Our family just moved to the great city of Chicago. We love it, and we’ve been so busy! There’s always something to do and it’s so easy to get around on foot, train or by car. Between all the unpacking and exploring, I’ve managed to squeeze in some baking and sample some really good cookies. At our house, we call these CPS Butter Cookies.
CPS Butter Cookies
A friend gave me this cookie last week. It was made by her friend who wraps each cookie individually and shares or sells them. He obviously puts a lot of love in his baking, and his cookie seems like it might be reminiscent of the ones they used to serve in Chicago public schools. It’s a cross between a butter cookie and a sugar cookie and is made with just four ingredients — butter, sugar, flour and vanilla. There’s no chemical leavening agent, but the cookies bake up light and crispy thanks to the air that’s whipped in with the butter and sugar. The texture is much lighter than shortbread, but the butter flavor comes through loud and clear.
I made a batch yesterday using a mishmash of different CPS butter cookie copycats. Mine are smaller than the originals and not exactly the same, but they got a vote of approval from a friend who attended Chicago public schools. So even if they’re not the same cookies, they’re good on their own merit.
Notes on the Butter
I used Danish butter from one of my neighborhood grocery stores, Treasure Island. It’s called Lurpak, and I know we’ve discussed it before, but I had trouble finding it back in Austin. Apparently Treasure Island will be my new go-to source for butter because they had a nice variety of interesting ones including an Amish butter. Also, I used unsalted and added my own salt to the recipe, but most shortbread type recipes advise using salted.
Notes on the Flour
For the flour I used regular old Pillsbury’s Best bleached. I normally used unbleached, but I figured CPS probably used bleached and from my experience, cookies with bleached flour don’t spread quite so much. The key is getting the amount of flour just right so that the cookies don’t spread too much (too little) or the dough is too dry (too much). That can be tricky since volume measurements of flour aren’t always accurate, so if you have a scale it’s best to weigh, but also go by the feel of the dough. The dough should be stiff enough to work with and not require any refrigeration.
Update: I’ve made these over and over since first posting and have added a few more tips in the notes section. For instance, KerryGold butter works so well. It’s easier to find than the Danish butter and you can buy it in bulk at Costco.
Chicago Public School Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 sticks 230 grams good salted butter, at cool room temperature **
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar 150 grams
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 more tablespoons flour optional, only if needed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and have ready an ungreased or Silpat lined baking sheet.
- With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar for about 5 minutes, scraping bowl often, until very light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and scrape sides of bowl again.
- Gradually stir in flour, ½ cup at a time, until a smooth dough forms.
- Using a generously rounded tablespoon, scoop up dough and shape into 24 balls. At this point you can bake the dough or chill it until ready to bake.
- Arrange the dough balls on baking sheets spacing about 2 ½ inches apart. Dampen fingers and press index, middle and ring fingers into each dough ball to make indentations and flatten.
- Bake for 12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Carefully transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.
Notes
Also, I recommend you add the flour gradually. Start with 1 1/2 cup and then add the flour a few tablespoons at a time stirring until the dough is just firm enough to be shaped into a ball.
Use the best butter you can get find. The Danish butter is good, but KerryGold works really well too and gives the cookies a yellow hue.
Anna
Let’s hear it for lunch ladies! They all need a raise. Thanks for sharing that, V.
Vincent
This is the way my mother made them, she was a great lunch lady.
Anna
Thank you, Janice! I’ll bet yours are great and love the idea of turning them into thumbprint cookies.
Janice Clarke-Reiter
These cookies are delightful! I have made them a number of times following the recipe exactly. I also make them incorporating dried fruit or mini chocolate chips, toffee chips, nuts and so forth. I press some cookies and place a small amount of jam in the center for a mini thumbprint cookie. So happy I encountered your recipe.
Anna
Hi Gail! I’m glad you like the recipe. As for why they are sometimes hard and sometimes soft, it probably has to do with the temperature of the dough and the bake time. Maybe you always use the same bake time, but sometimes the dough is colder so the cookies end up not baking quite as long and come out soft? I’m going to assume you use the same brands of flour, same brand of butter, etc. If that’s not the case, using a softer flour like cake flour or even bleached flour (any brand) might make the cookies softer than if you’d used unbleached. The other thing would be if you are using margarine rather than butter. Margarine makes cookies softer.
Gail
I love these cookies,they bring back old memories for me. I have made them many times and sometimes they are hard and not soft.
Can you tell me what I might be doing wrong.?
Gail
Anna
Edmund, yes! Whole wheat flour is much dryer and will absorb too much moisture. The cookies will be dry and too hard to shape. I’m wondering if you meant “unbleached” flour rather than whole wheat. You can definitely use unbleached as opposed to bleached. But I wouldn’t recommend whole wheat flour without other adjustments.
Edmund t. Scott
Will it make a difference if using bleached whole wheat flour?
Anna
Penny, that’s a good question. I’ve never tried. My advice is to start with this size batch and if you like the results, try doubling. This recipe makes great cookies, but sometimes my cookies are flatter than others. I’ve found I get different results with different brands of butter, flour and most importantly, the amount of time spent whipping the butter. You really do have to whip as directed so the cookies will be light. Good luck!
Penny
Can you make a double batch
J Blackmon
Thank you for this simple, yet STUNNING cookie. Amazing flavor and quickly out together.
TxPepper
I was wondering which city/state was going to be the lucky recipient of your move. Glad to read that you are getting settled in.
But! You’re going to miss us. 😀
Carol
Glad you are enjoying Chicago Anna! I lived in Peoria, IL for my first 32 years. We moved to PA almost 10 years ago. If you say you are from IL here, they always assume you have moved from Chicago :). Cookies look great!
Rebecca
How exciting! We just came back from a trip to Chicago. I hope you will be trying to duplicate some of the treats from Sweet Mandy B’s!
Anna
Kelly, I’ve seen some versions that have either all powdered sugar or a mixture of the two. I’m going to try that one soon, but these were such a hit that I’ll probably make another batch using this same recipe and testing with different butter. I’m wondering if the special Danish butter is really what made them so good. The people I made them for are still talking about them.
Katrina
Looks like a fun, simple cookie!
Kelly
Welcome to the upper midwest, from the Milwaukee area! I’ve been making a variation of this, with powdered sugar, as cut outs. Looking forward to trying with granulated sugar!
joan
These look wonderful! Can’t wait to hear about your cooking/eating adventures in The Windy City….
cookienurse
Congratulations on your move to Chicago!
Anna
Sugar is optional. I actually like sprinkling it on the hot cookies because it just melts a little and adheres, whereas if you sprinkle it on before, it soaks in. But that sugar dusting was just an optional last minute thing and is not necessary.
Darlene
I know I would love these! The indentations from the fingerprints make them especially charming. Did you sprinkle the top of the unbaked cookies with sugar? It looks like you may have in the pictures.
So happy to hear you and your family are enjoying your new home!
Kimberly
Oh my, those cookies look absolutely delicious! I will be making these this weekend for sure.