This cookie recipe has been passed down in our family for years. Momo is my great Grandmother on my mom’s side. A family gathering is not complete with out a batch of Momo’s cookies served.
My mom, Aunt Izzy and Nana were headed on a road trip for Mother’s Day and I sent them on their way with a box of Momo’s and Brown Sugar Nut Shortbread cookies to munch on in the car. My favorite cookies for my favorite women!
A few things that make these cookies extra delicious:
Surprise, there’s a nut in the date!
Sour Cream in the dough
Browned Butter frosting
I’ll admit, they are not the most aesthetically appealing cookies. But, you’ll forget all about looks the moment the first tastes of browned butter and sweet date hits your lips. Anyway, didn’t your mother teach you, true beauty is on the inside.
Also, check my notes below the recipe. I had a few mishaps…
Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1/2 t vanilla
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/4 cup flour
1/4 t salt
1/4 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 cup sour cream
1 egg
2 1/2 dozen (about 30) Medjool dates
Pecans or walnuts. Same number nuts as dates
Frosting:
1/4 cup butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 t vanilla
(little water if necessary)
Preheat oven to 400
Stuff the dates with a nut and set aside
Combine the dry ingredients into a bowl and set aside
Cream the butter and sugar
Add the egg and mix until just combined
Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the sour cream
Wrap dough around the date
Bake for about 10 minutes
Cool on a sheet for a minute or two before transferring to a cooling rack
Meanwhile, make the frosting.
Melt the butter until brown
Add the sugar and vanilla
If looking a little too thick, add water, a tad bit at a time.
Frost the cookies and enjoy! I know you will!
Notes:
1. When wrapping the date with dough: You don’t need to use too much dough. It is alright if a little date is peaking through the dough. The dough will melt around the date while cooking. I made the mistake of wrapping too much dough around the dates the first time I made these)
Also, the dough is also sticky, that’s ok, it’s suppose to be.
2. When Browning the butter: This is tricky. You will be waiting for the butter to go from melted to browned for what may seem like an eternity. Then, the second you get board and turn your back on the stove it’ll burn! So, eyes on the melting pot of butter at all times!
3. They can last for a week in an air tight container. I know this because I sent a box to Europe to my favorite Turkish mom for Mother’s Day, and were still tasty when they arrived a week later (well, most importantly, no one got sick!). The date and nuts remind me of flavors in Middle Eastern recipes too.
