Butter Fingers

These are not the butterfingers people pass out at Halloween. Nothing wrong with peanut butter crispy candy covered in chocolate, but these cookies are awesome. Lightly sweetened shortbread is jam packed full of crispy, buttery pecans. And I mean jam packed...there are basically as many pecans as there is dough, volume wise.

Rolled into finger shapes, baked, then rolled in a soft, thick blanket of powdered sugar.

Common scents: don't wear black while eating. Because that fabulousness just can't be contained.

Recipe courtesy of my boyfriend's mom, who makes these often (with good reason, too). I tried one he brought back after a break, and oh man, was I honored to get the recipe!

I made them in my grandmother's tiny kitchen while my dad made a lamb roast (yumyumyumyum.). And let me just set the scene: we're talking the grandmother who melts a See's candy on her toast for breakfast. She loved them, as did the aunts, uncles, cousins, and other family members who passed through her living room throughout the week and were greeted with a hug and the leftover chinese takeout container full of cookies.

Another plus of being at my grandmother's house is that she has beautiful china. She collects teacups and saucers, so as you drink cups and cups of tea--I love tea--you get to enjoy the unique patterns and delicate handles.

Saucers make great cookie plates, because the dainty cookies look substantial in comparison to the small size of the plate and beautiful against the similar daintiness of the china.

These few ingredients leave a strong impression of butter and sweetness and crunch and holidays.

Butter Fingers
Yield: about 3 dozen

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups (one 8 ounce bag) chopped pecans
about 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar (to roll the cookies in)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Cream the butter, then add the 1/2 cup powdered sugar a tablespoon at a time.
3. Add in the flour and vanilla, mixing until just combined. Then, add the pecans and mix to combine.
4. Roll 1 tablespoon-ish of the dough to make "finger" shape.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until firm. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes on the baking sheets.
6. Carefully roll the still-warm cookies in the powdered sugar. Note: If they crack, it's chef's treat! It helps to press the sugar onto the cookies from all sides. Coat completely so the cookies are entirely white.
7. Eat up!