Tea and Almond Shortbread Cookies with Vanilla Icing Drizzle

Well, I have learned to never make a new years resolution that had any food word in it! If you know me, I am quite addicted to chocolate but these tea and almond shortbread cookies with vanilla icing has brought me to my knees! I am a sucker for the flavor paired with a simple drizzle for a tea time snack around 2pm…daily. Not even TEAsing! Homemade shortbread cookies come together with my favorite cookie base, black tea, and a vanilla icing drizzle. They are soft around the edges and tender in the centers and tastes just like Heaven.

How It All Starts

I find comfort in the kitchen, especially when my brain is on OT thinking about 100 different things at once. I can’t escape my thoughts but I can most certainly place them on the back burner while I indulge in some sweet space around my electric mixer. These cookie slow down time with a dunk of milk, one of many coffee breaks, or kick-start your morning routine like a champ. I wish I could send each of you a batch of my favorite non-chocolate cookies…but unfortunately that isn’t how the cookie crumbles so the next best thing is to snag the recipe from below. Don’t get intimated by the time, you are only active for maybe 5 minutes in the beginning and 5 minutes at the end. Remember, a cookie in each hand is a life well balanced.

The Tea of Choice

These tea and almond shortbread tea cookies with vanilla icing are packed with tea, my favorite is a white or black tea. For these I used white tea, but you can use any true tea (black, green, white, oolong and dark). January is National Hot Tea Month and January 12th marks National Hot Tea Day and every year I team up with Tea Council of the USA to help promote potential health benefits of true teas. You can drink your health and eat it too with these tea and almond shortbread cookies with vanilla icing for any time of day. Why should you? Tea:

Possesses a prebiotic-like effect and can assist in balancing your body’s bank of bacteria, leading to whole body benefits
Contains L-theanine –studies have found that L-theanine is associated with improved relaxation, tension and calmness
AND so much more!

Tea has whole-body health benefits, including skin health! No joke, after drinking tea for several months, a couple cups a day, my skin was glowing!

This shortbread recipe is a spin off of a sugar cookie recipe. Tea and almond shortbread cookies with vanilla icing starts with your butter, eggs, and sugars and then almond extract. Just a touch goes a long way and gives and extra layer of flavor paired with the vanilla undertones. I like to beat everything but the flour together first, that includes the baking powder to I know it gets blended really well. Watch below how I place the dough in the center of the cling wrap and then create a log-shape roll. This will help when you are ready to cut the dough and you will end up with perfect rectangle pieces. The chill time doesn’t have to be long, anywhere from 45 minutes to 60 minutes. After your timer goes off, be sure to give these an extra 2-3 minutes to rest on the cookie sheet before removing. The secret to perfect cookies. 😉

Tea and Almond Shortbread Cookies with Vanilla Icing

What Flour Works Best

All-purpose flour was use to make these tea and almond shortbread cookies with vanilla icing. You can use gluten free flour from my trusted source, Bob’s Red Mill, or whole wheat flour. For the gluten free flour, if you have read my recipe for banana bread with cinnamon swirl then you know to reduce the flour by 1 tablespoon. This just helps ensure your baked goods are not over baked yielding a fresh, soft texture. For whole wheat, your cookie will taste nutty. Wheat flour in general has a distinct taste and usually in the form of a nut flavor. This actually is a great recipe to use it in and maybe add in extra cinnamon, a touch of all-spice, a sprinkle of orange zest for a cozy cookie. Definitely don’t skip out on the icing, it is sure to go with any flavor.