Meg’s Mom’s Sand Tart Cookies

My mom made these thin, crispy cut-outs at Christmas every year. The same treats could be found at both Grandma Sara and Grandma Losch’s homes each December. Turns out, these are a Christmas cookie specific to Central PA, Pennsylvania Dutch / Mennonite regions, and they trigger nostalgic memories for many who grew up or visited the area during Decembers past.

Make the dough ahead of time; and you might as well go ahead and make two batches because once you bake them, these cookies go fast. In fact, the trick with these is really in the hiding:

Sand Tarts are a lot of work, what with all the rolling, cutting, decorating (and hiding), and they bake up fast. Once you start putting them in the oven, you’re going to get a good workout. This must be why my mom only made them once a year, and in her later years, didn’t make them at all.

With other seasonal cookie cutters, you could turn these into a Valentine’s Day treat for your sweetie, or whatever other seasonal reason you can use to rationalize making them.

MEG’S MOM’S SAND TARTS (modified just a bit by Meg)

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

2 cups granulated sugar

3 eggs

4 – 4½ cups flour

1 Tbsp milk

1 tsp baking soda

An extra egg white for eggwash

Colored sugar sprinkles and cinnamon/sugar (plus almond slices) for decorating cookies

 

Tools you’ll need: Electric mixer or stand mixer, assorted cookie cutters, baking sheets, baking parchment , a pastry brush, measuring spoons and cups, a thin metal turner/spatula, rolling pin, cooling racks, something to sprinkle the colored sugar with, and a timer. Also, it’ll be much easier if a friend helps.

In a large mixing bowl, using electric mixer cream sugar and butter really well.  Add eggs and milk and mix well.

In a separate bowl, combine flour and baking soda.  Using a wooden spoon, add flour mixture gradually to sugar/butter mixture until dough is somewhat firm. Add up to 4 cups first, then see if it needs a little more. Don’t allow it to become crumbly.  Divide the dough into 3 or 4 pieces and form each into a tidy disc. Tightly wrap each disc with plastic film and refrigerate for at least several hours, ideally overnight.  This dough can be stored in refrigerator for up to a week, or even frozen.

You’re done for the night. Clear your schedule for tomorrow night or Saturday afternoon.

When you’re ready to bake: Place the dough you’re going to use on the countertop for a couple hours to bring it up close to room temperature. Flour your rolling pin and surface well, and keep the flour handy – you don’t want the dough to stick.

Preheat your oven to 350 F and move two racks close to the middle of the oven, leaving space for one rack in between.

Cut one disc in half and rewrap the rest. Roll the dough very thin and cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Depending on the dough’s texture, you may be able to re-roll scraps one or maybe even two more times, but each time you re-roll, the finished product will be less tender, so don’t get too crazy with the rerolling. The recipe allows for some waste.

About the thin-ness: If they’re too thick, they won’t be flaky-crispy and then they aren’t Sand Tarts. Trust me on this: These cookies must be almost paper-thin, and crispy.

Using the metal turner (and a little bit of flour if necessary), carefully transfer cut-outs to baking sheets lined with parchment. Mix that extra egg white with a Tbsp water in a small bowl, and very lightly brush each cookie with the eggwash. No puddles! It’s only there to make the sugar stick.

Now, find the kids, because this is the only part they’ll want to help with anyway. Sprinkle colored sugar on the cookies!  Also, try using a cinnamon/sugar mixture, paired with a sliced almond or some chopped walnuts, which will I think allows you to rationalize eating these for breakfast.

Bake for 7-10 minutes or until they just start to turn golden – watch carefully and often to make sure they don’t burn. Use a timer – don’t lose track! Adjust baking time as needed, because all ovens are different. There is a very fine line between perfectly baked and too brown. You’ll know it when you see it.

Remove baking sheet from the oven and allow to cool for a minute or two. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely.  Store in airtight container.  These cookies will last for weeks in your extra fridge or freezer, assuming your family doesn’t know that the extra freezer is your hiding place.