Walnut Meltaways are the most delicious buttery shortbread cookies with walnuts and powdered sugar.
Every year, it’s fun to add another cookie to the holiday baking list. Last year it was Chocolate Drizzled Peanut Butter Cookies. And this year, it’s these Walnut Meltaways! They are a simple cookie to make. There are no eggs at all in the cookies because they’re more of a shortbread cookie. They’re light and flaky and delicious.
This recipe comes from Pastry Love: A Baker’s Journal of Favorite Recipes by Joanne Chang. Chang is the founder of Flour Bakery (there are now 8 of them). The recipes in the book are Chang’s most treasured recipes that she’s sharing with the world! This is a fun book to add to your cookbook shelf if you are a lover of bakery style recipes.
Here are some recipes in the book that I’ve bookmarked to make:
- Parmesan- Chive Scones
- Almond Croissants
- Lemon Polenta Cookies
- Apple Cider Sticky Buns
- Plum Upside-Down Cake
- Cherry Crumb Pie
- Eggnog Cheesecake
- Billionaire’s Shortbread
- Sticky Bun Popcorn
Ingredients needed:
- walnuts
- butter
- powdered sugar
- vanilla extract
- kosher salt
- all purpose flour
- a
How to make Walnut Meltaways:
Toast the walnuts in the oven. Let them cool. And then grind them into crumbs in your food processor.
The cookie dough is a mix of butter, powdered sugar, kosher salt, vanilla extract and ground walnuts. Scoop the dough into balls and place them on a baking sheet. Press each cookie dough ball down lightly and place an un-toasted walnut half in the middle of each cookie. Bake about 18 minutes, until the cookies are golden brown.
Let the cookies cool completely on a wire rack.
Then dust them with powdered sugar using a sifter or a fine sieve.
I hope you enjoy these beautiful walnut meltaways from Joanne Chang’s book. I think they are lovely. And they are great cookies to display for the holiday season. Enjoy!
Walnut Meltaways
Ingredients
DOUGH:
- 1½ cups walnut halves
- 1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2¾ cups all purpose flour
GARNISH:
- 18 walnut halves
- ½ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
TOAST and GRIND THE WALNUTS:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place rack in the center of the oven.
- Place 1½ cups of walnut halves on a baking sheet and toast for 8 to 10 minutes, until they begin to smelly nutty and turn pale golden inside. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- Place the cooled, toasted walnuts in a food processor and process until ground into crumbs, about 20 seconds.
PREPARE THE COOKIES:
- In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the butter and ¾ cup powdered sugar together at medium speed until creamy and smooth and light (about 2 minutes). Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the ground walnuts, vanilla and salt. Add the flour, and mix on low for 30 seconds. Scrape and beat again until thoroughly combined.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat mat. Using a ¼-cup ice cream scoop or a large spoon, scoop the dough into ¼ cup-sized balls and place on the prepared baking sheet a few inches apart. Lightly press each with the palm of your hand to flatten slightly. Press an untoasted walnut half into the center of each cookie. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until the cookies are light golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the baking sheet on a wire rack.
- Using a sifter or small sieve, dust the cookies with the remaining ½ cup powdered sugar until they are completely white.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Dust with additional powdered sugar to freshen them up before serving.
Notes
- After preparing the dough, it can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week or in the freezer for up to one month. If frozen, thaw the dough in the fridge and let it come to room temperature before baking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
