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Lidah Kucing - Langues de Chat
These cookies come with a catchy name and are fun to bake with kids. They are a must-have for Chinese New Year and other festive occasions in my family.
Still need to whip up last minute batch of cookies for Chinese New Year? My fall back cookie to go is lidah kucing - langues de chat, or cat’s tongue cookies in English. This recipe is super simple, especially if you use the langues de chat mould (or eclair mould) to perfectly shape each cookie. But, you can totally make this cute cookies with regular baking sheet too!
What do I need to bake lidah kucing/langues de chat cookies?
You will need:
- 1/4 cup (60 gram) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (100 gram) sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 60 gram (1/2 cup) all-purpose flour
Do I need 2 egg whites or 1 egg? Your choice!
Most lidah kucing/langues de chat recipes call for 2 egg whites instead of 1 egg, but I have experimented with both and I can’t detect that much difference between the two, and using 1 egg is much simpler than 2 egg whites.
But, if you want to stick with a more traditional recipe, feel free to use 2 egg whites.
How do I shape and bake lidah kucing/langues de chat cookies?
Let’s walk through the steps to bake these cute cookies.
- Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit (180 Celsius). Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside, or grease with butter generously.
- Cream butter and sugar. In a mixing bowl, cream together butter, sugar, and salt until light and fluffy.
- Add egg and vanilla. Then add egg and vanilla, continue mixing until smooth, about 2-3 minutes.
Note: If using two egg whites, then first add one egg white and vanilla, mix until combined, then add another egg white, and mix again until combined. - Add flour. Fold in all-purpose flour with a spatula until the batter is smooth.
- Pipe the cookie dough. Transfer cookie dough to a piping bag attached with a plain 1/4" tip, pipe into thin strips about 3" long on the prepared baking sheets. Make sure to leave plenty of room (around 2") since the cookies spread considerably during baking. If you are using half-sheet pans, each pan should fit 24 cookies: 8 in the long direction, and 3 in the short direction.
Note: If you don’t have a piping bag, you can also use a ziplock bag, and cut one of the triangular ends off with a scissor. - Bake the cookies. Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.
- Cool and store. Remove the cookies from the oven, cool completely on a wire rack, then store in an air-tight container. The cookies should be fresh for up to 1 week at room temperature.
Other popular Chinese New Year (CNY) cookies
Chinese New Year is filled with visiting family and friends to exchange New Year greetings. To welcome and greet our guests, we bake many varieties of cookies ahead of time. Other than langues de chat cookies, we usually have these in our cookie tray too:
Lidah Kucing - Langues de Chat
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (60 gram) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (100 gram) sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg (or traditionally, 2 egg whites), room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 60 gram (~ 1/2 cup) all purpose flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit (180 Celsius). Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside (or grease with butter generously).
- Cream butter and sugar. In a mixing bowl, cream together butter, sugar, and salt until light and fluffy.
- Add egg and vanilla. Then add egg and vanilla, continue mixing until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. (Notes #1)
- Add flour. Fold in all-purpose flour with a spatula until the batter is smooth.
- Pipe the cookie dough. Transfer cookie dough to a piping bag attached with a plain 1⁄4” tip, pipe into thin strips about 3” long on the prepared baking sheets. Make sure to leave plenty of room (around 2”) since the cookies spread considerably during baking. If you are using half-sheet pans, each pan should fit 24 cookies: 8 in the long direction, and 3 in the short direction. (Notes #2)
- Bake the cookies. Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.
- Cool and store. Remove the cookies from the oven, cool completely on a wire rack, then store in an air-tight container. The cookies should be fresh for up to 1 week at room temperature.
Notes
- (1) If using two egg whites, then first add one egg white and vanilla, mix until combined, then add another egg white, and mix again until combined.
- (2) If you don’t have a piping bag, you can also use a ziplock bag, and cut one of the triangular ends off with a scissor.
Comments
I have terrible piping skills too, but this recipe makes me look so good! Everyone loves these cookies!
Haha, I know right? As long as the dough is piped straight and even, they should turn out great. :)
These cookies look wonderful-- I could eat them any time of the year and enjoy them!
Yup, I too make these cookies often since they are so easy to whip up a batch. :)
Great recipe! I had no idea that these New Year’s cookies could be so easy to make.
This is indeed the easiest New Year's cookies in my family, the kind that my Mom would be confident enough to let us help her during the all important busy week of stocking up the cookie jars for Chinese New Year.
I love trying new recipes and this looks like a delicious one! I've never met a cookie I didn't like, haha!
Aren't we all? :D
What a fun cookie! Definitely something my kids would love. Thanks!
You are welcome, Raia. Also, a fun way to let the kids learn how to pipe since any mess up shapes will be gladly eaten anyway. :)
I have never heard of these before, but I bet they would be lovely with a coffee.
I made these with my niece and we had a lot of fun!
These look incredible! This is something I've never had before but can't wait to try them.
These cookies look so soft! I love the steps shown. Definitely a fun activity to do with the kids!
can i bake it without parchment paper and just butter the surface instead?
Hi Jo, I haven't tried that method myself. I did found out that New York Times Cooking section has a langues de chat recipe that calls for butter and flour two baking sheets, so I believe it should work.
What a fun cookie! So easy to make, and they just melt in your mouth!
What great memories this recipe reminds me of. When I was young, I spent a lot of time in France, and we ate these cookies all the time! I had never thought to make langues de chat myself, but I'm definitely going to now. What a treat!
So easy to make and very delicious!
Made this with my kids and YES they loved that catchy name! The cookies were so fun to make and tasted wonderful!
These are so delicious! My family loves them too. Thanks!
Can you substitute sugar for icing sugar, as I’ve seen in other langue de chat recipes?
You can, Paula. But regular sugar will make the cookies spread more than icing sugar.
I just made this recipe tonight. It was delicious. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
I tried making 2 batches one using one egg with yolk and another using 2 egg white. The egg white has crispy texture vs the egg yolk (felt like a tad of stale cookies). Either taste delicious. And I did 2:1 flour/butter to sugar ratio, also added orange zest!
The cookies stick to the parchment papers, can you pls suggest how to avoid this? But the cookies themself are wonderful.
Hi Arlene, the cookies may stick to the parchment paper if slightly underbaked. I think 1-2 minutes more of baking time should prevent the sticking problem. For reference, I usually use Kirkland brand parchment paper from Costco, which has a non-stick property. If you can find non-stick parchment paper, it should help tremendously.
Hi anita! For the recipe, I wonder if i can reduce the sugar quantity. Any recommendations of sugar & flour ratio? Thanks!
Hi Fuji, you definitely can. I usually only reduce the sugar a little bit from 100 gram to 80 gram. Another reader (Sylvia) reported a successful attempt by using as little as 60 gram sugar, but I myself have never tried that amount.
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