Matcha Checkerboard Shortbread Cookies

4.8 from 17 reviews

Author: Anita Jacobson

Categories: Dessert Snack

Cuisines: Japanese

Ingredients: Vegetables

Prep Time: 30 mins

Cook Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 45 mins

Serves: 48 cookies

Ingredients

• 140 gram (5 oz/1.25 stick/10 tablespoon) unsalted butter, softened
• 30 gram powdered sugar (1 oz/0.25 cup ) (*)
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 240 gram (8.5 oz/2 cup) all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon matcha

Instructions

1. Beat butter until light and fluffy. Add sugar, egg yolks, vanilla, beat again until creamy.
2. Whisk together all-purpose flour and salt, then slowly add to the butter mixture until the dough becomes lumpy. Now use hands to knead into a smooth dough.
3. Divide the dough into 2 portions. Add the 1 tablespoon of matcha to only one of the cookie dough, and knead until the color is uniformly green.
4. Divide the regular dough into 2 portions, and the matcha dough into 2 portions. With the help of saran wrap/parchment paper, shape each into a 12-inch long cylinder. Stack the four cylinders together to create the checkerboard pattern, gently pat so the 4 cylinders stick together.
5. Wrap the shaped dough with saran, and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours (I usually just leave them overnight).
6. Preheat oven to 180 Celsius/360 Fahrenheit, and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
7. Remove cookie dough from the fridge. With a very sharp knife, slice the dough into 48 equal slices (each about 0.3cm or 1/8-inch). Arrange on the lined baking sheets.
8. Bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or just until the edges are slightly browned.
9. Remove from oven and cool for at least 10 minutes. Serve and store any leftovers in an air-tight container.

Notes

• (*) This amount of sugar produce shortbread with only a hint of sweetness, which I really like. If you prefer sweeter cookies, you can easily increase the sugar amount by 50%.