Vanilla Melt Away Cookies
on Feb 27, 2014, Updated Aug 21, 2024
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Vanilla Melt Away Cookies are a simple cookie with the most amazing texture thanks to some powdered sugar, butter, and a secret ingredient.
Melt Away Cookies are a cross between a Mexican wedding cake cookie and a shortbread. Corn starch is the secret ingredient that makes these cookies soft and give them an incredible fine crumb that just melts in your mouth.
These are perfect on a cookie plate or dessert bar at Christmas next to some extra buttery spritz cookies, sugar cookies, soft gingerbread cookies, and peanut butter cookies.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The ingredients are simple and you likely have everything on-hand.
- The recipe is super easy and great for kids to make or help with.
- You can change up the flavoring to suit your taste or the season.
Recipe Ingredients
- Powdered sugar
- Butter
- Vanilla extract: Or whatever flavoring you would like.
- All-purpose flour
- Cornstarch: The secret ingredient to making melt away cookies.
- Milk: This is just for the glaze.
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Vanilla Melt Away Cookies
Step #1. In a large bowl, beat the sugar and butter until it’s light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and combine.
Step #2. Add the flour and cornstarch and mix on low speed until well combined. Cover the cookie dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Step #3. Form the dough into 1-inch balls and place them on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350F for 10 to 12 minutes.
Step #4. Make the glaze and spread it on the cooled cookies.
Recipe FAQs
Melt away cookies are a soft, lightly sweet shortbread cookie that seem to melt away in your mouth. The unique texture comes from a combination of powdered sugar, corn starch, and butter.
Yes! You can change up the flavor by adding additional extracts to the dough or icing like almond, lemon, lime, or orange. This is a great way to change up these cookies.
You can add food coloring to the dough and/or the icing. It’s also easy to add some sprinkles, crushed candy canes, and sprinkling sugars on top of the icing.
Yes! These store well in an air-tight container and they freeze well.
Expert Tips
- Don’t skip chilling this dough – it will help the cookies hold their shape and prevent spreading when baking.
- To get uniform cookies, use a cookie scoop or a food scale to measure out the dough before forming into balls.
- Watch your baking time and in order to avoid overbaking these melt away cookies. The edges of the cookies should be lightly golden brown.
More Cookie Recipes to Consider
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Vanilla Melt Away Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
For the Glaze/Icing
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter, softened
- 1 – 2 tablespoon milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with a baking mat or parchment paper.
- Combine the sugar and butter in a large bowl and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and combine. Add the flour and cornstarch and mix on low speed until well combined.
- Cover the cookie dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Shape the dough into round 1-inch balls and place a few inches apart on the cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for one minute and then remove and let them cool on a wire rack.
- For the glaze, combine the powdered sugar, butter, vanilla extract and enough milk for desired glazing consistency in a small bowl. Drizzle or spread the glaze over cooled cookies.
- Enjoy and store any extras in an airtight container.
Notes
- The flavoring in these cookies is quite flexible – lemon is especially good in the dough and icing in summertime but you could also use almond, lime or orange.
- You can dress up these cookies by sprinkling some coarse sugar, crushed peppermints, or sprinkles on top of the icing.
- Store cookies in an air-tight container on the counter for three to five days.
- These cookies freeze well in an airtight container for up to three to six months.
My cookies broke up and didn’t flatten out at all in oven. I gently pressed them and they brok all around the edges. Good taste but not pretty
These cookies were amazing ❤️ thank you so much
These are just like you said, delicious. I’m making my 2nd batch per my husband’s request.
Thanks for a winner!
Thanks for sharing. My grandmother used to make these and I couldn’t for the life of me remember what they were called or how she made them. I bake them now and then to feel close to her. ❤️
I love that so much, did she do any flavors besides the vanilla?
Do you freeze the dough or the cookies after baked?
If you want to save some for later, after baking, no need to freeze the dough before.
should the dough be dry before you refrigerate it.
No, it’s not an overly dry dough in general. Not wet, but still a cookie dough.
Sounds like you measured a little heavy on the flour, they shouldn’t be crumbly…
In the video they use egg. In this online they don’t. Which is correct.
The video must have been for a different recipe. This one doesn’t have an egg, so go off the recipes as written! ENJOY these are a favorite.
Can you refrigerate the dough longer than 30 minutes? I’m hoping to mix up the dough the day before I need to back them.
Yes, just let them sit for maybe 15 minutes before working with them as they’ll get really firm in the fridge! ENJOY!
These have become a favorite with all of us! Everyone wants the recipe!
That’s awesome! Aren’t they such a great texture and easy too!
Can you tell me how long these can stay out on the counter prepared like you have it here? I made it into a pan cookie. And for the icing, I mixed in gel colors to make it resemble camoflage. Several batches of different colored icing were put on the cookie and then mixed to get it to look like camoflage. It’s for my grandson’s 15th birthday…..he asked for a vanilla cookie. He’s in for a real treat? Thanks for the recipe?
They’ll be ok for a day or so, if you live in a really humid climate you might want to consider keeping them in an air-tight container because the humidity makes their texture change a bit. I’m in Utah and we are really dry, so I bet I could leave them out for 2-3 days with no issues.