How to make egg-shaped Easter cookies with a crumbly shortcrust and pastry cream
Easter Cookies: The Perfect Shortcrust for Eggs with Pastry Cream
Hi! If you’re here, you probably also have that strong desire to bring something special to the table for Easter, but maybe you fear the shortcrust might play tricks on you at the very last moment.
It’s a classic: sometimes cookies come out of the oven too hard, or they deform, losing that nice egg shape you carefully cut out.
Don’t worry, it happens to the best of us! The secret to avoiding these little hiccups lies in the butter temperature and in not overworking the dough with your hands.
Today we’ll make cookies that are pure poetry: a crumbly shortcrust that smells delicious and a pastry cream so silky you’ll want to eat it by the spoonful.
These treats are perfect because they solve the last-minute Easter dessert problem: they’re beautiful to look at, elegant in their simplicity, and everyone loves them, from kids to adults.
What I love most is that contrast between the crunchy golden cookie and the soft heart of cream peeking through the central hole.
Allow the shortcrust to rest in the fridge for an hour — that’s the real trick for a professional result — and you’ll be so proud to bring them to the table. Let’s get to work; the kitchen will smell of vanilla in no time!
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Cooking time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: Dosi per 25 biscotti
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients Serves 25 cookies
- 2 2/3 cups 00 flour (double-zero soft wheat flour)
- 1/2 cup (approx. 4.2 oz) cup granulated sugar
- 1 stick (approx. 4.2 oz) stick butter (cold)
- 2 eggs (medium)
- to taste vanilla extract
- 1 cup cup whole milk
- 3 egg yolks
- 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp (approx. 2.1 oz) cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp + 1 tsp (approx. 20 g) tbsp cornstarch
- to dust powdered sugar (confectioners' sugar)
Tools
- Mixing bowl
- Pastry board
- Rolling pin
- Plastic wrap
- Cookie cutter
- Plain piping tip
- Small saucepan
- Mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Cooling rack
- Piping bag
How to make egg-shaped Easter cookies with a crumbly shortcrust and pastry cream
Start by putting the flour, sugar and cold butter cut into pieces in a large bowl. Work quickly with your fingertips (or with the paddle if using a stand mixer) until you get a sandy mixture with no large pieces of butter remaining. Add the eggs and vanilla extract. Knead by hand only as long as strictly necessary to obtain a soft, smooth and not sticky dough. Wrap the shortcrust in plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
While the dough rests, heat the milk in a small saucepan until it almost reaches boiling. In a separate bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolks with the sugar using a hand whisk. Add the sifted cornstarch and mix well. Pour the hot milk in a thin stream over the egg mixture, continuing to stir. Return everything to the heat and thicken the cream, stirring constantly: it will take about 5 minutes to become silky and thick. Transfer it to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap placed directly on the surface and let it cool completely.
Roll out the shortcrust with a rolling pin on a lightly floured board to a thickness of about 0.2 in. Cut out the cookies with an egg-shaped cutter. In half of them, make a central hole with the tip of a piping bag nozzle. Place everything on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated static oven at 356°F for 10 minutes (or convection at 338°F). The cookies should remain pale, just golden at the edges.
Once cooled, fill the whole cookies with pastry cream using a piping bag, leveling slightly with a teaspoon. Dust the holed cookies generously with powdered sugar and gently place them on top of the filled cookies.
Notes on ingredients and substitutions
Butter: It must be strictly cold from the refrigerator for the ‘sabbiare’ (sanding) technique. If you prefer a lactose-free version, use a high-quality plant-based butter with at least 80% fat.
Cornstarch: Essential for the shine of the cream. You can replace it with rice starch for an even more velvety texture.
Flour: A classic 00 with low strength (W 150-180) is ideal to avoid hard cookies.
Storage
These cookies keep in the refrigerator for 2-3 days in an airtight container. If you prefer, you can prepare the baked cookies and the cream a day in advance and assemble them a few hours before serving.
Recipe variations
Citrus: Add lemon or orange zest to both the shortcrust and the cream for a fresher aroma.
Chocolate: You can dip the base of the cookies in melted dark chocolate before filling them.
Tips
For a perfectly centered hole, use the egg cutter to mark the position without cutting, then use the piping tip to make the hole. This will prevent the cookie from deforming while transferring it to the baking sheet.
FAQ (Questions & Answers)
Why did my pastry cream turn out too runny?
It probably did not reach the starch gelatinization temperature. Make sure the cream forms the first dense ‘bubbles’ before removing it from the heat.
Can I prepare the shortcrust the day before?
Absolutely yes, prolonged resting (up to 24 hours) stabilizes the fats and makes the dough even easier to roll out and less prone to shrinking during baking.
The powdered sugar dissolves on the cream, how do I avoid that?
Apply the powdered sugar only to the holed cookies before placing them on top of the cream. This way the sugar will stay dry and matte.
