Monday, December 8, 2025

Shortbread Cutout Cookies

A no-chill cookie.

  • 16 tablespoons (226 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup (130 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ¼ teaspoons fine salt
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 1/2 cups (325 g) all-purpose flour
  • Granulated sugar, for sprinkling
  • Preheat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the center and line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

  1. Add the softened butter, sugar, vanilla, salt, and baking powder to your mixer bowl and beat on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. 
  2. Scrape the bowl and mix again until evenly combined. 
  3. Add the flour all at once and mix on low, stopping once to scrape the bowl, until a crumbly dough begins to form, about one minute. 
  4. Use your hands to press and knead the dough in the bowl until it is smooth.
  5. Divide the dough in half and roll out between two sheets of parchment (or on the counter dusted lightly with powdered sugar) until ¼” thick. 
  6. Cut out cookies and transfer to the lined pan. Re-roll the scraps and continue cutting out cookies. 
  7. Place similar-sized cookies together on the sheet pan so that they bake evenly (small cookies will brown more quickly than larger cookies.)
  8. Bake one tray at a time until light golden brown (or as toasty as you like), about 16-20 minutes. Cool on the pan before removing.

NOTE: Yes, the salt amount is correct. It is what makes these simple cookies so flavorful.