Slice and Bake Butter Cookies
A holiday cookie dough rolling in sweet, buttery flavor.
Servings: 2 dozen cookies or so
Ingredients
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose or cake flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons powdered sugar (10x)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 pound (8 tablespoons or 1 stick) cool unsalted butter, cubed
- zest of one lemon, optional
Instructions
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, powdered sugar, and salt. Add the cubed butter and process until everything is even crumbles. The texture will be like lightly-moistened sand.
- Add the egg yolk, water, vanilla extract, and lemon zest (if using). Mix in the food processor until the dough comes together in a large ball. It is ok if there is a little loose dough, but it should be a cohesive ball. If the dough seems too crumbly, add an additional teaspoon of water and mix.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean, lightly-floured surface. Knead it a few times into a smooth ball. Do not overwork the dough.
- Shape the dough into a log about 1.5" in diameter and 10" to 11" in length. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill fully, at least two hours or up to two days.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two cookie sheets with parchment. Remove the plastic wrap from the chilled dough. If you'd like, lightly brush the outside of the log with egg and roll the log in sugar or colored sprinkles of your choice. PRO TIP: If you want to use a variety of sprinkles (or make the log less unwieldy), just subdivide it into smaller logs and egg wash and roll each of those, respectively.
- Slice the dough into 1/4" rounds. Place each slice on the cookie sheets, leaving about an inch of space between each.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until very light golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring the cookies to a cooling rack. The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to two weeks.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information is provided for courtesy purposes only, and is an estimate not verified by medical or nutrition experts. Read the full nutrition disclaimer.
