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Christmas Butter Cookies

Christmas butter cookies are rolled, cut into holiday shapes, and baked until their edges just begin to turn golden. Chilling the dough makes it easier to handle and helps the cookies keep their shape.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Chilling and cooling 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 42 minutes
Servings: 30 cookies
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 108
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 0.67 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 egg large
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2.25 cups all-purpose flour
  • 0.5 tsp fine salt

Equipment

  • 1 18x13-inch baking sheet
  • 1 electric mixer

Method
 

  1. Heat the oven to 350°F.
  2. Line an 18x13-inch baking sheet with parchment paper.
  3. Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until creamy and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
  4. Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined.
  5. Add the flour and salt, mixing on low just until a soft dough forms.
  6. Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a disk.
  7. Wrap the disks and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  8. Roll one disk between two sheets of parchment to 1/4-inch thickness.
  9. Cut out 2- to 3-inch holiday shapes.
  10. Transfer the shapes to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch apart.
  11. Repeat with the remaining dough, rerolling scraps as needed.
  12. Bake one batch at a time for 9–12 minutes, until the edges are just beginning to turn golden.
  13. Cool the baking sheet completely between batches.
  14. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes.
  15. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes

For clean shapes, keep the dough chilled while working and reroll scraps as needed. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months. For a gluten-free option, use a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour blend.