Replicating the taste of Jenny Bakery’s cookies, a famous Hong Kong bakery, these butter cookies have a crunchy exterior that offers a satisfying bite, yet tender, and melt-in-your-mouth soft inside. Indulge in these delicious cookies and taste them yourself!
This butter cookie recipe is easy and fun to make! You don’t even need much piping skills to make them look professional and visually appealing. Follow my recipe with tips and guidance to make these melt-in-your-mouth cookies for your family.
Table of contents
Ingredients for melt-in-your-mouth butter cookies
- Unsalted butter: The key ingredient that creates a rich buttery flavour, and a crunchy, crumbly texture due to its high fat content. Be sure to use softened butter for easier incorporation and a more uniform texture.
- Icing sugar: Using icing sugar instead of granulated sugar to create a smoother texture and a more tender crumb. They also add sweetness to the cookies, and contribute to a softer, melt-in-your-mouth quality!
- Salt: This acts as a flavour enhancer.
- Cake flour: Cake flour contributes to the tenderness of cookies, making them more delicate as a result.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch helps to create a more tender and delicate texture in cookies by inhibiting gluten formation. This results in a softer, melt-in-your-mouth consistency that makes the cookies so irresistible!
How to make melt-in-your-mouth butter cookies
- Beat the softened unsalted butter until smooth.
- Sift in icing sugar and salt. Beat until light and fluffy with a pale yellow colour.
- Sift in cake flour and cornstarch, then fold the dough in a cutting method until just combined.
- Transfer the cookie dough to a prepared piping bag (I used Wilton 1M open star piping tip for this recipe). Place it in another piping bag to create a double layer. This prevents the dough from breaking the bag and flowing out when piping.
- Preheat the oven to 150ºC.
- In a baking tray lined with parchment paper, pipe rosettes by making a tight circle. This recipe makes 20-22 cookies.
- Bake the cookies at 150ºC for 30-40 minutes, then bake at 180ºC for another 2-3 minutes for browning.
Success tips on making melt-in-your-mouth butter cookies
Use softened butter.
Using butter softened at room temperature can lead to better texture, flavour, and overall baking success! It is important to use softened butter for cookies because it allows the butter to cream more easily with sugar, creating a light and fluffy texture in the cookie dough. The butter traps air during the creaming process, making cookies rise and become tender during baking.
Using softened butter makes it easier to mix the ingredients together as well, ensuring a smooth and well-incorporated cookie dough. It also helps to evenly distribute throughout the dough, resulting in a more uniform texture in the baked cookies.
Fold the dough to prevent overmixing.
Folding the dough when making cookies is critical to ensuring the ingredients are evenly incorporated without overmixing. Overmixing can lead to tough and dense cookies, as it can develop the gluten in the flour too much. Folding the dough gently helps to maintain the airiness and lightness of the dough, resulting in a more tender and delicate cookie texture. It also helps to achieve a well-balanced and uniform cookie dough that bakes up perfectly!
Use two piping bags to create a double layer.
Since the cookie dough has a thick texture, it will easily break the piping bag as you pipe, and will flow out eventually. To prevent this from happening, be sure to place the piping bag with the cookie dough inside in another bag to create a double layer.
Important tips on piping
The most important piping skills in baking and cake decorating include consistency in pressure, control of piping bag, and precision in movement.
- Consistency is key: Be sure to squeeze the piping bag with consistent pressure. This ensures even and smooth piping to create uniform shapes and designs. It is also important to make sure the dough is the right consistency to pipe. If it’s too thick, it will be difficult to pipe smoothly, so be sure not to overmix!
- Control of the piping bag: Hold the piping bag with one hand near the twisted top and use the other hand to guide and apply pressure to control the flow of the dough. This helps create clean lines and shapes.
- Precision in movement: This is crucial as it helps you create clean lines, intricate designs, and uniform shapes, which directly impact the final appearance of the baked goods. By controlling the flow of frosting and the pressure applied to the piping bag, you can achieve consistent results and avoid messy or uneven decorations.
- Practice makes perfect: Remember, practice and patience are key to honing these essential piping skills! You can always practise piping on another plate before piping the dough on the baking tray.
How to store butter cookies?
The best way to store butter cookies is to place them in an airtight container or resealable bag. This helps to prevent the cookies from becoming stale. You can also separate layers of cookies with parchment paper to prevent them from breaking. Be sure to store them in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight or heat sources.
How long do cookies last?
Properly stored, these butter cookies will stay fresh for several days to a week at room temperature, or up to 2-3 weeks in the refrigerator.
Do butter cookies freeze well?
Yes, they do! To freeze butter cookies, make sure they are completely cooled before placing them in an airtight container or freezer-safe bag. Frozen butter cookies can typically be stored for up to 2-3 months without compromising their taste or texture.
When you’re ready to enjoy the cookies, simply thaw them at room temperature or reheat them in the oven for a freshly baked taste.
Crunchy outside and tender inside, these butter cookies melt in your mouth instantly! With a rich, buttery flavour, each bite is a perfect balance of textures, making these cookies a heavenly treat for any occasion.
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Melt-In-Your-Mouth Butter Cookies
Equipment
- 1 Wilton 1M open star piping tip
- 2 disposable piping bags
Ingredients
- 113 g unsalted butter softened at room temperature
- 30 g icing sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 113 g cake flour
- 40 g cornstarch
Instructions
Prepare the cookie dough
- Using a hand mixer, beat the unsalted butter until smooth. Be sure to soften the butter at room temperature in advance.
- Sift in icing sugar and salt. Beat until light and fluffy with a pale yellow colour. Use a spatula to scrape off the sides to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.
- Sift in cake flour and cornstarch, then fold the batter in a cutting method until just combined. Do not overmix the batter.
Prepare the piping bag
- Place the piping tip (I used Wilton 1M open star piping tip) in a disposable piping bag. Snip off the tip of the bag to fit the piping tip.
- Transfer the cookie batter to the piping bag, and twist the top of the piping bag tightly to secure the batter inside. Tip: place the piping bag in another one to create a double layer. This prevents the batter from breaking the bag and flowing out while piping.
Bake the cookies
- Preheat the oven to 150ºC.
- In a baking tray lined with parchment paper, pipe rosettes by making a tight circle. This recipe makes 20-22 cookies.
- Bake the cookies at 150ºC for 30-40 minutes, then increase the heat to 180ºC, and bake for 2-3 more minutes for browning.