Here’s a good holiday gift idea for your tea loving friend…make them some earl grey tea cookies!

I made these with my sister-in-law a few years ago and haven’t stopped thinking about them since. It was a really good introduction into the tea world and how it can be used in cooking/baking.  The flavor profile is something that totally stuck with me.

I whipped up a batch because I needed something to sweet to accompany my tea this afternoon.

They are delicate, light, crispy and BUTTERY cookie with a nice orange tea spice!

Obviously they go really well with a cup of tea!

Here are the essential ingredients: sugar, orange peel &  a bunch of Earl Grey Tea

And don’t forget the butter….There’s kind of a lot of it….

I ground the tea bags in my designated spice grinder.

I gathered ingredients for the butter mixture…

I whipped it up and added the flour slowly….

The dough is a little crumbly, but it comes together nicely with your hands….

I made the log square shaped because the imperfect roundness of the log frustrated me!!

I put them on parchment on a baking sheet and popped them in the oven!

It makes about 8 dozen and I totally believe it!  They are all uniform and cute, and I love that about them.

I hope you love them too.  You will find that some people will be skeptical at first, but once they get that explosion of buttery goodness in their mouth, they will shut up and gorge themselves!  Try them and delight your palette!

Earl Grey Tea Cookies

(recipe from Martha Stewart Cookies)

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 2 tablespoons finely ground Earl Grey tea leaves, (from about 8 bags)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 (8 ounces total) sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest

1. Whisk flour, tea, and salt in a small bowl; set aside.

2.Put butter, sugar, and zest in the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low; slowly mix in flour & salt mixture until just combined.

3. Divide dough in half. Transfer each half to a piece of parchment paper; shape into logs. Roll in parchment to 1 1/4 inches in diameter, pressing a ruler along edge of parchment at each turn to narrow log and force out air. Transfer in parchment to paper-towel tubes; freeze 1 hour.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut logs into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Space 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.

5. Bake until edges turn golden, 13 to 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks.