Favorite Butter Cookies
Submitted by mandros
Classic butter cookies with a hint of orange juice and vanilla, rolled and cut into shapes, then topped with a creamy buttercream frosting. A versatile holiday cookie perfect for decorating.
YIELD
3 dozenPREP
20 minCOOK
6 minREADY
2 hrsThese are the roll-and-cut butter cookies you want in your holiday rotation. The dough is rich with a full cup of butter, subtly brightened by orange juice, and fragrant with a generous tablespoon of vanilla. After chilling, it rolls out smooth and clean, holding whatever cookie cutter shape you throw at it.
The two-hour chill is not optional. Warm butter cookie dough sticks to everything, stretches out of shape, and spreads in the oven. Cold dough rolls thin, cuts sharp, and bakes into cookies that hold their edges.
The buttercream frosting is a simple powdered sugar and butter base thinned with milk to whatever consistency you need. Color it, pipe it, spread it, or skip it entirely and let the buttery cookie speak for itself.
Pro Tips
- Roll out one-third of the dough at a time and keep the rest refrigerated. It warms up fast
- Roll to ¼ inch for a cookie with some substance. Thinner will crisp up more
- Bake just until the edges show the faintest hint of gold. Overbaked butter cookies taste dry
- Cool completely before frosting or the buttercream melts right off
Variations
- Tint portions of the dough with food coloring before chilling for multicolored cookies
- Sprinkle with colored sanding sugar before baking instead of frosting
- Add a teaspoon of almond extract alongside the vanilla for a nuttier flavor
Ingredients
Directions
In large mixer bowl combine all cookie ingredients.
Beat at low speed scraping bowl often until well mixed (1 to 2 minutes).
Cover, refrigerate at least 2 hours.
Heat oven to 400℉ (200℃).
On lightly floured surface roll out dough, one-third at a time to ¼ inch thickness.
Cut with 3-inch cookie cutters.
Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheets.
Bake for 6 to 10 minutes or until edges arelightly browned.
Cool completely.
Frosting: In a small mixer bowl combine all frosting ingredients except milk.
Beat at low speed, gradually adding enough milk for desired spreading consistency.
Frost cooled cookies.
For variety: divide dough into thirds before refrigeration.
Color ⅔ of dough with desired food colorings.
Before baking, colored sugars may be sprinkled on the cookies.
The frosting can be colored and used as decoration.
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