New York Bakery-Style Italian Butter Cookies

I love the Evil Think Tank (ETT), as we have come to call it around here. It's where the chef goes with other chefs to think of the most evil thing possible to bake or cook...and then blog it. Only a very few have dared come visit my think tank. I've said for years that Food Network should have a show where chefs have to come together like this. Random teams...one purpose, and they all have to agree. It would be crazy to see all those passionate personalities have to come to real terms. You know? At any rate...last week, I had a fun long-distance ETT with a gal named Joanne Galatolo Nunziante. Now, aside from her name sounding like a very expensive pair of shoes...I have come to enjoy our little chats on various baking subjects. Her painted decorative bread is taking on a genius level of practical application. Something she tells me she learned from my blog. So, when she wrote about a certain cookie, I was excited to delve into a full-out think tank with her....over a long distance. In all honesty, I supplied a couple of recipes, and she and her sister did a lot of leg work in the kitchen. I'm told that big sister Palma still calls her "JoDough". That's Joanne on the left, and Palma on the right.

Joanne wrote:

"Hi Stephanie,

I hope this is okay...I have a baking question. My sister and I have been on a long quest to find a recipe for certain Italian bakery cookies we used to get growing up in Brooklyn. They seem to call them butter cookies, although they really don't taste buttery. The unique thing about them is their texture which is SANDY! They are generally piped through a star tip in round shapes and sometimes dipped in chocolate or with sprinkles.
We've tried a couple of recipes but they just don't have that sandy texture. Do you happen to know what they might use to achieve this texture? We are desperate. lol. Goin' nuts here. Any suggestions greatly appreciated. Thanks :)

In an effort to get my head wrapped around what she wanted exactly, I suggested a few nut cookie recipes, a couple cornmeal ones...wanting to be sure that we were on the same page.

Joanne wrote back:

"My goodness...You are such a dear! I so appreciate your willingness to help. :)
Your suggestions make perfect sense, although I don't think they lead to this particular cookie. I know they're not pignoli's which are chewy and almondy. Doesn't taste at all or have any evidence of nuts in them. They're generally very pale in color too. Cornmeal?...ummm...I dunno, maybe, but not a dense dough...more powdery I think. They don't taste polenta-y. lol Sheesh. I wish I could better explain the texture. They don't feel greasy...they're rather dry and crumbly like sand held together (they make alotta crumbzzz!), and I suspect some shortening is used rather than butter. Not a whole lotta distinct flavor, except maybe from some vanilla (makes you wonder why we even want them lol)
All the Italian pastry shops & bakeries make them in NY.

The thing that bugs me most I think, is that you can pretty much find ANY recipe on the Internet, but these somehow are very elusive...almost like they're TOP SECRET! LOL! Is there a resource for bakery recipes????

So...I sent her this recipe:

Italian Butter Tea Cookies

adapted from the CIA Professional Baking book:

6 oz butter
6 oz shortening
6 oz granulated sugar
3 oz powdered sugar
4.5 oz egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 lb cake flour
2 oz cornstarch

Creaming method. Pipe through a bag, quarter-size cookies and bake 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

Here's the final recipe we came up with.

Italian Butter (AKA Sand) COOKIES

2 cups flour (we used AP)
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
1 1/4 cups confectioners sugar *
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
2 eggs
*(we also liked 3/4 c. conf sugar & 1/4 c. granulated which made them a slight bit sweeter)

Creaming method. Put through the bag with a large star tip. Bake at 375 F for 12-15 minutes or until lightly brown. Decorate with choc chips, sprinkles or leave plain and dip half in melted choc., etc."

The chocolate-dipped ones are the ones I made:

I made the cookies, too. One I made with my butter cookie recipe and one I made with her recipe. 

Final Note: It helps immensely to increase the flour a bit for a better hold on the cookies. I have found in Arizona, that  I have better results with 2 cups flour and 1/3 cup cornstarch instead of what is on the current recipe. 



I have to say, the Sand cookies were so delicate and delicious. I'm so glad Joanne has been so good about including me in her quest...and let's face it, what's not to love about that? Thank you, Joanne Galatolo Nunziante, and Kudos to her big sister, Palma, for the use of her kitchen and her perseverance in the development of the recipe. After all, the quest for the sand cookie recipe was for Palma...It's her fave. I've never met them, but I count them as evil genius kindred spirits. Thank you ladies!

There you go. Make something evil, like a sand cookie. There's no sand in there...just pure evil goodness.

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess