Melting Moments Cookies

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These old-fashioned Melting Moments Cookies are buttery, tender little cookies that practically melt in your mouth—and the best part is they come together with just four simple pantry ingredients that I bet you already have.

They’re the kind of classic butter cookie that’s perfect on a Christmas cookie tray, with cup of tea, tucked into a Valentine’s treat bag, or waiting on the kitchen counter for that special someone when you want to offer up something sweet, simple, and utterly irresistible.

🔎 A quick look at this recipe

⭐️ Why this recipe works

• ❤️ Only 4 ingredients
• 🧈 Rich buttery flavor
• 🍪 Melt-in-your-mouth texture
• ⏱️ Easy to make ahead
• 🎄 Perfect for Christmas cookie trays
• 💕 Wonderful for Valentine’s Day
• ☕ Perfect with coffee or tea

Okay, so fair warning – this is one of those posts that has a lot of color commentary before you get to the recipe, so I will totally understand if you want to just scroll down to the recipe!

So, here goes! The Southern husband is the most romantic guy on the face of the earth, and for him, anything that is all about love and romance and hearts and flowers plays right into how he is wired.

So when I first heard about a cookie with the name Melting Moments, I knew I had to make them for him. Don’t they sound romantic?  Romantic is his favorite.

The next step was to figure out how to make them.  I knew they were a sweet and simple sugar cookie, but that’s pretty much all I knew.

And that’s where once again, one of my wonderful readers came to my rescue.  Wonderful Karen was sweet enough to share her mom’s recipe.  Karen’s mom Eva was a fabulous Southern cook originally from Texas, and she loved trying new recipes.

Happily for me, one of those recipes was for Melting Moments, and while Karen shared this recipe with me around Christmas-time (and they would make a fabulous holiday cookie!), I’ve decided they are perfect all year long.

Because after more than 30 (!!!) years of being married to this guy, he still melts my heart. With his romantic Southern drawl, and his beat-up cowboy boots. 

Because he has a sixth sense about when I need a cup of tea or a glass of wine or a cookie.  Because he has never complained One Single Time about having yet another lukewarm dinner because I needed to take one more picture of it.

Because he still makes my heart beat fast and my knees go weak.  Because he makes me feel cherished and special every single day.  Because of more than I could ever tell you.

Because of all that.

Oh, and because he didn’t mush any wedding cake into my face that day.  (Although that might have been his self-preservation instinct kicking in.)

So the least I can do is make the guy some Melting Moments, with extra love on the side.  And not to give him a hard time when he swipes one early.

Okay, enough with the mushy stuff and on to the recipe!

🧈 Ingredients you need

📝 Ingredient notes

• 🧈 Butter: Use room temperature butter, not melted. It should be soft enough to press with your finger but still hold its shape. Unsalted butter is ideal so you can control the flavor, but salted butter works in a pinch.
• 🌽 Cornstarch: Cornstarch is the secret to these cookies’ famous melt-in-your-mouth texture. Don’t substitute flour—it won’t produce the same delicate, tender crumb.
• 🍚 Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar keeps the cookies wonderfully soft and smooth. You’ll also want a little extra for dusting the tops once they’re cool for that classic snowy finish.
• 🌾 Flour: Sift the flour before measuring if possible. Sifting helps create the light, delicate texture that makes these cookies so special and prevents lumps in the dough.

💡 Ingredient substitution ideas

Missing something or want to swap in something different? Check out the links below to find more ingredient substitution ideas. 👇🏻

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities and nutrition.

👩🏻‍🍳 How to make this recipe

STEP 1: Stir a half cup of cornstarch, a half cup of powdered sugar and a cup of flour together with a whisk.

STEP 2: Mix in ¾ cup of room temperature butter until it forms a soft dough (I usually start this with a spatula and then finish with my fingers – the warmth of your hands will help mix the butter in and the dough come together). You can also do it with your mixer. Refrigerate for one hour.

STEP 3: Preheat your oven to 300 and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.

Roll the dough into small balls and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet (the dough might be a little crumbly – keep smooshing it and I promise it will go into a ball).

Press down slightly with a fork.

STEP 4: Bake for 15-20 minutes until they are slightly puffed.

Cool for 5 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack.

STEP 5: Shake powdered sugar over the top (I like to do this by putting the sugar in a small fine mesh strainer and shake-shake-shaking over the top of the cookies!).

Immediately bring the first one to someone you love and give it to them with a kiss.

🤔 Recipe FAQs

This concludes my love letter disguised as a cookie recipe…hope you love them as much as we do!

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Melting Moments Cookies

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Melting moments cookies are a delightful little sugar cookie guaranteed to melt the heart of the lucky person you bake them for! Here’s the easy recipe.

• Author: Kate Morgan Jackson
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Yield: About 24 cookies 1x
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Oven
• Cuisine: American
• Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
• 1 cup sifted flour
• 3/4 cup butter, softened

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Instructions

1. Stir cornstarch, powdered sugar and flour together with a whisk.
2. Mix in butter until it forms a soft dough. Refrigerate for one hour.
3. Preheat oven to 300. Roll dough into small balls (the dough may be crumbly – just keep rolling it together and it will soften a little and be fine) and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet.
4. Press down slightly with a fork. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the cookies are slightly puffed.
5. Cool for 5 minutes, then remove to a rack. Shake powdered sugar over the top (I like to do this by putting the sugar in a small fine mesh strainer and shake-shake-shaking over the top of the cookies!).
6. Immediately bring the first one to someone you love and give it to them with a kiss.

Notes

• • 🧈 Butter: Use room temperature butter, not melted. It should be soft enough to press with your finger but still hold its shape. Unsalted butter is ideal so you can control the flavor, but salted butter works in a pinch.

• • 🌽 Cornstarch: Cornstarch is the secret to these cookies’ famous melt-in-your-mouth texture. Don’t substitute flour—it won’t produce the same delicate, tender crumb.

• • 🍚 Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar keeps the cookies wonderfully soft and smooth. You’ll also want a little extra for dusting the tops once they’re cool for that classic snowy finish.

• • 🌾 Flour: Sift the flour before measuring if possible. Sifting helps create the light, delicate texture that makes these cookies so special and prevents lumps in the dough.

Variations on this recipe

• ✨ Add vanilla extract
• 🍋 Lemon zest
• 🌰 Almond extract
• 🍫 Dip half in chocolate
• 🌈 Holiday sprinkles
• 🎄 Crushed peppermint

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