Christmas Butter Cookies

This vintage recipe has basic, simple ingredients that deliver an EPIC, buttery taste that just can't be beat! Grab your rolling pin, favorite cookie cutters, and sprinkles and follow along to make these signature Christmas Butter Cookies--my most requested cookie recipe each holiday season. No Christmas cookie tin or cookie exchange is ever complete without them!

Why We Love It

This classic butter cookie recipe was created in my grandmother's kitchen many years ago before cookie mixes and refrigerated cookie dough existed. It is absolutely the BEST homemade butter cookie recipe I've ever tasted.

The homemade dough is rolled out on the counter and uses a good old fashioned rolling pin and cookie cutters to create a variety of fun and festive shapes. The end result is second to none and is well worth the effort.

Friends and family always look forward to these Christmas Butter Cookies, which are decorated a little different each year, making them fun and unique--especially when my kids get involved! Everyone loves the buttery, sweet bliss that comes along with each delicious bite. And each decorated cookie becomes a work of art--a personal creation to savor and enjoy.

With butter, sugar, vanilla, eggs, flour, baking powder and salt, it's hard to find a more basic set of ingredients. Crisp on the edges, but soft and buttery in the middle, these cookies taste great even before they're decorated. So simple and classic, this Christmas Butter Cookies recipe truly is a family treasure.

Why You'll Love It

Basic ingredients- This simple, classic recipe uses basic pantry staples that you most likely already have on hand. Easy to prepare- Mix the dough by hand or use a stand mixer. Then freeze the dough for one hour to firm it up. After that, you're ready to roll and cut! Traditional recipe- Let's face it, baked goods made from scratch taste better. I'm all for shortcuts and think refrigerated dough is great in a pinch, but when it comes to superb taste and creating something special, a classic homemade cookie dough is always better. Highly customizable- This recipe is open to your customization. Use your favorite shapes, decorating icings and sprinkles. Get the kids involved too! Kids love to help with cookie cutters, and my kids always look forward to helping me decorate these cookies. This recipe can also be used for a variety of holidays--just switch out the cookie cutters and decorating colors and you're good to go!

Looking for more easy recipes for the holidays? Check out Christmas Bark, Classic Peanut Brittle, Peanut Clusters, Creamy Marshmallow Fudge and Candied Mixed Nuts!

Christmas Butter Cookies FAQ

Do Butter Cookies spread when baking? While that typically happens with butter cookies, I find that it doesn't happen much with this recipe--and I've been making these for years. (Freezing the dough before working with it definitely helps with this.) The fact that the cookies don't really spread comes in handy when arranging them on the pan--you don't have to allow for much additional space between the cookies. What is the difference between a butter cookie and a sugar cookie? While both of these cookies contain butter, sugar cookies typically have a higher ratio of flour to butter. As a result, sugar cookies are easier to roll and cut after just being mixed. But sugar cookies aren't as rich in flavor. Butter cookie dough, because of its higher ratio of butter to flour, needs to firm up before being worked with. After baking, butter cookies are typically crisp on the edges and have a more distinct, rich, buttery taste. Many bakers choose not to decorate them with icing, saying that they already have a great flavor, but I say a little decorating never hurt anyone! I enjoy the buttery flavor along with the festive, tasty decor! What is the best butter for butter cookies? Ultimately, it's a personal preference, though I would stick to a high quality brand name. I use salted, brand name butter and the cookies always come out great.

Christmas Butter Cookies Ingredients

Please note that the number of cookies made from this recipe is determined by the sizes of cookie cutters used.

• 1 & 1/2 sticks butter, melted
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 2 & 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

Decorating options can include cookie icing, sparkle gel, holiday sprinkles and holiday M&M's--See Decorating Tips for more info

How to Make Christmas Butter Cookies

You'll want to gather the following equipment:

• Small, microwaveable bowl
• Large mixing bowl
• Small mixing bowl
• Medium mixing bowl
• Measuring cups
• Measuring spoons
• Sturdy, large mixing spoon
• Parchment paper
• Rolling pin
• Cookie cutters
• Spatula
• Large, rimmed nonstick cookie sheets or jelly roll pans
• Wire cooling racks

Getting Started

Melt the butter in a microwaveable dish; then pour it into a large mixing bowl. Add the sugar and vanilla and mix well.

In a separate, small mixing bowl, slightly beat the eggs; then add to the large mixing bowl. Mix well.

Mix the flour, salt and baking powder together in a separate bowl; then fold half of this mixture into the contents of the large mixing bowl. Mix well; then add the other half of the flour mixture and thoroughly mix.

The mixture will be thick; stir several times with a sturdy mixing spoon to make sure it is fully incorporated.

Cover the bowl and place it in the freezer for 1 hour so it firms up. Please do not skip this step or the dough will be very difficult to work with!

After 1 hour, remove the bowl from the freezer. Allow it to sit on the counter for about 5 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare your workspace for rolling out the dough. Place a large piece of parchment paper on your table or counter. You may find it helpful to sprinkle a light dusting of flour on the parchment paper for easier rolling.

Scoop out roughly one third of the dough from the bowl and place it in the center of the parchment paper. Flatten it slightly with your hands; then use the rolling pin to smooth it out and flatten it to about 1/4 inch thickness. Work from the middle of the dough and roll out towards the edges, lifting the rolling pin up and away from the dough before starting again in the center. Smooth out any air bubbles.

Tips for Christmas Butter Cookies Success

When rolling out the dough, you want to aim for a uniform 1/4 inch thickness all around. If you feel that the dough is rolled out too thin, reform it into a ball and start over. If your dough is too thick, the cookies will become cake-like and you won't yield as many from the batter. If your dough is too thin, the cookies will be hard to transfer to the pan and will get too brown and crisp when baking. Take time to make sure the dough is the same thickness on all sides before using cookie cutters. Otherwise, some cookies will be thicker than others, which will affect the baking time and results. It's sometimes helpful to have a light dusting of flour on your work surface as well as on the rolling pin so that the dough doesn't stick. If the dough is becoming difficult to work with (because it's getting too soft), re-cover your bowl and place it back in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes so it firms up again. This is especially helpful if you double the recipe.

Once the dough is about 1/4 inch thick all around, use cookie cutters to create shapes. Transfer the cookies either by hand or with a spatula to a nonstick baking pan. The cookies need to be spaced about 1/2 inch apart on the pan.

Use leftover scraps from the workspace and incorporate them into the next batch of dough that is rolled. Repeat the above steps until all of the dough is made into cookies.

Once a pan is full with cookies, bake it in the oven on the middle rack for 10-12 minutes. The cookies are done when they are slightly brown around the edges and puffed up a little in the center. I recommend only baking one sheet at a time--do not use multiple racks. When one sheet is done, put the next one in.

Allow cookies to cool on the pan for 1-2 minutes; then use a spatula to carefully transfer them to a wire rack. Failing to remove them from the pan within this timeframe may cause baked cookies to break and/or stick to the pan.

Decorating Tips for Christmas Butter Cookies

Before you begin decorating, it's important to make sure that the butter cookies have cooled completely. At a bare minimum, you should allow an hour before starting. Have a variety of colors, icings and decorative accents. I used to make my own icing, but have found so many great, squeezable products these days that taste great, look pretty and save time. I use a variety of cookie icings and gels (I especially like the sparkle versions). I also buy a variety of sprinkles in terms of shape and color. You don't have to break the bank with these options either. A certain, large brick and mortar retailer has a great selection in their own brand of may decorating gels and sprinkles to choose from, as pictured above! Less is more and vary it up. Start out with simple designs and take it from there. Remember, these Christmas Butter Cookies have a rich foundation to begin with, so you don't need to overdo it with the icing. Decorative accents, like sprinkles and mini M&M's, add a nice touch. Be sure to place them on shortly after applying the icing so that they stick. This is especially important when using cookie icing, which has a lot of cornstarch in it and therefore sets very quickly. Allow ample time for cookie decorations to set. The time will vary, but I usually have my decorated cookies sit out for a few hours just to err on the side of caution. Sometimes I put them back on the cooled cookie sheets so that they're easy to move. Make sure decorated cookies are not stacked on top of each other during the setting process. Back↑

Storing Christmas Butter Cookies

Store in an airtight container and keep on your counter. Enjoy within one week.

Decorated cookies will typically last longer than undecorated ones due to their iced coating.

Use parchment paper in between layers of cookies to prevent them from sticking to each other.

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