Walnut Cookies
Aunt Josephine's Walnut Cookies have been a family favorite for generations. Made with a sweet and nutty filling wrapped in a buttery dough, these cookies are a nostalgic treat that will bring back fond memories.
Aunt Josephine's Walnut Cookies have been a family favorite for generations. Made with a sweet and nutty filling wrapped in a buttery dough, these cookies are a nostalgic treat that will bring back fond memories.
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup shortening
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- filling:
- dough:
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1 1/2 pounds walnuts chopped fine
- 4 oz. unsalted butter melted (1 stick)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 large egg whites lightly beaten
- icing:
- 4 tablespoons whole milk (approximately)
- Carbohydrate 206.485817731699 g
- Cholesterol 75.9833880139312 mg
- Fat 91.57675109034 g
- Fiber 8.87246523815059 g
- Protein 34.6112947242698 g
- Saturated Fat 19.8000033791343 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Dozen (482g)
- Sodium 4917.59310398631 mg
- Sugar 197.613352493548 g
- Trans Fat 7.58712258542571 g
- Calories 1714 calories
Step-by-step
- Place oven rack in center position and heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of electric mixer or by hand, cream together the sugar and shortening. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until well combined. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add dry ingredients alternately with the milk to the shortening mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, making sure all of the ingredients are well incorporated. The dough will be soft. Divide the dough into four even pieces, wrap each in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.
- To make the filling, either process the nuts through a food processor until finely chopped (just a little larger than all-out ground), or chop by hand. The smaller the pieces, the better. Combine the chopped nuts with the sugar and then add in the melted butter. Mix well, making sure there are no large clumps. Add the egg whites and again, mix well.
- On a well-floured surface, roll out a piece of dough into a rectangle measuring about 6-inches by 18-inches. Spread 1/4 of the nut filling onto the dough, leaving a small border around the perimeter of the dough. Roll up as you would a jelly roll, with the short ends to the left and right of you, and seal the ends. Cut the roll into 1-inch pieces and place on the cookie sheet. Bake until the tops are just starting to turn light brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Set on wire racks to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough and filling.
- Once the cookies are cooled, prepare the icing by mixing together the powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to achieve the desired consistency. You'll want the icing to be thick enough to not be runny, but still easily spreadable. Ice the tops of the cookies and let set completely before storing in an airtight container.
Rolling pastry dough to precisely six by eighteen inches requires patience and a heavily floured work surface. This Eastern European style pastry relies on a tender dough wrapped around a dense, high-fat nut filling. When fresh from the oven, the exterior lacks crispness. Let the baked pieces sit uncovered overnight on wire racks to let the moisture stabilize. The texture transforms completely by day two, yielding a firmer shell that holds up better to the sweet glaze.
- Chill the four dough portions for at least sixty minutes before rolling to prevent the shortening from melting into a sticky mess.
- Process the nuts until they resemble coarse sand; pieces larger than ground meal will tear the rolled dough sheets.
- Keep the oven temperature precisely at 350 degrees F to cook the thick filling without burning the exterior butter-and-sugar layers.
- Store the finished iced pastries in a sealed container at room temperature for up to five days.
Humidity is the primary enemy of this baked good, so ensure the glaze dries completely before sealing containers. Second-day consumption offers a noticeably superior crumb structure compared to the initial warm state.
