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5 from 2 votes

Assorted Danish Butter Cookies (one dough 5 variations)

These assorted Danish Butter Cookies are made using one dough with 5 variations.
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Chilling 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 12 minutes
Servings 40 - 45 cookies

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

For the base dough

  • 1 cup butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup Powdered sugar (icing sugar)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cup cake flour OR all-purpose flour

METHOD: Divide the base dough into 5 equal portions and with each dough make 5 different cookies

    For the vanilla ring

    • 1 portion base dough
    • 1 -2 teaspoons warm milk (optional, see note)

    For the pretzel shape cookies

    • 1 portion base dough
    • 1 -2 teaspoons warm milk (optional, see note)
    • Brown sugar to sprinkle see note

    For the rectangular shape cookies

    • 1 portion base dough
    • Brown sugar to sprinkle (see notes)

    For the coconut cookies

    • 1 portion base dough
    • 2 Tablespoons fine unsweetened shredded (desiccated coconut)

    For the country style cookies

    • 1 portion base dough
    • 1 Tablespoon chocolate, chopped into small pieces (see note for alternative)

    Instructions

    Make the base dough

    • Get the butter out of the refrigerator at least an hour before baking. It should be soft to the touch, but not melted.
    • Cream the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla extract with a handheld or stand mixer for 5 to 8 minutes. The creamed butter and sugar should be light in color and fluffy in texture.
    • Use a spatula to scrape the dough off the side of the bowl. Sift the flour into the dough and fold it gently into the creamed butter mixture.

    Make the Vanilla Ring

    • Place the dough in a piping bag fitted with a 1M nozzle
    • Pipe the dough at least 2 inches (5 cm) apart on a baking pan lined with parchment (baking) paper. If you feel that the dough is too stiff or hard to pipe, then just add a teaspoon at a time of warm milk to the dough. This will make the dough softer and easier for you to pipe
    • Top tip: For even size cookies, pipe the dough around the inner ring of a 2 inch (5cm) round cookie cutter.
    • Place the baking pan with the piped-out cookies in the fridge for 30 minutes.

    Make the Pretzel shaped cookies

    • Place the dough in a piping bag.
    • Cut ⅜ inch (10mm) opening at the end of the piping bag.
    • If you are using my free printable pretzel template then simply place it on a baking pan, under your baking paper or silicone baking mat and pipe your dough, tracing along the shape. This will give you the perfect spacing on your baking pan and consistent pretzel cookie shapes.
    • If you feel that the dough is too stiff or hard to pipe, then just add a teaspoon at a time of warm milk to the dough. This will make the dough softer and easier for you to pipe
    • Place the baking pan with the piped-out cookies in the fridge for 30 minutes.

    Make the Country style cookies

    • Add 1 Tablespoon of chopped chocolate pieces to the portion of your base dough
    • Mix it in until evenly distributed.
    • Roll the dough to form a log 4 inch (10cm)long and 1 ¼ inch (3cm thick)
    • You can either wrap the log in plastic wrap or leave unwrapped on a baking sheet.
    • Chill the shaped log for 30 minutes in the fridge.

    Make the coconut cookies

    • Add 2 Tablespoons of fine, unsweetened shredded (dessiccated) coconut to a portion of the base dough. Mix it in until evenly distributed.
    • Roll the dough to form a log 4 inch (10cm)long and 1 ¼ inch (3cm thick) see note when handling the dough
    • You can either wrap the log in plastic wrap or leave unwrapped on a baking sheet.
    • Chill the shaped log for 30 minutes in the fridge.

    Make the rectangular shaped cookies

    • Roll the dough to form a log 4 inch (10cm)long and 1 ¼ inch (3cm thick)
    • Using a dough scraper or something similar, push and shape the dough into a rectangular log shape. Chill the shaped log for 30 minutes in the fridge.

    Baking (see note)

    • After the cookies have chilled, preheat the oven to 300°F/ 150°C (148°C fan)
    • Bake the piped out cookies (Pretzel shaped cookies and vanilla ring)
    • Transfer the lined baking pan with the piped cookies directly from the fridge to the preheated oven.
    • The piped cookie dough should still be very cold when placed in the oven. This will prevent it from spreading.
    • Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until the edges begin to turn a golden color.

    Slice the chilled log shaped cookies and bake (Country style cookies, rectangular shaped cookies and coconut cookies)

    • Once the dough logs are chilled solid, they can be sliced into ⅜ of an inch (1 cm) thick disks, and place on baking sheet (makes approximately 10 to 11 slices with each portion of the dough)
    • Place the slices at least 2 inches (5 cm) apart on a baking pan lined with parchment (baking) paper.
    • The dough should still be very cold when placed in the oven. This will prevent it from spreading too much and losing its shape.
    • Place in a preheated oven of 300°F/ 150°C (148°C fan) immediately after slicing.
    • Bake until the edges begin to turn a golden color.
    • Remove from the oven and leave the cookies on the baking sheet to cool for 10 minutes see note
    • Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container.

    Notes

    Warm milk: Add a teaspoon at a time of warm milk to the dough to get a softer piping consistency.This will make the dough softer and easier for you to pipe Dont add more than 2 Tablespoons of milk to the dough or the dough will become too soft and runny
    When handling the dough: Refrigerate the dough if it becomes difficult to handle: The dough has a high ratio of butter and can get difficult to work with if it gets too warm. If the dough gets too warm, simply put it back into the fridge or freezer for a few minutes. This helps to cool the butter, making the dough much easier to form into a log.
    Brown sugar: For these cookies, you want to decorate with large sugar crystals. instead of castor or powdered sugar.
    I used light brown sugar, because the granules are much larger compared to white granulated sugar.
    The sugar is sprinkled onto the cookies shapes before baking.
    Chocolate alternative: Currants can be used as an alternative to chocolate.
    Baking: Do not overbake the cookies. They will be soft after baking straight out of the oven, but will crisp and get firm as it cools.
    Cool the cookies after baking: Remove the tray from the oven but leave the cookies on the baking tray for 10 minutes. The baked cookies will be soft when you take it out of the oven but crisp as they cool.
    After 10 minutes on the baking tray, the cookies will be firm and crisp enough to transfer to a cooling rack.
    Storing: Once completely cool, store the cookies in an airtight jar for up to 5 days.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 80kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 12mg | Sodium: 37mg | Potassium: 13mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 3g | Calcium: 3mg | Iron: 0.3mg
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