Delicious vanilla bean flavored shortbread cookies made with only four ingredients! The perfect holiday cookie recipe to share with friends and family.
ingredient
- 14 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to 60 to 65°F (16 to 18ºC)
- ½ cup granulated sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste, or pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, or gluten-free flour
Directions
- Cream the Butter – In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix butter and sugar on low speed to combine, then increase to medium speed until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and mix in the vanilla.
- Fold in Flour – On the lowest speed, mix in the flour to combine, then increase the speed to medium until the dough begins to cling to the paddle and no longer looks dry. Do not wait for it to form a solid mass.
- Chill the Dough – Transfer the dough to a board and gently knead it together. Put the dough on a large piece of plastic wrap and shape it into a rectangle ½ to ¾" thick. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Roll Out the Dough – Let the dough soften slightly, so it does not crack or break on the edges when rolling, for about 5 to 10 minutes. Roll out between two sheets of parchment paper to about ¼" thick.
- Cut Out Shapes – Using a 2 ½" round fluted cookie cutter, cut out about 30 cookies and transfer them to two parchment paper lined sheet pans, leaving 1" space between cookies. Refrigerate for 15 minutes to allow the dough to chill before baking. Sprinkle the cookies with sugar.
- The remaining trimmings can be pressed together and re-rolled only once for additional cookies.
- Preheat the Oven – Set the oven racks to the lower-middle and upper-middle position. Preheat to 350°F (177ºC).
- Bake – Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, switching the position and rotating the sheets halfway through. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes on the sheet pan to firm the cookies up.
- Let Them Cool – Transfer cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.
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