Dulce de Leche Cutout Cookies

I wanted to make Halloween cookies, but I wanted to try something new! So, I thought I'd try one of my favorite cookies that my sister-in-law Sarah over at High Heels and Grills makes. When I was dating my husband (her brother) we drove from Utah to her house in Fort Collins, Colorado and she made these cookies for us, I fell in love with them! And then when we got married, she made a ton of desserts and these were definitely on the table for refreshments.

Shortbread is so delicate and crumbly, and I literally carved out the faces for these cookies with a toothpick! It took longer than I'd expect it to, so unless you have a lot of time on your hands, use a Linzer Cookie Cutter and it'll be way easier. You can find different holiday ones too, but probably not pumpkin faces ;).

You can find the original recipe here from my SIL's blog. I halved it so that we didn't have cookies coming out of our ears. Best recipe for baking for two!



Making the dough is really simple, just make sure you mix thoroughly enough. I threw it in my KitchenAid and let it mix for a while. You can make your own dulce de leche, but the Nestle brand I bought from Walmart is aaaamazing!! If you didn't know, it's caramelized sweetened condensed milk. So, heaven in a can for under $3.

Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) + 1 Tbsp. softened butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 can dulce de leche
Sugar sprinkles


Directions
1. Cream together butter and sugar
2. In a separate bowl, thoroughly mix together flour and cornstarch
3. Add flour mixture to sugar + butter
4. Mix well
5. Form into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap, chill in fridge for 20 minutes
6. Roll out until very thin and can be cut easily, under 1/4 inch
7. Cut into desired shapes, make sure to cut enough front and back sides to make sandwiches (only the front side needs the middle cutout, the backside doesn't)
8. Place on cookie sheet and sprinkle sugar on top
9. Cook for 6-7 minutes, do not brown edges
10. Cool and spread dulce de leche on bottom cookie, then place cutout cookie on top