Mrs. Lee's Rolled Shortbread Cookies
A buttery shortbread with a richer, more tender crumb than typical sugar cookies, based on an 1832 recipe.
Ingredients
all-purpose flour
2 cups
granulated sugar
2/3 cup
unsalted butter (cold, cubed)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons
egg yolk
1 large
light cream
1 1/2 tablespoons
vanilla extract
2 teaspoons
salt
1/4 teaspoon
Instructions
1
Mix dry ingredients with butter
In a large bowl, thoroughly combine the flour and sugar. Cut the butter into the flour mixture using a fork, pastry cutter, or fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
2
Combine wet ingredients and form dough
In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk, cream, vanilla, and salt with a fork until smooth and well blended. Stir the egg yolk mixture into the flour mixture, then knead until evenly distributed.
3
Roll out and chill
Divide the dough in half. Place each portion between two large sheets of parchment paper. Roll each portion of dough into a 1/8-inch-thick round; check the underside of the dough and smooth out any wrinkles that form. Stack the rolled dough (still attached to the paper) on a baking sheet. Chill for 30 minutes, or until cooled and firm, or freeze for about 15 minutes to speed chilling.
4
Preheat the oven
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Grease or spray several baking sheets with nonstick spray.
5
Cut out cookies
Work with one portion of dough at a time, keeping the rest chilled. Gently peel off one sheet of parchment and pat it back into place. Flip the dough over, then peel off and discard the second sheet of paper. Cut out cookies using a 2 1/2-inch fluted round cutter or other shapes. (If the dough becomes too soft to handle at any point, transfer the paper and cookies to a baking sheet and chill or freeze until firm again.) Use a spatula to carefully transfer the cookies to the baking sheets, spacing them about 1 1/2 inches apart. Re-roll the dough scraps. Continue cutting cookies until all the dough is used up.
6
Bake
Bake one sheet at a time, placing in the middle third of the oven, for 9 to 13 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Turn the baking sheet front to back once halfway through baking to ensure even heating. Immediately transfer the cookies to a wire rack using a spatula. Let stand until completely cooled.
