Crispy Chai Latte Cookies

This recipe takes two things I love - chai lattes and cookies - and combines them into a scrumptious finished product that you just can't put down. Add little glaze on top, and you'll wonder how you lived without them!

You can cut open three Chai tea bags to get the amount of loose tea you need for this recipe, or you can buy a small container of loose tea leaves, whatever is most convenient for you.

Playing around with shapes is fun, too. Choose your favorite cookie cutters and go to town with this dough. It holds up incredibly well, making perfect edges as you cut and re-cut.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
2 Tbsp milk
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp Chai tea leaves
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. (Aluminum foil will work just fine, too, if you spray it with nonstick spray.)

2. Using a mixer, cream the butter, milk and 1/2 cup of powdered sugar until smooth.

4. In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt and Chai.

3. Slowly add the dry mixture to the mixer bowl. Mix on low-to-medium speed until combine, scraping the sides frequently.

4. Flour your work surface and roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out as many shapes as you can and line them up on the baking sheet. They won't spread very much at all, so they can be fairly close together.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Check them immediately - if the edges are just beginning to brown, take them out. Immediately transfer them to a cooling rack.

6. As the cookies finish cooling, combine 1 cup powdered sugar with the cinnamon and vanilla. Stir until completely smooth. Put a piece of foil under the cooling rack and drizzle the glaze over each one. Then use a spoon to scrape the glaze drippings off the foil underneath the rack to snack on yourself, because "sampling" your work is very important with a new recipe, right?.