Slice-and-Bake Butter Cookies

These classic butter cookies are as easy as they are tasty. There’s just something about the process of rolling a log of butter cookie dough in a giant plate of sprinkles and then slicing the log into rounds. Share them, gift them or keep them all to yourself – I won’t judge!

1. Prepare the dry ingredients. In a medium-sized bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugar. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and continue beating until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Pro Tip: Creaming the butter and sugar to the point where it’s light and fluffy is the key to the most tender, chewy butter cookies. I aim for about 3 minutes of beating in a stand mixer at medium speed. Whether you’re using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, the visual clue is that the mixture will look almost aerated as the sugar dissolves within the butter and fluffs up.

 

3. Incorporate wet ingredients. Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each addition, then add the vanilla.
4. Combine dry and wet ingredients. Turn off the mixer. Gradually add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat just until combined, ensuring not to overmix.

5. Shape and chill dough. Divide the dough in half then shape each piece of dough into a log. Wrap each dough log securely in plastic wrap and refrigerate them for 1 hour and up to a week.

6. Optional sprinkle coating. Remove the dough logs from the fridge and roll each log in sprinkles if desired, adding a festive touch to your cookies.

7. Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
8. Slice and freeze on baking sheets for 10 minutes. Working with one log at a time, slice into 1/4-inch rounds. Arrange the dough on the prepared baking sheets and place in the freezer. This step ensures they hold their shape during baking.