land of buttons

I cannot hide it... simply after I bought my autumn coat I am completely in love (not to say obsession) with my buttons - they have character, inevitably improve my mood and are pastel purple. Inspired by them, I decided they deserve an edible replica...

my inspiration

The result was quite the impressive amount of 155 buttons, so if any clothing factory needs help now, you know who to call :D I adapted these from the Martha Stewart sugar cookies recipe, conveniently turning them into tea cinnamon cookies. Now I admit, I have not always been a huge fan of cinnamon... I am now asking myself, how could I have missed such a life-joy? Fortunately, I had a friend by my side to change that just in time. I still remember those summer days me and my friend Alex were spending at her grandma's apartment and she was feeding me apple/cinnamon cookies:

"Hey, have a cookie!" she offers,

"What are these with - hm, cinnamon, but I don't like it" says grumpy me,

"How is that possible? Here, please try these"...

... and I did, and it changed everything :)

Without the cinnamon tingle, these cookies would simply not be the same. That is why I would like to dedicate this recipe to the best friend of my entire world, a friend I've known for 16 years now - Alex (also a baking talent, as we fulfilled the first cantuccini project together and she also taught me how to play belote)!

Button cinnamon cookies

(adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients

2-2 1/3 cups sifted flour (plus more for surface and more if needed)

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup crystal white sugar

1/2 light brown sugar

40g (2 packs) cinnamon sugar

110g melted butter

1 large egg

In a bowl the flour, baking powder and salt are mixed. In another bowl the sugars and melted butter are mixed into a smooth cream (best with mixer, although I did it by hand), eggs are added. The two mixtures have to be gradually combined into smooth dough that is not too sticky to be formed into a ball (here's the need for some extra flour). The dough is divided in two parts, the balls are flattened into discs, packed in fresh foil and put in a freezer for 1 hour or in the fridge for more. 

After one disc is taken out, it is left for 5 mins at room temperature, then rolled (should be about 2/3 cm thick) and we start cutting out the buttons. Since I did not have the correct round cutter size, I used a tealight and a straw for the button holes. The buttons are placed in baking trays lined with baking paper After the dough is rolled, the leftovers are rolled again and again. The cookies are baked 10-12 mins at 160C (with the fan on). I baked one tray at a time.

After baking, the buttons could easily be arranged in whatever forms you want them - tied with a ribbon, put in a box, placed in the cookie jar, or dipped straight into a cup of tea.