Maple Sugar Star Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting (Recipe)

Maple Sugar Star Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting

Makes about 6 dozen

1 ½ cups butter (room temperature)

1 ½ cups brown sugar

3 teaspoons baking powder

¾ teaspoon salt

3 eggs

½ cup 100% pure maple syrup (no substitutions of flavored syrup)

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla

4 ¼ cups flour

Brown Butter Frosting and Turbinado Sugar for decorating

Cream together butter and brown sugar.  Add baking powder and salt and mix well.  Add eggs, maple syrup and vanilla and mix until combined.  (Mixture will have little lumps.) Mix in flour.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill for one hour or more.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees convection so you can bake 2 or more sheets at the same time. Turn dough out on a well-floured counter and sprinkle with more flour. Roll out adding flour as needed to prevent sticking and cut out with star cookie cutters. (Tip: I like to start with 1/3 to 1/2 of the dough to work in smaller batches, which I can return to the refrigerator for chilling while I'm working with another batch.) 

Bake for 6-7 minutes, until the edges just brown. Cool on pans for a slight crisp or remove immediately to wire racks to cool for a softer cookie. When cookies have cooled, frost with Brown Butter Frosting and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Store in a sealed container at room temperature for a few days or freeze immediately to eat later.

Brown Butter Frosting

1 cup unsalted butter

7-8 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup evaporated milk

4 teaspoons vanilla extract

Melt butter in a small sauce pan. Heat over medium heat, stirring gently. Cook until foam starts to subside and brown bits are formed on the bottom of the pan. The butter will have a nutty smell. Remove from heat and pour the butter and all the browned bits into a mixing bowl. Allow butter to cool for a few minutes.

Mix in powdered sugar, evaporated milk and vanilla extract until spreadable. Add more powdered sugar or evaporated milk to reach desired consistency.