Grandma’s Irish Sugar Cookies
Whenever I bring this cookie to events, people always ask – what makes it Irish? They usually expect Whiskey or Bailey’s to be mixed in, but that is not the case. This cookie is more of a blend of an Irish short bread with a pressed sugar cookie. If you’re looking for a cookie to add icing and sprinkles to, this likely isn’t the cookie for you (that cookie is here).
Growing up, this was the only sugar cookie I knew, and I absolutely love it. It’s crumbly, buttery, and it dissolves in your mouth with sugary goodness.
A funny family story. My Grandma K (on mom’s side) used to make these amazing sugar cookies, and unfortunately lost the recipe! (oh no!) My mom met my dad, and his mom (Grandma P) had made sugar cookies that were miraculously the same as Grandma K’s! Mom shared them with Grandma K and she was amazed that mom had found the missing secret cookie recipe? So this recipe truly belongs to both of my Grandma’s!
Long story short, apparently both sides of my family brought this cookie recipe over from Ireland!
If you like this style of cookie, and would like to add a bit more flavor, you’d likely love these peanut butter cookies!
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Grandma’s Irish Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- Stand mixer
Ingredients
- ½ cup granulated sugar plus additional for rolling
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ tsp vanilla
- 2 cups flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp cream of tartar
Instructions
- In a stand mixer, combine sugar, powdered sugar, egg, butter, oil, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed until fully encorporated.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar. Slowly add to the stand mixer. Stir until fully incorporated. Scrape down sides as necessary.
- Chill the dough in a fridge overnight, or in the freezer for at least an hour. (see note)
- Roll dough into small balls (approximately 1-2 Tbsp). Roll in granulated sugar and place on a cookie sheet. Leave 1½-2 inches between cookies as they will spread out considerably. Press cookies until about ½ an inch tall. You can use either a cookie press, a fork, or your palm.
- Bake at 350° for 10-15 minutes. Cookies will have spread out thin, and turned lightly tan around the edges.
Notes
- Many cookie recipes call for chilling in order to get more even baking and a nicer shape, when that is the case it can usually be skipped if your rushed for time. However this is not one of those recipes. Due to the oil and butter, this recipe requires chilling time to even be able to roll it into balls – so please plan accordingly.
- If you wish to save some of this dough for later, after the dough has been rolled into balls, place in a zip lock back and add to freezer. When you’re ready to bake, allow them to thaw for 20 minutes, then roll in sugar, press, and bake as normal.
4 Comments
Misti Beal
How do you get the design on the cookie? It almost looks like you pressed a slice of citrus on it to flatten it out. 🙂
Angela
Thank you for asking! I have a glass cookie press that I inherited from my mom, you can see it pictured with these peanut butter cookies. There are cookie presses available online, or you can use the bottom of a drinking glass. I recommend dipping the glass in sugar before pressing the cookie so that it doesn’t stick.
Tamara
I hadn’t heard of these before so decided to make them. I made them small – nearly 3 dozen out of the batch. As an experiment, I rolled a couple in demera sugar (not successful because that added a molasses flavor) and a couple in sparkling white sugar (designed not to melt – successful and added an extra crunch, not that they needed that). I think they are a nice, simple cookie, great with a cup of coffee or tea. Crispy and buttery. And they very much make me think of snickerdoodles without the cinnamon.
Suzanne
This looks so good! What a great combination of flavors!