vintage pie crust cookies

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vintage pie crust cookies

Best Pie Crust Recipes

I get a warm feeling in my tummy everytime I take a bite of these vintage pie crust cookies. There’s a reason for that feeling! Cookies with a history.

History is preserved and expressed in food and recipes. Ingredients and recipes have a beginning. Somewhere in history. And, that’s the story behind this best pie crust recipe.

If you’re looking for a collection of ready made pie crust recipes, then look no further. Here are some of my favorites!

Recipes with Pie Crust

If you’re looking for recipes with pie crust, you’ll probably find a lot of pie recipes. But, you’ll not land upon a plethora of cookie recipes. That’s the uniqueness of this recipe. These cookies are made with pie crust dough. And, there’s a touching history to them. 

Miss Briggs was one of my three sons’ favorite teachers in high school. She is a kind and gentle soul, now retired after being a cracker jack old-fashioned teacher of foreign languages. Miss Briggs wasn’t married. Her life was devoted to the thousands of students she taught over a stellar career. We remain friends on Facebook although she’s moved from where she taught.

So, Miss Briggs contacted me via FB saying that she had a couple of old family recipes. Since she didn’t cook, she didn’t want them to ‘die’ or be forgotten. She asked if I’d like to have them. Of course, I was ecstatic. First of all, honored that she would entrust me with recipes from her legacy, her grandmother and mother. Of course, I said ‘Not just yes, but hell yes!’ I love vintage recipes and feel that part of my role with this website is to be the keeper of food history.

Famous Cookies

Want to know what Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’s very favorite cookie was! Well, the former First Lady of the White House always requested these cookies

Cookies from Scratch

Here’re some of my favorite cookies from scratch! They’re very popular on Pinterest!

Persian Walnut Cookies

Papa Bear’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

Gluten Free Coconut Cranberry Cookies

Almond Lavender Butter Cookies

Almond Cinnamon Tea Cookies

Gluten Free Ice Cream Scoop Cookies

Eastern European Honey Walnut Cookies

Pie Crust Cookie

Miss Briggs introduced me to the pie crust cookie. And, she said she’d mail the guarded recipe to me. Yes, snail mail. I asked her to write a background on the recipes, too, so I’d know more about the legacy. When I opened the envelope not 4 to 5 days later, there was a handwritten letter and the original recipe cards! OMG! I was stunned.

Miss Briggs had handed over to me something as precious as the U.S. Constitution! One was a 3×5 index card, worn, tattered, stained and yellowed from decades of use. The other was a fold over ‘recipe card’ with a cute little tea pot and teacup on it. The kind of recipe cards that you could buy in the 5 & dime in the 1950s and 1960s. Like the index card, it was handwritten in cursive and evidence of use made it even the more treasured.

Who Invented Cookies

Well, who invented cookies, particularly this pie crust cookie was clear to me when I read Miss Briggs’ words:

“My father worked as office manager at the Watts Plant, A.P. Stevens Textiles, in Laurens, SC where I grew up. The mill owned a community house that groups used for social occasions. The hostess at the house was Miss Betty. The cook was Gina. Miss Betty had this secret cookie recipe. which she said HAD to be kept secret until she died. I LOVED these cookies, and Gina would send me some whenever she made them. No matter how much my mother begged, Miss Betty would not share her recipe. Eventually, Gina sneaked the recipe to my mother. Not wanting to get Gina in trouble, Mother kept the recipe to herself until Gina retired. We delighted in knowing we were eating these ‘secret’ cookies. As you can see, the recipe card has been well used. We had them every Christmas as long as Mother could cook.”

Unusual Cookie Recipes

Yes, there are unusual cookie recipes, but I challenge you to find one more unique than this vintage pie crust cookie! That’s what makes eating cookies even more sweet and delicious. Knowing that there’s somewhere in files and archives a story behind the recipe. 

I’ve created another variation of this delicious cookie! You definitely want to try! 

Old-Fashioned Cookies

Reading what Miss Briggs wrote, well, I was almost in tears. I could just imagine in my mind’s eye the old community house, holidays in the mill town, the scents of evergreens, twinkling tree lights, holiday music,  Miss Betty the ‘hostess with the mostesss’ flitting around and welcoming everyone in her slow Southern drawl and Miss Gina the amazing proud ‘chef’ in charge of functions and making folks happy with her food.

Yes, there were ‘gaps’ in the recipe particularly on the directions. So at first, I used chopped walnuts in the recipe (no particular nut was noted) and rolled up the pie crust making ‘pin wheel’ cookies. On my second batch, I used sliced almonds and left the crust as is, like a pizza crust, and cut the cookies into squares. You decide what you want to do. I like the latter technique.

As I say in my cookbook trailer, ‘Cooking is so much more than just standing in front of stove.’ It’s a communal expression of love and a dining experience.

And, here’s another recipe from my family that has a rich legacy and history. You don’t want to miss it!

These old-fashioned cookies will not disappoint. 

The Best Recipe for Christmas Cookies

As you prepare for holidays, like Christmas time when we’re all searching for the best recipe for Christmas cookies, I sure hope you’ll make Miss Briggs’ cookies from her childhood. I’m sure that Miss Gina will be looking down smiling knowing that this legacy lives on. 

vintage pie crust cookies

vintage pie crust cookies

vintage pie crust cookies

Yield: A couple of dozen

I get a warm feeling in my tummy everytime I take a bite of these vintage pie crust cookies. There's a reason for that feeling! Cookies with a history.

Ingredients

  • Preheat oven to 350
  • 1 refrigerated rolled pie crust, room temperature, roll out on a parchment-paper lined cookie sheet
  • ¼ cup brown sugar, packed, can use coconut sugar
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • ½ cup coconut, sweetened or UNsweetened
  • 1 cup almonds, sliced
  • 4 Tbl. Butter, salted, melted, divided
  • Drizzle:
  • 1 to 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
  • 1 medium lemon, juice

Instructions

  1. Combine in a medium sized mixing bowl the brown sugar, eggs, coconut, almonds and 2 tablespoons of butter.
  2. Spread on top the pie crust leaving about 1/4” around the perimeter. Pinch around the perimeter with the pie crust.
  3. Take a pizza cutter and carefully cut into pieces. The centermost of the pie crust will be square pieces (about 1 ½” x 1 ½”) while there will be small pieces from the circular shape of the pie crust. Do no separate the pieces.
  4. Bake in a preheated 350 oven about 17-19 minutes. Remove, let cool about 2 minutes. Then run the pizza cutter through the cuts one more time actually cutting the cookies into servings.
  5. Drizzle: Combine 2 tablespoons melted butter, powdered sugar and lemon in a bowl and blend together well. Drizzle on the cookies.

Notes

The number of cookies will be determined by the size that you cut them.

You can roll up the pie crust then cut into pin wheel cookies. Leave more room around the perimeter (about 3/4") and on the end (about 2" across the pie crust) that will be the final seam when rolling, don't put filling in.

Slice into rounds. Bake about the same amount of time.

Your sharing is GOLDEN! Thank you!

Your sharing and comments help me stay in business! Share a photo if you make the recipe #allyskitchen Thank you! xo Ally

vintage pie crust cookies

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18 Comments

  1. Is there anything I can substitute for the coconut?

    1. Hi, Stephany! I’ve not done this, but you could try old-fashioned rolled oats. I’d gently toast them in some butter (in a saucepan). Then spread on the pie crust with the nuts, etc. Toasted oats sometimes have a nice ‘coconutty’ hint! Please let me know, luv! xoxx ally

  2. I absolutely LOVE vintage recipes, Ally, and this one is one of the most unique I’ve seen. The story behind it – and the fact that you have the original recipe card – is priceless. How very special! I can’t wait to make these cookies for my family!! xo

    1. Oh, Michele! I sooooooooooooo appreciate your special words!! Yes, I feel very honored to be the ‘keeper’ of the memories!! Thanks you, luv, and Merry Christmas!! xoxo ~ally

  3. Coconut and almonds snagged my desire to make this and share it with my girls! Love the index card ? reminds me of our wild adventures!!

    1. Yes, Miss Pea! It does reflect our wild adventures! So much history is in food and the characters we’ll meet along the way will be enriching!! They’re so stinkin’ easy to make too! xoxo

  4. Ally Girl! Food memories are the best and bring back a flood of emotion for me! This is awesome and I love the story! Our precious Michele told me about the bundle of hand written recipes handed down to her that she treasured, and she used to carry them in her lap on planes when she traveled so they would not be lost. I also have boxes and bundles of treasured recipes handed down to me through generations! I’ll leave you with my and Michele’s favorite quote.

    “No one who cooks, cooks alone. Even at her most solitary, a cook in the kitchen is surrounded by generations of cooks past, the advice and menus of cooks present, the wisdom of cookbook writers.”
    ― Laurie Colwin

    1. OMG, my sweet dear LynneeePooo! I have tears in my eyes, literally. It just brought forth a huge emotional surge reminding me of all those who came before me, kitchens I’ve sat in and learned from strong women…thank you for honoring our dear Michele’s memory…gawd, we miss her. xoxo Thank you, my sweet luv!

  5. Christine @ Christine's Pantry says:

    Sounds amazing!

    1. Thank you, Christine…I must say the simplicity makes them soooooooooo great!! xo ~ally

  6. I love how easy and different these are – what a fun idea!

    1. Thanks, Miss Caroline! You’re so right, they are ez pz!!! Merry Christmas!! xo

  7. Sara Hanvey says:

    Living in South Carolina, I would think the nut of choice may have been pecans. It is an easy nut to get locally and was used for everything I can think of growing up. Lots of people had and still have pecan trees in their yards, I assume that is why it seems to be the nut of choice in the south. These cookies sound awfully like my mom’s version of pecan pie cookies! Thanks for the recipe and the history.

    1. I agree, Sara…you could swap out the nuts for pecans! And, that is a SC nut. Yes, I love the history and legacy of these recipes, and if you have any of your Mom’s that you’d like for me to try, let me know. I love the storytelling behind food! xoxo Thanks so much for all your support!!

  8. Patti Frye says:

    Gonna try the pie crust cookies..just scribbled the recipe down. So enJoy the history behind your recipes. My kids are going to have a blast dealing with all my recipes ..or the dumpster! Haha!
    Much appreciate your sharing.

    1. You are too cute! Yes, I look at all my ‘stuff’ and think, what in the world will my kids do w/it?? Yes, the dump and Goodwill! Thank you so much for your love and support, dear one!! xoxo ~ally

  9. Oh by gosh, by golly, with mistletoe and holly! (Or however the ol’ song goes…) Pie crust cookies are part o’ my past, too, Ally, only sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. But Miss Brigg’s and Miss Betty’s recipe (and your adaptation) takes them to a whole new level! No wonder they were kept “secret” for so long. Thank you for sharing this bit of culinary history and “how to”… a heartfelt glimpse of days gone by… truly a treasure!

    1. Haha…love that, Kim! Yes, this new twist of Miss Betty and Miss Gina (and can’t you just imagine back in the 1950s the town’s party hall and the folks who came in this once-thriving littl’ mill town)was the hit of the community. Like you, I adore preserving these stories of food and history. Thanks for sharing this treasure xoxo ~ally

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