Pine Needle Shortbread Cookies

**An easy to make cookie with a subtle, aromatic flavor perfect for the Winter holidays. Photography by Dave Bryce.**

The chill of winter gives us the perfect excuse to turn on the oven, warm up the kitchen, and try our hands at a new cookie recipe. One of our latest favorites comes from TABLE Magazine collaborator Anna Calabrese, whose appreciation for a walk in the woods is expressed here in cookie form!

Pine Needle Shortbread Cookies

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour

½ cup cornstarch

2 tbsp finely chopped pine needles

1 cup powdered sugar

½ tsp sea salt

1 pound butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put the flour, cornstarch, and pine needles in a food processor and blend until the pine needles are finely chopped and mixed into the flour. (This will make the pine needles very fragrant but once they are cooked the flavor will mellow out.)

With a pastry cutter, combine the powdered sugar, salt, and butter into pea-sized pieces.

Add flour and mix until evenly incorporated and dough forms into a ball.

Roll out dough to barely ¼-inch thick on a floured surface and use your favorite cookie cutters to cut out cookies.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden brown.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar once cool and serve. Grownups might try them with a very cold glass of pine-infused Retsina wine from Greece.

Story by Keith Recker / Photography by Dave Bryce / Recipe and styling by Anna Calabrese / Plate by FD Ceramics