Cookie cups

Martha Stewart Living, August 2012

To create this shortbread cup -- a delicious way to serve summer berries and sorbet at a party -- Living staffer and avid baker Paulie Dibner simply used the underside of a muffin tin. "Molding the dough around the outside of the tin is the trick to getting the cups to keep their shape," says Dibner. To make the cups, roll shortbread cookie dough (or any roller dough) to a 1/4-inch thickness, and cut out six 4-inch circles. Mold them around the underside of the tin, alternating cups to keep the cookies apart. Bake according to recipe, and let cookies cool on tin.

Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla with a mixer. Beat in flour and salt until just combined. Wrap in plastic; refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.
2. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/8 inch thick. Cut out with a 1 3/4-inch scalloped round cutter, and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet; place in the freezer to harden for 30 minutes. Cut out letter or heart shapes from half the cookies, then return to freezer for another 15 minutes.
3. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Bake until cookies just begin to brown around the edges, 12 to 14 minutes. Cookies will keep airtight at room temperature about 5 days.