Our Aunt Julia is lovingly called Julu by her nieces and nephews. Whenever they are headed to her house for a visit, a meal or dessert of their request is sure to be waiting.
One of their most requested cookies are her Tea Cakes. These cookies are a Southern tradition and Julu has adjusted her mother’s recipe to make it more to her own family’s liking. Unlike crispy sugar cookies, these tea cakes are not too sweet, have a great buttery flavor and soft texture. For a great summer option, add a teaspoon of lemon zest to the batter and dust them with powdered sugar. These are great served fresh out of the oven, yet these cookies are even better a day or two later – if they last that long.Julu’s Tea Cakes
- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup self-rising flour
Preheat oven to 400° F.
In bowl of mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure to incorporate one before adding the second.
Add vanilla and mix well. Add 2 cups of the flours 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well with each addition. Set aside 1/2 cup all purpose flour for rolling out the dough.
The dough will be very soft and sticky. Turn it out onto well-floured board. Incorporate, by folding, the additional 1/2 cup all-purpose flour. Roll dough to approximately 1/4″ thickness and cut with 2″ biscuit cutter. Cookies will rise some, so don’t let them touch.
Bake for 10-12 minutes on parchment lined baking sheets. Makes 18-24 cookies, depending on how thick you roll or cut them.
Tip: The more flour you can incorporate into the dough when you are prepping it to roll, the better the cookies will be. Just don’t add too much or they will be dry. Dough should be soft, but still easy to handle.
Submitted by Louise Jones
