Sugar Cookie Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¾ cup granulated sugar, plus extra for rolling
• 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and airy, about 2 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour and salt together. In a small bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, egg yolks and vanilla.
3. With the mixer turned to medium-low speed, alternate adding the flour mixture with the cream mixture in three batches, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
4. Turn half of the dough out onto a large sheet of plastic wrap and pat it into a 1-inch-thick disk. Wrap tightly and repeat with the remaining dough. Refrigerate the discs until firm, at least 2 hours.
5. Preheat the oven to 375°. Generously sprinkle your work surface with sugar, unwrap one chilled dough disc and place it on the sugar. Let the dough warm up for 5 to 10 minutes (depending on how warm your kitchen is). Sprinkle the top with sugar and roll into a 1/8-inch-thick sheet. Use a cookie cutter to stamp out shapes. Using an offset spatula, transfer the cookies to a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet. Gather the scraps of dough and reroll into a sheet, then stamp out as many cookies as you can (discard the scraps after this round of rolling).
6. Bake the cookies until golden-brown around the edges, about 14 minutes, rotating the pan midway through baking. Remove from the oven and cool 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.