Southern Tea Cakes for Two

In a medium bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla, egg yolk and milk. Beat well.

Whisk together the flour, salt and baking soda in a small bowl. Pour 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter mixture and beat until just combined. Add another 1/3 of the flour and continue beating lightly. Finally, add the last of the flour and beat until just combined—do not overmix.

Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly flour a work surface and dump the dough out onto it. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a ¼” rectangle and cut out 4 circles with a 2 ½” round cookie or biscuit cutter. Reroll the scraps to get 2 more cookies.

Place cookies a greased baking sheet, sprinkle them lightly with sugar and freshly grated nutmeg, and bake for 9 minutes. The cookies should not have any brownness around the edges; they will be puffed in the middle. Cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before moving to wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy with tea.