Cinnamon Star Cutouts

November. Ava is six weeks old and has already changed the gravity of the family. Every conversation eventually returns to her. Every visit to Emma's apartment involves holding her. Every photo on my phone is of her sleeping, eating, or making a face that I interpret as genius and Emma interprets as gas. We are both right.

Started thinking about Thanksgiving. This year will be the first with Ava, which makes it the most important Thanksgiving in the history of Thanksgivings (I am aware this is not an objective statement; I am also aware that I do not care). The menu will be the usual: smoked turkey, brisket, Mai's spring rolls, thit kho. But this year James is adding goat pepper soup to the lineup — a Nigerian holiday dish that his mother makes — and Daniel's mother Lourdes is sending turon and bibingka. The table is becoming the United Nations again. Every year it gets more diverse. Every year it gets more us.

Mai has finished knitting the baby blanket. It's yellow and slightly uneven and it has what appears to be either a duck or a star in the center — it's hard to tell and I am not going to ask. She presented it to Ava on Saturday with the ceremony of a woman bestowing a family heirloom. Ava grabbed a corner and stuffed it in her mouth immediately, which Mai interpreted as approval. "She likes it," Mai said. "She doesn't know what it is," Emma said. "She likes it," Mai repeated, and that was the end of the conversation.

Made a big pot of phở bò — the classic, the original, the twelve-hour broth — because the weather has turned and pho weather is here. Charred ginger and onions, beef bones roasted until dark, star anise, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves. Simmered overnight. The house smelled like Saturday morning at Mai's when I was ten years old. The smell of home is the most powerful memory trigger that exists, and every time I make pho I am simultaneously forty-nine and ten, standing at the stove and standing at my mother's elbow, learning and knowing and becoming.

The overnight pot of phedf; bò had the house smelling of cinnamon and star anise for a full day—those same warm spices that mean November, cold weather, and every good thing I associate with my mother’s kitchen. After ladling out the last bowl and watching the broth disappear, I wanted to hold onto that smell a little longer. These Cinnamon Star Cutouts do exactly that: the cinnamon is front and center, the shape is a quiet nod to the star anise floating in the pot, and baking a batch in the days leading up to Thanksgiving felt like the right way to bridge the pho season and the holiday season that is already, somehow, already here.

Prep Time: 30 min (plus 1 hr chill) | Cook Time: 10 min | Total Time: 1 hr 40 min | Servings: 36 cookies

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp fine salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 tbsp whole milk
For the cinnamon glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2–3 tbsp whole milk
Cinnamon sugar, for finishing (optional)

Instructions

Whisk the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, cardamom, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar together with a hand mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add egg and vanilla. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Combine. Add the flour mixture in two additions, alternating with the milk, mixing on low speed just until a soft dough forms. Do not overmix.
Chill the dough. Divide the dough in half, flatten each half into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days).
Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll and cut. On a lightly floured surface, roll one dough disk to about 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out stars with a 2 1/2-inch star-shaped cookie cutter and transfer to the prepared baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Re-roll scraps once. Repeat with the second disk.
Bake. Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the oven for 9–11 minutes, until the edges are just set and the bottoms are very lightly golden. Do not overbake — they firm up as they cool. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
Make the glaze. Whisk together the powdered sugar, cinnamon, and 2 tbsp milk until smooth. Add the remaining tablespoon of milk a little at a time until the glaze is thick but pourable.
Glaze and finish. Drizzle or spread glaze over each cooled cookie. Dust lightly with cinnamon sugar if desired. Allow glaze to set for 20 minutes before serving or storing.

Nutrition (per serving)

Cinnamon Star Cutouts — The Spice That Brings Me Home