Good old fashioned butter cookies are hard to beat! These holiday staples are delicious any time of the year and the best part is the dough can be made months ahead and baked of for an amazing on demand treat! I love the simple flavors and perfect crumb of the cookie. They’re light and not too sweet so I can eat them en mass and still have a skip in my step.
How to Soften butter quickly
If you forgot to leave your butter out on the counter for a few hours don’t worry! Pop it into the microwave for a 10 second burst at 50 percent power. Turn the sticks over and repeat once or twice until the butter has softened.
If you don’t want to use the microwave try filling a glass with very how water, dump the water out and place upside down on your counter over a stick of butter. In about 15 minutes your butter should be pretty close to room temperature.
How to make Butter Cookies
1. Measure the flour, use a scale if possible but if you don’t have one make sure to fluff your flour and spoon it into your measuring cup. Add the room temperature butter to the bowl of your stand mixer.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together until lighter in color and fluffy in consistency.
3. Add the egg yolks and mix until fully combined.
4. Add the flour and mix until just incorporated.
5. Roll the cookie dough into a log and wrap in parchment paper or plastic wrap. Chill for at least an hour. The dough can be frozen for two months or refrigerated for a week. If frozen transfer to refrigerator to thaw for a few hours before using.
6. Roll the chilled dough in sanding sugar (optional). Cut into slices and bake until just turning golden at edge.
Pro Tips for Making Butter Cookies
- Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake. The best, and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale. If you don’t have one then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off.
- Sanding sugar gives a nice crunch to the edge but it’s totally optional. You can skip or use regular granulated sugar as a replacement.
- For a crisper cookie leave the baking sheet in the oven, turned off and the door cracked slightly open after baking. This will help dehydrate the cookies further to that butter cookie out of the tin crunch.
- This recipe can be used for cut out cookies. Just form the dough into a disk, wrap and chill then roll out to 1/4 inch, cut and bake.
- Use a good vanilla for this recipe. It’s one of the stand out flavors here so you don’t want to use the artificial stuff.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the Best Butter to use for these cookies?
I always recommend using unsalted butter when baking. Not because you don’t want salt but because each brand of butter will add different amounts of salt to their product. The best way to control the ingredient is to add the salt yourself.
A butter made from the milk of cows allowed to graze on grass will in my opinion have a nicer more buttery taste but use any brand you love.
Why should you chill cookie dough?
Chilling the dough intensifies flavors and dehydrates the dough giving you a more flavorful cookie that will better hold it’s shape in the oven. The cookies spread less as the fats are hardened and take longer to melt in the oven.
IF YOU LOVE THESE COOKIES TRY SOME OF THESE RECIPES OUT!
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
If you’ve tried this butter cookie recipe then don’t forget to leave a rating and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Butter Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (240g)
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened (227g)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100g)
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup sanding sugar or coarse sugar (66g)
Instructions
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the egg yolks and vanilla, and mix until combined. Stop and scrape down sides of the bowl during mixing.
- Add in the flour mixture and mix on low speed just until incorporated. Dump the dough out onto the counter (the dough will be soft. Flour the surface and your hands as needed. Knead it a few times until the dough comes together into a single, solid ball. Shape it into a long shape, about 12 inches long.
- Place it on a sheet of parchment paper or plastic, wrap it tightly and twist the ends to seal. Chill it in the refrigerator for at least an hour or up to 72 hours. (I've found the best way to keep the dough from flattening out on the bottom is to pop it into an empty cardboard paper towel roll.)
- Once the dough is chilled, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Sprinkle sanding sugar on a clean surface or a rimming baking sheet. Unwrap the dough and roll the dough in the sugar until it is well coated. (Roll while pressing the dough down so the sugar sticks to the surface.)
- Use a sharp knife to cut dough into slices about ¾-inch thick. Place the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet about an inch apart.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edge is JUST turning golden brown. Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheets.
Notes
- Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake. The best, and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale. If you don't have one then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off.
- Sanding sugar gives a nice crunch to the edge but it's totally optional. You can skip or use regular granulated sugar as a replacement.
- For a crisper cookie leave the baking sheet in the oven, turned off and the door cracked slightly open after baking. This will help dehydrate the cookies further to that butter cookie out of the tin crunch.
- This recipe can be used for cut out cookies. Just form the dough into a disk, wrap and chill then roll out to 1/4 inch, cut and bake.
- Use a good vanilla for this recipe. It's one of the stand out flavors here so you don't want to use the artificial stuff.
Darla says
I had never tried making butter cookies before but now I have made these three times. The texture is so perfect, the recipe so balanced. Highly recommend this scrumptious recipe.