little more sugar over the tops to give them a more frosty look. You can wait to do that until right before putting them on a plate to serve if you like, and they will look realy nice.You can refrigerate the dough for several days before baking, or freeze it, though for freezing, you will want to wrap with a second layer of plastic wrap. Baked cookies will keep about two weeks in a sealed container.
And, as I already mentioned, the lime flavor is very distinct in these and so good. I will definitely be making them again.