While flipping through a very old community cookbook that I inherited from my grandmother, I noticed a recipe for a cookie that was unfamiliar to me. I had never put yeast in a cookie, so I was interested to try them.
Not wanting to commit to a large batch of unfamiliar cookies, I reduced the recipe to yield a dozen. The resulting cookies were thin, crispy, and buttery with a sweet sugary coating.
I served the cookies to a few friends who noted they tasted a lot like “elephant ears”. If you are unfamiliar with elephant ears, they are a form a sweet, fried flat bread usually topped with sugar and cinnamon sold at every fair or carnival in the United States.
These cookies are also great for a tight budget. As the cost analysis shows, the cookies cost approximately $0.05 a piece. I used a name brand butter, so you could further reduce the cost with a generic butter.
Cost Analysis:
Notes about the recipe:
The dough is very soft and sticky. I originally tried rolling the cookies with a rolling pin, but found pressing the dough with a flat-bottomed cup or mug resulted in more uniform cookies.
Next time I make these cookies, I may experiment with adding some cinnamon to the sugar coating.
The cookies bake quickly and brown around the edges. Watch carefully after the 10 minute mark.
Picture Tutorial:
Recipe:
Vienna Sugar Cookies (Small Batch)
Thin, crisp, and buttery with a sweet sugary coating, these cookies are an indulgent compliment to a good cup of coffee or tea.
Ingredients
- 3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 2 tablespoons lukewarm water
- 4 tablespoons softened butter
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread granulated sugar on a smooth surface (like wax paper) and set aside.
- Combine yeast and warm water in a small bowl. Set aside for 5 minutes.
- Cream butter and granulated sugar together in a separate medium mixing bowl.
- Beat flour into the butter mixture.
- Add yeast and water mixture to the sugar and flour mixture, and beat until combined.
- Form dough into walnut sized balls (the dough should make about a dozen balls).
- Press dough ball down in the sugar mixture until flat. Flip and coat the other side. Continue flipping until you have a very thin cookie. Continue this process with the remaining dough balls.
- Place cookies on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven when the cookies are lightly browned and crispy.
- Allow to cool for a minute on the baking sheet and move to cooling racks.
- Enjoy!
FRUGAL FIXES 