It's the time of year where I try to get creative with ways to use all of the basil in my garden. I know, I know, I can freeze pesto, but I also really want to try new and exciting things. Like making cookies. I want cookies more than I want pesto. Is that a crime? I didn't think so.
Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar (plus a little more for rolling the cookies)
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh basil leaves
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
When I worked at a bakery, my boss at the time would affectionately refer to cookies like these as "dumpers", meaning you just dump all of the ingredients in. The order in which you put all this stuff together doesn't matter at all. If I was on cookie duty (which meant mixing enough cookie dough to make thousands of cookies at a time), I LOVED dumpers. Shortbread is almost always one of the easiest and fastest cookies to make. Also, it's crazy delicious. Also, preheat your oven to 375.
So, as I alluded to before, you can dump all of your ingredients into a food processor. Pulse until big soft clumps form.
Then take a scoop and scoop out the dough into small balls and coat them in powdered sugar. Space evenly on a baking sheet (these don't spread very much so they don't need too much room) and softly flatten each cookie. Bake for 15 minutes or until the bottoms begin to brown. Let cool and enjoy! I sprinkled mine with some Maldon sea salt and had a slightly religious experience.
