We used this recipe for the chess kings, queens and pawns and for the Scrabble tiles. Adapted from the “Joy of Cooking,” makes about 36 sandwiches or about 120 Scrabble tiles.
Ingredients
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup superfine sugar (or sugar that’s been processed in a food processor for 30 seconds)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg yolk
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
Directions
Have all ingredients at room temperature, 68 to 70 degrees. In a large bowl, beat butter, sugar and salt until very fluffy and well blended. Add egg yolk and beat until well blended. Add egg and vanilla and beat until well blended. Reduce speed to low and beat in flour until just combined.
Divide the dough in half and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour. (The dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or it can be double-wrapped and frozen for up to 1 month.)
Lightly flour the work surface. Roll the dough to 1/4 inch thick, using an offset spatula to loosen the dough. Sprinkle the surface lightly with flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking. Cut the dough into desired shapes. Place the dough shapes on parchment-lined cookie sheets, spacing about 1/2-inch apart. Get as many dough shapes as you can out of each sheet, because the dough should be rolled only two times.
Bake, two sheets at a time, until the cookies are evenly golden brown, 6-8 minutes; rotate the sheets halfway through baking for even browning. Using a thin-bladed spatula, immediately transfer the cookies to racks to cool to room temperature.
Note from Tucker: For Scrabble tiles, use a pizza cutter to slice tiles to desired size. Bake only a scant 6 minutes. Remove parchment paper from sheet pan and place entire sheet on cooling rack to cool; otherwise tiles will fall through rack.
For Lemon Sandwich Cookies (light king and queen), add 2 tablespoons lemon zest to the creamed butter, sugar and salt. Fill sandwiches with lemon curd. Dust cookies with powdered sugar if desired.
For Raspberry-Cocoa Sandwich Cookies (dark king and queen), substitute 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa for 1/4 cup of the flour. Fill sandwiches with a 1:1 mixture of cream cheese and raspberry jam. Dust cookies with cocoa if desired.
