Petit Fours

Heart shaped petit fours

The petit four cookie is a staple in any Lebanese pastry shop. It’s a buttery cookie that either stuffed with chocolate or jam, or left single. you will see trays of them all shapes and sizes stuffed, dipped and decorated. It truly is a feast for the eyes. The many shapes are traditionally made using a cookie press but you can also pipe the dough or roll it out and use cookie cutters. The possibilities are endless. Try out these melt in your mouth cookies and let us know what you think.

Pre Time: 20 min
Bake time: 10 min
Yeild: ~ 20 stuffed petit fours

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 cups all purpose flour (250g)
  • 1 cup room temperature butter (225g)
  • 1/2 cup confectioner sugar 
  • 1 egg 
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract 
  • Dash of salt 
  • *To make chocolate flavour petit four, replace
    2 heaping Tbsp of flour with 2 heaping Tbsp of
    coco powder.

GARNISH

Chocolate 
Sprinkles
Crushed pistachios
Apricot jam 

DIRECTIONS

  1. In a mixer cream butter until fluffy and pale.
  2. Add sugar and mix until combined.
  3. Add egg and mix in. 
  4. Sift in flour in small amounts and mix until combined well.
  5. The dough should come together nicely and not be too sticky when handled.
  6. Preheat oven to 325F
  7. You can form cookies using cookie press, a pipping bag or cookie cutter.
    1. Option one: When using cookie press, push dough through  press, allow dough to stick to lightly greased tray or parchment paper before pulling away. Cool for a couple of minutes before backing on middle rack until lightly golden on bottom ; ~7-10 minutes. 
    2. Option two: fit piping bag with a large pastry tip of your choice and fill bag with a manageable amount of dough. Pipe dough out in even thickness in desired shape. Cool cookies for a couple of minutes before baking on middle rack until lightly golden on the bottom ; ~7-10 min. 
    3. Option 3: roll dough out between two pieces of parchment paper to about 1/4 inch thickness. Cool for 5-10 minutes before using a cookie cutter to cut out cookie shape. Transfer to baking sheet and bake on medium rack for 7-10 minutes or just until the bottom of cookie is lightly golden. 
  8. Transfer cookies to cooling rack and prepare stuffing and garnish. 
  9. Melt a good quality chocolate in double broiler or microwave. If using microwave remember to do short increments of 30 seconds and stirring in between until chocolate is completely melted. 
  10. If you’d like to stuff cookie, spoon chocolate on cookie and sandwich with another; leave to set before moving onto next step. OR stuff with spoon of apricot jam.
  11. Dip cookie partly in chocolate and then into garnish of your choice. 
  12. Let set before transferring to decorative platter or container.

TIPS:

  1. Using room temperature egg make the dough soft and easier to pipe.
  2. If working in a hot kitchen, cool dough before working with it.
  3. If your oven doesn’t brown evenly, rotate the tray half way through baking.
  4. Adjust dough that is too sticky by adding flour in small amounts.
  5. Adjust dough that is too dry by mixing in small amounts of cream.