Once all is ready, mix the butter with a paddle attachment until smooth. Next, add the confectioners' sugar, and mix on low speed. Add the eggs, and blend until incorporated. It is important not to over mix once the sugar is added and to use eggs that are a similar temperature to the butter. Over mixing once the sugar is added runs the risk of adding too much air to the dough and cooler egg temperatures can cause the fat to become cold. If the fat becomes cold, it is less likely to spread evenly throughout the dough. Next, add the flour and other dry ingredients, such as cocoa powder, and mix to incorporation. After mixing, place the dough in the refrigerator to cool for easier handling.

Shaping, storing and baking

Diamond cookies are typically round discs. In order to achieve this shape, the dough is portioned by weight, rolled into logs and chilled or frozen until needed. (If well wrapped, unbaked dough has a frozen shelf life of several weeks and a refrigerated shelf life of several days.) Lightly brush the dough with egg wash, dredge in granulated sugar and cut into individual portions just before baking to ensure the sugar does not dissolve. Bake the cookies at a moderate temperature (300°F to 325°F) to ensure they bake through, yet don't take on much color. Once baked and cooled, the cookies have a shelf life of several days or longer if packaged in plastic.

Diamond cookies are easy and inexpensive to produce. Even though butter is used, the cookies have a low food and labor cost. Following a few simple guidelines for process, storage and baking, diamond cookies are an easy addition to any product line-up and add nice visual diversity. Make some diamonds to add another highly addictive product to your line.

Diamond cookies

VANILLA DIAMONDS

CHOCOLATE DIAMONDS

Method: In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter with the vanilla bean seeds (vanilla only) until smooth. Add the sifted confectioners' sugar, and incorporate. Next, add the egg yolks/whole eggs, and mix until incorporated. Add the flour (cocoa powder and salt for the chocolate), and mix until just combined. Divide into 12.3-oz. (350-g) portions and refrigerate until cool. Once cold, roll into logs the width of a sheet pan and place in the refrigerator or freezer. When ready to bake, brush each log lightly with egg wash and roll in granulated sugar. Cut into slices 1 cm thick, and place on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Bake at 300°F to 325°F for 10 to 12 minutes or until just baked through.

Brian Wood is the founder of Baking and Pastry Solutions, a company focused on assisting baking and pastry operations with product development, employee training and more. To learn more, visit tourrier.com or email tourrier@gmail.com. Brian would like to thank the San Francisco Baking Institute (SFBI) for the use of its facility for the photo shoot for this article. All photos are by Frank Wing.

THE PASTRY CASE IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE NATIONAL HONEY BOARD

For information on how to use honey in a variety of bakery formulas, visit the National Honey Board's website at www.honey.com.