French Sablé Cookies from the Normandy region of France are thin and buttery, also known as French butter cookies or Breton biscuits.
French Sablés
By Sue Lau | Palatable Pastime
I’m back with my second offering for the 12 Days of #ChristmasCookies which today is joining up with a second blogging group called the #InternationalCookieExchange. I chose these French cookies because for the exchange, each blogger chose a country and found a cookie from that cuisine to prepare. I love French food and also butter cookies, so this was a natural choice for me.
French Sablés are a type of French cookie from the Normandy region which is also called French Butter cookies and also Breton Biscuits. Sable refers to the sandy texture of the cookies itself.
These are usually rolled very thin and cut out with a round cookie cutter, but I really don’t have a lot of space on my countertops for that so I simply rolled up the dough, refrigerated it and cut the cold dough into wafers. It all comes out the same in the end.
I also used high quality imported French butter in this. Use that if you can, otherwise select the best butter you can find.
I hope you enjoy these and look at both groups of bloggers and the respective cookie recipes below the recipe printout.
Tomorrow I am taking a day off from cookie posting to take part in a blogger charity event called Foodies for FoodBanks with my recipe for German Sauerbraten. Sunday I will be joining in with #SundaySupper bloggers with my recipe for another Starbucks knockoff: Gingerbread Eggnog Latte (perhaps the perfect thing to enjoy with your cookies!) And Monday I will be back with my recipe for Lemon Sprinkles Cookies for the 12 Days of Christmas Cookies and yet another blogging group called the Food Blogger Cookie Exchange. Until next time-
~Sue
French Sablés
Dough Chilling time: 3-4 hours
Yield: 2-1/2 dozen cookies
Ingredients:
- 8 ounces unsalted French butter
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla paste
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 egg white
- coarse sparkling sugar
Method:
- Cream together the butter with the sugars in an electric mixer.
- Add in the salt, vanilla paste and egg yolks (add yolks one at a time).
- Add flour little by little until it makes a smooth dough, scraping down the bowl if needed.
- Place dough on waxed paper and form into a cylindrical roll 10′ inches long by 2″wide. Wrap wax paper around it and refrigerate for 3-4 hours until very firm.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Remove dough from fridge and brush with beaten egg white using a pastry brush then roll into coarse sugars to coat the edges.
- Cut into wafers 1/3″ wide and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
- Score with a fork, clawing at the cookie like a cat. Don’t try to press the fork into the dough like peanut butter cookies- it won’t work. ~Or~ if you like extra sugar you can press some more sugar on the tops like sugar cookies, but I find that too much sugar detracts from the taste of the butter. Trust me.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes or until just lightly browned around the edges.
- Cool on the pan ten minutes then slide the parchment onto a wire rack and finish cooling there.
From the kitchen of palatablepastime.com
Day 2
- Devil’s Food Mini Chip Cookies from Family Around the Table
- French Sables from Palatable Pastime
- Kleicha (Iraqi Date Cookies) from Caroline’s Cooking
- Super Duper Chewy Milk Chocolate M&M Cookies from Cooking With Carlee
- Pistachio and Apricot Oatmeal Cookies from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Rogaliki from A Day in the Life on The Farm
- Salted Caramel Thumbprints from Jolene’s Recipe Journal
Welcome to the second annual International Cookie Exchange
Hosted by Sarah from Curious Cuisiniere
jar with cultural treats!
- From France: Palatable Pastime – Sablés
- From Germany: Cindy’s Recipes and Writing – Lebkuchen (Spiced Molasses Cookies)
- From Greece: Cooking the Globe – Kourabiedes
- From India: Love Is In My Tummy – Kal Kal
- From Iraq: Caroline’s Cooking – Kleicha (Iraqi Date Cookies)
- From Italy: An Italian In My Kitchen – Cranberry Almond Biscotti
- From Italy: Culinary Adventures with Camilla – Ricciarelli
- From Poland: A Day in the Life on the Farm – Rogaliki
- From Scotland: The Redhead Baker – Cranberry Orange Shortbread
- From Serbia: Curious Cuisiniere – Vanilice (Little Filled Vanilla Cookies)
- From Switzerland: Tara’s Multicultural Table – Basler Brunsli (Swiss Chocolate Almond Cookies)
- From Venezuela: Five Senses Palate – Coquitos
Lovely recipe.
These look delicious! I love the flavor and texture of sables! Thanks for joining us!
Can’t go wrong with butter cookies. Have a good break Sue….looking forward to your sauerbraten recipe.
Sables have always been on my bucket list. They look delicious and the directions sounds so easy.
I love the sparkly sugar around the edge. What a nice and delicious addition to a holiday cookie tray.
They look so buttery and delicious! What a great cookie!
So simple and delicious! I love how you dressed these up with the sugar!
So simple yet so delicious (I am sure about it). Going to bookmark the recipe and try these beauties later!
Beautiful cookies! Love the fork marks on the top and the sugar around the edges.