Langue de Chat (Cat’s Tongue Cookies)
This simple recipe for langue de chat, or cat’s tongue cookies, yields the most perfect light, crispy, and buttery cookies. They are great for both snacking and as a gift!
Langue de chat, or cat’s tongue cookies, is a popular sweet in many different cultures. In Asian cultures, these cookies are often eaten during the Lunar New Year. In other cultures, these cookies are also referred to as langue de chat (French), kue lidah kucing (Filipino), or lengua de gato (Spanish). Langue de chat recipes, like this one, typically only use egg whites. However, I found that a whole egg works just as well. The only difference is that the egg yolk results in cookies that are slightly more yellow. You can try these delicious cookies by following my quick and easy recipe below!
The name cat’s tongue comes from the long and flat shape of the cookies. This shape results in a thin and crispy cookie that pairs perfectly with a cup of tea or coffee. These cookies can also be dipped in chocolate, prepared with a ganache/jam filling, or even rolled into cylinders for extra variety. One example of a popular twist on these cookies is the Japanese style, a square cookie sandwich with a chocolate filling. Langue de chat cookies became a popular souvenir from Hokkaido due to the Japanese manufacturer Shiroi Koibito.
How to Make Langue de Chat
Prepare the Cookie Dough
In a bowl, cream the butter, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy. Then, add the egg and vanilla and beat together for a few minutes until uniform.
Then, fold in the flour.
Pipe and Bake the Cookies
Transfer the cookie dough into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4 inch round piping tip. Pipe the dough into 3 inch long cylinders on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them at least 1-inch apart.
Bake them for 8 -10 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown. Remove the cookies from the pan to a wire rack or cool countertop and allow them to cool.
Tips
- If your butter is too cold, the batter can split apart after you add the egg. As long as you keep beating the mixture together, the dough should come together. If not, add a little bit of the flour from the next step when mixing.
- Make sure to eliminate any air pockets from the piping bag after transferring the cookie dough. This will ensure that your cookies can be piped uniformly.
- For more information on transferring the cookie dough to a piping bag, see the notes in the recipe card below.
Langue de Chat (Cat’s Tongue Cookies)
Ingredients
- 60 g unsalted butter, softened (~ 1/4 cup)
- 60 g sugar (~ 5 tbsp)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 60 g all-purpose flour (1/2 cup)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, cream the butter, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat together for a few minutes until uniform. Note 1
- Fold in the flour.
- Transfer the cookie dough into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4 inch round piping tip. See note 2 for an easy way to transfer the cookie dough.
- Pipe the dough into 3 inch long cylinders on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them 1-inch apart. Make sure to space them adequately because the cookies spread a lot.
- Bake them for 8 -10 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown. Remove the cookies from the pan to a wire rack or cool countertop and allow them to cool.
- The cookies can be stored in a cool, airtight container for up to one week.
Notes
- If your butter is too cold, the batter can split apart. As long as you keep beating the mixture together, the dough should come together. If not, add a little bit of the flour from the next step when mixing.
- To transfer the cookie dough: Begin by folding the top half of the piping bag outwards so that a cuff is formed. Place your non-dominant hand inside of the cuff to support the piping bag. Spoon the dough into the bag. Unfold the cuff and use a straight edge (e.g. a ruler or bench scraper) to push all of the batter down to the tip of the bag and eliminate any air bubbles. Then, twist the bag at the end. Pinch that twisted end between your thumb and the rest of your fingers. Squeeze the bag while keeping the end of the bag twisted to start piping the cookies.
