Brown butter may be my new favorite ingredient.  I love butter cookies.  I love cardamom. This recipe may have been designed for me. It is from Bon Appetit in December 2015.  This year, I decided to forego the linzer cookie aspect. We had blood orange sorbet and a chocolate tasting for Christmas Eve dessert.  I was going for something a little more simple.

Luckily, there were leftovers for a tea break.  I tried them with currant jelly by making a sandwich cookie– yes, they are delicious that way. But also delicious without currant jelly.

• 1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ¼ teaspoon finely ground black pepper
• 3¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 2 large egg yolks, room temperature

Cook butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until butter foams, then browns. Scrape into a large bowl; let cool.

Whisk salt, baking powder, spices and flour in a medium bowl.

Add granulated sugar and lemon zest to butter; scrape in vanilla seeds (save pod*). Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in egg, then yolks. Reduce speed to low and add dry ingredients in 3 batches, incorporating after each addition.

Turn out dough onto a surface and knead until no dry spots remain. Divide in half and form into ¾”-thick disks. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 2 hours.

Preheat to 350°. Let 1 disk of dough sit at room temperature until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Roll out on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, shifting often on sheet and dusting with more flour as needed to keep from sticking, until about ⅛” thick. Cut into desired shapes with cutters; transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing ½” apart. Gather scraps, re-roll, and cut out more shapes. Repeat with remaining disk of dough.

*You can put vanilla bean pods in fine sugar. The sugar will pick up the aroma of the vanilla. Or you can put the bean pods in a small bottle with vodka or cognac. Let it macerate, shaking occasionally, and it will turn into delish vanilla for baking.