Ingredients (~20 cookies)
- 1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/8 cups (140g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
Make the Dough and Chill for 1 Hour
In a large bowl, beat the room-temperature butter and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy; this should take ~2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat until they are just combined.
Add the all-purpose flour and salt, and mix on low speed until a thick, uniform dough forms. The dough will be quite stiff.
Form the dough into a disc, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour.
Roll, Cut, and Bake at 350F for ~10 Minutes
Preheat your oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to about 1/4-inch thickness. Use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes and place them about an inch apart on the prepared baking sheet – they won’t spread much.
For cookies that hold their shape perfectly, you can place the baking sheet with the cut-out cookies in the freezer for ~10-15 minutes before baking.
Bake for ~9-11 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden. Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
Ingredients (~20 cookies)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 113g, room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar 100g
- 1 large egg yolk room temperature
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/8 cups all-purpose flour 140g
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
- Mix in egg yolk and vanilla until just combined.
- Add flour and salt, mix on low until stiff dough forms.
- Shape into disc, wrap in plastic, refrigerate 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350F and line baking sheet with parchment.
- Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness on floured surface.
- Cut shapes and place 1 inch apart on baking sheet.
- Optional: freeze cut cookies 10-15 minutes before baking.
- Bake 9-11 minutes until edges are lightly golden.
- Cool on pan 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack.
