The electricity in my apartment went out last night, and I was worried that everything in the fridge would spoil. Great, I thought. There goes all the meat, the dairy, and even the green tea cookie dough I had just prepared when the lights went out.

When I checked this morning, sure enough all the leftovers in the fridge compartment had to be tossed out. But miraculously, everything in the freezer was well preserved, including the ice cubes which didn't seem to have melted at all. And the green tea cookie dough, with a little thawing, was ready to go into the oven.

I based this recipe off Apartment Therapy's Earl Grey Tea Cookies. I forgoed the bigger bits of tea leaves. The great thing about these cookies is that you can shape them easily. I chilled my dough as a square block instead of a roll, and added some criss-cross designs on half the batch. You can also roll out the dough after chilling and use cookie cutters.

"With the buttery crunch of a sophisticated shortbread, these are dangerously addictive," says Apartment Therapy. How true, how true. Enjoy these with tea, coffee, or warm milk. You can bake these with or without sprinkling some extra sugar on top; with extra sugar gives a nice contrast to the earthy green tea flavor.

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Other cookie recipes to try:

Goji Oatmeal-Almond Cookies
Orange-Almond Lace Cookies

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Green Tea Cookies
Adapted from Apartment Therapy's Earl Grey Tea Cookies

Makes 2 dozen

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup powdered (confectioners') sugar
1 tablespoon green tea (matcha) powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon water
1/2 cup unsalted butter, chopped into small cubes
1/2 to 1 cup extra sugar for coating

Preheat oven to 375 F. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a food processor. Add vanilla, water, and butter. Pulse together until a dough forms. Roll the dough into a log onto a piece of wax or parchment paper. Wrap the paper around and shape the log until it is smooth (round or squarish, whichever your preference.) Chill for at least 30 minutes if you're planning on baking immediately, or freeze the dough until you're ready to bake.

When chilled, slice the log into 1/3 inch thick pieces. Sprinkle the top of each cookie with sugar, or dip each cookie in a bowl of sugar to coat all around. Place on baking sheets and bake until the edges are just brown, about 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks.

The dough will keep in freezer for a few months, so you can slice off just a few cookies to bake at a time.