Old-Fashioned Crispy Tea Cake Cookies
This is a crispy version of old-fashioned Southern tea cake cookies. They still have the same lightly sweet taste that’ll have you dipping into the cookie jar for more.
Where I’m from, an old-fashioned tea cake cookie is a simple flavored cookie. It’s not a or a . It’s delicious on its own or with a cup of coffee, just lightly sweet with the texture of a sugar cookie, so that it can double as a snack or treat.
My mother’s grandmother, Mama Reed, was known for her soft old-fashioned tea cakes. She would serve them warm, straight out of the oven, to her 10 kids and whoever happened to be around when they were done. Then, after they had cooled she would store them in a big old cookie jar, where they didn’t last long.
Today, though, I’m sharing another variety of tea cake cookies that was also a standard of many Southern families These crispy little tea cakes are what my husband calls “evil little things that won’t let me stop eating them.” Whether you try the soft or crispy version, you’re guaranteed to love these old-fashioned tea cake cookies as much as my family.
Fortunately, they’re easy to make and take less than 15 minutes to bake. All you’re going to need are ingredients you probably already have at home, like butter, sugar, flour, eggs, salt, and vanilla extract. Will these be your family’s new favorite ? My bet is yes!
Recipe Ingredients
- Butter
- Sugar
- Eggs
- Vegetable oil
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Vanilla extract
How to Make Southern Tea Cake Cookies
In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs and beat again. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until fully incorporated, scraping down sides as needed.
Drop the tea cookie dough by tablespoon-size balls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Dip a glass in sugar and press down lightly on each dough ball to flatten, dipping in sugar again after each one.
Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes, or until lightly brown on the edges. If you would like them to be softer, bake one to two minutes less. Cool completely.
Storage
- Store your tea cake cookies in an airtight container at room temperature until they disappear (or 3 days).
- You can also freeze either the unbaked cookie dough or the baked cookies for up to 3 months. You’ll just need to add a few minutes to the baking time for the unbaked cookies and just allow the baked cookies to thaw at room temperature before serving.
Recipe Notes
- The more golden brown the edges, the crispier your cookies will be.
- If you want to take this to the next level, sandwich your favorite ice cream flavor between two cookies to make an epic homemade ice cream sandwich.
Here are more cookie recipes to bake:
Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Easy Homemade Peanut Butter Cookies
How to Make Snickerdoodle Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature (two sticks)
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs and beat again. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until fully incorporated, scraping down sides as needed.1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature, 1 3/4 cups sugar, 2 eggs, 3/4 cup vegetable oil, 4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Drop the cookie dough by tablespoon-size balls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Dip a glass in sugar and press down lightly on each dough ball to flatten, dipping in sugar again after each one.
- Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes, or until lightly brown on the edges. If you would like them to be softer, bake one to two minutes less. Cool completely and then store in an airtight container until they disappear.
Nutrition
“Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.”
~Francis Chan
Do you think I could sub applesauce for the oil? Or would that completely wreck them?
I wouldn’t try it with these because they are SO good and just the perfect crispy texture. However, I think they will still be good, just different. 🙂
Christy, I made these cookies earlier this month and they were marvelous in their simplicity and taste! So good with a nice hot cup of coffee. Didn’t take long for them to disappear (and there’s just 2 of us in this household ). Thank you.
I think the simplicity is what makes them so good Jane!! I am so glad to hear that you liked them!!
My mom made these when I was a kid. She usually made them when money was tight and we were wanting a sweet treat. She told me that my great grandpa used to eat these like bread with his dinner. Thanks for the recipe.
Thank Heaven for air conditioning because I’m going to make these right now. We have been having a very HOT summer in Washington. It’s usually milder weather with more rain. Temp is high 80’s to 90’s. My mom always made sugar cookies at Christmas and Chocolate Chip the rest of the time. I love crispy cookies and can’t wait to get these into the oven.
I love the picture of your dogs. Zoey looks so much like my dog Jenny, even the graying muzzle. I thin Jenny is a little smaller though.
Thank you for sharing the pictures and this recipe.