Instructions: When warm, these dainty cookies are crisp on the outside yet tender and chewy on the inside; as they cool, they turn extremely crisp. Theyre the perfect merger of butter shortbread and sugar cookie. Try them with your favorite herb, such as lemon verbena or lemon thyme.

Carole Ottesen (Ballantine Wellspring, 2001).

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Have ready a glass with a flat bottom and a small dish of granulated sugar.

In a medium bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and confectioners sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the flour and rosemary and then switch to a wooden spoon or your hands to mix until thoroughly incorporated. The dough should be very crumbly.

Form teaspoonfuls of the dough into balls and place about 3 inches apart on the prepared sheet. Run the bottom of the glass under cool running water and shake to remove any excess water. Press the bottom of a glass into the granulated sugar. Then press the glass on the top of each dough mound to flatten. It may take a few practice cookies before the sugar sticks to the glass and then comes off on the cookie properly.

Bake the cookies, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even browning, for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the bottoms just begin to turn golden.

Transfer the sheet to a wire rack to cool for 2 minutes, then transfer the cookies to the rack to cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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