Golden and fragrant with warm chai spices, these Stamped Chai Butter Cookies are as beautiful as they are delicious. The easy, stampable dough creates beautiful designs with fall-themed cookie stamps.
Can you believe I’ve been baking this long and have never stamped a cookie? Sure, I’ve , into silicone molds, and even with plunger cutters, but never have I ever stamped a cookie. Until now!
I’ve been enjoying planning new recipes for fall baking and trying out a few tools I’ve not used before. Like these woodland-themed cookie stamps with pinecone, acorn, and maple leaf motifs. They’re so charming, and honestly, I just can’t resist a pretty cookie. As for the flavor, with their tea-infused flavor, was actually what sparked my “teahouse” inspiration here. This time, I swapped in chai black tea for the dough, and the result is warm, spiced, and cozy. It’s just the sort of cookie that feels made for sharing over a cup of tea with a friend.
Loose Leaf Chai
Open the tea bags (or measure loose leaf chai) and pour into a mortar and pestle. Grind into a fine texture, which removes any twiggy stems or large bits of tea. This helps the flavor blend smoothly into the butter as they are creamed together.
Make the Chai-Spiced Dough
In one bowl, whisk together flour, chai seasoning, and salt. Now. Let’s talk about the chai seasoning for a sec. Using just the tea in the dough isn’t enough to give the cookies bold chai flavor, so we’re spicing things up. You can purchase already mixed up together in a spice jar, which is what I did. But you can absolutely mix your own blend from spices in your own cabinet. I’ve included a recipe for the chai seasoning blend in the notes of the recipe card. Just mix it up and use the entire amount in this recipe.
In another bowl, cream the butter, dark brown sugar, and ground chai tea until fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla, then slowly mix in the dry ingredients until combined.
An Unsticky, Stampable Cookie Dough
Keep mixing until the dough clumps together, pulls away from the bowl, and feels soft but not sticky. This is the perfect texture for stamping detailed shapes. Chill the dough for just a short time before you get to stampin’.
Cookie Stamps
You can use any cookie stamp motif you like, but (pinecone, acorn, and maple leaf) are so beautiful for fall. And the chai flavor is so cozy – the theme and flavor goes together so well. These stamps are aluminum, so pop them in the fridge for at least 15 minutes. Chilled stamps press sharper patterns into the dough.
TIP – Cookie Cutter Method: If you don’t have cookie stamps, you may treat this recipe like cut-out cookie dough. Roll on a lightly floured surface or between sheets of parchment, and cut shapes from the dough using cookie cutters.
Roll the Chai Dough in Sugar then Stamp
Measure slightly chilled dough into 1/4-cup balls (about 70g each). Roll each ball in granulated sugar, place on parchment, and press with a chilled stamp in a gentle circular motion until the edges spread slightly. Loosen the dough from the stamp at the edges with your thumb before lifting away.
There is a bit of a learning curve for the dough removal from the stamp. The instructions from say to stamp then twist to remove the dough. I didn’t have much luck with this. Instead, I had better luck just coaxing the dough from stamp with the side of my thumb. (I tried to capture this in the video in this blog post.) My advice is to experiment and do what works for you.
Chill the Chai Butter Cookie Shapes
Arrange stamped cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for 10 minutes to help them hold their design during baking.
Bake the Chai Cookies at 350°F
Bake for 12–15 minutes, or until lightly puffed and fragrant. As you can see, some shapes fared better than others – the acorns lost their crispness, while the leaf and pinecone shapes (with deeper crevices) kept their pretty edges. I believe the dough for the acorns was a little too warm when I stamped them, so I’m eager to try again to test my theory.
These stamped chai butter cookies are such a joy to make, and part of the fun is practicing with the stamps until you get the hang of it. The dough is forgiving, and even if a few acorns or leaves look a little wonky, they’re still every bit as delicious and charming in their own way.
Serve them with a pot of tea (what else!?) on a chilly afternoon, tuck them into pretty tins for holiday gifting, or share them at an autumn gathering where they’re sure to spark conversation. Honestly, I can’t think of a prettier way to welcome fall.
Related recipe:
Stamped Chai Butter Cookies
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Ingredients
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, chai seasoning, and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, dark brown sugar, and the finely ground chai tea. Beat on medium speed until fluffy. Add in the large egg. Beat until combined.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 15-30 minutes. Also refrigerate the cookie stamps.
- Set the bowl of dough out at room temperature for 5 minutes to soften before you begin.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Cover your work surface with a large sheet of parchment paper.
- Measure the dough into 1/4 cup balls (approximate). Or, 70 grams on a kitchen scale.
- Place the granulated sugar in a shallow bowl or on a plate. Roll a dough ball in the sugar. Place on the parchment-lined work surface. Press a chilled cookie stamp down onto the dough in a circular motion until excess dough squeezes out and is visible on all sides of the cookie stamp. Gently pry the edges of the dough from the stamp with your thumb on all sides until the cookie releases.
- Trim excess dough away from the shape using a small paring knife, if needed. Transfer to the prepared cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough. You should get 12 cookies using every bit of the dough, so save the scraps and re-roll as you stamp.
Notes
- In a small cup combine 1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ginger, 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1/2 teaspoon cloves, 1/4 teaspoon finely ground white pepper. Mix well and use in this recipe.
