Old Fashioned Christmas Butter Cookies
Christmas butter cookies should be full of real butter, and these hit the mark every time! Perfect for cookie boxes, platters and gifting, they're a Christmas cookie I'd never be without.
Servings: 24 medium cookies
Calories: 129kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 3/4 cup superfine sugar caster sugar
- ½ tsp fine salt
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plain flour, sifted
- 3 Tbsp coarse sugar optional, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300°F/150°C, conventional setting (no steam!). Line a couple of cookie sheets or baking trays with parchment and set aside.
- Put the butter, sugar and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until it's soft and creamy (you don't need to beat the butter until it's really fluffy, as this will make your cookies spread and be too delicate). The time this takes can vary depending on how soft your butter is, and how strong your mixer is. It takes 2-3 minutes in my KitchenAid.1 cup unsalted butter, 3/4 cup superfine sugar, ½ tsp fine salt
- While the butter and sugar are creaming, sieve the all-purpose/plain flour into a bowl.2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- Add 3/4 of the flour to the butter mixture, mixing on low speed to combine. You're looking for a soft but cohesive mass; not too crumbly but not greasy and squishy either. If needed, add the last 1/4 of the flour a spoonful at a time until you get the right consistency.2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- When the flour has been added and the dough just comes together, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly just until it’s smooth.
- For cut-out cookies or stamped cookies, roll portions of dough out between two sheets of parchment paper to your desired thickness. I like larger shapes to be about 3/8"/1cm thick and smaller shapes 1/2"/6mm thick. Remove the top sheet of parchment and either cut out or stamp cookies. If you're finding the dough is too soft to cut clean shapes, refrigerate it for 15 minutes before cutting.
- Place cut out shapes on lined trays, leaving ½”/1½ cm between each cookie. If you want traditional Danish-style butter cookies, brush a little egg wash or water on the cookies and sprinkle with coarse sugar crystals.3 Tbsp coarse sugar
- Bake the butter cookies until firm to the touch and just beginning to color at the edges. This can take anywhere from 15-25 minutes, depending on their size.
- Cool the cookies on the baking trays for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. When completely cool, store in an airtight container. If you haven't sprinkled them with sugar, these cookies can be decorated with royal icing or fondant.
Notes
- The number of cookies this recipe makes will vary depending on the size and shapes of cutters you choose. The quantity here makes about two dozen medium sized cookies for me.
- Butter cookies will keep for about a week, sealed at room temperature, or can be frozen, undecorated, for up to 6 months if well wrapped.
- If you plan to decorate your cookies, do not freeze them after decorating as they can turn soft when thawed.
Nutrition
Calories: 129kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 50mg | Potassium: 15mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 236IU | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 1mg
