Frosted Diamonds

These vintage diamond-shaped cookies have a trick up their sleeve: caraway seeds in a sweet butter dough, topped with fluffy White Mountain frosting and a shower of pink sugar. The combination sounds unusual, but caraway’s warm, slightly anise-like bite against the sweet, marshmallow-soft frosting is genuinely addictive.

Roll the dough paper thin, no more than ⅛ inch. These aren’t meant to be thick or chewy. You want a crisp, delicate snap that shatters when you bite through the frosting layer. A sharp knife gives cleaner diamond shapes than most cookie cutters, and the geometric look is part of the charm.

The White Mountain frosting is a cooked meringue. You boil sugar syrup to the soft ball stage, then pour it in a thin stream into beaten egg whites. This creates a frosting that’s glossy, stable, and holds its shape on the cookies without sliding off. Work quickly once it’s ready because it sets as it cools.

Chef Tips

• Use a candy thermometer for the frosting syrup. Soft ball stage is 236°F (113°C). Below that and the frosting stays runny. Above it and you’ll get a stiff, grainy texture.
• Beat the egg white to stiff peaks before the syrup is ready. If the syrup finishes first and you’re still whipping, it will overcook while it waits.
• Chill the dough for 30 minutes if it’s too soft to roll thin. Warm dough sticks and tears.
• Frost the cookies the same day you serve them. White Mountain frosting is best fresh and gets sticky in humid conditions.

Variations

• Replace caraway seeds with anise seeds for a more pronounced licorice flavor.
• Skip the pink sugar and dust with edible glitter or finely chopped pistachios for a different finish.
• Add a teaspoon of lemon zest to the dough for a bright citrus note.